Getting to know Zomba

Hello everyone and greetings from Zomba, Malawi. The past few weeks have been really good, getting to know the town of Zomba and the language of its people. I’m getting a little better at Chichewa but have a really, really long way to go. My 11-year-old neighbor is tutoring me and is helping me become fluent. ☺
I’ve been doing well learning my way around town. I walk for miles some days in the heat- which can be totally exhausting. I took my first mini-bus to the market all by myself the other day, which was a big deal for me. When D’lynn (my wonderful housemate) came to look for me and couldn’t find me, she was told by many that the mzunga (white girl) with sunglasses had wandered down to Shoprite. Apparently I stand out a little bit. ☺ We ate at a restaurant called “Fattys” which is precisely where I’m heading if I eat chicken and chips everyday (chips=French fries). The power goes out every night for hours- right at the time when you need electricity like at dinnertime. This is something I don’t think I’ll get used to ever. We cooked dinner outside the other night on a homemade fire pit and had some delicious spaghetti and velveeta courtesy of D’lynn’s peace corps friend. A few nights ago while getting a phone call from Tracy, the single worst fear of mine finally happened—a giant cockroach greeted me at my feet and I flipped out. Of course the power was out and I was screaming like a baby for D’lynn to come kill this giant demon of a bug. The bug was killed and but then I saw about 3 more, which also need to be killed- and I had a full blown panic attack. I hope to God that either 1) the cockroaches leave me alone or 2) I somehow am able to get over this phobia. I think their goal in life is to slowly torture me. Well wish me luck in fighting my phobia because I need it! That’s all for now—write emails! I want to see how everyone is doing.
Xoxoxo,
Alyson