June 15 - Malawi: Northern Lake Malawi
We SO slept in today and didn't get up until 7:45! Then we had some breakfast and hit the beach. It was overcast, and we just laid on the beach with the group being silly. There were two village boys working us to buy their bracelets and they were bragging to (Aussie) Brenden that they were going to have 10 wives and 60 kids. Brenden laughed and said he was glad that puberty was over.
A view of the campsite from the beach
The interesting thing about Africans is that many of them ask - when they see us - "are you the driver?", meaning the driver of the truck. This is something that they find impressive and admirable - to be a driver. It's an occupation that many of them can aspire to become. So these two little boys wanted to know who the driver was of our truck and said that they were going to learn to drive.
Another interesting thing about the African culture are the greetings before "business discussions". Everyone says, "Hello. How are you today?" before getting down to business. And they honestly wait for an answer before continuing. Our guides do this at every border crossing, police stop, directions inquiry, campsite office - everywhere. I know that some cultures find it rude to launch into business without the appropriate pleasantries first. This was hard for us as New Yorkers to adapt to at first, but now we're digging it. It's a nice thing - someone actually caring to know how you are.
So as lay on the beach, the group started talking about the perfect cheeseburger since Jon had one yesterday. Our mouths were watering. At 11:00 we went into the bar to order some. Then the guys started a game of volleyball. Although we sang Kenny Loggin's "Playin' with The Boys", we girls decided that it just wasn't as good as the volleyball scene in "Top Gun". By this time, I had had enough sun and went to the tent to take a nap. At 3:00, Jon came and woke me as the 7 of us were going to the village Witch Doctor.
Beach volleyball in Lake Malawi
The Witch Doctor
We walked outside the camp gate and negotiated a price for a guide to the village: 30 Kwatcha each (About $.45). The witch doctor's name is Zimphepo, which means "air". We crowded into his little hut and sat around him on the floor. He didn't speak english well because - we were told - true witch doctors are not schooled. Their gifts are given from god and therefore should not be muddled with other stuff. So our guide translated everything Zimphepo said. Some villagers followed us into the hut and they clapped, sang, and drummed as Zimphepo started a slow dance to get rid of evil spirits. Then the beat picked up and he danced a bit faster, pulling each of us up one at a time to dance with him. I think he was having a bit of fun with us because he would make us do funny "Hoo Hoo" noises as we danced. But what do I know about witch doctoring? After the dance, our guide answered some questions for us and then it was off to have our futures told.
Zimphepo (in blue skirt) dancing
My future - before they realized I was married - was that I was going to be married and have two kids: a girl and a boy. Apparently, I have chest pains too but they'll be all right. Then they (the guide and Zimphepo) figured out that I was already married and said that we would be very happy together. Alright, I knew this would be a bunch of hooey from the very beginning, but I felt like I needed to go anyway. Jon's future was pretty similar - although when he asked how many kids we would have they said, "We've already told your wife". But he pressed them so Zimphepo said "Two boys... no, a boy and a girl". Close enough, I suppose. By this time we'd been there for an hour and a half and we just wanted to go. Kerry had some medicine pouches made for love and luck as we waited outside. Some little boys in the village were enthralled by Jon's shaved head and how it felt. The Aussies told them to call him "Forrest Gump", which they didn't understand but called him that anyway.
Jon and the village boys - Forrest Gump
Then we went back to camp, showered, ate, and spent the rest of the evening in the bar.