Two sets of orchids today
The first orchid goes to the Malawian waiter from Jasers restaurant who called me after he arranged for a friend of his to bring us some Nali chilli sauce from back Malawi. Nali make the hottest peri peri sauce in Africa, and it is really good.
Anyway, we met him about six months ago when we were having drinks at Jaspers. We happened to mention how we love Nali sauce, and I gave him a business card. So, he kept it, arranged a couple of bottles, and I collected them last week. This was all for service sake, and for no benefit to him.
The second orchid goes to the training company that accidentally sent me their newsletter with my email address and about 100 other email addresses in the TO mail field. So they accidentally gave my email address to 100 other people. Now this is not why they received the orchid. That was onion behaviour!
They are receiving the orchid because after I complained, they made amends immediately. They offered to send me and anybody that I employee on their project management trainig course for free. This is a course that costs over R10000. Pitty they are in Johannesburg. I am not going to mention their name because they really messed up at first, but they were fantastic at resolving the problem.
It is good to know that there are still companies and people that are providing exceptional service, and that are doing their best to do right. These are the people that are going to perform and do well in the next few years.
Happy New Year!
A toast to new year!
Have a fantastic new year. I hope that you had a good break over the holidays, and are ready for the next year. I cannot believe that 2008 is almost over, and they in just a few hours it will be 2009.
What is even more scary is that in just a few hours, South Africa will be the 2010 football world cup in less than 600 days! There is still loads of preperation and building to complete, but I am sure that we be ready!
So, what have been my hilights over the past year?
- I became an uncle to Sebastian - I am now three uncles
- I visited Malawi
- I wrote an ebook
- I watched Ben Zander speak
- I was appointed as Lt.Gov, Education and Training for Toastmasters SA
- I went to Canada and USA
- I drank some great wine
- I renewed my drivers license (hopefully)
- I ate some great food
- I won a speech contest
- I had some great braai’s with friends
There are a few low-lights, but this is about celebrating the good things, so here’s to 2009!
Malawi Part 5: Sunday
I had the whole of Sunday free, so Andrew – the president of Lilongwe Toastmasters club – kindly took me to see Lake Malawi, since as I was told, "you haven’t been to Malawi until you have been to the lake!"
So Sunday morning saw us bright and early off to the lake. Although the drive was only about an hour or so, you really start to feel that you are in rural Africa. We passed several road-side villages, with countless goats wondering across the road, and all manner of produce being sold on the side of the road – from live chickens to tobacco and vegetables.
When we arrived at the lake, I literally had my breath taken away. It is like standing on the shore of an ocean. The lake is staggeringly huge. What is even more remarkable is that the photos that I took are across the width of the lake, and you still cannot see the far shore! I even found a sign warning about dangerous rip-tides, which gives you an idea of the scale. If you ever have the opportunity, it is well worth the visit.
I would have loved to spend a few days at the lake, it is very tranquil (and also very hot – it was too hot to walk barefoot on the sand). But alas, I had to get back to Lilongwe in time for my flight back home.
We did manage to stop off at a road-side tourist shop. While I am not usually one for buying "African" curios – since we are swamped with them in Cape Town – this place had some really lovely items. Many of the goods were hand-carved, and the artists were busy at their carving on the side of the road. The prices are ridiculous cheap, and it is quite fun bartering with the traders. They started at a ridiculously high price, and I started with a ridiculously low offer, and we met somewhere in the middle (unlike in Mauritius where they start at a ridiculously high price and stay there).
I got back to Lilongwe airport in good time, and this is a really strange airport. These are all the processes that you go through to depart:
- Collect boarding card
- Pay USD 30 departure tax (no receipt)
- Customs official #1 checks that you have paid departure tax
- Customs official #2 checks all your paperwork
- Customs official #3 stamps your passport
- Security official #1 checks your bags through the x-ray machine
- Security official #2 opens one of your bags for security check (everbody – not just me), and leaves the other bag unchecked
So, I had to pass through seven people to board the aircraft – talk about creating employment! We left safely (and on time!), and I arrived back home exhausted, but very happy.
I had a fantastic weekend – Malawi is a country to visit for a few days.
Malawi part 4: Saturday Afternoon
Training went very well, it is quite interesting that even though they are so far away, they have the same concerns and issues that we have at our Toastmasters clubs.
After training, we had lunch at the Golf Club. I had fresh fish from the lake – I have no idea what type of fish, but apparently you can only get them in Lake Malawi. Lunch was washed down with a bottle of Kuche Kuche beer, which literally means "until sunrise", so you can drink it the whole night!
In the afternoon, I went shopping. Fist stop was the supermarket, where I bought a bottle of Malawi Gin, which I was told that I had to purchase, and of course a few bottles of Nali Chili sauce. This local chilli sauce (which claims to be the hottest in Africa) is piping hot, yet very tasty.
Then off to the food market. The quality of the fresh fruit and vegetables was great, but the market is what I can only describe as an African scene. You could buy freshly cooked mielies, which had been “braaied” on the open coals (corn is the staple food of Malawi, you can see it growing everywhere).
Everybody wanted my business (especially since I was then only white person in the market), but they were friendly about it, which is more that I can say for Mauritius. Everybody in the market had something to do – there was a person there whose job was simply to shell the peas!
I had dinner at local Italian restaurant, and then I finished off the day drinking MGT (Malawi Gin and Tonic) at the Reserve Bank club. Thank goodness that I ate at the Italian restaurant, because the special at the club was goat!
By the way, today is much cooler, with much lower humidity, it is rather pleasant. So, off to Lake Malawi tomorrow.
Malawi part 3: Saturday Morning
It is still quite colonial in Malawi (it is an ex-British colony). Florence has a helper working in the house (a man non-the less), and do you think that he would let me make my own breakfast? All I wanted was some cheese on toast, and a cup of tea. No No, none of that! I had to sit down and relax while my breakfast was made for me, and don’t you even think of helping yourself! I am being well looked after. For dinner tonight, I believe that I am having some of the local fish that they catch in lake Malawi.
Malawi is quite free with time, it is currently 8:10am on Saturday, and registration for training is starts at 8:30, but Florence is not here. I think that she is still at Church, so, no use in panicking.
I am quite far south from Lake Malawi, so I was not expecting to see it, but I have discovered that it is only 1 hours drive north, so I will be using my free time tomorrow morning to get an early start and head off to the lake – I am quite excited about that. With all the gear I had to bring, I left my SLR camera at home, but at least I packed the point and shoot!
I think I hear Florence arriving now, so I will continue later.
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