New Golf Rules

Had my first game of golf Malawi style. I played with men's clubs and had a caddy carry them round for me (when you find your ball the caddy automatically picks the ball up and re sites it for you in a better position). The golf course is not quite like home, the fairways are like the rough, the bunkers are full of saw dust and the greens are called browns and are full of sand. You don't go into the real rough because of snakes but the caddy goes in! You have to avoid the people wandering through the course and lying in the shade reading. The naked men washing in the river can put you off a bit but otherwise it was an OK game of golf. I did not humiliate myself as I often do for the first couple of holes, the ground is so hard the ball goes for miles. I might make golf a regular event if I can find a regular golf mate.

The music festival was a bit surreal, sitting on the beach or swimming in the lake listening to live music. The camping facilities were not the best but that's music festivals. We had a good time but I won't go next year. I have another couple of weekend trips planned to the tea estates and another safari. I still don't know what is happening with the car but hope to know soon. Making Christmas holiday plans is difficult not knowing if I will have the car or need to hire one.

I'm finishing at the mental hospital this week and I'm glad to say I have not got used to some of the sights, sounds or environment. I hope never to accept that level of care as normal. I will be on another big learning curve when I start at St Luke's next week. I really enjoy teaching the students and there was a huge difference in the student's results during my time at the mental hospital. Hopefully I can achieve similar results at St Luke's.

We seem to be having a lot of religious holidays its great being in a country where you get all the holidays. We had Id last week and we have a day for prayers this week. I'll give the prayers a miss and go to the pool instead. My kitten is getting bigger and has made a few spider kills at home. The gecko and cockroach count has gone down but I've not found any remains and I have made snake excluders for the doors. My garden is looking good with loads of veg coming up, I'm also growing cape gooseberries and melons. I will probably buy my chickens this weekend. I delayed getting them until after my holidays.

I've just about reached melting point. I don't know exactly how hot it is but I believe this is the worst month and the rains should start in November. I'm really looking forward to seeing the rain and the skies during storms. I've seen mini tornadoes and dust storms.

Keep the comments coming its great to hear from everyone.

Holiday Update

Visited Liwonde Safari park since last post. Saw elephants, crocodiles, monkeys, baboons, gazelles, kudu, antelopes, hipos, water monitors and much much more. We had an afternoon safari, gin and tonics by the river as the sun set and then a night safari. We went back for dinner, which was superb, then returned to our chalets for G&ts, it was a bit of a bummer, we could not get to the second chalet for more glasses because of an elephant eating the leaves of a tree outside the chalet. It was one of life's magical moments sitting drinking G&T with friends watching the wildlife a few feet away. The next day we had a boat safari, we saw amazing birds as well as the hipos, more elephants and crocodiles. I had another week at the mental hospital before leaving for holiday. I do work during the week.

I'm on holiday with Rachel, fellow VSO and good mate working in Zomba, and Saray and Nieves, friends of Antonio fellow VSO, from Spain who both lived in Edinburgh. Saray still lives there. We camped at Cape MacClear, the only spot on the lake where you can see the sunset. It was a beautiful setting, a good camp site and of course fantastic weather. We camped there for 2 nights, the second day was my wedding anniversary, I missed a very important person but had a great day. We got a boat to an uninhabited island where we snorkeled with very colourful fish, had our lunch cooked for us by the boatmen, watched the fish eagles dive for fish. We have been cooking gourmet meals on camp fires and having sundowners every night. A rat visited us at dinner on the second evening but kept at a respectable distance. We drove up to Nkotakota where we camped in the dark. A baby snake slithered over my foot on the way to the loo but apart from mosquitoes we had no other visitor. When we woke the next morning we realised we were in paradise, no other campers, our own beach, staff gathering our firewood, the perfect chill out. We have driven up north to Mzuzu today, the largest city in the north. We are staying with Kate, fellow VSO, so real beds tonight. Tomorrow we are setting off for the music festival where we will be camping on the beach again.

I've 2 more weeks at the mental hospital to look forward to on my return then I'll be working at St Luke's. I've written to the car owner but not had any contact from her. I have had to put the car through its safety check and pay for insurance to keep it legal. So I don't know what the outcome of will be. Keep the letters and comments coming. Its great to hear from everyone.