Saturday 13th August

We have arrived at Blantyre airport just saying our goodbyes to Dyton our driver and then to Sue.
We will post when we can.
Mummy bear. X

Friday 12th August

It was another early morning, fuelled by eggy bread (our last ever meal of the trip cooked by Mumma Bear), to say goodbye to Prince Harry and leave Mvuu. We loaded all our kit and ourselves onto a small wooden boat and then travelled across the River Shire to find Tilly. We travelled three hours to Zomba. When we went through the more rural area, we threw empty water bottles and sweets to the children as they were all shouting 'bottle' at us. Our driver told us that they needed the plastic bottles to take water to school. Our journey was made even longer, as we were stopped three times by police at checkpoints!
When we arrived at Zomba, we went to the market where we spent the last of our Kwacha on paintings, bracelets and wooden carvings. After we had bought all we wanted, we went to a restaurant to have lunch.
We bumped into Sue whilst we were there and she was going to take us to a nearby dam. Unfortunately, Tilly was too big for the road so we just enjoyed the view of Zomba and the landscape from a road on the side of a mountain.
We then ventured back into the market where we bought even more fabric and then headed to Pakachere (a backpackers hostel) where we settled in and stuffed our bags with all our belongings.
For dinner, we had a Malawian dish of rice, chicken curry, maize and vegetables. We then ended our final day with a quiz night.
By Liv and Alice X

Thursday 11th August

This morning we woke up early so we could go on our third game drive of the trip, we set off in 2 trucks and went on the search for zebras and elephants. Along the way we saw so many baboons and Impala and we also saw warthogs. (which have been come to be known as El's family) One group got driven round to the famous Dr. Livingstone tree and we all managed to squeeze inside. As we made our way back our guide took one last turn to try and see some elephants and there they were. Heaps of them were along the river bank. As we came closer they became very protective and the dominant female of the group stood in front of us and blew her trunk while the rest of her herd could pass.

In the afternoon we were set to go on a sunset cruise to go and see more animals, we drove along the lake and managed to see so many new animals (plus a far look at the Prince's camp).

Due to us missing the game drive the day before after dinner our guides scheduled us in to go on a night drive to see some nocturnal life, sadly we didn't get to see any hyena but we did see loads of mongoose and then a single porcupine making its way through the grass. We then returned to camp and fell right to sleep, putting an end onto the second last full day of this amazing trip.

Georgie and El

Wednesday 10th August

The day began with another early morning, as we had to get ready to leave the island that had been our home for two nights. We were all packed and ready to go, but unfortunately the boat was late. When it finally arrived, we climbed on and sped off back to the mainland. Once we arrived we were reunited with Tilly, our trusty truck, and began the journey towards Mvuu national park. After two hours, we stopped for lunch at a nearby chicken restaurant. As there was a TV playing world news, we were able to catch up on the some of events we had missed out on (Kira was particularly pleased to see that Australia was third in the olympic medal rankings so far). We then set off again for a "half hour" journey that actually took two hours. We drove through a village with lots of children that all smiled and waved at us, some even running after the truck. When we reached the gates of the park, we were an hour late for the game drive that was scheduled. So instead, we piled our bags onto some boats and traveled to our campsite to set up tents. On the way, we spotted a hippo and a crocodile. As the light was fading and the ground was tough, we found ourselves hitting tent pegs with rocks in the dark. When we finally managed to set up all our tents, we walked to the restaurant for some Fanta before dinner. As we were walking in, we were informed by some passing campers that Prince Harry was sitting in the bar, as he was in Malawi to assist with the transfer of elephants to a different park. Despite our best efforts to be calm and quiet, the sheer number of people in the bar meant that the Prince left, leading to El making a beeline for where he had just been sitting. After the excitement died down it was time for a buffet dinner, which was delicious. After dinner, we settled down into our tents for a well deserved rest.

Kira and Ellie

A ginger spotted!

Hi all, Grace here. Just a quick exciting update from a hyperventilating girl but living in London and loving the royals I'm dying as we just saw PRINCE HARRY in the bar at the Mvuu Camp we are at tonight. We're trying to be cool but being teenage girls accidentally scared him off. Love to all. See you Sunday. From Grace xxx

Tuesday 9th August

Sup fans. Millie and Grace reporting today's activities. So we woke up on our island bright and early to the sun streaming into our safari tent and the fishermen shouting to each other words that we don't understand. We all met outside the kitchen area at 7:30 with full water bottles and each grabbed an apple or pear before starting on a very difficult hike up to the top of Domwe island. It took forever and we're pretty sure we all died several times over, but we eventually made it up to the top exhausted and Georgie's trousers ripped. The view was amazing! We have decided that Lake Malawi must be infinite as we could see that it goes on forever. After the trek down again we finally had breakfast (which was more of a brunch) just after 11am. We then had a lovely time sunbathing, swimming in Lake Malawi (thanks for the speedy responses parents!) and generally relaxing until a 1pm lunch. At 2 we then paired up and loaded back into kayaks to go to 'the gap' where we found an island with a mysterious name and jumped off rocks. Georgie being the GG rebel that she is managed to scrape some very parallel lines onto her leg but soldiered on and still had a bunch of fun with the rest of us... Helping to create an 'island' (aka. Rock) called *low chesty groan* along with Liv and Grace and Millie. Grace's groan definitely being the best with funky head movements. The journey back was definitely an eventful one for all. Georgie and Millie nearly capsized the whole journey resulting in an 'accidental' trip into the water once their kayak finally overturned on our beach shores. Grace and (O)Liv(ia) created a fun game in their kayak of paddling way too close to the shore and trying to squeeze between all the gaps in the rocks and touching them all. Their near death experiences resulted in both crying with laughter and Liv creating an interesting surprise...
Once back on Domwe, everyone had a shower in the efficient shower which was boiling but only a little came out. It was interesting to try to bend to get the right bit of your body wet. Overall a really good and fun filled day and we finished it with a bonfire on the beach in the darkness making smores like the good girl guides we all are.
Looking forward to seeing you all on Sunday
Millie and Grace xxx

Monday 8th August

Hey everyone it's the dream team here (Liv and Lucy✨) !!!
After a relaxing day on Sunday, we woke up early to see the sunrise over the mountains and pack our tents up to leave.

Today, we headed off in Tilly to kayak to our own island for the two days: Domwe island. Kayaking here was quite hard work and a bit scary at first. But we all became pros and our efforts were rewarded by how amazing the island is. Kira and Ellie were the first to arrive in an amazing 5km in 45 minutes! Shortly followed by everyone else.

We are staying in safari tents on decks with beautiful views of the lake.
After we settled in, we had lunch where Liv had a traumatic experience...as I sat down to eat my large cheese roll, Lucy said "watch out!" just as I TROD on a lizard. All I saw was it run away WITHOUT a tail! I went into shock as I didn't realise that it was a defence mechanism and thought I had killed it. However everyone else found it quite amusing (when Liv and the lizard had recovered).

Then we had the afternoon to either explore the island, kayak, sun bathe or shower. At 5pm we gathered together and went on a hike up the hill with a guide. We reached a giant rock with a ladder and (some much more daring than others) climbed on top to watch the stunning sunset. Once we were back to camp, we had down time followed by a dinner of fish freshly caught just for us. D-)-)-D (Kay's old sky fish emoji)
🌤💖🐠

Sunday 7th August

Today started off with a change of plans. Originally we were meant to go on a boat trip around the lake to see fish and eagles but it was too windy, so instead we went to a luxurious resort called Matakole. It had a massive pool with sun beds so we walked straight to the beach by the lake. It was amazing and we all got great tans/burns! At midday we had a lovely two course lunch and then went back to sunbathing. Everyone enjoyed the time to rest because we've all been working so hard the past two weeks. We then got on Tilly the truck and headed back to our campsite. When we returned, we went outside the campsite gates to see some little stalls selling African crafts. Some of us were hit by a wave of young children - Georgie ending up in tickle fights and Millie ended up on the floor. When we were done, we all finished packing for our next adventure, then had dinner. Lastly, we had a little bonfire on the beach out the back of our lodge and ate s'mores. The day ended with an early night for all as we have an early wake up tomorrow.

Georgie and El

P.S. Sup Mandy, I actually wrote this one, be proud of me!
P.P.S. El wrote the other two 'we' wrote

Saturday 6th August

It was a very sad morning today as it was the day we left Fisherman's Rest. We had our breakfast and then tidied the lodge up, which took some time - especially the kitchen. But we were soon all packed up and saying our goodbyes to the lovely staff.

After about half an hour of being on Tilly, we stopped off at Shoprite, the nearby supermarket. Here, we all stocked up on sweets and chocolate to keep us going for the next week. We then boarded Tilly again and set out on our 4 hour journey to Nanchengwa, our next destination. Most of us slept, listened to music or read.

When we eventually arrived, we put up our tents - without any help from the leaders, as they were having a drink on the jetty watching the sun set with Vic and Sue from Fishermans Rest to discuss the itinerary for the forthcoming week! We finished the day on the beach, where some of us played beach volleyball in the dark.

Saturday 6th August

We are about to leave Fisherman's Rest.
We may not have internet for some time but promise to blog when we can.
Love to you all from us all
Mumma Bear (Julia)

Friday 5th August our last day at Fishermans Rest

In the early hours of the morning we were greeted by delicious pancakes cooked by mamaa and the Blantyre patrol (Millie, Lucy, Olivia and Alice). We then had our last Chichewa lesson with the Fisherman Rest monitors which was the best ever experience of learning a language.  Strolling up the steep hill we reached the bus which transported us to Kachere 2 school where we did our final activities with the children and served phala for the last time. Pearl treated the local Mothers who cooked the phala to a Morris dancing lesson, costume and all! The leaders bid an emotional goodbye to the mothers who they had formed quite a bond with despite the short time they spent together and promised to send them lots of the photos they had taken of their children and them. We then serenaded the children with a goodbye guide song and bid our farewells, which was very emotional and caused mama to cry.

Getting back to fishermans rest we ate our lunch surrounded by a thick mist because of the weather being really miserable and cold in the early hours of the day. We then split up and either did painting, stove making or visiting the local clinic to deliver donations.

I visited the local clinic which i thought was surreal and shocking because there was only one patient in the entire clinic and the consultation and waiting rooms were so small. However, it was a really good experience to see  how you would be looked after if you were to fall ill in Malawi. I also found out a lot of information about the patients; I discovered that many were suffering from HIV or Malaria. We donated 30 mosquito nets and hand knitted jumpers for babies to the clinic. It was very rewarding to be able to give something to a place in need.

Some of us went to build a stove for the second time which was another great experience. Meeting the family we saw how much the 'changu changu moto' project would benefit their life and it made me overcome with emotions. The other group finished off painting the Windows of the new school which is going to be opened next week. Millie who was a part of the painting group got paint on her face because she had a really bad aim.
Once we all finished our activities we made our way back to Fishermans Rest where we had to repack our bags for the week's camping that we have ahead of us. The highlight of the day is getting our fishermans rest tops and happy pants which were tailored to our sizes and turned out amazing. As well as it being a day full of joy some tears were shed as it was the last day of us working in schools, seeing the Fishermans Rest staff and staying at the tea house.

Mia & Sai

4th August

Today we went to Kachere 2 school to do more teaching. This was our first day at the school and we were greeted by all the children singing songs for us as we got off our bus. We joined the school for their assembly and we were asked to sing our national anthem and a few guiding songs for them. We then split off into groups to run sessions with the children, which they thoroughly enjoyed. We also served phala. This school does not have a food project so this was the first time phala had been served here, which was pretty cool, even though a bit unorganised! Julia and Justine got help from some very enthusiastic mothers in making the phala over an open fire, this community gathering resulted in a dancing competition, which Justine and Julia joined in enthusiastically. And in case you were wondering, someone did video it (hehe). Julia also, of course, ended up with a 2 month old baby in her arms by the end, called Fergus.
In the afternoon we went back to the school we have been visiting for the past 2 weeks that is currently under construction. One group went off to make a stove in a family home again, whilst others went to make bricks and paint windows. In the evening, everyone except Kay and Mia (who were sleeping) went to watch a film with some children at the local community centre in Tilitonse. They played some re-runs from  the London 2012 Olympics, followed by a documentary that was filmed here in Malawi. Some of the children were featured in the documentary and they loved seeing themselves and their friends in the film. At the times when the projector wasn't working, we sang songs and played games with the children around us. We then returned back for trash and treasure and planning for tomorrow.

Ellie- "I went off and made bricks which was a very good experience. I have a thing with things going in my toes like sand. Today I went out of my comfort zone in the brick making and jumped in some mud with 'bare feet' and took a lot of anger out on some mud by hacking it away to make a mud pile for our bricks. Later on I was asked who I was taking my anger out on or who hurt me as I used a lot of my strength to break away mud with the tools we were given! I also made some more little friends when I was on the mould washing job. It was an amazing experience and I thoroughly enjoyed it."

Kira - "One of the best parts of the day was serving porridge at the school. Whilst we were waiting for another group of students to arrive, Sai and I began handing out stickers to the babies and toddlers that were gathered around us, whose mothers had helped to make the porridge. This triggered a tidal wave of enthusiastic mothers who all wanted stickers placed on the backs of their phones, on their ears as earrings or on their perplexed infants. Unfortunately, quite a few of the children that were handed to me began screaming the moment they made it into my arms. For the sake of everyone's eardrums, I gave them a sticker and politely handed them back. The enthusiasm of the mothers and the kindness that they showed to us was overwhelming and is something I will never forget. "

3rd August

Day 11, Wednesday 3rd August
Today was our last day at Chipepwete school, as normal the schools assembly took place- where they sing the national anthem, and today a few of the girls learnt the Chichewan words to it!  The activities went well, bunting was decorated, human knots got untangled, books were read and lots of stickers - everyone seemed to enjoy them.  We had made a lot of friends at this school and Millie was even given a headband from one of the girls to remember her by. After running our sessions, we served the phala as usual as part of the food program, which is always quite a chaotic experience but our crowd control skills have improved. It is also a really important job as this could be the only meal that some of the children will be receiving.
We had the afternoon off, where most of us spent some time tidying our floordrobes and piles of toiletries, whereas others who didn't have as much to tidy organised the donations pile.  After having a 2 hour tidy up, 10 of us headed off to the pool, where we were greeted by the sight of the sun setting over the mountain range, visible from pool edge.  After a cold swim, and some lovely prom-type stereotypical pool pics, we decided it was time to dry off and take it in turns to use Julia's amazing outdoor shower with a beautiful view. The remaining two, Sai and Alice, headed off with Pearl and Justine for a 'gentle' walk around the nature reserve. Sai led the route and we somehow ended up on the very steep path! It was hard work, but really rewarding for the views, and the girls managed to have a conversation with a local across the valley in Chichewan!
After having our warm showers, it was time for dinner, with our very special guests. Vic, Sue, Matt, Ania and Joe - Fishermans Rest staff, who joined us for dinner to talk about the projects that they do here.  Before dinner we sang some songs to our guests and Liv, who's been a guide for 6 years this coming September, decided she wanted to make her promise.  Lucy introduced her and Kay presented her with a promise badge. Thus she became possibly the only English Girl Guide to make her promise in Malawi! It was a really cool moment.
Over dinner, beef stew and mash, the FR staff spoke a little about the projects that they run here, and how they came to find the place.  The fabulous evening ended with Ania, Vic and Sue telling us how grateful for the donations they are and where a few things are going, the mosquito nets and knitted jumpers will be going to a local maternity clinic, and the Fishermans Rest staff who have children, some pencils and the ring binders will be donated to a ladies teaching group down in Tilitonse community centre.  The glucose pressure testers will be given to a diabetes clinic (or similar), and the English Dictionaries will be given to the schools we visited.
Becca and Liv

2nd August

Day 10

It was Grace's birthday today so everyone awoke to balloons and bunting everywhere and a lovely breakfast of eggy bread (thanks Julia and co.). We drove to the school on Tilly the truck after our Chichewa lesson as usual and had a lovely morning of book activities and songs and games at the school. While we were there the school hosted an under 5's clinic like they do every first Tuesday of the month and after lessons we helped to serve porridge to the children. Julia met the headmasters wife and son and found out the son has to walk 2 hours to go to his high school (which starts at 7am) each way which is so early and a huge commitment. This afternoon we helped in the community as we have been doing and painted some windows at the school they are building, some of the group made a fuel efficient stove in a house from bricks and mud cement (with a score of 94%). The stove project helps families to build their own stove which is easier to control the heat on and safer with young children around than open fires, it also helps to cut down the impact of deforestation by using less wood and encouraging families to pass on the knowledge of how to build a fuel efficient stove. Back at the school Becca, Alice and Sai got down and dirty making bricks which included standing barefoot in mud and carrying buckets of water on their heads. At the stove there was a glorious little boy named Moses who was just 'edible' (Millie's words). Once back at the building site of the new school the children sang a lovely farewell to us which brought tears to everyone's eyes even though we hope we'll be going back to see them before we leave. After clearing ourselves up with Julia's shower with a view being an amazing factor, we had a dinner of jacket potato and then birthday cake and chocolate to finish. The electrics have been going on and off all day but the arrival of washing lifted everyone's mood.

**any snapchat streaks should be being upheld~~you know who you are**

By Grace and Millie. ❤️❤️❤️ love to all xx

Happy birthday Grace

Happy birthday Grace. X

1st August

Today we headed off to a new school, Chipepwete. It was a longer, bumpier journey but there were more modern classrooms and less children so sessions were easier to run. The children also had better English so we could run more complex sessions. We were welcomed by songs and dancing with the guides before we split into smaller groups. Liv and Lucy described  London landmarks on the map they brought to the girl guides and younger group which they found very interesting. They also enjoyed looking through the 3D glasses at their drawings. The boys also enjoyed football with Becca and Georgie and songs with Grace. Lunchtime got very chaotic when we served seconds of the phala, it really opened our eyes to how hungry the kids were.

In the afternoon, we went to the school that is being built (which we were painting last week and is hopefully opening by the end of next week). There had been a bad flood which ruined most of the bricks that the people had been making. So we all worked really hard together on moving all of the broken bricks and piling the bricks that are still okay to put in the kiln to use for the building. It was hot and dirty work but really rewarding when we saw all of the bricks that we had moved and it felt that we had been really productive and helped out. Ellie made a few friends too called Beatrice Emily and Sabina who were very helpful and enjoyed moving the bricks with us. One woman helping us found a mouse and killed for her dinner, we understood she had to simply to eat but it caught us a bit off guard.

We had a lot of ups and downs today but we got through it all together, so overall it was a fun day.

By Liv and Lucy

Georgie was here, shoutout to the #SinclairFam

Sunday 31st July

Today we woke up super early so we could go on an early morning game drive to see more animals, we didn't as see as many animals as yesterday though, but we did see some zebra and buffalo this time. Afterwards we went to the restaurant for breakfast, most of us went for the combo of pancakes and French Toast, which was so good. We then set off in Tilly the truck to go to the next park. There we saw some giraffe (that aren't actually native to Malawi) and some other animals. We then headed back to Fishermen's Rest so we could freshen up and relax. Today we did a room swap so people all had a chance to share a room with one another and that some who were on bunk beds could have an actual bed. In the evening we had dinner of pasta bolognese, we then had a quiz night where we split up into 4 teams and came up with a round each, there was general knowledge, charades, this weeks events (that happened with us) and a music round. Everyone was tired and fell straight asleep afterwards.

El and GG Rebel (Georgie)

Saturday 30th July

We had an early start today as we wanted to go to a nearby market in order to buy some fabric for our happy pants. When we got back to Fisheman's rest, we had our breakfast and then we were measured by the local tailor. We then climbed aboard Tilly the Truck and chugged our way down to Majete Safari park. However, on the way, Mother Hen (aka Julia) got told off for taking a photo whilst going through a police check point. We eventually arrived at the nature reserve where we put up our tents and had a quick lunch. We then jumped on the safari jeep and set off on our quest to find animals. We were very successful as we saw antelopes, warthogs, hartebeests, hippos, crocodiles and baboons. Our adventure ended on a high as we saw two groups of elephants and one group even saw an impala fight.
When we came back from our safari quest, we were escorted to the shop. Millie found some dungarees and decided to try them on. As you can see, they suited her very well!


Later in the afternoon, we had a BBQ of sausages and burgers, cooked by the lovely Mumma Bear (aka Julia again). We then ended this amazing day with s'mores toasted over a campfire and a game of Go Fish underneath a sky of beautiful stars.

Alice and Sai (Saia & co)



Pic to follow later

Friday 29th July

Finding dory comes out today - no spoilers please! After another Chichewa lesson we are all improving, and we have learnt how to barter which should come  in handy tomorrow in the market. Then we climbed into the alphabet bus and took the journey to the school for the final day of activities with the children. We had more intimate groups today as there were fewer children there. Seeing the children's excited faces when playing parachute games was amazing but being thrashed at netball by the Malawi girl guides wasn't so great.
Unfortunately, after serving porridge it was time to say goodbye to the school. The headmaster gathering the children together and making a thank you speech was very heartwarming but made us sad that we had to leave. We gave the school a book full of photos of the children and the bunting we made with the guides as a parting gift.
After lots of hugs and waves we returned to fisherman's rest for lunch. As some of us were very tired, Kay gave us the option to stay for rest or fix another bore hole. Those who chose to rest explored the local scenery or just slept for the whole afternoon! Kira, Ellie, Alice, Millie and Pearl fixed the bore hole, which was further away from where we have been before. In the centre of lots of mud huts the area was more rural. The local community came out to help, carrying our tools and pipes and sang us a welcome song; they were so happy to have us there. The village boys were staring, but once we got water out of the pump everyone cheered. The boys and guides helped put it back together whilst the village people spoke English to us. As we were leaving the boys asked Millie for her phone number but she kindly declined.
Everyone showered up and once  Grace and Julia  returned from food shopping in the market we had a very yummy dinner of stew and mash. Some of us took down tents for tomorrow in the dark whilst the others cleaned up.
In the evening we all chilled before discussing our trash and treasures then talking about what is going on this weekend.
Overall, another great day!

Mia, Kira and Millie

Thursday 28th July

Thursday 28th July

This morning we went to the same school we went to yesterday except for Becca and Justine due to un-arrived baggage on Monday. We joined the school in their assembly and sung some songs and sang their national anthem. Our activity pairs got sent to spend time with different classes, we sung some more songs with them and read books with them. We even played cat and mouse with them with the parachute. We fed the children their porridge and we then spent some time with the girl guides at that school singing songs giving them badges and friendship bracelets. In the afternoon 6 people- 5 guides and 1 leader were sent to make some environmentally friendly stoves like yesterday and the rest of the group painted window frames in vibrant colours. In the evening we made are own pizzas in the pizza oven. We also had a band and we joined in with the music by singing and dancing with another group that was here with us from a school.


Becca and Justine bags were delayed, and so didn't arrive with everyone else's at the Malawian airport on Monday, therefore they have both been wearing other people's clothes, borrowing their toiletries and even their teddy bears!  So today they both went into Blantyre instead of the school to collect their bags from the airport. So to start their journey into the unknown they paid a visit to the South African Airways Office, where a surprise was waiting for them.  Thinking they were going in to find out where there bags were, they instead found out that there bags were sitting in the Airport waiting to be collected.  They both then traveled to the airport, where Becca hugged her bag, she was very happy!  Afterwards they went to the supermarket, super-rite, where they topped up on the essentials- like crisps and chocolate spread.  Before their return they got some chips from kips, the Malawian equivalent to McDonald's!
Becca

Today when we went to the school, Mia and I taught the youngest class 'head, shoulders,knees and toes' which they got quite quickly. We also read them two books and went through some animals with them and got them to do the animal noises. Mia and I also started doing cat and mouse with the children and in the end most of the other groups joined in. In the afternoon I joined in with the painting window frames as yesterday I had built a stove. There was children at the school we were painting window frames for, and they soon got friendly with us. I had a few following me around and wanting to high five or wave at me every 5 seconds and I then got more cuddles and attention when me and Lucy pulled out are cameras and they were so fascinated and wanted there pictures taken and especially fascinated with Lucy's Polaroid camera and argued about who had the picture afterwards. We then joined another school with pizza night and me and other guides in our group joined in with the dancing and singing. - Ellie.S.

Wednesday 27th July 

Today was our second day volunteering in the schools. On our way to the school we travelled in the Fishermen's Rest bus which was very bumpy. However, we learnt some Malawian songs for example; we bealipe 'o' fanana. Then we were greeted by the headmaster of he school during assembly and we started to sing traditional guide songs to the children, doing actions and dance movements which caused them to join in with us. We were then split into our pairs where we ran two sets of activities be did well known games such as Goat, Goat, Chicken (which is the Malawian version of Duck, Duck, Goose) and grandma's footsteps. We also had the chance to teach songs to the local guides and they taught us some in return. Ellie.S and Mia taught some campfire songs which sounded amazing. In the afternoon we split into three groups and some painted Windows, some fixed a bore hole and a couple of us went to build a fuel efficient stove for a family. 

"My favourite part of visiting the schools in the morning was running my activity with Lucy, where we were being taught games with balls by the children. I also love how much they enjoyed the bubbles and the Polaroid camera.  In the afternoon, I went with Julia, Ellie S and Becca to make a stay for a family in their home. It was very hot and dirty but it was well worth the hard work as we were really happy because we have made a positive impact on this family's life and we were proud of the result" - Olivia 

"Moni zingalinga Sai. Ndafukuna ndakwera njinga. I enjoyed learning some Malawian Guide songs and teaching them to do the handclap for Edelweiss which was very fun then we went to a school which has been developed and built so we went there to paint the windows and fix a bore hole which was broken because of there being a lollipop stick being stuck in the drain pipes. We also taught some kids English and played football with them we also improved and developed our Chichewa vocabulary" - Sai

Tuesday 26th July

Today was our first day of volunteering.  We started by having a quick lesson of the local language. Afterwards we headed to a local school via a bumpy road with an amazing views of the local mountain range. We were greeted by huge smiles, waves and lots of songs and dancing. After we introduced ourselves, we were shown some of their favourite big group games which were great fun. Then we spilt the children, whose ages ranged from approximately two to sixteen, into six groups and we did activities with them. There was more of a language barrier than we had expected so it was quite difficult to do some of the activities but they all enjoyed the more active games immensely. They especially liked the Polaroid camera as they were excited to see themselves and were fascinated  by how the photos were printed - even the people who work at fisherman's Rest loved it. The other job we did was to serve porridge to all the children. The length of the que emphasised the great work of the Goodwill project we were contributing to. It was an important job because the porridge might have been some of the children's only meals and encouraged them to keep coming back to school and were able to learn better as they had a full stomach. Feeling very satisfied after our tiring but enjoyable morning, we had our lunch overlooking the pool and mountains back at fishermens rest. We then walked over the Tilitonse community centre where we did much of the same as before. However, some of the Fishermen's Rest staff played music with a guitar-like instrument and drums and we participated in a not-so-friendly game of football with some of the boys. We then headed back to our lodge and wound down whilst waiting for Georgie and Julia to arrive with our locally sourced food. Julia did not disappoint and we had a lovely dinner of Chilli Con Carne!

Alice and Lucy      

Airport pics

Georgie was here xx

At the airport!

Day 1:  Sunday, 24 July 2016
 At the airport!
The plane has been delayed by an hour, but Leon has been there to supply our hunger  since day, thank goodness!  Since waiting longer we have learnt it might have broken and they might have to patch it together. We hope they use gorilla tape instead of duck tape as duck tape on it delete gorilla tape instead of duck tape as ducks aren't that cool.  El can't stop laughing and Pokemon go won't give us any Pokemon to catch. We saw the spice girls picture and all (Grace) got excited as Brooklyn Beckham's mum was one of them. We can't wait to get to fishermens rest!

Weekend 3 1st - 3rd July

Couldn't find the way to Larks 4
Not enough matches need more

Putting up tents was such a kerfuffle
Jonesy and Georgie made everyone chuckle

Kayaking on Weirwood
Whoever thought we could

Making wooden puppet spoons
Glitter in the afternoon

The kite would not take flight
Although we tried with all our might

The food was yummy
Made by mummy!

Blacklands Farm - 1-3rd July 2016

Just a couple of Photographs from last weekend, we even managed to dodge the rain.