Malawi!

I'm in love. With Malawi.

"The Warm Heart of Africa", as it is aptly named, makes Southerners look like a bunch of rude jerks. (In other words, Malawians are extremely kind, hospitable, and loving - from the moment you meet them.) I made it through the scariest airport ever (no, not JFK, Jo'burg!), and arrived in Malawi and within minutes was introduced to a local...delicacy.

Sydney, one of the sweet MOH (Ministry of Hope) volunteers as well as two local employees of MOH, John (the driver) and Fessick (honestly, I'm not quite sure what he does, but he has a very kind smile) were at the airport to pick me up upon my arrival. Quickly, Fessick and John took all of my bags from me and happily carried them to the car. With quick introductions and longer hugs out of the way, we hopped in the car and began the drive to the MOH office. Moments later, John swerved to the side of the road, and Sydney looked at me warily...

"Amy, you do NOT have to eat this..."

"Uhh...what IS it?" was my nervous reply...

"*Sigh* You're about to be introduced to a Malawian delicacy..."

Mice. Roasted WHOLE mice on a stick. Literally. They still have all the bones, hair, teeth, EYES, TAILS, etc. They looked hilariously. And pitiful. And absolutely disgusting.

Needless to say, I did NOT eat the mice, but I did look at them, video them (yeah, that's DEFINITELY going on youtube when I get back to the states...) and pity their short existences. John thinks they're delicious, by the way. Fessick is not as big of a fan. Amy chose to forego them.

Anyway, I had a really good night's sleep and jet lag hasn't been terrible, but now I'm going to get to the part I know everyone wants to hear about.

Babies. Ohmygosh. Babies. The babies...are so incredibly adorable. Yes, I want to take them home. Here's an excerpt from an email I sent to my parents about it...

"I spent hours yesterday at the baby nursery caring for babies who are HIV+. It was amazing, heartbreaking, and made me so aware of how blessed we all are in America. One baby I held and fed looked about three weeks old, but I found out that she was born in JANUARY! It broke my heart, but I also know that that little life is so precious! It was a humbling experience. There were a pair of twins named Shown and Fiyfi who have been in the MOH Crisis Nursery for over a year, because no one will adopt them together. They're very cute and precious though.

All the babies are very behind developmentally, but they're so very social and loving. The second I sat down on the mat, three crawled to me and were wanting me to hold and love on them. They're hungry for love, and I gave it to them the best I could."

I love you all! I'll post more later!