Once a year in Liwonde National Park they hold a large mammal count, and Peace Corps gets to help. The count was supposed to happen back in October but due to funding it was pushed back to this past weekend. Transport was really bad getting to Liwonde boma, I was the last person to get there, but luckily there were still people around so we got a truck to drive us out to the camp.
There are two camps, the South camp and the North camp. The North camp is for people who did the count the previous year, it's nicer, they have a pool. So we were in the South camp, but we still had flushing toilets and showers so whatever, it's still a step up from my house. One of the other things our camp had was monkeys, Vervets and Baboons. If a monkey sees you put something down, they will pick it up, even if they don't see you put it down, they came in the buildings. They would steal food off the fire, countertops, out of the kitchen and from the dorms we were staying in. Case in point, I lost a pair of pants. That's right, monkeys took my pants.
Monkeys aside, the animals were really neat. At the game count you do two things, sit and count whatever happens to walk by and walk a transect line and count what you happen to stumble across. The first day I did a hide count. We saw a lot of Impala, Kudu, Bushbuck, Warthhog, Buffalo, Elephants and Hippos. There were Elephants, a mother, a baby who looked to be about 3 years old and a much younger baby, maybe only a few months. They got really close, maybe within 50 yards and then walked across the Shire River, the baby swam.
That night some very nice PCV donated 16 chickens, 8 to each camp. We had 8 chickens to kill, I took one, and I am proud of how the girls stepped up to take them on, only one person got blood splattered on them. One of the chickens tried to buy her freedom by laying an egg at the last minuet but the blood lust (or protein defficency) of the PCVs would not be quelled. So yeah, we ate a lot of chicken, it was really really good.
Also, in Liwonde, it was hot. Really hot. And I think it was worse at night, you are in a little room with at least 4 other people, all hot, and no air is moving. A night time conversation with myself went a little something like this:
*ugh, it's hot, i wonder if anyone else is this hot. of course they are, how could anyone not be this hot, it's hot. tomorrow i have to go do a transect walk, i bet that is hot. they said they ran out of water, i'm glad i bought an extra bottle, i'll probaly need it. stupid monkey, i can't find those pants anywhere. why am i still wet, i took that shower hours ago.....oh.....the water has been replaced with sweat, maybe i could sleep outside. the mosquitos aren't too bad, no i can't sleep outside, stupid monkeys. maybe i can flip the pillow over, that usually helps, where is the cold spot?....okay, new mission, where is a spot not soaked in sweat. ew. i hate being hot*
And that would continue for a while until one of us gave up on the conversation and went to sleep. The next day I went and did a transect walk. For that one, you have a GPS and walk in a line marking points where you see animals. We saw about 19 Elephants, Impala, Sable antelope, Roan antelope, bushbuck, Hartebeest, Kudu, Buffalo and lion footprints. Whenever you come up on Buffalo you backtrack at least 50 yard and circle way around before you keep going. Just ask Andrew and Kate, they got chased and had to climb trees. Rhino are the same way and we had people get chased by them too.
After retrieving a few people who got lost in the bush, we got back to camp, packed up and headed out. I got a mini bus going to Lilongwe but I was kinda late so I stopped off at Cassie's house for the night. Tomorrow I should be home once more.
And that's the latest from Malawi. Just remember, watch out for wild animals, know how to use a GPS, don't use a flash around Elephants, and if someone finds a portable air conditioner let me know. I'll see you all in a month for Christmas!!!
