Tuesday, 11 August 2009
Thursday, 6 August 2009
GOD BE PRAISED THAT YOU ARE BACK IN SCOTLAND
I am very happy to learn that you made it safe back home in Scotland. We are still nursing the beautiful memories of your stay with us here in Malawi. We are very much looking forward to the day we shall visit Scotland.
Our memories are filled with a lot of joy, happiness etc. The boys and girls on the list keep asking me if it is real. The dream to fly for the first time is not believed. let us wait and see.
Once again, Yewo Chomene.
Fr. Andrew Chunda
Our memories are filled with a lot of joy, happiness etc. The boys and girls on the list keep asking me if it is real. The dream to fly for the first time is not believed. let us wait and see.
Once again, Yewo Chomene.
Fr. Andrew Chunda
Tuesday, 4 August 2009
Greetings from Dalry!
Monire mose,
Sorry, it’s taken a while to post my final message since returning home. For the first couple of days I was feeling quite down and really missing everyone in Mzuzu. It gets harder to leave each time I visit. I’m still waking up at ridiculously early times in the morning – I think the bells are ingrained in my memory. My body clock will just be getting back to normal when it’s time to go back to work.
Overall I think that this trip was a resounding success and for me it was the most enjoyable one so far. The St. Matthew’s group was a real credit to the school and certainly made me proud. There will definitely be a few more Malawi enthusiasts about the staffroom now and I’m looking forward to sharing the workload of the partnership more evenly with them!
The people of Mzuzu were every bit as welcoming as I expected. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting up with all my old friends, visiting their homes and working and socialising with them. Fr. Chunda was without a doubt an absolute star. He could not have looked after us any better and he provided much humour along the way. I definitely miss both the daily and Sunday Masses. The people at St. Peter’s can teach us plenty about how to “celebrate” the Eucharist.
It was good to see how the school has developed even further since my last visit. It has come a long way since I first arrived in 2002 when they had only 2 quite derelict classrooms and 60 pupils. There is a real buzz about the place nowand a lot of hope for the future. The teaching staff and school board were very open to discussing how they could improve as a school – probably more so than thestaff at St. Matthew’s !
I’m delighted that St. Mary’s P.S., Largs has partnered with St. Peter’s P.S. and there is hope that we will find a partner for Luynangwa Girls P.S. shortly. There is tremendous scope in both primary schools and a partnership will really help them flourish.
The 2 orphan centres are places I hold close to my heart. When I’m struggling to get out of bed on a wet Monday morning I’ll try to think of the kids who constantly battle against poverty, hunger and disease and yet are always smiling. The volunteers who run both centres are an example to us all. They don’t have much themselves; some are even HIV+, but they give their time and effort to care for these orphans, to give them respite and hope for a brighter future.
I’m really looking forward to the return visit in March and I think the group who are coming over will make a tremendous impact on the St. Matthew’s community. Our partnership with St. Peter’s is stronger than ever. Thank you to all of you who helped to fund raise or made donations to make this trip possible. Your support is greatly appreciated both in St. Matthew’s and St. Peter’s. Now we just have to find around £10 000 for the return visit!
Pawemi,
Bernadette
Sorry, it’s taken a while to post my final message since returning home. For the first couple of days I was feeling quite down and really missing everyone in Mzuzu. It gets harder to leave each time I visit. I’m still waking up at ridiculously early times in the morning – I think the bells are ingrained in my memory. My body clock will just be getting back to normal when it’s time to go back to work.
Overall I think that this trip was a resounding success and for me it was the most enjoyable one so far. The St. Matthew’s group was a real credit to the school and certainly made me proud. There will definitely be a few more Malawi enthusiasts about the staffroom now and I’m looking forward to sharing the workload of the partnership more evenly with them!
The people of Mzuzu were every bit as welcoming as I expected. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting up with all my old friends, visiting their homes and working and socialising with them. Fr. Chunda was without a doubt an absolute star. He could not have looked after us any better and he provided much humour along the way. I definitely miss both the daily and Sunday Masses. The people at St. Peter’s can teach us plenty about how to “celebrate” the Eucharist.
It was good to see how the school has developed even further since my last visit. It has come a long way since I first arrived in 2002 when they had only 2 quite derelict classrooms and 60 pupils. There is a real buzz about the place nowand a lot of hope for the future. The teaching staff and school board were very open to discussing how they could improve as a school – probably more so than thestaff at St. Matthew’s !
I’m delighted that St. Mary’s P.S., Largs has partnered with St. Peter’s P.S. and there is hope that we will find a partner for Luynangwa Girls P.S. shortly. There is tremendous scope in both primary schools and a partnership will really help them flourish.
The 2 orphan centres are places I hold close to my heart. When I’m struggling to get out of bed on a wet Monday morning I’ll try to think of the kids who constantly battle against poverty, hunger and disease and yet are always smiling. The volunteers who run both centres are an example to us all. They don’t have much themselves; some are even HIV+, but they give their time and effort to care for these orphans, to give them respite and hope for a brighter future.
I’m really looking forward to the return visit in March and I think the group who are coming over will make a tremendous impact on the St. Matthew’s community. Our partnership with St. Peter’s is stronger than ever. Thank you to all of you who helped to fund raise or made donations to make this trip possible. Your support is greatly appreciated both in St. Matthew’s and St. Peter’s. Now we just have to find around £10 000 for the return visit!
Pawemi,
Bernadette
BEST WISHES TO ALL WHO HAD VISITED US AT MARY-MARTHA
I still recall the great day when we were priviledged with 13 visitors from Scoland which was lead by Eric Allan but pioneered by Bernadette Macfaden but due to reasons beyond our control, one deligate failed to come due to a funeral which happened in the family and we are sorry for the loss of a family member.
For those who did not come but represented by the team which came to Malawi, we are saying God should bless you also, as all the gifts and donations which you organize always reach us.
Paul and Anne also came in with a donation to the centre but this went straight to Nursery school and we appreciate for everything including the song you taught the orphans which is sung almost every day ( chic chic chin) wrong spelling )
I and my family Martha, wish you all the best.
Rodrick Kavuta
For those who did not come but represented by the team which came to Malawi, we are saying God should bless you also, as all the gifts and donations which you organize always reach us.
Paul and Anne also came in with a donation to the centre but this went straight to Nursery school and we appreciate for everything including the song you taught the orphans which is sung almost every day ( chic chic chin) wrong spelling )
I and my family Martha, wish you all the best.
Rodrick Kavuta
Saturday, 1 August 2009
Paul & Anne's last post
We arrived home yesterday in Glasgow airport. It was sad saying farewell to Fr Chunda at the airport. We have greatly enjoyed his company, with his stories and enthusiasm for everything. He insisted on waiting till the plane took off in case there were problems of delays; we thought he was making sure we left in case we changed our minds about coming home. The flights were fine and there was no hassle with the connecting flights. Even in Nairobi the 5 hour wait passed effortlessly. In fact it was too good to be true: it was. When we reached the baggage recovery in Glasgow airport our luggage did not appear; it was still in Amsterdam. Finally our luggage arrived at our home today (Saturday) delivered by the airport companies.
The last few days have been hectic. We said our goodbyes on Sunday and moved on to Mua. To get there from Mzuzu we took the bus to Salima along the coast road besides the lake. It took 7 and a half hours; we were told it would take 5 hours. We are now experts at travelling on the local transport. We have learned that when you ask a Malawian how long the journey takes you have to add another hour or 2 to their estimate. When you ask when does this bus leave the station you are told, "When it is full." Full mean not just all the seats taken but it also includes many passengers standing n the passageway also. At Salima bus station we changed to one of the minibuses which the locals use to go to Mua Mission. We were told it would take half an hour. The journey lasted an hour and a half. What an experience! They pack the people in. There are no bus stops; people stand at the side of the road and the buses stop. At one point there were 24 people, 2 of which were “mazungus” (us, the “whitemen”) and a chicken in the minibus. Along the way the minibus was stopped several times at police roadblocks. Finally, we arrived at Mua Mission, just as the sun went down (5.50pm). There was a power cut so we had a meal in the candlelight along with one Swedish girl and 2 Dutch people. The food was delicious. Mua mission was well worth the journey. It has a museum which contains fascinating information regarding the coming of Christianity to Malawi and the history and customs of the 3 Malawian tribes. The collection of the dance masks of the Ngoni tribe was fascinating. We stayed in a lovely chalet which looked like something out of Hansel and Gretel. The mission is just across the river from where the village is. We could see the people washing themselves and their clothes in the river. After 2 nights we pushed onto Lilongwe where we met up with Fr Chunda and Bernadette. In Lilongwe we met up with the traders from Nkhata bay and we exchanged a pair of boots (Paul’s) for a wooden chief's chair. We spent a lovely evening at the restaurant and Nelly' s lodge. It was nice to meet Fr Robert again. We also managed one last ride on the back of the pick up truck as we headed off to the airport.
We have enjoyed travelling about in Malawi. While we did not manage to get to the south to see Blantyre and Zomba, we are keen to go back in 2 years time. The country is beautiful, has a lot of potential as a tourist destination with a natural charm. Several parts of the landscape in the north reminded us of Scotland. Nkhata Bay and the lakeside are beautiful.
We have met lots of lovely people both in St Peter's schools, Parish and the 2 Orphanages (Mary Martha & the Women’s Development Centre) and made several good friends. We are looking forward to seeing Fr Chunda and the group in Scotland in March and contributing to making their visit to Scotland, including St. Matthew's and St Mary's as happy and enjoyable as we experienced in St Peter's. Above all, we are looking forward to going back to meet up with everyone again in Mzuzu and to see the development of the eco garden project in St. Peter’s Secondary, the school library in St. Peter’s Primary and the nursery at Mary Martha. Meanwhile now that we are back home our thoughts will be turning to finding ways to help promote and support the Orphan scheme and fundraise for the impending visits. We also look forward to meeting up with all members of the St. Matthew’s group to exchange our stories and photos.
We know several of you in Malawi have access to reading the blog - Fr Andrew, Roderick and Lesley. We will be in touch by e-mail over the next few days.
We think the visit has been a great success. Finally, another big thank you to Bernadette for including us on this visit which has been a rollercoaster of emotions. A truly wonderful experience filled with many memories.
Regards
Paul & Anne
The last few days have been hectic. We said our goodbyes on Sunday and moved on to Mua. To get there from Mzuzu we took the bus to Salima along the coast road besides the lake. It took 7 and a half hours; we were told it would take 5 hours. We are now experts at travelling on the local transport. We have learned that when you ask a Malawian how long the journey takes you have to add another hour or 2 to their estimate. When you ask when does this bus leave the station you are told, "When it is full." Full mean not just all the seats taken but it also includes many passengers standing n the passageway also. At Salima bus station we changed to one of the minibuses which the locals use to go to Mua Mission. We were told it would take half an hour. The journey lasted an hour and a half. What an experience! They pack the people in. There are no bus stops; people stand at the side of the road and the buses stop. At one point there were 24 people, 2 of which were “mazungus” (us, the “whitemen”) and a chicken in the minibus. Along the way the minibus was stopped several times at police roadblocks. Finally, we arrived at Mua Mission, just as the sun went down (5.50pm). There was a power cut so we had a meal in the candlelight along with one Swedish girl and 2 Dutch people. The food was delicious. Mua mission was well worth the journey. It has a museum which contains fascinating information regarding the coming of Christianity to Malawi and the history and customs of the 3 Malawian tribes. The collection of the dance masks of the Ngoni tribe was fascinating. We stayed in a lovely chalet which looked like something out of Hansel and Gretel. The mission is just across the river from where the village is. We could see the people washing themselves and their clothes in the river. After 2 nights we pushed onto Lilongwe where we met up with Fr Chunda and Bernadette. In Lilongwe we met up with the traders from Nkhata bay and we exchanged a pair of boots (Paul’s) for a wooden chief's chair. We spent a lovely evening at the restaurant and Nelly' s lodge. It was nice to meet Fr Robert again. We also managed one last ride on the back of the pick up truck as we headed off to the airport.
We have enjoyed travelling about in Malawi. While we did not manage to get to the south to see Blantyre and Zomba, we are keen to go back in 2 years time. The country is beautiful, has a lot of potential as a tourist destination with a natural charm. Several parts of the landscape in the north reminded us of Scotland. Nkhata Bay and the lakeside are beautiful.
We have met lots of lovely people both in St Peter's schools, Parish and the 2 Orphanages (Mary Martha & the Women’s Development Centre) and made several good friends. We are looking forward to seeing Fr Chunda and the group in Scotland in March and contributing to making their visit to Scotland, including St. Matthew's and St Mary's as happy and enjoyable as we experienced in St Peter's. Above all, we are looking forward to going back to meet up with everyone again in Mzuzu and to see the development of the eco garden project in St. Peter’s Secondary, the school library in St. Peter’s Primary and the nursery at Mary Martha. Meanwhile now that we are back home our thoughts will be turning to finding ways to help promote and support the Orphan scheme and fundraise for the impending visits. We also look forward to meeting up with all members of the St. Matthew’s group to exchange our stories and photos.
We know several of you in Malawi have access to reading the blog - Fr Andrew, Roderick and Lesley. We will be in touch by e-mail over the next few days.
We think the visit has been a great success. Finally, another big thank you to Bernadette for including us on this visit which has been a rollercoaster of emotions. A truly wonderful experience filled with many memories.
Regards
Paul & Anne
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