i'm back & what a trip - truly the trip of a lifetime. So many sights & memories packed into a week its hard to know where to start. The orphanage is a wonderfull place, full of beautiful & amazingly well behaved toddlers & kids, but the downside is the stories of how most of them come to be there - one or two stories which i still don't want to think about too hard. We were all moved to tears at regular intervals throughout the week.
Our main task for the week was to help with construction of a second orphanage 125 miles further north & doing manual labour in 35 degree heat under a burning sun is no joke. We managed 4-5 hours in the mornings at most - the locals do a full 8 hour day & forget health & safety equipment - most of them don't even wear shoes (they take them off so they don't get damaged). Afternoons were spent recovering & relaxing although it got dark at 5:30pm so the afternoons weren't too long. As a reward to ourselves, on the day we were to drive back south we decided to set off really early & visit a national park for a boat safari.
I've put together a photo album on facebook with a selection of the best photos -
Pat Smith's Photos - Malawi Trip May 2008 | Facebook
a huge, huge thanks to everyone who donated to this worthy cause & it was great to see that every penny goes to helping the children & supporting the local community
