I came across this picture I took a few weeks back and it made me a little sad. Our home looks a lot different now, as we've given away all our houseplants and most of the books, along with lots of other things. I'm going to miss this wonky old house. Luckily we get to keep the big dog, best souvenir ever of an incredible two and a half years in Malawi. #rhodesianridgeback #healyhouse
With our departure from Malawi so close we can no longer deny it mental space, I’ve started to see some of the little things I will miss about life here. I’ll see or hear something and then feel sad, knowing that I’ll only experience that thing for a couple more weeks. Things like my chickens pecking around the yard, kids walking home from school in their uniforms, the woman who walks through our neighborhood selling produce and yelling “ONIONS AND TOMATOES,” and buying phone airtime from the lady by the Shoprite who raises her eyebrows in place of a verbal greeting. I will also miss the amazing plants in our yard, which have helped our house feel like a little paradise amidst busy, dusty Lilongwe.
Our second day at Majete began at 5am with a walking safari. We did our first ever walk in a game park on our trip to Liwonde National Park and both Kyle and I loved it. It’s a totally different perspective of the landscape and the animals and I love how you can really hear all the sounds of the bush. Sunrise is the best time for a walking safari, as all the animals are just waking and you can beat the sun. This morning, however, it was drizzling heavily so I opted to leave my camera behind. I’m glad I did because the drizzle turned into rain and we were all soaked by the time we made it back to the lodge! Despite the rain, we loved the walk and were able to see quite a few animals as well as some unique plants. The highlight was seeing four different species all grazing together on the airstrip within the park: zebra, warthogs, impala and waterbuck. A baby warthog was running circles around its mother and siblings and a young zebra began darting around the field, bucking and rearing up through the herd of grazers.
After drying off and changing clothes, we enjoyed an amazing breakfast and then took a nap in our big comfy bed. We were all tired from our early morning wake up so the nap felt amazing. Kyle and I read our books on the patio and enjoyed the view of the river below. Because every good vacation centers around food, we ate lunch and then ordered iced coffees, which were such a treat. On our game drive the day prior, we saw that there were a few “hides” around the park. A “hide” is basically a little fort built in an inconspicuous location where you can quietly sit and wait for animals to pass by or stop at a watering hole. One of the guides told us this was the best, albeit one of the most boring, ways to see animals, including rhinos. He suggested spending four or five hours at a hide, but we opted to spend about 45 minutes. While we didn’t see any rhinos, we got to watch a family of warthogs and a herd of waterbuck slowly meander into the watering hole for a drink and some bathing. It was fun to observe the animals without them being aware of us and to see more natural behavior.
After our time at the hide, we met our guide Jimmy back at the park gate for our boat safari. On our way to the river, we spotted some beautiful impala and zebra.
Our friends Andee and John are self-described boat people. Boats can make me a little nervous, but I will say that this cruise down the Shire was pretty relaxing, even with all the hippos and crocs in the water. The shoreline was beautiful and lush and great for spotting birds, which for us bird nerds is always exciting.
On our drive back from the river, we saw two male nyala who were having a dispute. The larger and older male was all puffed up with his back arched and the younger male was standing very tall. After a minute, the smaller male hunched down and slowly approached the other nyala in a very submissive position. The older nyala put his head on top of the young one, who then licked his superior as if to say “I’m sorry!” We had never seen anything like that before and even our guide was laughing the whole time because it was so interesting!
As far as “last hoorahs” go, this was a pretty great one! Being out in nature and having the chance to see such incredible animals is inspiring and calming even in the midst of our impending move. Kyle and I are starting to feel the stress of leaving this place that has become home for us and it was a gift to be able to detach from that for a few days and enjoy God and his creation with great friends. We were snapped back to the reality of our departure when we had to say goodbye to Andee and John. These guys have been such good friends to us and we will really miss them. We are so glad we got to spend some final quality time together and make some amazing memories.
Last weekend, Kyle and I traveled down south to Blantyre for what we called our “last hoorah.” It was our final holiday trip before we leave Malawi and it ended up being a multi-purpose adventure: visit Majete National Park, spend time with our good friends Andee and John and say good-bye to our church plant. It was a wonderful, though bittersweet few days.
We stayed at Ngona Lodge, which was just outside the national park. When you drive from Blantyre to Chikwawa, the town where Majete is located, you descend steeply into the Rift Valley and almost immediately you can feel the temperature rise. When we arrived at the lodge and got out of the car, we couldn’t believe how much warmer and more humid it was, after only an hour’s drive from mild Blantyre. The heat made the pool even more glorious than it already is with its view of the Shire River below.
After enjoying lunch and a swim, we entered the park for a game drive. Majete is “Big Five” Park, meaning it’s home to lions, leopards, rhinos, water buffalo and elephant. The park actually has 16 black rhinos, a population that started with rhinos brought over from Liwonde National Park in 2003, which is very exciting as rhinos are an endangered species. Unfortunately we didn’t see any while on safari, as they are a very shy animal, but was cool knowing they were “out there.” We did get to see lots of different species of antelope, quite a few elephant, baby warthogs, hippos and some zebras. Again we were reminded at what a gift these experiences are and how lucky we are to see such amazing animals and landscape with our own eyes.
There were quite a few baby animals, as this is the season for birthing. Warthogs aren’t typically the animal you put in the “cute” category (see photo of adult warthog above), but the baby ones were adorable! They were like little puppies running through the bush, dodging around and spinning playfully. If only they stayed this cute…
We are bird nerds, Kyle even more than me. To give you an idea of just how much of a bird nerd he is, I will tell you this story. Our guide Jimmy took us to a part of the park where some of the animals that don’t need to drink water frequently and therefore aren’t often found by the river or watering holes are sometimes spotted. Animals like rhinos, lions and sable antelope. This is a thickly forested area with a lot of grass so we were all very focused on spotting animals. As we are driving along, all of the sudden Kyle says “Whoa!” in a very excited and a bit too loud of voice. Our hearts jump and we are all thinking he’s seen a rhino and start frantically scanning to see it. We all ask him, “What was it?!” and he says, “A green bird! It was so beautiful!” We could not stop laughing and the hilarity made up for the false alarm letdown. Because we are bird nerds, we were very excited to see this amazing Giant Kingfisher, the first one we’ve ever seen! This is the largest kingfisher in Africa and though it might not look giant, it is huge compared to all the other kingfishers.
Besides being absolutely massive, this elephant was completely unfazed by our presence. We watched him walk toward us through the bush and then rather than change his trajectory, he continued straight ahead, walking so close to our Land Rover that we nearly could have reached out and touched him. His body filled the entire view through the frame of the truck’s roof. He was so calm and took his time lumbering across the road. This was definitely the closest I’ve ever seen an elephant! You could see the details of his eye and his eyelashes. It felt very surreal!
Two Sundays ago Flood Lilongwe got to celebrate the baptism of seven young people! Baptisms are very exciting and always make me tear up because of the beauty and transformation it represents. It was really cool to start the year off with a powerful visual of God’s redemptive work in our lives.
I've become hooked on this green tea with mint while living in Malawi. It's the first thing I do after getting out of bed each morning. I just to figure out how much I can fit in my suitcase to bring home mext month... #satemwatea #malawitea
Kyle and I were so lucky to spend three days on the magical Zomba Plateau in the south of Malawi. This place is a dream! We spent a few days in Zomba earlier this year and were pleasantly surprised to find out that the same cottage we rented in June was available for Christmas! It felt really nice to be in a familiar home and location to celebrate the holiday; Christmas and comfort go hand in hand. The weather was cool and cloudy with on and off rain, about as wintery as you can get in the summer in Malawi.
After arriving to our cottage on Christmas Eve, we took a walk down to the dairy farm to get some fresh milk and cream. I realized it was mistake to bring my camera. With two dogs, a pitcher of milk and two jars of cream, we had no hands for taking any photos! While we are at the farm, the cows took an extreme interest in our dogs and were crowding around the fence to get a good look at them. The dogs of course were also very intrigued, but managed to keep it together. The cows walked along the entire length of fence, straining to get as close as possible to Samson and Ruby. It was the strangest thing! And I wish I got a picture of it.
We spent lots of time on the front porch, drinking tea, reading, watching the rain, looking for monkeys in the trees and enjoying wine and cheese. The air in Zomba is divine and so we tried to spend as much time outside to enjoy it.
On Christmas morning I woke up while it was still dark and made some tea. I sat outside on the porch and watched the sun rise through the forest. That joy I was talking about earlier was in full force and I just couldn’t stop smiling. Soon after sunrise, Kyle got out of bed and we enjoyed some Christmas morning snuggles with dogs followed by more tea.
Just like our last visit, we bought tons of fresh berries, which grow really well in Zomba due to the cooler climate. This time we got wild yellow raspberries and strawberries. I cooked them down to make the most delicious sauce for our pancakes with whipped cream from our trip to the dairy farm.
On our quest to spend as much time as possible outdoors, we took the dogs for a walk around the Mulunguzi Dam. Wherever you are on the plateau, you are surrounded by huge green trees, sometimes they’re so dense it feels like a jungle. It’s beautiful.
We were shocked to see how low the water level at the dam was, especially since it’s the rainy season. In June, the water was pouring over the dam’s edge and none of the red dirt on the banks was visible. It is really alarming to see the level so low, though it was still lovely to look at.
After the walk, we attempted to take Christmas family pictures, keeping with our families’ tradition. It took a bit of finagling to set up the camera without a tripod, but we managed to get a couple decent shots. When we tried to incorporate the dogs into the picture, the results weren’t as great, as they found me sprinting from the camera to log way too exciting and ten seconds wasn’t enough time to pose them.
The cottage is surrounded by tall trees and a lush garden, perfect for relaxing after lunch and for the dogs to run wild. The family that owns the house has had it since 1990; I spent a couple hours looking through the guest book and I loved thinking about how many people have enjoyed that cottage and all the good memories that were made.
We finished our Christmas Day with some wine and cheese on the porch, some roasted vegetables and mashed potatoes (and steak for Kyle) for dinner, and apple pie with whipped cream for dessert. And we listened to the Charlie Brown Christmas album, just to make sure the day felt sufficiently Christmas-y.
The next morning began once again with some morning snuggles with the dogs, who always think they’re so small, but are actually huge. Then Kyle and I set off for a hike to Williams Falls.
After hanging out at the waterfall for a while, we hiked back uphill to get to the main path. On our way up we spotted this incredible beetle. It was so shiny and bright it looked like a light bulb!
We once again ended the day with some wine and cheese on the wonderful patio, amazed by the beauty that filled our day and by how incredibly blessed we are.
We left the next morning, after eating stacks of pancakes with berry sauce and whipped cream. Zomba was the loveliest setting for celebrating Christmas and we were so thankful for the joy, rest and adventure that we experienced.
At the start of Christmas week, we traveled to Senga Bay with our friends Andy and Jennie for a couple days of relaxing at Lake Malawi. Senga Bay is about two hours northeast of Lilongwe in Salima district and while we’ve been to Salima several times, this was our first time in Senga Bay. A Flood family owns a house right on the lake and we were lucky enough to snag it for a couple days before Christmas. Their home was absolutely beautiful and the perfect place to relax and enjoy the beauty of the lake.
As if being right on the lake wasn’t enough, there was also a pool shaded by huge trees, perfect for the sunburn-prone like myself.
If we weren’t in the pool or at the beach, then we were probably in this indoor/outdoor room with a view of the lake. The room was attached to the house, but all the windows had screens rather than glass so you still felt like you were outside. Having never been to their house before, we were so surprised at how lovely yet comfortable it was!
One of the best parts of going to Lake Malawi is access to amazing, fresh fish! We don’t eat much fish in Lilongwe because it’s expensive, but at the lake it’s cheap and delicious. A fish salesman stopped by the house and we bought a half dozen chambo.
We decided that Senga Bay is our second favorite beach on Lake Malawi, trailing only behind Chinteche. The water level was quite low, which meant the sand beach was very spacious, perfect for our hooligan dogs to run wild. We didn’t see any other tourists during our stay, which made it very peaceful, and all the huge green trees lining the beach made the scene vibrant and fresh.
We spent the day going between the lake to the pool to the indoor/outdoor room, interspersed with snacks and gin and tonics. It was lazy and refreshing and wonderful.
As the sun went down, I made everyone stand in front of this big bougainvillea bush for portraits: Ridgeback siblings, Holloways, Healys, gals and guys.
We wrapped up the evening with one last walk on the beach and fish tacos made with the fresh fish we bought earlier and homemade tortillas, salsa and guacamole. They were so good!
The next morning, I woke up before anyone else and took a walk down to the lake. The morning light and clouds were beautiful and there wasn’t a single other person around. I couldn’t think of a better way to start the day! We left around noon on our second day in Senga Bay, but squeezed in a nice walk on the beach and some homemade pizza.
Though this trip was quick, we had so much fun! We felt like we fit a lot of relaxation and enjoyment into a short time and it was great to hang out with our good friends Andy and Jennie. Since it’s not too far from Lilongwe, I’m hoping we can maybe fit in one more trip to Senga Bay before we leave Malawi.
When you’re far away from family and it’s really hot outside, it takes some effort to make it feel like Christmas. Malawi isn’t nearly as Christmas-obsessed as America, so you don’t hear Christmas music every time you enter a store and you don’t see lights on houses or decorations in yards. This means that you don’t have constant reminders that it is in fact Christmas time. Part of me enjoys being away from the commercialization of Christmas, but another part of me misses it. I know that Christmas is ultimately about Jesus coming into our world to make a way for people to be children of God. You don’t need a tree or tinsel for that truth to fill you joy and wonder and awe. But, Christmas brings a lot of traditions and nostalgic memories that create a sense of home and celebration. Our friends Andy and Jennie stayed at our house for a few days and while we weren’t able to recreate all of our favorite traditions, we still managed to make it feel a little more like Christmas time.
Decorating cookies is one of my favorite traditions. Typically my sister Ashley and I would spend an entire day baking half a dozen varieties of cookies and then the evening would be spent with all my siblings decorating the ones cut into shapes. I didn’t have any cookie cutters or fancy icing tools so we settled for plain round sugar cookies and white icing in ziplock bags. It was still a lot of fun and we listened to the Charlie Brown Christmas album which makes any holiday activity a hundred times more Christmas-y.
Andy and Jennie brought a Christmas ornament making kit that was sent to them by family all the way from the UK. Had we still been living in San Diego, I highly doubt we ever would have sat down and made paper Christmas ornaments, but since we live in Malawi and such things are not available here, they were novel and interesting and fun. And I do think they added a little Christmas cheer to our kitchen windows.
To round out the festivities, we turned our chalkboard into a nativity scene, though probably not the most traditional as it included a snowman and a wiseman in a Santa suit.
Living in Malawi has taught us how to be creative in entertaining ourselves. I remember when we first moved here, I was overwhelmed with how frequently I felt bored. No parks, no nighttime walks, no coffee shops, no movie theaters, no testing two dozen eyeshadow colors on my hand at Sephora, no netflix, and many times no power or internet. It was a big adjustment. Though I still have my moments, I’ve come a long way and I love that we’ve had the opportunity to learn how to enjoy life even when it seems boring. This skill has been especially valuable around holidays like Christmas.
Last Sunday we put on Flood’s first ever kids’ Christmas play! It was a lot of work, but in the end the children did really well and even more importantly, they all said they loved being a part of it.
Unlike the Malawian people, Americans have become largely detached from the knowledge and skills that have enabled humans to live without such conveniences as electricity and grocery stores. In the event of a worldwide zombie apocalypse, we Americans will be among the first to go. Very few of us know how to farm anymore and I dropped out of Girl Scouts too early to learn how to start a fire.
Why am I telling you this? Because there have been frequent power outages across Malawi and I am but a weak, dramatic American who has admittedly not gotten used to this normal occurrence. We are very fortunate to have electricity here in Malawi, as only 8% of the population has power. Outages have been aplenty over these past couple months, which happens to be the hottest season in Malawi. Typically it is out for at least eight hours every day. Besides not being able to cook or heat water for tea/coffee, our home becomes quite uncomfortable with no working fans, while our hot metal roof laughs at its sweaty inhabitants. But don’t despair! Here is a tried and true guide to passing time during a power outage on a very hot Saturday.
First, decide to use the power outage as an opportunity to practice your photography skills. This will help you to stop feeling sorry for yourself and lend a sense of purpose to these hot, powerless hours. Take some still life photos of things that make you happy; my houseplants are the perfect subjects.
Second, keep good company around you. Being hot, sweaty and hungry can make you irritable and grumpy so surround yourself with people (and animals) that you really enjoy, just like Kyle has done here with Ruby.
Third, don’t let your mind waste away in the heat and boredom. Read! If you are fortunate enough to have some charge on your tablet, you can use that, but an ordinary hard copy book will work just the same. It will also take your mind off how sweaty you are and keep you from constantly wondering how much longer until the power comes back.
You can see that Kyle looks quite comfy while reading on his tablet. While I do recommend getting comfortable while reading, do not spend too much time laying or even sitting on a couch or any upholstered surface. This will raise your body temperature, as the heat between the fabric and your body cannot escape, resulting in more sweat. Spend some time laying on the tile floor instead, as shown by Kyle and Samson.
Cuddling is also a great way to pass the time and keep your mood light. Just like getting comfy on the couch, use this tactic sparingly, as it can also cause an increase in body temperature. Dogs’ bodies run at 102.5 F! Intersperse the cuddling with times of laying flat on the floor to maximize the surface area of your body that touches the cool tile. Kyle and Samson are pros at this survival strategy.
Check in with each other periodically to make sure everyone is okay. Ruby is great for moral support and knows when to come by for a nice smooch on the mouth to lift your spirits.
Limit your movements to those only necessary for survival. The more you move, the hotter you will become so think like a statue. Samson and Ruby demonstrate this technique below.
Don’t become too dazed that you miss the power coming back! Keep alert and listen for the low din of the refrigerator that tells you you’ve made it through!
And when the power returns, celebrate! It’s okay to jump around and dance because the fan is on now and you can get a cold glass of water from the fridge without spoiling all your food. Recognize that is a privilege to have electricity if only for a couple hours a day, and admit you’ve been a drama queen about something that is very normal for most people around the world. Then sit down and write a self-deprecating post using all the photos you took while wallowing on the tile floor.
(I should note that Kyle is much better about the power outages than I am. I think I’ve heard the man complain twice in the entire time I’ve known him, none of which have been during a power outage. It’s actually kind of annoying, but I love him anyways.)
Enjoying our wonderful backyard on this very warm December afternoon. All four of us will be missing this space when we move in February. #rhodesianridgeback #malawi
On Wednesday we woke up before the sun came up and set off for Blantyre, the commercial capital of Malawi. We made really good time, likely due to the fact that we weren’t stopped at any police road blocks (a small miracle), and arrived just after 9am with plenty of time to enjoy the day and prep for all our cooking. We stayed with our friends Andee and John, who moved to Blantyre from Lilongwe about three months ago. Their home was beautiful! It is not easy to put together a house in Malawi as there are no furniture shops, no second-hand stores and no Target/West Elm/Crate and Barrels. You either have to buy it used from someone who is leaving the country or have a local craftsman or tailor make it, which can be quite time consuming. Andee is a magician, as you can see in the photos, and we loved spending time in their lovely house.
After catching up a bit and taking a home tour, John came home from work and we went to the Mandala House for lunch. The Mandala House is the oldest remaining structure in Malawi, built in 1882 as a trading post. It’s surrounded by a nice garden and made for a very enjoyable lunch.
After eating, we walked behind the Mandala House to take a look at a shop called People of the Sun. They work with Malawian artisans, many of whom are women, to create unique and beautiful products out of local materials. We were really impressed with how nicely made and creative the products were! I wanted to buy the whole inventory, but seeing as we are moving home soon, it didn’t seem like the best decision. The shop is new so it isn’t quite organized as a storefront yet, but they let us take a look around anyways. It definitely excited the part of me that’s interested in social enterprise and got me thinking of how to connect business with social change.
After picking up the last of our Thanksgiving meal ingredients, which gave us a chance to see a bit of Blantyre city, we went back home to get started on baking the pies. Lately the power has been off for six to nine hours a day, which made Andee and John’s gas oven and stove the hero of our holiday. We knocked out all our pies that afternoon and evening: pecan, pumpkin and chocolate coconut.
One of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions is one that my sister and I came up with: start feasting day with a long early morning walk. Though I was far from home and my sister, Andee volunteered to keep the tradition alive and we took a nice stroll through her neighborhood. Once we got back home, Kyle commenced the all day cooking marathon with the turkey. In my eagerness to claim the last turkey in Lilongwe, I didn’t ask the clerk how much it weighed when I bought it. So not only were we cooking a bird of an unknown weight, but Andee and John’s oven doesn’t have a numbered temperature dial, only “big flame” and “little flame.” And to top it all off, you can only choose for the heat to come from the bottom or the top, there is no circulation of the heat. Despite the odds being stacked against him, Kyle managed to cook the turkey to perfection!
These candied pecans were heavenly! We somehow exercised enough self-control to not eat them all and put them on the salad along with greens from Andee’s garden, dried cranberries and feta cheese.
I brought sweet potatoes from Lilongwe and was told that they were “white inside” sweet potatoes when I purchased them at the market, as opposed to the “orange inside” sweet potatoes most Americans are used to. When Andee started peeling them, we were surprised to see that there were orange and purple inside, not white! We became really excited about how colorful our sweet potatoes were turning out, only to realize that once they were cooked and mashed together they would turn a nice shade of brown. The color was fun while it lasted, and you don’t really care what color your potatoes are when they’re topped with buttery brown sugar and pecans.
The day’s entertainment was provided by the five German Shepherd puppies that are currently living at Andee and John’s house while they are waiting to go to their new homes. They were adorable and so much fun to watch and play with. It gave me a little bit of puppy fever, but also made me glad those puppy days are behind us.
By 6:30pm, all our dishes were finished and our guests had arrived. We had all the classic dishes except for stuffing and cranberries. Not bad for a made in Malawi Thanksgiving meal. Our friend Yami who pastors Flood Blantyre was able to join us and our friend Theo, who used to be one our awesome leaders at Flood Lilongwe but now is at Flood Blantyre.
During dinner we followed the tradition of going around the table and sharing what you’re thankful for, but decided to go around the table three times rather than just once. After dinner John took music requests played from YouTube and we filled any remaining space in our bellies with pie and homemade whipped cream. Pie and friends and Beyonce, the stuff of dreams. Right before bed we got to Skype with my family, which was such a special treat to end the day.
We so enjoyed our couple of days in Blantyre. While the food was incredible, the best part was spending time with good friends that just get you in a new place that felt fresh. We were so thankful to Andee and John for hosting us and helping us celebrate Thanksgiving in a way that actually felt like Thanksgiving.
kaledo-art
izzy806
dailybridgerton