Day to Day living

For reasons of which I am not aware, Malawi has adopted a time zone that makes it day one hour earlier than expected. Being directly under Kenya, for instance, it is actually one hour behind on the clock. This places it on the same time as its former British colonial partners Zambia (formerly Northern Rhodesia and Zimbabwe (formerly Southern Rhodesia). The effect is to have the day start (i.e. sunrise) at 5:00 AM and sunset in the 5:00 PM range. The work day starts at 7:30 and ends at 5:00. With the earlier darkness and rural roads with no street lighting, the evenings outside the city tend to be uneventful. In the cities there is more activity and things like grocery shopping are much like in Canada. There are smart new shopping malls with ShopRite stores with grocery and merchandise products paralleling those available anywhere – and at prices much like anywhere as well. The effect is the better-off live with most amenities (noting the power and fuel outages that affect everyone) while those in the rural settings (most of the people) live a life of subsistence.

The country is agriculturally based and as a result the rhythm of life plays off the crop cycle which plays off the rain. The best time to visit weather wise is August through October when the days are sunny and dry and warm. 30 degrees C is considered a hot day so these months are much like a pleasant summer day in Canada. The rainy season starts in November and runs through March so October is the month of planting and February – March is the time of harvesting. Maize (corn) is the prized crop for personal consumption. Being October, it is a regular sight to see people (mostly women) walking to and from the local seed markets carrying a number of seed bags on their head back to their villages for planting.