Thursday 5 May 2016

Today’s early news was that Cesar has been given another foster mother, and this has so far been working very well.  In fact they were last seen curled up together and fast asleep.  Everyone is delighted, except me, I’m feeling all bitter and twisted because this means there is now no hope that he will be given to me to dandle on my knee and coo at.  Life is too tough some times.

Volunteer Facilities

I spent more time admiring our volunteer facilities today. We have a dedicated brick building in the centre of the Sanctuary, with brick wall dividing toilet, 2 shower cubicles, kitchen and living room.  A bamboo wall has been constructed to allow for sleeping quarters (unisex) with 11 bunk beds.   The bunks all have floor to ceiling weighted mosquito nets, and windows that are permanently open, also with mosquito nets.  The inside of the volunteer hut is very dark, having very few windows, but so far it has always been cool when I have used it, which is excellent.

I had been delighted when I arrived to find we had a flushing toilet (there are 2 on the site).  I had expected something very much more primitive involving buckets and a bit of business with old newspapers or sawdust, but this facility exceeded all my expectations.  The sink is a marvel.  I have posted a picture so you can check it out for yourself.  You can see what they were thinking when they designed it – it needed to be tough, something that couldn’t easily be damaged – after all, what if elephants want to swing on it? The end product is, I will bet money on it, unbreakable.  I wonder if Alan Sugar would be interested?

We also have a shower right next to the toilet.  It has hot and cold running water – if there is water, which is always questionable.  Showers (if there is water) are very brief.  There have been periods of as much as 10 days without running water which is extremely hard work for everyone, necessitating a lot of fetching and carrying in order to meet the needs of the animals, the humans being a very dilatory second place.  But the water shortage is not just here at the sanctuary, or in Lilongwe, but nationwide.  It is reported that at least 2.8 million people, of whom 1.5 million are children, are facing a food shortage here due to the severe drought. Lack of rains have resulted in crop failure making this year's harvest – which typically takes place in March and April – almost impossible for thousands of households.

Back at the sanctuary all drinking water is bottled, and as the containers are naturally very heavy they need to be ferried about by the male staff.  I can see why the Malawi way of life is so slow – even the most basic acts – preparing food, brushing your teeth, getting a drink – involve all sorts of planning.   And we have it easy because we have electricity (some) and running water (much of the time).  Perhaps the slow and unhurried pace of the Malawian is because everything takes as long as it takes and there is no point trying to hurry things along. 

There is a bar/cafe/restaurant here for the use of staff, volunteers and visitors, and below is a picture.  It is a delightful place to sit and ponder:

I handed over my small offering gathered from family and friends based on the sanctuary’s wish list.  Pretty coloured pencil, staplers and files for the school.  Some games for the volunteer house. And some pretty unpromising tools – a set of screwdrivers; a big staple gun; a nail gun; and a power jigsaw.  All the items were received with apparent pleasure, but when one of the maintenance men appeared he reacted to the nail gun with outright glee.  As I have nowhere to put them and no idea how to use them anyway, its a relief to find them a good home. 

One delightful discovery today was finding out there was no need to use deet spray until after dark which is when the mosquitoes are out.  Which is great news as a) I hate the smell of the stuff, and b) my supplies will last with such restricted usage. 

By the way, I have a confession to make.  Some people have commented on the pictures on the monkeys I have posted.  I meant to say before that these photos are not of the monkeys here.  No one is allowed to hang around by the animals enclosures, talk to the animals, try to attract their attention or take photos.  The priority of the sanctuary is preparing the animals for release into the wild, and so it is essential they do not become humanised i.e. accustomed to/dependent on humans. Monkeys that develop a bond or dependence on humans  may seek their company after release, but most Malawian’s will stone/kill monkeys who approach them or their homes.  For very good reasons of course.  But this is why we make sure we do not form any kind of bond with the animals, their bond with their own species is what they need to be concentrating on.  These are the relationships that will sustain them after release. So, I trawled the websites of a number of different sanctuaries to get these pictures, showing monkeys all but identical to those we care for here.  

I will add that the animals that can not be released, and will therefore be here for the rest of their lives, can be chatted to and photographed.  Below are pictures of one of the lions, one of the roads in the sanctuary leading up to the volunteer center, and the orphan food preparation area.  If you cant work out which is which, you are beyond my help, and I suggest you give up attempting to read this blog.