I'm not sure if I already told you this story but I recently returned to Liwonde Game Reserve and it reminded me of this incident. Last year at Liwonde, I participated in the Game count, walking through the park in grid patterns and counting animals. It is a lot of fun. Part of the excitement is that we camp inside the literal park. The only downside with this arrangement is that we have to use the pool showers and toilets inside the resort. This is only inconvenient because it is not right next to us, the facilities are nice and clean.
One day I entered the bathroom and was immediately assailed with the site of a Malawian woman standing inside of a open bathroom stall. I paused and stared because I was so shocked. This woman was holding up her young daughter so she could stand on the toilet seat and squat, as if this nice porcelain, flush-able toilet was a common pit latrine. I was also shocked that she just turned her head and gave me a small smile, totally unconcerned about my witnessing her and her daughter using the bathroom. I felt amused yet disappointed and a bit angered that this woman and her child were incapable or refused to use the toilet as it was meant to be used. My anger probably came from the fact that I was so happy to be using such nice facilities and was shocked that a woman, in a clearly bwana (upscale) place, would still stick to those traditional actions.
Then I remembered staying at another rest-house and seeing a sign in all the bathrooms,
PLEASE DO NOT STAND ON TOILETS in both English and Chichewa with a lovely picture of a stick figure squatting on the toilets and a few well placed dashes between the figure and the toilet bowl.
Ah Malawi
No comments:
Post a Comment