I left my
watch behind, before I headed to the airport. A mechanism, if you will, to
defend against the Malawi way of life - in which clock watching and expecting
that anything will run even remotely on schedule is not just superfluous but
can frankly be downright stressful. "What we need is some Vitamin P,"
observed a fellow traveler, 2 flights and almost two dozen hours later, as
we shuffled into Lilongwe's airport and succumbed to the least efficient Visa
processing process imaginable, "P for Patience."
We all laughed, because laughter is a good sentiment to sprinkle on top when the main dish is getting cold. And getting cold it was, as obtaining a Visa via Malawi's new Visa Application system involved 4 (four) separate steps which took the form of 4 (four) separate lines on and off of which the Visa applicant had to snake. Let's just leave it at this: one line was the "sticker" line. And the stickers were, one by one, slowly being hand written.
Cynicism behind (or clearly not completely left behind), we have arrived in Malawi. As last time, we're spending our first night in Lilongwe, the capital, and will head up north tomorrow. Its early, but I'm actually already in bed, the thin blue of my mosquito net draped neatly around me. Not to brag, but I'm a pretty experienced mosquito net handler now; it feels like just yesterday I was last here, though, mastering this skill. In reality, it's been three years. Back now, with my senses tuned in, more deeply preserved memories and mindsets are sprouting. You know what I mean, right? We have our go-to memories of an experience, the highlight reel, engraved into the circuitry of our minds, that we relive regularly and share with family and friends quite frequently. But then sometimes when you return to a place, unearthed is this whole other set of recollections. A subculture if you will. Without the metronome of a ticking watch, it's exciting to know we'll be creating more.
Kinda forgetting how to write but looking forward to relearning,
Rebecca
We all laughed, because laughter is a good sentiment to sprinkle on top when the main dish is getting cold. And getting cold it was, as obtaining a Visa via Malawi's new Visa Application system involved 4 (four) separate steps which took the form of 4 (four) separate lines on and off of which the Visa applicant had to snake. Let's just leave it at this: one line was the "sticker" line. And the stickers were, one by one, slowly being hand written.
Cynicism behind (or clearly not completely left behind), we have arrived in Malawi. As last time, we're spending our first night in Lilongwe, the capital, and will head up north tomorrow. Its early, but I'm actually already in bed, the thin blue of my mosquito net draped neatly around me. Not to brag, but I'm a pretty experienced mosquito net handler now; it feels like just yesterday I was last here, though, mastering this skill. In reality, it's been three years. Back now, with my senses tuned in, more deeply preserved memories and mindsets are sprouting. You know what I mean, right? We have our go-to memories of an experience, the highlight reel, engraved into the circuitry of our minds, that we relive regularly and share with family and friends quite frequently. But then sometimes when you return to a place, unearthed is this whole other set of recollections. A subculture if you will. Without the metronome of a ticking watch, it's exciting to know we'll be creating more.
Kinda forgetting how to write but looking forward to relearning,
Rebecca
Can't wait to experience Malawi 2017 through your blog...with your acquired 'skills' of the past three years, imagine the adventure will be that much more special. Enjoy the bus to Mzuzu and beyond - and keep on blogging!
ReplyDelete