Thanksgiving 1 & 2

Term one is over! I made it through the first three months at site, the part everyone says is the hardest. Even though the days seemed to drag on, looking back it feels like the time flew by. In a few days I will be leaving my village for a whole month to attend training in Lilongwe and then travel around the country for Christmas and New Years. 

Last week was Thanksgiving and, although it was difficult being away from home, it was a good one. I ended up celebrating the holiday twice, with two thanksgiving dinners and two great days with friends. 

Thanksgiving part one I spent at a friend's house in a district close to mine. About ten people from my group met there and cooked dinner together. Despite the lack of ingredients and having to cook over charcoal fires and hot plates, we managed to make a full, traditional, delicious meal. After dinner we spent the evening hanging out and playing cards and it was one of the best days I've had here in Malawi. 

Thanksgiving part two took place at Mulanje golf club on Thanksgiving day. After classes on Thursday I rode my bike into town for the dinner. I assumed it would be just me and a few other PCVs from around the area but by the time dinner started at six there were over 50 peace corps volunteers, NGO volunteers, and other expats from around the country. I only knew a few of them so I got to meet a lot of new people. That night I stayed at a friends house in town with plans to bike home the next morning, but a group got the idea to hike the mountain the next day and I couldn't pass up the opportunity. So the morning after Thanksgiving a small group of friends and I took a day hike up Mt. Mulanje to a beautiful waterfall. The water was freezing but we jumped in anyway and swam. 

It wasn't the traditional Thanksgiving that I'm used to, and it was definitely hard not spending it with my family, but I still had a great holiday and I am very thankful that I am here in Malawi and have wonderful friends to have shared the day with.