It is official. Chitipa and Phwezi are going to Lilongwe for the National Finals. The big lorry assigned to collect Chitipa Secondary School boys and Phwezi Girls is cancelled because it is needed for President Muluzi’s visit. In the end we are saved by Katoto pick up and the Chitipa DEO Land rover. I’m taking Sibale as a netball umpire but also to annoy Kalombo. At 3 am this morning Mr. Singogo knocks at my door. They have arrived but don’t have a bed. Boys are in school dormitory. I get a fax from Saidi saying only one teacher per school allowed but three are here now. Kalombo tells me this decision was made two weeks ago. So why wasn’t I told. I will look after the other teachers. We set off from Mzuzu early, take a few paying passengers to buy everyone chips. There is a great atmosphere as we head south to Lilongwe. There are two other teams in our football group. They are Chiradzulu from Shire Highlands and Zomba CCAP from South East. Chitipa beat Chiradzulu 2-0 but lose 2-1 to Zomba CCAP. We were 1-0 up at half time and it all went wrong with a sending off and a late goal. We lost 5-1 to Ndirande CDSS in the semi-final. The boys were tired and the opposition looked overage. It would later be proved to be true.

In the netball Phwezi were invincible. In the final they beat St Louis CDSS 33-12. Phwezi are champions of Malawi. It was a great few days and I managed to avoid Kalombo and Mukolongo. I read a MASSA v FAM controversy in the paper today. Ackim Mukolongo was criticising FAM for not selecting any MASSA school kids for national teams. In Malawi it seems it all gets corrupted at some point and the bad feeling that is generated lasts a long time. For us it was another successful trip south.

I need and deserve a holiday. I visit Nyika National Park on a Katoto school trip with Jomo Ngonga. We stay at a very cold Chelinda Camp in the heart of Nyika. I meet Zebras but no elephants. It is beautiful up here and I walk to the top of Nganda Peak at 2607 metres. We stop at Vwaza Marsh on the way back to Mzuzu and see herds of elephants this time. My VSO bicycle needs a run out so I put it on top of a bus and drop at Mpamba. I cycle to Chikwina and then walk to Usisya through the bush for five hours until I finally see Lake Malawi. It was about 28 kilometres and a real adventure. I walk up the lake shore via Ruarwe to Ndomo village where I stay with Down’s cousin. Down’s real name is ‘Kasiwonere’. It means ‘I believe it because I saw it’. That would be an apt summing up of my experiences in Malawi. I paddle a ‘wato’ or very unstable dug-out canoe back to Ruarwe. It is a lovely walk back to Usisya as the sunsets on the lake. It is late and I finally get a boat back to Nkhata Bay. It leaves at 12 midnight and got to the Bay at 7 am. It was a very uncomfortable night. I collect my bike from Mpamba and am soon home.