Thank You Malawi

17, 18 July 2009 (Friday)—Goodbye Malawi, and Thank You

Well it has finally come to the point where we leave Malawi. The time creeps up on you so fast. I never thought my time in this wonderful country would ever end—but like most enjoyable activities, the time goes by exponentially quick. 99 percent of the Malawians I met were wonderful and friendly people. They are happy with their life and enjoy what they do each day—no matter what it is. To live in such a warm, friendly environment for a month has been a blessing.

We arrived to the airport around 11am…our flight was scheduled to leave around 1pm. Check in took a good while and when we finally did, we found out the plane would not arrive until 230pm. So we waited around for a bit, played cards, got free drinks from the airport, etc. Our plane arrived around 230pm and we probably left Malawi around 3pm. Our flight was from Lilongwe, Malawi—Zambia—Addis Ababa, Ethiopia—Rome, Italy for refueling—Washington, D.C.

The flight to Zambia was supposed to take a little over an hour but it took two hours. We circled over the Zambia airport for more than half an hour because the King of Swasiland was landing at the airport and he needed his space I suppose. I think James found out in Ethiopia from one of the pilots that we about ran out of fuel circling the airport (and waiting on the King of Swasiland). Our connecting plane in Ethiopia waited over an hour for us to get to the airport and onto the plane…which was very nice. It would be cool staying overnight in Ethiopia but I kind of wanted to get home as quickly as possible. I sat next to James on the flight from Ethiopia to Rome. I feel asleep through some of the flight because it was over night. I sat next to Jeff and Kacie from Rome to D.C. I was awake most of this flight…it went by quicker than I thought it did. There were a lot of laughs and good times throughout this flight. Landing in D.C. was surreal…it felt like it would take a week to get there.

I accidentally left my passport on the plane—so I was unable to go through customs for about 30 minutes…which was not that bad because most still had not gotten there bags by the time I got my passport and cleared through customs. Seeing my parents when I walked through the gate finally let me know that I was home. I was very glad to see them…although I was very exhausted. My first meal in the States was at Chick-fil-A…it was good…but even being in the restaurant was weird—everything seemed to move so much faster.

I will miss Malawi—every single bit of it. I can only hope that I provide myself with the opportunity to go back in the near future. I recommend this study abroad trip to anybody—it was truly a life-impacting experience. I will never forget the 17 people that traveled with me…as well as the many people I met while in Malawi. Thank you all for being who you are on this trip. And to Dr. Kelly, I will always be grateful and thankful for the experience you allowed me to have. Take care.



16 July 2009 (Thursday)—Back to Lilongwe

We left Club Mak around 9am unfortunately and made our way back to Lilongwe. We stopped at a city called Mua Misson on our journey. There we had a guided tour of a local museum by a man named Robert. He was very well-spoken and knowledgeable. The museum had rooms that described the three tribes of Malawi—the Ngoni, Cewa, and Yao tribes. There was also a room dedicated to the spread of Christianity in Malawi. The museum was breathtaking—but we were not allowed to take pictures. They displays were very ornate and colorful.

After the museum we headed to Lilongwe and the Budget Lodge. It took around 2 hours to do so. Upon arrival we unloaded the bus and scoped out town for about an hour before eating pizza at Alibaba. Several of us bought off-brand Malawi soccer jerseys for 1000 kwacha ($6.00). Afterwards we all had pizza at Alibaba…I was out of money…so I got leftover slices of pizza from about 6 people—and had one of my favorite tasting meals while in Malawi…and for free. We all went to bed fairly early…knowing that we would be on a plane for 24 hours come tomorrow afternoon.



15 July 2009 (Wednesday)—Club Makokola aka Club Mak

We left Annie’s for good at 830am in the morning. Annie was there to send us off…with several employees that we had all grown to love…Ronald, Cameron, Noel, etc. We made a brief stop in Mangochi to see a former student of Dr. Kelly’s—Ndalapa. He gave us a guided tour of his house while explaining a lot about Malawi’s culture and problems. It was very informative and good to hear.

After a little driving we arrived at Club Mak…a beautiful, upscale resort on Lake Malawi. For some reason they did not have Jeff and my room ready…which was not a problem at all for us. We headed to the bar and had a drink while we waited for our lunch to be prepared. The bar, restaurant, pool, and large sitting areas are all within a stone’s throw of the beach. There are many beach chairs and palms trees dispersed all over the beach. It truly is an upscale resort. Everybody took the daytime to relax while sitting out in the sun and enjoying the views…and pool. We were all told that you have a good chance of getting a deadly parasite if you go in the lake water…so we refrained from doing so. We were all in paradise.

We were treated to a wonderful dinner buffet that consisted of many of the foods we had experience while in Malawi. I remember the chicken legs being extremely good—they had an incredible sauce on them. After dinner there were acrobats that performed for us. There were 4 guys who did various stunts that you might expect any type of acrobat to do. After them, a seemingly local group of 20 or so people sang songs while a few fellows played the hand drums. It was a typical Malawian night of entertainment. There were also tons of visible stars in the sky this night…it was breathtaking.



14 July 2009 (Tuesday)—Farewell Friends

Today marked the last day of school for all of us…a very sad day indeed. The morning began with a ceremony at our (Domasi Government) school. It was a very formal ceremony that almost the school’s entire faculty attended. They thanked us for our help and we thanked them for allowing us to teach at such a special place. I told them that this school was the warm heart of Malawi…which it really is. We had some food while the faculty sang us songs. At the end, the school also presented us with outfits. The girls all received dresses and I received a shirt and shorts out of the same material. They looked great and it was extremely thoughtful of the staff to arrange this for all of us…including Dr. Kelly.

After the ceremony Macdonald presented DeAnna with another outfit that we arranged for us. It was a different pattern and it is very nice. He had us try them on and they looked great. He also took pictures of DeAnna and I with each student on his own camera. It was very difficult saying goodbye to the kids. I felt like each students gained from the experience as much as we gained from them. It was a mutual teaching lesson between teacher and student. More important though, were the relationships that were built with each student in the classroom. I felt horrible having to leave them—it will always be one of the hardest things I have ever done. After a month you really feel a sense of belonging in the classroom…the students responded so well to us and us to them.

After class we had to wait around MIE until 530pm because we were having a dinner for all teachers of the three schools. It was a wonderful sight seeing teachers show up for the dinner on the MIE campus. Macdonald of course came with his wife and his camera…he took pictures probably half of the time he was there…he really loves cameras. Each student was introduced and each teacher from all schools was also introduced. Our professors said a few words about the whole experience and then we all ate. It was a wonderful sight…the whole night. Students and teachers were everywhere taking pictures, eating, laughing, meeting new friends, etc. Much like the students, it was very difficult to say goodbye to Macdonald. He was the most accommodating teacher I have ever met. From day one he had a smile on his face and an open heart…he let us do what we wanted to do…and assisted us all the way through. He is a very genuine and likable person that really enjoys teaching. He will forever be in my heart and forever be a great influence on whosever path he crosses.

Upon returning to Annie’s we found out that we were locked out. I had forgotten to give the key to the cleaning lady when I left in the morning…yet I had locked the door. After about 30 minutes of waiting for the spare key…Jeff and I got impatient. Jeff, therefore, worked a little magic on the door…and magically it opened without us having the key…it was a funny moment. Then we packed all of our stuff into our suitcases…because we had not thought to do this yet…all the while KZEE entertained us with conversation. I think I laughed the most during that hour of packing that I did any other hour this trip. KZEE is absolutely hilarious and did not want us to leave. He provided us with entertainment while we packed. KZEE was another person it was hard to say goodbye to…but hopefully he will come to the States and he will be seen again.



13 July 2009 (Monday)—A visit to Macdonald’s house

Today DeAnna and I got to help hand out blankets at Malemia. DeAnna’s church (I think) gave her money to do some sort of service project while she was in Malawi. She ended up buying and getting tailored 300 blanket ponchos for the Standard 1 and 2 children at Malemia Primary School. So today, we handed them out with the other Radford students at Malemia. It was fun seeing the kids embrace the blankets…a neat sight it was. We walked from Malemia back to our school—Domasi Government School—which ends up taking a little less than 30 minutes. It is a downhill walk…so it is not bad at all. On our way to the school we ended up walking with hundreds of Malawians who were going to vote near our school. The DPP party was holding a primary election for its candidate for MP of the area. The former MP of the area is now currently the Vice President of Malawi…her name is Joyce Banda. It was an incredible sight once we got close to the voting location…there were hundreds of people going wild and chanting and what not. Tens of people would be in the back of big cars going wild…a very neat sight.
We got to school a lot later than usual because of the blanket mission. The only thing we were able to do was hand out the kid’s pictures on construction paper…then they were able to write in pen the answers to the 7 questions we had them answer on Friday. The end product looked great…imagine a piece of construction paper folded in half long-ways…the top of it had a picture of the students pasted to it…the bottom had their mini biographies on it. It was awesome seeing the kids be proud and excited of their finished work.

After school Macdonald had DeAnna and I over to his house. We presented Macdonald and his wife with our gifts when we arrived. Macdonald’s wife is a teacher in Standard 2 at Domasi Demonstration School. Their house is very nice and has great decorations. We had eggs, fries, nuts, sodas, and bananas…it was a great afternoon snack that was much needed. We also felt very honored that Macdonald’s wife took the time to prepare all this food for us. They have a wonderful family that also consists of 6 children.

Back at the lodge we were all excited about having a mini celebration for Annie. Jeff and I hooked up the room of the party with a few dozen primary colored balloons. It actually looked halfway decent and many gave us compliments. People even went so far as to say we could be party decorators…but I think they were just joking. We also all signed a very big card for Annie that we taped to the wall. Additionally, she had several other cards that people had made for her.

When Annie arrived her face lit up with happiness…I do not think she was expecting such festivities. We had also ordered a cake for her. When we all sat down most of us students stood up and said what an impact Annie had on us…from her hospitality and friendliness to the inspiration and hope she stands for…it was a very touching time. Afterwards, she stood up and could barely speak—rare for her. I really think she appreciated not just what we did for her that night, but the kind of respectful guests that we had been this whole trip. You can tell she truly enjoys us staying at her lodge.



12 July 2009 (Sunday)—The Heady Park

A few of us went to the church we went to a couple Sundays ago. It was another great experience. Some of the people that went had to go up (like we did the other week) an introduce themselves…it was fun seeing them from the congregation. The rest of the service was like the other one I attended. This time the sermon was on how God appreciates the little things we do…and how the little things are some of the most important things.

A little while after church Jeff, Carla, Beth and I went to this park that was right across the street from Annie’s Lodge. The park was unbelievable. It had ponds, stone structures, bridges, insane vegetation, a mini waterfall, and crazy rock formations of all sizes. Words can not put into context the awesomeness of the park. We also had a mini picnic with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches…it was funny. After the park I headed into town to buy some oranges/tangerines for Macdonald when DeAnna and I would visit his house on Monday afternoon. At night we had another buffet at Annie’s…which would be our last buffet there. It was delicious as always.



11 July 2009 (Saturday)—Globe

We woke up early in order to go visit an orphanage of Peter’s…but the rainy conditions prevented us from going in the morning (the road leading into the orphanage would have been very, very treacherous when wet). So, instead Jeff and I headed into town. When in town we both bought wood carved globes from the vendors at The Wall. There were one of the most prized wood carved commodities at The Wall…and it was the most expensive thing I bought ($18 plus some clothes) but definitely worth it.

We all left to go to the orphanage at 1pm…by this time the road had dried up. It was a very respectful and honored place. The people there were very thankful for even our presence. We were treated to sodas and bread at the leader of the orphanage’s house. Then we played with the children and presented the leader with the gifts we brought. Pictures were also taken with the group.

The rest of the day consisted of relaxing at the lodge.



10 July 2009 (Friday)—Patterns

Today in class I did a lesson on pattern. I began the lesson with introducing the concept of a pattern with examples on the board. Like 2, 4, 6, 8…or patterns out of figures that used x’s, o’s, and shapes. Then I gave each group anywhere from 50-100 bottle caps that a worker at Annie’s Lodge collected for me. I instructed each group to make different patterns out of the colors on the bottle caps…but make the patterns with the bottle caps. I would change the requirements on the pattern…sometimes forcing students to use 3 different colors…sometimes forcing them to use 4 different colors and not just in a 1,2,3,4 way but like 11,2,33,4,11,2,…you get the picture. It was a lot of fun and the kids loved being able to use a hands on manipulative like a bottle cap. All in all, the lesson went very well. At the end I had them answer harder questions on patterns on their own pencil and paper…from my examples on the board.

DeAnna’s lesson in English related to the pictures of the kids that we took. We will paste the pictures of each kid to a piece of construction paper and then have them write a modified autobiography. The biography will consist of 7 questions about each kid. ‘How many brothers and sisters do you have…What do you parents do…What do you do for fun’ are a few examples of the questions DeAnna posed to each kid. Today, she had the kids write down their responses in their notebooks…this way we will be able to correct the grammar of each kid’s responses if necessary. Our lessons in Math and English took the whole 3 hours today…therefore, no P.E. was performed.

Since it was Friday night, Brian and Peter decided to throw us another party. It was very similar to the other party they threw us…except this time, Brian’s recently befriended friend named D’lynn came. She is in Malawi working for the Peace Corp and a very nice person. It was very fun talking to her later that night. I was also able to meet a guy named Johnny who is in charge of a bicycle program called Africycle. His company is based in Canada and deals with shipping bikes to Malawi as the company name might suggest. He was another very interesting person to meet. It was a great night and good end to the eventful week.



09 July 2009 (Thursday)—H.E.L.P. Malawi

The morning walking safari was not that eventful. I saw a few flowers and trees that I did not see as closely on the vehicle safari…but that was about it. We were then treated to a buffet breakfast that was very good. All of the food at Camp Mvuu was excellent. Then we went on another 2.5 hour boat safari which was very similar to the first day boat safari. We saw almost all of the creatures that we had seen the day before…including a gargantuan crocodile that was very very close to our boat.

After leaving Camp Mvuu we stopped at a local school that was a by-product of the H.E.L.P. (Hope, Educate, Love, Protect) Malawi program. Here is a link to the website: http://www.helpchildren.org/. The school and what it does is simply amazing. The resources and buildings and classrooms and everything about the school are very nice in comparison to other schools in Malawi. One of the primary leaders of the school and the direction it travels in is named Matt. He went to college in Madison, Wisconsin and graduated and had been in Malawi at this school outside Camp Mvuu for about 11 months. He gave us a tour of the school and explained many of its practices. The school is what you would refer to as a sustainable school. When I say sustainable I mean in all types of areas. Environmentally sustainable, economically sustainable, etc. The school acts like a vocational school…students learn to make crafts (that the school sells), sustainable agriculture is taught (mainly the idea of permaculture), beehives are harvested in order to sell honey…and the students all have a part in doing so. What this school is doing is what our teachers have been teaching us about what real help actually looks like in Malawi. The school is sustainable and the help that was brought in has been sustainable…sustainable help leading towards a sustainable school…leading towards a sustainable village…the possibilities are endless.

On the way back to Zomba we made a stop in Lilondwe…the wood-carving capitol of Malawi. I was able to get a couple bowls, key chains, and mother holding her son woodcarving. This was a funny place because when we threatened to leave by getting on the bus and starting the engine…the vendors start coming up to the bus windows and giving really good deals. There was a vendor (or two, or three) shoving their items in each of the 16-20 windows on the bus. It was an insane sight. After stopping in Lilondwe, we stopped on the side of the road at a king chair making/selling location. There were about 10 huts that were selling king chairs. I got a king chair that was very well crafter for 1000 kwacha ($6.00) which was a fair deal. The wood it is made out of has a red-brown tint that gives it a nice look.

Finally around 5pm we got home…to Annie Lodge. I believe everybody was relieved to get back into the comfort of their room and the lodge itself…I certainly was. I had ramen noodles for dinner and watched a little bit of Almost Famous before falling asleep before 10pm. It had been a long day.



08 July 2009 (Wednesday)—Hippo Camp

We left the lodge for Mvuu Camp around 8am. I was unable to sleep on the way—presumably because of the anticipation of going on a safari. We arrived at Mvuu around 10am and got our first small (but big) taste of a safari. On a side note, while waiting around the dock for the boats a bird or birds slightly used the bathroom on my backpack…kind of funny. These birds, however, use the bathroom seemingly every minute—it is crazy. We went on a river safari—2 boats with 8 or 9 of us in each. Each boat cruised down the river and then back up for about 1.5 or 2 hours. We saw hippos, crocodiles, waterbuck, impala, birds, warthogs and the list goes on…but these were the most memorable. After 5 minutes on the boat you begin to see why the place is called Hippo Camp…Mvuu = Hippo in Chichewa. There are dozens of hippos in little hippo pods everywhere. The hippos and the crocodiles, in my opinion, were the two most impressive animals we saw on the river safari. We were several yards away from 30-40 foot crocodiles…it was scary at times.

After the river safari we were treated to a very tasty lunch (provided by the hotel/camp). I had beef mixed with lasagna that was excellent. They also had some of the best bread any of us had seen in Malawi…many were thrilled. After lunch, we went to our cabanas. They were very nice and were screen in to prevent the myriad of monkeys from entering our room. Several minutes after settling in I saw my first African elephant across the river near our room. In the past elephants and hippos have roamed free around the guest cabanas—but such was not the case this year.

The land safari in the Land Rover vehicles took place after an hour or so of down time. Again two vehicles, 8/9 people in each. The first land safari took place while the sun was still up and last for 2.5 hours. On this safari we saw one elephant, waterbuck, impala, warthogs, all types of birds, and several other types of 4-legged animals that were horned. My favorite part of the safari was seeing an elephant for about a minute. We were approximately 30 yards away from the elephant and when we arrived it started stomping and kicking up dirt. After that it retreated behind some brush to join what looked like a small family of elephants. It was a short experience, but incredibly awesome…an elephant was the one animal I really wanted to see before arriving at Camp Mvuu. At the end of the 2.5 hour ride, we met up with the other group and had a pre-ordered drink and chips for about half an hour. It was a good time to rest and see the remnants of the sun setting on the surrounding mountains.

Then, we went back to the lodging part of the camp while doing a 1 hour night safari. Our guide was driving the car and scanning the land with a powerful flashlight. We mainly saw the same creatures we had seen earlier in the day…with the exception of some night-time rodents.
Upon arriving back to the camp we (and all other guests) we treated to a magnificent dinner. There were 4 large groups at Camp Mvuu that night and all had a long table to eat dinner at. When we got to the dinner place, which was outside, there was a bonfire, hand drummers, and dancers. It was a great atmosphere that everybody seemed to enjoy. The fire also helped because it had gotten a little chilly at night. The hand-drummers played until dinner was served. Dinner consisted of tomato soup, followed by a buffet of chicken/beef/pork/rice/hot vegetables/bread/etc…it was delicious. We also had a really good desert cake that tasted very rich. After dinner Jeff, Carla, and I stayed with the other Camp Mvuu guests to witness some of the most insane dancing I saw in Malawi. The drummers started playing and different people in traditional dancing costumes would come out of the bush and start dancing around the fire. The servers and bartender would then start dancing around the fire…it was a very neat experience. As KZEE would say, they were making noise. After a long day it was finally time to go to bed…the early morning walking safari started around 6am.



07 July 2009 (Tuesday)—Finally Back Teaching

DeAnna started off by teaching a lesson in English. She had the children split into groups and read different parts from the book that we read the school day before…”The Five Chinese Brothers.” They also had to record words they did not know…which were then written on the board and defined by DeAnna. It was a very strong, useful lesson. I got to take individual pictures (with a disposable camera) of each student throughout the lesson as well. DeAnna and I are going to glue the pictures to construction paper after they are printed out and the students are going to write a brief autobiography on the paper. Afterwards, I led the class in a modified version of the game ‘Simon Says.’ I was basically attempting to teach the children their different body parts in a fun way. After that DeAnna did a brief sing-a-long with the class…it was very funny. Lastly, I led Expressive Arts for 30 or 40 minutes. The class again did relay races, except this time I incorporated balloons into the mix. Each group was given a balloon and had to perform different relays with the balloon. I think a favorite was when the student had to put the balloon in between his or her legs and hop to a certain spot and run back. A great time it was.
After teaching the whole group got to see a presentation on T.A.L.U.L.A.R. from a guy named Gibson. TALULAR stands for Teaching and Learning Using Local Available Resources—which kind of speaks for what it is. Gibson, who was an elder gentleman that was hilarious, gave us a tremendous presentation and tour of his room filled with different TALULAR items. You can think of the items as teaching tools using local resources that you would find almost anywhere. I got a lot of good pictures of some of the learning tools.

Back in town I had a busy day. I dropped the pictures off at the a printing place, bought 20 thank you cards at The Wall, and bought chalk at the teaching store called Fegs. After dinner back at Annie’s I called it a night early in order to wake up early for our journey the next day to Mvuu (Hippo) Camp for safaris.



06 July 2009 (Monday)—Finally Independence Day

After a slow morning we were all invited to Annie’s house for lunch. Before our journey to Annie’s house, Jeff and I had a great conversation with one of Peter’s friends from Lilongwe named Dominik. It was probably the best conversation I have had with a Malawian to date. We discussed everything from politics to musical superstars to teaching to sustainable type help in Malawi and America with Dominik. I have not met a Malawian with such ideals during my time here.

We got to Annie’s house and were finally able to view the house and backyard in daylight. She has a really neat house that is very decorative. Lunch included many different foods that we have been eating during our stay. It was absolutely delicious. Afterwards, a few of us played around with Peter and Monica’s (Peter’s ex-wife) kids. Beth and I played tag with them forever after playing soccer for a little while before that. It was a lot of fun—the kids were shy at first, but then started acting like energetic kids shortly thereafter. A side note, Annie is an incredible host. She is incredibly happy when she is entertaining others…she even provides cars that transport us to her house from the lodge. We left Annie’s house in the evening and got back to Annie’s Lodge before dark.

At night, Jeff and I hung out with Brian for a good while. It also just so happened to be his birthday. After hanging out for a while, Peter took Brian, Kanetra, Jeff and I out to eat at a very nice restaurant.




05 July 2009 (Sunday)—The third highest mountain in Africa, and Brian & Peter

We all woke up and left Annie’s by 830am to go hike up Mt. Mulanje (see the title of this entry). After about 2 hours of riding the bus and incredibly tremendous views we arrived at the mountain. I took many pictures of the numerous coffee fields and of Mt. Mulanje from a distance as we approached. We picked up a guide named Lucious—I think in order to hike (and not being from Malawi) you are required to hire a guide for the journey. Lucious was a really cool, soft-spoken guy that got us where we needed to go. Mt. Mulanje has tons of cedar wood trees growing in and around the mountain…so there are some shops that sell all types of wood carvings that are made out of the cedar wood. Before the trip to the top many people bought walking sticks (that have designs) made out of cedar wood. Jeff and I got a great deal—2 walking sticks for 220 kwacha (a little more than 1 dollar) and 2 handfuls of sunflower seeds. It was funny.

We hiked for approximately an hour, while taking several resting breaks. Do not think that we went to the top or anything close to that. We probably got 10 percent up the mountain if that. There is a yearly contest amongst the locals that entails getting to the top of the mountain the quickest. I believe it takes the winner several hours of intense hiking to get to the top…and most do it barefoot. I also remember hearing that it takes 1.5 days usually for hikers to get to the top at a normal hiking pace. After our hour of hiking and tons of pictures, we arrived at a waterfall and pond area to have lunch. The waterfall was about 40 feet high and there were many large rocks in the pond that we were able to eat our lunch on. I about fell into the pond jumping from rock to rock. There was also a group of 20 adults/children that were a part of what looked like a Boy/Girl Scout program. We ate our lunch and chilled out for about an hour before heading down. Before leaving we visited the little shops outside the hiking grounds—I bought a sweet elephant poster canvas.

We got back to the lodge in the evening and had dinner and drinks. Then Peter (Annie’s son) and Brian (a student from NC A&T that went last year and came back this year) got to the lodge with many friends and started setting up to throw us a party. It was a great evening—almost all of the students came out to have a good time. Peter also helped by having an open bar…that brought some spirit out in a lot of people. I went to bed around 11pm on the floor of Beth and Kelsey’s room because upon arriving back from Mt. Mulanje, Jeff and I were greeted by a new roommate. I do not know the new roommates name, but he several inches long, red, and in the form of a lizard. I am not scared of the lizard, but I am scared of being scared by the lizard (or woken up to a lizard on me). The floor was actually great and Kelsey hooked me up with a couple pillows and I actually woke up with a blanket on me…it was a good night.



04 July 2009 (Saturday)—Almost Independence Day

After a good week of work we were all able to sleep in on Saturday. I think I woke up around 10am and had a tremendous omelet for breakfast. Breakfast here is included with your stay and it is wonderful—they have it all…omelets, eggs, toast, cereal, milk, juice, sausage, etc. (but no bacon). A bunch of us went into town a little after noon. I bought oranges at the market for a good price. Additionally I got some neat wood-carved bracelets at ‘The Wall.’ The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, but very relaxing.