My month long home leave turned into six weeks in America, enjoying the finer things in life like flowing tap water, fully stocked fridges, and limitless internet. I had a wonderful time surrounding by friends, family, and the familiarities I lacked in Uganda.
Before I knew it, I was back to the continent I have grown to love so much. After a long flight through Atlanta and Johannesburg, my fellow four Response volunteers and I landed in Lilongwe Malawi. Peace Corps response is different than regular Peace Corps, it is often for a shorter term and with experienced people (apparently I fall into that category now!!). Peace Corps Response sends experienced professionals to undertake short-term, high-impact service assignments in communities around the world. As a response volunteer, we are able to bring valuable skills and experiences to projects in places where you are needed most. My current position is as the National Malaria Coordinator for Peace Corps Malawi. Based in the Lilongwe Peace Corps Office, I will advocate for and coordinate malaria activities among volunteers in Malawi as well as support and improve the implementation of country-wide programs by coordinating closely with USAID, National Malaria Control Program, President’s Malaria Initiative, and other implementing partners. As the Coordinator, I will support volunteers to implement quality, effective malaria work with their counterparts and other community members. Ideally, I will help PCVs improve the ability of community health workers’ and community members’ to prevent malaria. I will spend the next year motivating and encouraging volunteers to make malaria a priority in their village, school, health center, or organization!
When we arrived in Malawi, we had two weeks of training until we were sworn in as Response Volunteers. Having just come from Peace Corps less than a month prior, this training was very repetitive and boring. However, it was a nice time getting to know people, the PC staff, and the city. We even got to travel to a nearby volunteer who gave us of his village and site. It was hard to believe how underdeveloped it was considering its proximity to the capital. Even having just come from a developing country, I was shocked. The village was lacking so many resources; it’s remarkable how they get anything done. There was no clinic, no water source, and only one school.
Here, we saw our first glimpse of Malawian culture. They planned a Gule Wamkulu (or “Great Dance”) for our visit. Performed by the Chewa secret societies, the Gule Wamkulu is a masked dance which takes place at male initiation ceremonies, funerals, and major local and national celebrations. The dance is symbolic as a medium between the ancestral world of spirits and the mundane present. The Gule Wamkulu symbolizes the spectrum of life’s emotions and actions. They dress in masks and the skins of animals, and when they dance they kick up the dust in order to help disguise themselves. Only the chief who appointed them, as guardians of the village, know who they are, and they have the responsibility of driving away evil spirits from the village. It was such a unique experience; I was mesmerized by it all (also a little scared).
After what felt like a long two weeks, we had a very low-key swearing in. It was perfect for the five of us—we were very excited to get started working! Three of the four I came with are placed outside of the city, relatively far away. Just two of us are in the city…better than nothing, I guess.
My house is so nice–especially considering I just came from a rural village. I have running water and electricity! Not to mention two bedrooms, a kitchen, and two bathrooms!!! It is such a different feel than my village or Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, is very spread out and very sleepy. There doesn’t seem to be many people here or much going on. Kampala is one big traffic jam, chaotic, and crazy. Lilongwe is quiet, very peaceful, and much less developed. However, it is everything I need it to be and I am really looking forward to exploring it further.
the buzz 