Hiking @ Nkhoma

Last weekend, I traveled about an hour away with some friends to the town of Nkhoma. The town was settled by South African Missionaries in the late 1800's and lies in the shadow of a mountain from which the town received its name. The mountain has a great trail that leads to one of the peaks, and I was excited at the chance to do some hiking close to my new home. 

The group (minus Amanda) ready to conquer the mountain 

A few of my students live in Nkhoma, and we were able to visit with their families before and after our hike. That's right, several of my students make an hour commute to and from school every single day. They were incredibly hospitable and the students weren't even upset to be seeing their teachers on a Saturday! 

One of the farming huts along the trail

My roommate Owen (more to come on him later) has done the hike several times before and acted as our guide of sorts. The hike wasn't too difficult, although it did get pretty steep at the end. Our "three hour hike" took much longer than anticipated, mostly because the Americans had to stop every 50 feet to take pictures (guilty). Unfortunately, my friend Melissa sprained her ankle on the way down. She turned out to be just fine, but it was another contributing factor to our slow decent.

Overall, it was a great chance to see more of this wonderful country, and spend more time with great friends. It's strange to think that I've only known these people for a little over a month, because they are already so dear to me. They have really become like family and it's so good to spend time with them.

The whole crew at the top

The view from the top was breathtaking. I can't tell you how amazing it was looking out over the entire country, knowing that I lived here. 

Nkhoma is an absolutely gorgeous area and as always, the pictures don't do it justice. I'll try to post some more pictures on facebook so that you have an opportunity to see more of them.  

It's been a month... Let's get this thing going!

It's official... I have spent more time consistently in Malawi than any other country besides the U.S. One month ago today, I arrived in Lilongwe to start my year of service with African Bible College Christian Academy. I am teaching Language Arts to 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. So far... I have been loving every minute of my time spent in Malawi, the "Warm Heart of Africa."

My transition has been wonderful. Not only did I find it easy to assimilate to this culture, I have also discovered that I have a love of teaching! There are still many things that I'm learning as the days go by, but I am getting more and more comfortable with each new school day. 

While I wish I could write about everything that has happened in the last month, I just don't have the time. I would, however, love to briefly tell you about some of the highlights from my first month here in Africa. 

Upon my arrival, the new staff here on the ABC campus received an orientation to life here in Lilongwe. This included several meetings and sessions, along with some fun as well. One of the days included a scavenger hunt of the city of Lilongwe. Along with several other new teachers, our team took a minibus into town and bartered for goods in the local market. 

The market contains all sorts of interesting products. The fresh produce section is enormous, and has already been one of my frequent destinations before cooking supper. 

The ABC campus includes three different parts: African Bible College, the Christian Academy, and the Medical Clinic. The majority of the missionary staff (including myself) lives on the campus. It's been a joy getting to know my new "family," and we have already done some wonderful things together.

A couple weeks ago, the staff went to a place called Kumbali Village for traditional Malawian food and a taste of the rich Malawian culture. We experienced a great time of fellowship and were entertained by dancing and music from the local Malawian people.

Lake Malawi is one of the largest lakes in the world and boasts the most diverse amount of different freshwater fish species. I was fortunate to take an hour and a half drive with some friends to visit one of the beaches of the lake. We had an incredible time at such an amazingly beautiful location.

Some missionaries are suffering for Jesus. This picture might lead you to believe that I am not one of those missionaries. You would be correct. 

I am going to try my best to post as much as I can on this blog. Please feel free to leave comments and ask questions. I trust this will be an excellent way to keep you informed of my happenings and stay connected as well.