Where??

WHERE in the world am I going...

Where is Malawi located?

I think for the entire time we were in Malawi in 2004-2005 some members of our family thought we were Maui, soaking up the sun and enjoying the picturesque beaches. Although Malawi is a beautiful country, it is very far away from the beaches of Maui. Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. Malawi is among the smallest countries in Africa and contains a Lake Malawi which takes up about a third of Malawi's area. Lake Malawi is about the same size as Lake Erie and Malawi is almost as big as Pennsylvania. Traveling to Malawi takes about 24 hours of flying time from the United States, and depending on the time of year it is either ahead 6 or 7 hours.

Where is the school located?

The School I will be teaching at is located in a district (town) called Mulanje. Mulanje is a town in the southern region of Malawi, close to the border of Mozambique. The small town is the center of Malawi's tea growing industry, and the school is completely surrounded by tea fields in all directions. Mulanje is about an hour away from the second biggest city in Malawi, Blantyre. Blantyre is where I will be flying in and out of, as well as where I will go occasionally to buy supplies at the larger supermarket.

Where will I be living?

I am excited about where I will be living for the year. When the school was constructed, two houses were built on the property. One house is where the headmaster and his family lives, and the other house is a volunteer house, for people like me! This house was constructed with the hope that volunteers from around the world would be able to come and work and live at the school. The house is a 3 bedroom brick house, with a tin roof. It has indoor plumbing, and water, and a full kitchen for me to use. The house also comes with the most breathtaking views of Mount Mulanje jetting into the sky amongst all the tea fields. I look forward to waking up to that view every day.