Receiving Janet's Parents

Our nearest international airport is in Lilongwe, so we had to travel to Lilongwe to receive Janet's mom and stepdad. Getting to the small national capital was a breeze thanks to a direct hitch we got at the border from a young German expat who answered all of our requests with the phrase 'no problems'. Unfortunately the airport is 25 kms out, on the opposite side of town. At 4000 Kwacha ($25), over 10% of our monthly stipend and over twice as much as the 250 km trip from site, Luc decided a taxi ride was out of a Peace Corps budget. So, despite discouragement from the Malawi volunteers, we decided to take our chances with public transport. Janet seriously regretted this decision halfway out of town past Lilongwe's small industrial zone, across from a large and very fragrant tobacco leaf processing plant, after being dropped off by one mini-bus and getting off a second after ten minutes of not going anywhere. She had a small anxiety attack (not too far
from Madonna's school for girls) at the prospect of not being there to meet her parents who had traveled so far to be with us. Luckily for Luc, who had been more keen on the affordable route, a friendly ride going straight to the airport materialized in our moment of desperation, and we made it to the arrivals hall seconds before Melinda and Tim walked out. At under one tenth the cost of a taxi, it was within our our financial means, although Janet insists the monetary price doesn't accurately reflect the cost to her soul. Needless to say, we took a taxi back into town.