1st day of break

Obviously it went to my head. 6 or 5 or 4 weeks of break…(I haven’t heard for sure when school starts again…it ended Aug 6 and I’ve heard Sept 6, 13, 15 and 16 for starting dates) It makes it a little difficult to plan my traveling but then I don’t really plan much anyway (as you’ve all known or noticed). Of course, I do like to procrastinate so it could be that travel will be too late by the time I get my act together…no worries you’ll get stories…starting now:

We hiked the mountain on Sunday and had jokingly mentioned climbing up again on Friday and staying the mountain hut. We’ve been meaning to do it for quite a while it just never happens as by the time it is Friday we’re exhausted and want to sleep or are headed out of town for the weekend. So Friday afternoon I asked if anyone wanted to go…Rhona and Chris were game so up we went. It was chris’s last night so we had the plan to be up for sunrise and then come down to get him to the airport. Dinner of pasta and veggies was ok—we’d brought angelhair pasta which we over cooked so we had something like dumplings and veggies. Roasted marshmallows and had some chocolate (not quite smores but really good). Outside and at a little distance (we couldn’t tell how far) we could hear what sounded like angry shouting…of course being in the dark on a lonely mountain we decided it might be an exorcism. Not close enough to keep us awake (you could only hear it if you went outside) we knocked off. I awoke a couple times in the night and could hear singing—it sounded happy so I assumed they were successful with whatever they had been doing. (really I think it was different people and was nothing to be worried about)

Up at 430 to hike in the dark to the top of the very windy and dark mountain. 30 seconds after starting our hike we returned to get our sleeping bags for the top…and a good thing we did. Beautiful view of sunrise but so cold…then down the mountain. Once home I made bread (my 4th attempt and 3rd successful attempt) and then met everyone (6 in our 5 person car) to go to town. Taking chris to the airport by way of getting lunch at a restaurant, and then shopping—rhona and I had no food in the house (effectively). Finally left town at 330 and headed back to Nkhoma for Maralise’s birthday party. We were late but as all the missionary community was invited we were sure that it was still going on when we arrived at 5. and we did have quite an audience to our arrival. Maralise thinks there were 50 people there throughout the afternoon. The doctors were called to the hospital—there had been a mini-bus that went off the road and they were being brought into the hospital with broken legs and knocked out teeth…I think that it must have been right behind us as we didn’t see it on our way but it happened very soon after we arrived. So Rhona went to the hospital. I was helping Maralise clean up some and someone came to tell us that some people had been nipped at by dogs while walking home. Went to check on that crew who seemed quite collected and calm (as they had all the help needed already there—really, what did I think I could do). Finally rhona and I made it home at 7…long day and we were hyped up so it was a while before we went to bed…(I don’t know that this write up portrays quite the exhaustion of the day was but that’s ok)