Day 3 - St Paul's Seminary

We were very fortunate to be looked after by our friend Father Matthew Likambale, a Catholic priest who currently teaches at St Paul's Seminary. Matthew, as he was liked to be known as, took us under his wing and really looked after us.  Matthew has spent a lot of time in the UK and in particular, the Stirling area.  He has visited us at Kincardine in Menteith Primary School and played a pivotal role in developing the partnership with Kapalamula Primary School.
It was late when we arrived at the seminary. It was a long drive down from Lilongwe to Mangochi via Dedza.  In total about 4 hours along very windy roads.  It was a shame it was pitch black because the views along Lake Malawi would have been stunning.
It had been arranged that we would stay in one of the rooms belonging to a priest which was great.  We paid 10,000 MK (about £42) as a donation to the seminary which included breakfast the next morning. Our room was very basic and not particularly well kept, so Mary and I started to wonder what we got ourselves into!! There was no light in the toilet (this became a familiar theme for us) so we were very grateful that we had brought head torches.  The first of many laughs too with the two of us stumbling around with them on our heads. We kept forgetting to dim them when talking to each other so more than once we felt as though we were under the Spanish Inquisition with the lights glaring into our eyes as we chatted!


Alessandro Pagani, Bishop 



The morning broke and we went for breakfast.  We kept it simple, some bread, banana and in my case, peanut butter.  Tea and coffee on offer but with dried milk powder instead of 'real milk'. I ended up taking black tea for the rest of my journey and developed quite a taste for it. We ended up having breakfast with the Bishop (as one does) which was interesting. 

Stained Glass window in the church

Boys dormitory with mosquito nets over beds

The atmosphere in the seminary was quiet and serene. The boys, who were undertaking their secondary education before moving onto the next stage in their training, were preparing for exams and studying. Matthew gave us a tour of the school to have a look at the dorms and stuff.  After that, it was time to head South towards Balaka.