Traveling with the Land Cruiser

Vacation!

The last days of the internship are coming to an end and unfortunately they are very intense once again, many things are just going so wrong: people come very late to the hospital, there is a shortage of almost everything, strong painkillers are hardly used and the care provided by the staff is simply inadequate. Although the people are so friendly and empathetic, a human life is not worth much here, or death is simply more common in everyday life. So on the last day, we have to inform a pregnant woman in her 7th month that her baby is dead and a woman dies on the way to the ultrasound, which is 6 hours late.

Nevertheless, we shake it off and say goodbye to the patients we were able to help. Because now Jessi is finally coming to Malawi and we want to go on vacation in this beautiful country. So the four of us set off: David, with whom I shared a room for 5 weeks, Johannes, a friend of his from Germany, Jessi and me. Funny enough, Jessi and Johannes arrive in Malawi almost at the same time. One of Jessi's suitcases is missing when she arrives and there is no more paper for the visas for the two of them, so unfortunately we have to go to the airport again two days later. But first we pick up our car from the Beit Cure Clinic in Blantyre, where they rent cars at a cheap price. I have booked a Toyota Land Cruiser and we are all very excited. When we see that we get the ambulance with a siren, loudspeaker and warning light on the roof, we are even more thrilled and honk like crazy. Driving on the left side of the road is strange, but you get used to it quickly. First, we go to a well-known doctor couple of David's, where we are spoiled with a large pool and good food, then we go to Phalombe and show Jessi and Johannes the hospital and hand over the suitcase with medical supplies that Jessi brought. In the evening, we are invited to a farewell dinner at a clinic staff member's house, and our guests get to taste the local "Nsima" with fish, but the enthusiasm is limited. Nevertheless, it is a great evening with good conversations. We have a lot planned for the week and it is going to be an absolutely amazing time: we go to national parks together, lie on the roof of the car and admire African wildlife, including on the last day, when Jessi and I are alone, a huge herd of 17 elephants just a few meters away from our car. We drive to Lake Malawi and go snorkeling, we treat ourselves to a bonfire on the beach with candles and ukulele sound, and enjoy the good Malawian gin. It is currently off-season and Malawi, which is not overly touristy anyway, feels almost empty. We live cheaply but still treat ourselves well. We buy fresh mangoes, passion fruits, bananas, avocados, pineapples, watermelons, etc. directly from the roadside. We cruise through the savannah with the Land Cruiser and all-wheel drive, getting stuck several times, but somehow we always manage to free ourselves, it's just wonderful. Finally, we visit a friend of Alex, my brother-in-law. She works here in an organization that has already established itself in 8 countries: the One-Dollar-Glasses project. With a machine, a frame is bent and lenses of different strengths are clipped in. The result is a high-quality, robust pair of glasses that is cheap to produce. Children get them for free, and many of them have the chance to go to school for the first time. We decide to end the nice meeting with a dinner at our backpacker hostel, and thus an amazing time in Malawi with many experiences comes to an end. Now we have a 23-hour trip to Germany ahead of us, with a sad eye I leave, but I am already looking forward to family, friends, and my own bed without a mosquito net!