Day 28. Fri 14th May
Mwabvi, second trip, day 1.
I have an appointment at SuCoMa (Sugar Company of Malawi) in Nchalo at
nine. This is part of the Illovo sugar company, a huge multinational based
in South Africa. Unfortunately we have just missed their annual allocation
of charitable funds for this year, but we are hoping to make some useful
contacts for the future.
Sure enough, a bricklayer and several casual labourers have turned
up, and Kaunda puts them to work. However, they need cement, so Auxies
puts the new bit into Penny and we head off to Bangula to buy some. Then
they need water to mix it with, so they all pile into Penny again and disappear
off to the bore hole at the park entrance. On top of all that Gracious is
having the plaster off his leg today, and asks if we can drop him off at
the hospital in Nchalo.
By the time all that's all sorted out it is nearly ten. I am to meet
Pat Whitbread who runs SuCoMa's private wildlife reserve Nyala Park. She
is very interested in the project, and lets us drive around the park. It
is only about 3.5sq Km, but with good roads and a nice picnic site, and
we see giraffe, zebra, nyala (an antelope found only in this part of Malawi),
impala, bushbuck and hartebeest. It would be lovely if we could make Mwabvi
into something similar.
Then we go over the road to Lengwe NP to talk to Dice Kamwana the chief
extension officer. The National Parks extension officers are responsible
for liaison with the local people. He and some of his guys have been out
in the park for several days as some buffalo had managed to get into the
sugar cane plantations. He and two of his workers need a lift to Mwabvi,
as does a woman who is going to the hospital to visit Patricio's sick sister.
They all pile in and we head back into Nchalo to pick up Gracious.
Work is progressing apace at the PAW site, despite the fact that they are
having to lug water by hand. After a quick lunch Auxies loads the big drums
into Penny and they all head off for the bore hole again, which gives me
some time to relax . . .
. . . when I wake up it is almost dark and Auxies has already cooked
me my supper. I have to say I was happier when we were eating the same
food. It doesn't seem right to have Auxies cooking me nice steaks and then
cooking up a pan of mealie meal for himself and Kaunda, even though Charlotte
has assured me that they prefer it. Lester usually pops by on his way home,
and I give all three of them a beer each, and once again I am aware that
a can of beer is probably equivalent to several days' pay for them. Any
empty water bottles and beer cans, and even oil cans, are taken off by
the night watchmen, apparently the cans are used to bake scones in - hopefully
they clean the oil cans out first!