first week, come and gone (already?!?)

So I have arrived in Malawi! After drifting in and out of a jet-lag coma over the weekend I started work at UNICEF on Monday and haven't sat down since! I loved my first week and never imagined that I would love working for free so much. By Wednesday I had already sat in on a meeting with the Social Protection Policy technical staff, made a day trip to Mchinji in a van of 15 or so news journalists, met the Minister of Woman and Child Development and the Minister of Economic Planning and Development, visited the first beneficiaries of the pilot cash transfer scheme, and had drank about 10 bottles of pineapple fanta (i'm absolutely addicted to that stuff).

So. First off. I am living in a neighborhood of Lilongwe that is occupied mostly by ex-pats. It's a very strange feeling to be here to work with the poorest people in one of the poorest countries in the world but living behind a 10 foot tall fence with rolled razor wire on top. Most ambassadors, diplomats, and foreign workers live in this area and the nice cars and big houses definitely take a bit of getting used to. I share a house with a Finnish woman named Anne (pronounced Ann-uhh) who is a lawyer working for UNHCR (the UN refugee organization). Anne is super nice and has been kind enough to adopt me into her group of predominantly Nordic friends. I now know about 10x the Scandinavians than I did before I came here (I am the only non-blonde in the bunch) and am being introduced to things like Finnish vodka (which is pitch black) and Scandinavian magazines. We have had a few dinners together, taken a day trip to Lake Malawi (which was gorgeous and no schisto to report yet), attended what can only be described as an ex-pat talent show (just picture lots of live renditions of bad 90s American pop music set to a live Malawian band), and as of Saturday night, partook in the late-night local bar/club scene in Lilongwe (they're called "bottle stores" and are located in an interesting part of town with various forms of income generation - just use your imagination a bit). I have also been navigating the huge area of land that is called Lilongwe and trying my hand an negotiating the best price for a bag of tomatoes at the markets.

As far as work goes, I absolutely love my supervisor Mayke, she is the chief officer of Social Policy at UNICEF Malawi and amazing to watch in action. Her commitment to her work and determination to get a social protection policy in place is astounding and I am so lucky to be in a position to learn from her. She has been keeping me very busy and I am already appreciating the diplomacy that is required to work with government officials (she is REALLY good at her job to say the least). My work thus far has entailed designing documents/charts that illustrate the social protection policy and can be used in meetings with govt officials, donors, etc to get the main ideas across and putting together a presentation for UNICEFs mid-year review. This week I am helping to organize a meeting for our sections mid-year review and also attending meetings with the World Food Program and the European Union. Next Sunday I leave for a two week trip to Mangochi district to help with training and implementation of the cash transfer scheme which is planned to start there at the end of the month. Busy busy busy but loving loving loving it!

Here are some pictures from my visit to Mchinji, it was a really big deal as three Ministers came out to see the beneficiaries and learn more about the scheme (hopefully if all goes well the social protection policy will be passed by the Cabinet and then Parliament and the cash transfer scheme can be rolled out to universal coverage). Their support is super important... This was the Africa that I was expecting and it was such an amazing experience to see how so many people's lives are being affected by this scheme (by the way, tears are hard to hide when they mix with the red dust that seems to be everywhere)

So of course my favorite part was the children, everyone was dressed in their best clothes and it was so powerful to see how much these people are benefiting from the scheme, if there is any doubt about social protection, you just have to see the faces and you understand how important it is.
One of the beneficiaries addressing the Ministers.
Regina (right), one of the first child-headed households to receive the cash transfers. She is doing very well and as a result of the scheme is able to not only send her siblings to school but is also attending school herself.
And a mobbing by children, I swear they have a 6th sense, once a camera comes out you get swarmed. Love it!
So, as I look at my full calendar for next week I say farewell and look forward to sharing more...

the whole of Paris in 8 short hours...

So, jet lag can make you think crazy things, like "why on earth did I book a 10 hour layover in Paris" and "this is going to be the worst day ever!" Dramatic? Um yeah. Cranky? Definitely. It is in this mood that Tayllor finds herself as she dozes in and out of sleep on the RER train from the airport into the city, regretting the decision to buy the cheap ticket and wondering how it is possible that so many dollars can equal so few Euros...

And then she gets OFF the train, and... Tayllor's in Paris! Suddenly all storm clouds are lifted from my brain and I am able to appreciate my luck to be in such an amazing city for a day. So what do you do when you have 8 hours in Paris? Well if you're Tayllor, you eat. A lot. And you walk. A lot. So here's the rapid tour d' France...

First there was the enjoyment of one of my favorite candy bars under the shadow of Notre Dame (complete with authentic Parisian second-hand smoke!)
Then of course, fromage and jambon crepe at the Pantheon (Paul I think I actually found the same crepe place that we stumbled into 3 years ago! Still as tasty as I remember.)

The next plan was for macaroons at the Eiffel Tower. But the walk down the Seine was longer than I had planned and alas, the macaroons were gone by Musee d' Orsay. Don't worry, the Eiffel Tower is just as amazing sans refreshments.

And finally, who could leave Paris without enjoying some French wine? I was lucky enough find a cafe with this outstanding view at the base of the Sacre Coeur in my favorite part of Paris, Monmarte. The hike up the hill was grueling given the few hours of sleep and multiple hours of tramping around Paris non-stop but the day could not have ended any better (and the wine+downhill trip to the train station was pretty okay too!)

And so, as I made my way back to Charles de Galle international airport, I found myself wholly exhausted but satisfied with Parisian layover. Now back on a plane, another 9 + 2 hours of airtime to go!