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July 2011
05/07/2011
03/07/2011
muli bwanji....
I've recently returned from a trip to Malawi...my first time there...the usual 4am pick up in the morning as the flight to Lilongwe leaves Jo'burg at 10h00 so I have to catch the 'red eye' flight from Cape Town to connect. Lilongwe is an easy 2 hour flight from Johannesburg & for some bizarre reason it seems that all the international flights - SAA, Ethiopian Airlines & Kenya Airways - arrive within 5 mins of each other which causes considerable delays at immigration & baggage collection. A quick change from my Cape winter woolies into something a little more suited to subtropical central Africa and we're off..
In case you're wondering, muli bwanji is Chichewa (which is the main language in Malawi & also spoken in Zambia) for 'hello, how are you' and ndili bwino is Chichewa for 'I am fine' & zikomo is 'thank you' - these are phrases I'll be using an awful lot in the coming days. I'm told that Chichewa is similar to Swahili in that it is easily learnt and with Andrew Kayuni's (our local Malawian guide) help find this to be true.
The Malawians are a very friendly nation and my first hint of this came during my flight to Lilongwe - I sat next to Frank who is in tabacco in Malawi & by the end of the flight I knew a lot more about tobacco than when I started. The other Malawian passengers were equally friendly & all wished me a pleasant stay in their country when we got to Lilongwe. The second hint was when a pit stop was requested and we stopped in a village en route to Salima - before Andrew had killed the engine children of every size & description were hurtling towards the vehicle...obviously a slow day in town...
As is so often the case when travelling, language barriers cease to be important when you have a camera. This provides endless entertainment for the children who jostle each other to pose and then shriek with laughter as they look at the pictures we have taken...
Yours truly didn't even had time to jump down from the vehicle before the eager models mob me for pictures.... I usually don't like taking pictures of people unless they are unaware of it so this is a real baptism of fire...these children are desperate for the pictures & are such natural subjects that you can't help relaxing into it & enjoying yourself...
Two seconds later & they've multiplied...
These young ladies have obviously had some exposure to television or the movies judging by the sultry looks the camera is being subjected to....
But my absolute favourite is this young boy who ran to fetch his baby brother from their home (and his lunch by the looks of it) so he could join in the fun too....what a sweetheart! I just love this photo - for some reason it strikes a real chord...
The guys are immediately drawn into an impromptu football (soccer) game with some of the local lads...
giant lizard....
This morning, I was returning home from a routine shopping expedition to replenish the larder for the week ahead & what should I see but another sand sculpture...this time it is a huge lizard sunning itself on the driveway of nr 27....
Even better...I've caught the creator of this marvellous sand art, Reon Zeff, red handed & he has a rapt audience watching his every move...
We had a nice chat while he was putting the finishig touches to the giant lizard which didn't seem to bother him in the slightest....amazing to watch as his hands almost have a life of their own, shaping & sculpting the damp sand....that's all it is...nothing other than water holding this together.
Later this afternoon I pop around again to see the finished product..the new creation is certainly causing a stir & I am amazed there hasn't been an accident yet. Lots of people are slowing down to take pictures. Others park and walk up to make a closer inspection of the latest feature on the block...
And just so you can get some idea of the scale of the sculpture...
Reon mentioned that he was teaching the art of sand sculpture at Elkanah Primary School this coming Friday - he will be creating a sculpture and then helping the children with their own sculptures. He also mentioned how great sand sculpture is as a method of therapy for people who have had strokes etc..
It was lovely to see the enthusiam & wonder on all the faces - child & grown up alike. Enjoy these photo's because on Monday (04 July) the lizard is being recycled to form part of the plaster in nr 27's new bathroom....