Happy to report I made it safely and soundly and just finished a perfect first meal in Malawi. The flights, though long, were surprisingly pleasant (Ethiopian Air may be one of the nicest airlines I have ever flown on) and if not for the child playing bass drum on the back of my chair, I am sure I could have had ample time to rest. Instead, as you saw on the entry below, I spent most of my time switching between attention-deficit disorder demeaning devices (ADDDD) and going 'David Putty' at the back of the chair in front of me.
As soon as I arrived, I went through passport clearance ("Why are you here? Ok. Welcome") and grabbed my checked luggage which was beat up, but most importantly, present. I then followed the pathway out towards the ground transportation, rounded the corner, and saw a gentleman holding a sign which read "James Brown - Save the Children." It was a sign that I am sure was equally confusing to read prior to my arrival as it was after I waved and signaled that was in fact me. Come to think of it, it sounds more like a command than name and organization. Hardest working man in show business indeed.
My hotel is quite familiar. I stayed in the same one last year (Sunbird Capital…check the links) and it is modest, yet quite beautiful. My room overlooks a courtyard complete with a fountain, beautiful trees, and a chorus of bullfrogs (more on that in a moment). I am only here for a few days, so settling wasn't as much of a priority as taking a nap. Which I promptly did. And then ate.
A few notes about said dinner. It was a buffet, complete with choice of beef, chicken, or fish (and not the 'let me give you a choice and than eliminate the choices' choice. They really had all three) and a multitude of veggies, rice, and potatoes. It was absolutely delicious. Any of you who know me and my eating habits (lack of) knows there is one thing I do love more than anything else: salt. Malawian cooking is perfect in this respect, providing copious amounts of salt on every part of the dish. I love it. I love it about as much as I do the sounds of about ten bullfrogs engaging in some sort of rhythmic shouting match not five feet behind my table. It's hard to describe the sound, other than when combined, if ever I met a dinosaur from Jurassic Park, this is what I expect it to sound like (Oh, Jurassic Park).
Hope all is well with everyone back home. I wish you could all be here to experience this with me and trust you will keep me abreast of anything interesting stateside.
