3 unexpected guests and a sleepover

So the Ter Haar’s youngest girl, Evi, had been wanting to sleep over since I arrived. I was able to put her off with the jetlag and the school starting but I figured a Friday night and what else was going on right? So I was home for the afternoon (tried to nap but had the Malawian mob of girls in the front yard). Rhona was at the hospital working. Evi arrived about 5. I was working on some school prep and she ran back outside to play with the mob. Came back in at 6 to shower before dinner—rice, beans, salad, and green beans from the garden—lovely. Rhona arrived home and we dished up. We are back in the kitchen when in walks Chapola (#1). Chapola is a mechanic that I’ve seen around. Willeke and I saw him at the airport last week and I’ve seen him 3 times as I was around Nkhoma. Time one: he invited himself to dinner on Saturday. Time two: I was walking to the hospital one day and he stopped me and gave me a lollipop. Time three: at the guesthouse when I went to introduce Rhona to the med students. Chapola just walked into the kitchen. He claimed we didn’t hear him knocking (totally possible but to just walk into someone’s house? Doors are now being locked). Gave us a bag of bananas and then left again. Dinner and dessert (evi brought pudding and mulberries), a game of go fish and off to bed for her. Rhona and I sat up and did some day debrief…wow this is a huge difference from being home (shocker right). Getting ready for bed and there is a bat in the house (#2). In my mind that is great—no idea how it got in but it is more than free to eat all our mosquitos…of course there is a reason that I got that rabies vaccine before I came but this didn’t cross my mind until after Patches (our cat) had caught and devoured the bat…as he sleeps with me I’m hopeful that doesn’t have the rabies now. Rhona found an enormous millipede (#3) in the toilet…flushed it down and we thought we were free and clear…until the next morning when Evi found it again swimming in our toilet…ugh. Fished it out with a hammer, tied it in a bag, and into the trash can.