It happened suddenly during the drought of 2001, in the seventh year of Malawis’perpetually fledgling democracy. It hadn’t rained in ages. Sometime, someplace in 2001, Malawi “It rooks rike it goin to lain”, the conductor said, oblivious to the strong tribal accent that betrayed his origins. The accent drew giggles from two juveniles – school [...]

this is a true story every girl/woman dreams of finding true love, getting married and having a family. No woman ever dream of being hurt or used by a guy that claims to love her. But should that happen how does one deal with such pain? How do you pick up the pieces and move [...]

Wait! urges my inner tropical voice – just a few beats of 3/4 time, to stare into the drawer housing my underwear. Another beat, pretty sure the drawer is inhabited only by poorly-folded Boxers and a mash-up of socks, I grab a pair of shorts, give them a shake then close the drawer. I call [...]

Ouagadougou, Burkina-Faso:  Mar. 22 to 26, ‘01 Following a five-hour bus trip from Bobo Dioulasso, Marie and I arrived in the capital in mid-afternoon on Mar 22nd. This trip by bus, which was air-conditioned and roomy, was the most pleasant overland experience, at least as far as comfort was concerned, since I had begun traveling [...]

The trip to Segou   On March 9th Marie and I arrived at the Bamako Bus Station at 10:00 a.m., fully realizing that our bus would not leave on time. However, it did leave a few minutes later and we began our three-hour trip, which lasted, from 10:15 a.m. until 3:15 p.m. The bus presented [...]

“Hello Bamako,” Mali  Mar. 2-9, ’01   In summary, I spent eight days in Bamako: meeting people with whom I had crossed The Sahara, a Hollander who showed me the way for the next three weeks (I had left my guidebook in the car after crossing the desert), spending an afternoon and eliciting from a [...]

My initial experience as Volunteer Midwife at Malakal Town in Upper Nile State, South Sudan. By Catherine Makumi-UNFPA Nothing prepared me for the experience that was ahead of me at Malakal. As plane landed at Malakal Airport, I knew, I had to give my very best. I arrived at the Malakal Teaching Hospital equipped with [...]

Dakar, Senegal  Feb. 11 – 26, ‘01   Again it was a bad road, so I flew from Nouakchott, Mauritania to Dakar, Senegal, a little over a one-hour flight for $150, high by US standards, but normal in this region because the airlines were not deregulated and also this flight was international. Since leaving Travis [...]

Nouakchott, Mauritania – Feb. 10 – 11, ‘01   In my 1,000 + pages book on Africa, The Lonely Planet, four pages were reserved for Mauritania, the country, and three- quarters of one page for the capital, Nouakchott. What is mentioned as the highlight of the country is the Italian Park Nation Du Bank D’argun [...]

Nouadhibou, Mauritania: Feb. 10 — 11, ‘01 Dumping my bag at my new-found residence, I along with my two driver companions, and the one-arm guardian angel, departed our abode to look for a place for refreshments, which we found about ten minutes away. It was a Chinese restaurant that did not serve Chinese food, but [...]