TS Edouard strengthening off the coast of LA

Just a heads up - a newly formed tropical storm is now just off the coast of Louisiana, headed west towards Texas. Signs are currently pointing towards rapid intensification, and a low-end hurricane may not be out of the question in 24-48 hours.

Be sure to keep an eye on the news, or the NHC, who will be the first to update with new information.

Mwandama village

The visit yesterday to the village was very nice. The Malawi Met Service staff were very impressed with the multisectoral approach MVP is taking, and specifically when it comes to the multiple ways the project is already implementing some drought mitigation techniques. (Micro irrigation, rainwater harvesting, etc) The drought insurance will just add to the package.

It's exciting because Malawi has some history in being very progressive with drought insurance in the past few years - and this contract for Mwandama would be the first for MVP using a comprehensive approach to drought risk management. I'm excited to be a small part of it.

Below are some pictures around the village yesterday.


Adams (Agrometeorologist from MMS), Rebbie (Mwandama-MVP science coordinator/team leader), Gray (deputy director of MMS), and me in front of the MVP project offices in Zomba.


The MVP project offices building in Zomba


Downtown Zomba


A roadside market on the way to the village


Mwandama village


Chief Mwandama - he's where the village gets its name


A typical Malawian household


A typical house in the village


Cute kid!


Rebbie pointing out a borehole well constructed by the project for the Mwandama village


Gray testing out the water pump


Rainwater harvesting and storage tank - catching the rainfall off the roof of the house for domestic use and for watering the garden


A small check dam used to harvest runoff during the rainy season (it's dry now)


A larger microirrigation dam that was constructed on a pilot basis by a local community group of farmers, near a perennial stream


The irrigation trench - using low cost materials the farmers are able to divert a small amount of water from the local stream/pond to water this small plot of corn.


The cabbage garden - and tomatoes on the right


Adams and Gray speaking with a farmer from the community group responsible for the irrigated fields


The cabbage


Irrigated corn - the main staple crop of the village. Normally, it can only be grown in the rainy season - but microirrigation can produce a crop with similar yields in the dry season.

















Some kids around our UNDP vehicle as we were leaving

300 love letters...

How perfectly romantic.

unexpected wisdom

i just met one of the guys who does maintenance work in our building yesterday. his name is randolph. randolph has at least 4 front top teeth that are covered in gold, is african-american, and wears baggy jeans. i, unfortunately, had labeled him as "different" for these things.

randolph and i just had a beautiful conversation, which went something like this:
me : (in reference to his washing our 13-ft. windows yesterday) you still washing windows today?
r: (as he looks up from his phone that he's holding in front of him & obviously texting) well, i'm just doing a little counselin' now, you know?
me: counseling?
r: yeah...my friend asked me do we hate to love or do we love to hate? i told her we hate to love b/c love hurts.
when there's pain, that's how you know it's love.
me: (in awe but trying not to get cheezy) yeah, i would agree with that...well when you see Mike, could you ask him if he could turn the air conditioner up? it's freezing in there today!

so, yeah. i got nothin.

The end is near...

And not just because I finished Stephen King's "The Stand" today...

I just booked my last block of hotel nights - and even a ride to the airport on Wednesday morning.

So, I will have 5 nights at the hotel I stayed at last night (see post below), starting tomorrow up until the day I leave. It will be like a mini vacation-within a working-vacation. The biking, hiking trails, and fresh berries are so calling my name...

Get ready America, Eric's coming home!

Live from the Jungle...

Gotcha! You probably thought this was Eric reporting, but nope! Just Pepper here, wanting to fill my fan club in on my first few days at my new home! In this first picture I'm just helping Mom mow the lawn (we both love her new lawnmower that doesn't use gas or electricity (it's the old school kind w/ 4 blades)!

Lots of big things have happened lately....



and I mean big! My first meeting with Bisou was actually pretty anti-climactic; Mom says I normally go CRAZY over other dogs, but I couldn't even tell if Bisou was a dog because his head was so far away from me. Mom got scared when Bisou tried to play with me...I think the whole 15-times-my-size thing made her nervous!

I got to meet my Gammy and Granddad on Sunday. No pictures yet, but I get to meet my aunts Melissa & Rosie this weekend, as well as cousins Rambeau, Ella, and Jackson. I can't wait to see them...wait a minute....

They say that when two beings are in love, you can't tell where one starts and where the other begins...I don't know about that, but I sure do love my cow!


One thing my mom says she is the most proud of is how tough I am. See below for an example!

Well, I guess it's a love/hate relationship.

Gosh, life sure is fun lately. Maybe even too fun...this is how I end pretty much every day:

Hopefully you do too! Have a good one, and thanks for checking in!

In Zomba

Crazy, crazy day. And it's not completely over yet.

I didn't make it to the village, but I did get to spend about 6 hours in total in a crowded minibus, going from Blantyre-Zomba-Blantyre-Zomba. The tour of the village and big joint discussion capstone meeting of my visit is all set for Friday morning, 10am.

Now, I am sitting in a corner room of my hotel on Zomba Mountain - the Ku Chawe Hotel - recommended by my boss as the most amazing hotel he's ever stayed at anywhere in the world. So. It's dark now, but I have to say, it's pretty amazing. As the man from the front desk was showing me to my room, he said, "this weekend, let me know if you want me to guide you to some of the best views around the mountain, we have waterfalls, rock climbing, biking, just let me know." Ok.


my room. yep, that's a stone fireplace in the corner.


view from my window this morning.


fresh berries from zomba mountain. some of the best i've ever had. (no joke)

Things that remind me of Africa

-Wearing the same shirt for days in a row.
-Driving down the middle of the road when there's no one coming.
-Banana trees.
-Indian restaurants.
-Farm animals on soccer fields.
-The smell of eucalyptus.
-Little blue and white notebooks.
-Dirt.
-Cold showers.
-HUGE bottles of bottled water.
-Blue band margarine.
-Cell phone coverage.

And others. =)

Back in Malawi

Never mind exploring the country of Malawi, flying on Air Malawi is an adventure of itself.

Granted, my return trip from Dar to Blantyre yesterday went very smoothly. But it's just a unique experience to fly on the national airline of a very small African country.

First of all, the airplane is totally unmarked. Pure white. And, as usual in Africa, there's no boarding gate - they load you up on a bus and take you out to the plane, where you walk up the steps, 1960s-style. When I got in the door, I noticed that my seat number corresponded to an empty aisle, where the bulkhead wall was separating 1st class from the rest of the plane. I asked the stewardess. "Oh, just sit anywhere in the back." Ok. Next, we made an unannounced stop in Nairobi, to pick up other passengers, adding about 3hrs on to the trip. The only thing the whole day confirming that Air Malawi actually existed were the seatback covers on the first class chairs.

But the views were amazing. (I'm so thankful for that stopover in Nairobi!) We flew directly over Kilimanjaro - which reminded me why I am an environmentalist. How can you not be, witnessing something so beautiful, so powerful - and yet knowing that we are changing that beautiful thing permanently (myself included by taking the plane). But the snows are still there, and I was thankful to see them.

Now, back in Blantyre, I'm busily trying to finish up the work here before I head home next Wednesday. I've already been twice to see the met service people here, and tomorrow I'm hopefully going up to the village (for the first time) to talk to some people there.

Malawi is what I always pictured Africa to be. Slow-paced, friendly people, dusty roads, and a lot of people struggling - full of hope - but struggling to make ends meet.

I'll try to have more in the next few days.


Who owns this plane, anyway? =)


Free A/C for the pilot??


Confirmation.


Kili with Mt. Meru in the background.


Kili on the way back from Nairobi


Landing again in Malawi.

So, here's some news...

When you see the image below, what do you think?



a.)"That is the cutest dog in the world!"
b.)"That is a 5-month old beagle/jack russell mix."
c.)"That is Megan's new puppy."
d.)"That really is the cutest flippin' dog in the world!"

Answer...well, all of the above! That's right, after discovering this little Pepper last Thursday (the 17th), hanging out with her three times, consulting with my peeps, and listening to my heart, I decided I wanted to make those hang-out times permanent. I officially adopted her on Thursday (the 24th), but she didn't come home with me for real (except for a "walk-thru" on thursday) until last night. Because she is blind, we wanted to make the transition as smooth as possible for her (from her foster home to her forever home!), so we decided to wait until the weekend so I could have all wk.end to spend with her. I was really nervous b/c she's come from a home w/ 2 other dogs, which is REALLY helpful for her to get around, have a companion, etc., so i didn't know how it would be for her as an "only canine," but she is doing AMAZING. She is just an awesome little being. Come meet her! I don't have any batteries for my camera right now, but I'm working on it...I'll definitely be posting lots of pictures/videos SOON!

I recently heard a great quote I've been thinking about a lot lately, especially given this situation. "Some people say love is blind, but in actuality, love sees everything." (Chris, please refine to make it sound pretty. :))

A restful day

Today was a little window of paradise, otherwise known as the northern-most beach town in Zanzibar. I went to see an area of protected sea-turtles, chatted with a volunteer from the local fair-trade women's cooperative workshop, ate some coconut vegetable curry, and just generally chilled out on the beach. Not a bad weekend getaway!

Tomorrow will be a travel day, and then Monday I'll be back in Malawi.

See you all there!

Zanzibar

I just wrote this down on a piece of scratch paper my waiter gave me at dinner tonight:


Zanzibar is Zanzibar. There is no other way I can describe it. It's unlike anywhere I've ever been.

I was so nervous on the ferry ride here. Because of the last time. I was envisioning long hours on the phone with the embassy again - and chewing my fingernails the whole way. But it was easy, and now i'm here. Stepping off the boat, I just tried to make peace with the situation. I decided to just greet whoever I met with love - with a smile in my mind. It worked.

Now that I'm here, it's impossible to be worried about anything in a place like this.

The waiter just brought fresh peanuts, just for while I'm waiting. After he brought me this piece of paper. I rest my case.

I'm sitting on the roof of this restaurant. There is a cool breeze. There are a million stars. I am very happy.

I walked through countless narrow winding alleys to get here. Every corner is mysterious. Boys playing tag in Swahili. An old woman selling oranges. A bike zooming past. I couldn't help smiling the whole way.

In Zanzibar, nothing is closed off. Inside, or outside, there is always a breeze blowing through. There are details everywhere - wood carved doors, always something catching your eye. It's beautiful.

I'm going to the beach tomorrow. To just be.

My food is here - vegetable pulau and (fresh) spiced tea. It's amazing.

...

I just looked up from my paper. I'm still here.

And I'm going to order dessert. It's a special night.

near danger... averted.

i went on another walk tonight... in the other direction from the hotel this time. it was a beautiful evening (still is), and i'm trying to soak up my last couple days in dar before i head back to malawi on sunday. so, a walk on the beach.

after a while, these two guys come up to me.

"excuse me, how are you."
he grabs my hand, tries to hold it - not uncommon in africa, but usually after you know someone first.
"i'm very fine, how are you?"
"we are just wondering, if you know that it is against the law, what you are doing now."
"what?"
"this beach area, it is against the law to take photographs here."
i pull my hand away, back up a step.
"i..."
"this man here, he is a police officer"
(they are both dressed in old tshirts, shorts, and flip flops)
i think for a minute...
"you guys are crazy."
i start to walk away.
"excuse me, sir. we have told you this, now you must stand up some words. you should be punished, you are breaking the law."
i turn my back to them, start walking away. they follow me.
"sir, excuse me, we must now go to the police station."
i walk quickly, looking down at my feet - i'm about 10min from my hotel, but on the main road. i know that if i just stay walking, ignore them, don't say anything, they'll give up.
but they keep following.
i cross the street. heart beating a little faster now. they're not walking as fast as me, but they're still following.
i know that these kind of guys are a little unpredictable, but usually get bored quickly. they're still following.
if i can just make it back to the hotel, i'll be fine.
"excuse me" (louder, from 100ft or so behind me) "we have said this to you, now you must stand up some words... we go to the police station"
i can see my hotel ahead.
i turn into the gate of the hotel - the luxury of safety, the protection given foreigners with money, is apparent.
they don't follow me inside.

now, i'm back in my room, writing about it on my blog.

i was never really THAT scared, i knew what to do, but it's good to remember that things are different here. everywhere in the world has its own set of customs, accepted behaviors. here, taking pictures of random people at the beach might be culturally unacceptable. maybe this was just tanzania's way of telling me that.

zanzibar will probably be the same way, at least. but to me, the benefits outweigh any potential inconvenience such as tonight. the economics of traveling by yourself in africa. don't worry, mom, i'll be careful. =)


the pictures from tonight.











that last one is by far my favorite of the bunch.

my taxi driver embarrassed me today...

i've had the same taxi driver this whole week in dar. we met on the first day, at the blue pearl hotel in ubungu center where the tanzania met agency has their offices. he's a young guy, about my age, and i like him. generally, if you smile a lot, i like you.

since then, he's been sitting in the same place, at the same time (around noon), every day, waiting for me to finish my meetings.

wednesday we tried small talk - "where you from" ... "usa" ..... "america, is very powerful country". "which type of phone do you have... i need to get a card. my phone doesn't work here." .... "celtel... it is the best" ... "ok, that's what i will get then."

yesterday he gave me a discount b/c "i'm a friend". this morning, also, he arranged to meet me here at my hotel to pick me up in the morning - even though he lives on the other end of town, by the blue pearl hotel.

on the way home today, we talked about barack obama. "he will be very good for africa, and for my country."

we were stopped at a traffic jam/intersection.

outside, a man walked - well, hobbled - up to us. he was wearing knee pads, because he had no legs below his knees. in africa, there is no such thing as wheelchairs. (unless you can afford them, which, how could you if you have no legs and can't work?) immediately my friend, the driver, reaches into his ash tray and pulls out a 100Sh coin (about 10 cents) to hand to me to hand to the man. of course, i'm in stare-straight-ahead-and-ignore-him mode, as i've been taught by all the guidebooks. i handed him the coin, and we sped away. the situation humbled me.

a haiku for tanzania

curry, dhow, and palm -
a mix of cultures under
the african sky.