I learned a valuable lesson in Malawian etiquette today. We were walking door to door, offering free vaccinations for pets, and visiting with the families. At one particular home, after we finished vaccinating the family’s dog, I asked the lady of the house if I could "use her bathroom" (the family spoke excellent English). She looked extremely confused until Yamikani corrected me, saying, "She means ‘toilet’." Evidently, I had asked if I could take a bath in her home! Bathroom = bath, while toilet = toilet. Oops! Now I know. We all had a good laugh, and I got to use the toilet.

We spent the day traversing door-to-door with the Elephant group, as we have for the past couple days. The children often follow us as we walk; they're constantly singing, laughing, and dancing as we go. They love to show us where the dogs live!

Chelsea spent another day with the Leopard group. She enjoyed visiting people and their homes and found the landscape beautiful. Her previous days presented challenging terrain, so she welcomed today's experience.

Chris accompanied the education group today, traveling to a local elementary school (grades 1-7). He photographed the education team as they explained the importance of preventing rabies. The education team encouraged the children to bring their dogs to one of our static clinics this Saturday or Sunday for free vaccination.

Thanks to Mission Rabies, some of these schools will be painted with beautiful dog murals. Artist Louis Masai has been commissioned to do the work. Some of his previous murals can be seen here. 

Tomorrow, we are off to Lake Malawi for 2 days. We are looking forward to the sun, sand, and relaxation!—Jessie Foley

JESSIE FOLEY has a degree in veterinary technology from Cedar Valley College, as well as a degree in advertising and public relations from University of Arkansas. For the past 2 years, she has been production editor for Brief Media. She was previously on the veterinary nurse team at University of Tennessee Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Foley led Brief Media's efforts to build a team of volunteers for the Mission Rabies Mega Vaccine Drive in Malawi, Africa, and has joined the team in Africa.