Big week part 2

I had had enough (part 2 big week)
On the way out of town we had to stop and get some gas. I had previously told you about the diesel crisis here, but just hitting the country was a new petrol crisis. Yep that’s right that means there just isn’t any gas left in Malawi. We went 9 gas stations before we found one that had petrol. By the time we found the one station that had petrol and got in line, my sun burn was kicking in. I was drained, I was tired, and I just wanted to go home. The thing that pushed me over the edge was that every time a car would pull forward, if the car in front of you was turned off then someone would pull around from the back and cut you and 5 other people in line. Oh it was so frustrating, just another way that Malawians show absolutely no respect and no regard for any type of rules(written or unwritten). Our driver, being the brilliant driver he was got into the wrong line, because our gas tank was on the opposite side of the car, so when it was our turn he had to pull out of line and reverse back to the pump. Let’s just say every other car in lot saw this and wanted our spot, including a giant mini-bus that want to pass through cutting us off. I would have none of that, I proceeded to get out of the car walk in front of that bus and stop until our driver had finally gotten the car to the pump. The bus kept honking in my face inching closer and closer and I just turned my back and acted like I was an oblivious mzungu, it worked out pretty well. I didn’t get run over and nobody thought I was intentionally blocking the bus, they thought I was just some stupid white person doing whatever I wanted. After we had waited almost an hour and finally got to the pump, three boys with jugs ran up to the pump and the lady just started filling them up, no wait, they just got gas. Our driver asked the lady why they got this privilege and se said they are her regular customers, that she sees them daily and we are a onetime customer who she will never see again, so they will never have to wait and that’s just how it is. Our driver felt the need to argue, because Malawians feel the need to argue about everything! It wasn’t going to change her mind, just piss her off. She probably gets a bribe from them he said when we were driving home, but the situation reminded me of a KEG PARTY. This gas crisis is like a college kegger at every station. There is a line out the back door to get to the keg. Everyone needs a refill and the line or resemblance of a line is a mess. If you know the guy pumping or pouring the cups, you can sneak up behind them and get a quick refill with no questions asked and if anyone says something to the pourer or pumper about it, then that person might as well just go to the back of the line, b/c that cup is not getting filled for a while. In Lilongwe, it was like being that random dude at a FRAT party. Yes you came with some girls you know or are a friend of someone in the frat, but you are still getting stared at by every dude there who is asking themselves who is that random dude with? It is an awkward situation and that is how I felt that day in this nation’s capital. On our drive home our bad luck didn’t stop. The roads were terrible, worse than the day before on our drive to Lilongwe. There was road construction going on for almost 150 km. Some of the road construction we had encountered the day before, like detours, but most of it was new. There were giant square cut-outs of the road just missing. No cone or marker around the hole, just holes. Each square was at least 3 feet by 3 feet and at least a meter deep. Needless to say if a small car drives over one of these going 80mph it could total the car and kill the driver. We found the road construction crew about 30 km from the first hole and they said they were going to go back and fix all the holes before they quit for the day, but it was already dusk, so the chances of that happening are as good as the chiefs winning out grabbing a wild card spot and making a run like the cardinals did last year. Two other things drivers need to be weary of in Malawi are animals in the road and other drivers. The drivers here take the phrase “aggressive” driver to a whole new level. There are only a few roads have more than one lane per side. On all the other roads it is like driving down to Springfield on 7(I think). It is just a scary experience with multiple cars weaving in and out of the lanes passing up to 4 cars at one time, and all this is going on in the middle of road side markets and cities where people are walking and biking on the shoulders all the time. Then you have huge trucks, bigger than semis that can one go like 5-10 miles an hour, and at any given time they will just break down in the middle of the road and sit there for days. Traveling by motor vehicle is one of the scariest things I have ever had to do. As I mentioned before besides the drivers, there are just animals all over the roads. Chickens, goats, sometimes cows, and a plethora of other interesting animals, and the drivers here will stop on a dime to avoid hitting any of the animals, because everyone knows that one chicken in the middle of the road could be a Malawians only source of income. You would think in this situation that that one person who owned the chicken or goat would take better care of it, but no, they just roam around freely until they are needed. On our way back from Lilongwe while trying to avoid the holes in the road, our driver was still doing around 100-120km/h when out of nowhere a goat pops out on the road. The driver hit the brakes and honked the horn, unfortunately for the goat he skipped out of our way and was demolished by the car behind us who hadn’t taken warning to our immediate stop and thought it was a good idea to swerve around us and pass us. Unfortunately for them, their stupidity stopped their journey from that moment on. One thing I do remember vividly about the car that hit the goat was it was a white, shiny, brand new land rover donated by the National Aids Commission in Malawi. Yes, the Malawians and mzungu that drive the white new land rovers are without a doubt the worst drivers on the road. They act like everyone should get out of their way and that the road and country belongs to them. Not a very big fan of those vehicles. In between all this commotion on the ride home I tried to get a nap in, because my stomach was acting up. I have no idea what it was, but Lawrence had the same problem so I’m guessing it was something we had eaten that morning. I got a call from Dad right as we were pulling off the road to get a drink and a snack. It was great to hear a familiar voice and talk for about a minute, but right at I glanced over and saw a toilet sign, my stomach felt like it was about to explode and so I had to quickly hang up the phone and waddle over to the paying toilets. 20MK per use. I was walked into the toilet, which was a hole in the ground no bigger than a roll of duck tape. There was no toilet, just the hole and the enclosed area was about the same size as the dugout holes on the road or 3 ft x 3 ft. There was no tp in the bathroom and at first glance I actually didn’t think that it was physically possible for me to pop a squat. I waddled back outside looking for another quick option, a lady popped out of a shack and said, “EWAY(you) 20 kwacha”, I handed her the money and said “toilet paper”. She looked at me and gave me a couple piece of tp and a quickly waddled back into the paying toilet and found a way to get the job done. It was my first paying roadside toilet and god almighty I hope it is my last. After what seemed like one of the longest days of my adult life, we finally made it back to Chilengoma. Stayed in the same room I had two nights before and loved it again. I used great internet that night and the next morning, and I went into town around 11:30. I met up with Lawrence and did a little shopping and eventually made it back to Amalika. By the way that was Thanksgiving Day, so that night I got to Skpye with dad and Cheryl. We talked on and off for a few hours which was really great, they had a webcam so I got to see familiar faces which was also a very bi g plus for me. Then early the next morning around 1:30 am I woke up and talked to my family for Thanksgiving. It was great to talk to everyone at my dad’s house and then talk to mom, Katie, and Adam who were in Augusta. I apologize if I have jumped around a little bit over these last few points. As I am sitting here writing there is such a crazy rain storm going on outside that the water has started flooding into my room. I never in a million years thought I would be barricading my door with any dirty clothes I could find to keep water out, in Africa! Surreal huh? The wind and rains are so strong that in 45 minutes it has flooded our entire hostel complex. We built a little walkway bridge out of wooden ladders going out of our hostel that was almost 6 inches off the ground and I can’t even see that right now, it has sunk! I hope that gives you a good idea of what TOTO really meant by the rains down in Africa. These rains are no joke. They come, they flood, and then they are gone just like that. When it wasn’t been raining it has gotten really hot. Last Sunday it was 40 degrees Celsius or 104 degrees Fahrenheit on my area. The hardest part about Malawi right now, is the heat. This is the hottest place I have even been, and it is supposed to be the coolest time of the year. Every time the sun hits you, you just feel a little bit weaker and start to move just a little bit slower. Hopefully this weather can even itself off in my last month here, but if not, now I know what to expect, and hey what am I complaining about at least it’s not 20 degrees and in stuck in a foot of snow. Happy Holidays everyone! There is talk of Santa coming to the school’s Christmas party, I wonder who is going to get stuck with that role?

Oh btw Obama bread is supposed to big and hard (tough) and osama bread is small and soft(weak). Just wanted to note that correction.