Satellite
Show on map
  • Day 127

    Living with Phillip & his family

    January 20, 2020 in Malawi ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Morning starts off early and rushed with breakfast at 7am and set off from Mayoka Village at 7:15. Today, we are headed to Chimbota Secondary School, a private high school in the village of Chimbota which is about 15 minute drive away from the centre of Nhkata Bay. We’ll be staying here for two nights and quickly learn that driving there isn’t all that easy since the road keeps washing away with the daily rainfall.

    Phillip, one of the founders of the school and member of staff at Mayoka Village is going to be hosting us for the next couple of days while we help out at the school and live with his family.

    Chimbota Secondary School opened its doors in 2016 and currently has over 100 students enrolled. Before, the nearest secondary school was in Nhkata Bay which meant that students previously had to walk over 2 hours to get to school. During rainy season this means it was near to impossible for many eager students to get to school as their method of transportation is by foot.

    With a vision to expand, Phillip hopes enrolment will continue to grow in the coming years as demand for education is growing. However, many families face difficulties in meeting the school fees which are set at 29,000 kwacha (about $35 USD) per term. With today being the deadline for students to pay, the class sizes seem to be dwindling and many students are seen walking away from the school.

    As the school day comes to an end, we pack our things and head home to Phillips house. It’s about a 30 minute walk which is either blazingly hot or torrentially wet. We’re greeted warmly by everyone in the street. The local butcher passes by and shows us his bucket full of pig. We pass on purchasing any as we don’t have anywhere to cook, it but thank him for his generosity. We also meet a guy who calls himself Honeyman, a local bee keeper and nephew of Phillip. We don’t believe his name until we hear some others shouting out for him. He seems to be a popular fella.

    Lunch and dinner is cooked by Phillip’s family as we sit and watch the village life go by. As seems to be standard in Africa, we have an early night, and turn off the lights (by disconnecting the bare ends of wire draped across our door).
    Read more