Arrival

After months of preparation, dreaming, and anxiety I have finally arrive in Lilongwe. The journey here was very long and uneventful except for one marriage proposal (I declined, don't worry). When I stepped off the plane at last (36 hours after boarding in DC) my first thought was, "I am definitely a long way from home." My second thought, as the African sun warmed my skin and I took in the 360 degrees of green horizon, was "It feels good to be here." I passed through customs quickly and easily and was met by a man holding a sign with my name as I exited the airport. As he took my cart a woman with kind eyes (who turned out to be a colleague of Dr. Kaponda's not a random stranger) welcomed me to Malawi and gave me a hug.

The drive to Dr. Kaponda's home was short and green. The area around Lilongwe is mostly flat with gentle rolling hills and many of the roads are lined with lush trees some of which are burdened by huge yellow, red, and purple blossoms. In the distance there are a few scattered purple blue mountains that reach up unexpectedly from the mostly flat land.

Dr. Kaponda was home when we arrived and she also greeted me with a warm smile and hug (so much for my worries about not getting enough hugs). She set aside an incredibly nice room for me in her home (a definite step up from my last several rooms - no offense Kristen or Riva) and she and her family have just been wonderful. They are amazingly kind and generous.

So far I haven't done any babycatching, this past weekend was Easter so the city has been shut down and I've been grateful for the time to get over the jetlag. I really don't feel much culture shock yet, probably because all of my needs are being met. Of course I miss my friends and family but it feels good to be here. The biggest change, as you can probably guess, has been my diet. I went from semi-vegan to definite omnivore on Good Friday (sorry, mom, for the timing). I had eggs, chicken, and beef all in one day and so far my body seems to be alright, no major signs/sounds of rebellion. And, I have to admit, that it tasted pretty good too.

As for the work and so forth. Dr. Kaponda and I made a plan today. The first goal is to learn Chichewa. I soon discovered that was a definite must. People do speak and understand English but they pretty much only speak it to me. I've been studying on my own and I can understand a word here and there and say the basic greeting without calling a man a woman (as I did on day 1) but I still have a long way to go. Next week I'm going to hire a tutor for the week to give me a start and then I'll see how it goes after that. The following week I'll be in the hospital observing and then after that I'll start doing clinical practice, with supervision (thank God). I've been told so often how much of a shock this will be that I have stopped anticipating anything. Of course I'll keep you posted.

If anyone wants to write, or if you have any items you want to ship here is the address: Joanne Jorissen c/o Dr. Chrissie Kaponda, University of Malawi, Kamuzu College of Nursing - Research Center, Private Bag 1, Lilongwe Malawi, Africa. (Please be sure to put Africa - I've heard stories of mail being routed through Maui.)

I don't have a phone yet but I will be getting one soon. Apparently you can buy phone cards in the states that will charge as little as $0.10 a minute so keep your eyes open for those - I would love to hear from you.

I'll be checking email and writing sporadically but please do write.

Love,

J.