Becky - Principal teacher for the Leader of Learning team in Glasgow - tells us about the 24 hour journey in the first of the blogs and her first reaction to the beautiful country of Malawi...
Arriving at the airport for the long-awaited trip to Malawi was a mixed bag of emotions! For so long I had hoped to be part of the amazing team of Malawi Leaders of Learning, it all felt a bit surreal as I stood there alongside Aislinn and Liz in my MLOL hoody!
The thought of leaving my kids and family behind and entering into a entirely different walk of life was slightly overwhelming to say the least.
After a slight shuffle around with the contents of our bags (or my bags to be specific) to get to the correct weights, we checked in and crossed our fingers that our bags would join us on all three flights to Malawi. We thoroughly enjoyed getting to know each other more, discussing our teaching background, our families and interests.
Luckily, there isn't a saga to recount on our journey, all flights were relatively on time and most importantly, all our bags arrived at Chileka airport to a round of applause from us all.
We were welcomed by the warm smiles of Francis and Charity, who were equally as pleased to see us as we were to see them after a 24 hour journey!
The journey from the airport gave us our first insights into Malawi, the children walking from school, women and men hard at work making charcoal and selling goods in markets. Francis chatted the whole journey, answering all our questions and giving us a real feel for life here in Malawi, it was utterly incredible to hear. The welcome to Kabula Lodge was everything we expected, a real home from home but if I am honest, the view from my own garden is nothing like the view here.
After a good rest, we woke up bright and early to share a fantastic day at Majete wildlife reserve with Francis, Charity and their beautiful children. It was a priority of ours to visit any tourist attractions we could, in an effort to support the local economy and learn about the local area and culture. The safari was an outstanding experience where we had a hippo, baboon and even an elephant sighting. This was a great recommendation from previous groups, we are so glad that we visited!
As I sit here now, on my second night in Malawi, I realise, I needn't have worried about what I was leaving behind at home, we have been welcomed into the warm heart of Africa with open arms and I cannot wait to get to work with the hard-working teachers of this country.
