I wasn’t kidding when I used the word “madness” to describe typing exams. This year several schools decided to work together to create mock exams in order to prepare our kids in Forms 2 and 4 for their national exams. My sitemate and I spent three days typing about 30 tests. A few weeks later I found myself typing yet again: end of term exams for Forms 1 and 3. During the last week of school (including the last day of the term) I helped out at one of my other schools because they were so far behind. I lost count, but I’ve definitely typed over 50 tests this term. Madness.
In addition to hours of sitting in front of a computer, I’ve spent hours sitting in various forms of transportation. On the way to Zomba I spent 11 hours on a bus. For 5 of those hours it wasn’t moving, just sitting in the Lilongwe bus depot waiting to fill with passengers. During the break between terms I went with some friends to Zanzibar. Two solid days on the road each way, plus a ferry ride. On our last day of travel (from the Tanzanian border back to Lilongwe) we spent 19 hours in (or waiting for) 8 different vehicles. Needless to say, I’m glad to be back at site and not traveling any farther than Lilongwe for a while.
Zanzibar was great. The food was fantastic. Zanzibar grows a lot of spices, so the food is especially tasty after being in Malawi, where the only flavor is salty. We took a tour of a spice farm (I spent the rest of the day smelling my hands and smiling). We spent a few days in Stone Town eating and shopping and playing tourist, then spent the weekend at the beach. Being from Hawaii, this is not the usual type of vacation I would choose, but I really enjoyed it. Very relaxing.
