Blackout! We are not be surprised. It's a part of African life. It happens 2~4 times a week, normally in the evening around 5:40 pm or early morning sometimes. It takes 2~5 hours to recover.
We had 2 huge generators when we were in Chad because blackouts happened everyday. We had to get used to the generator's roar like subways. We appreciated the generator for our computers, printers, and fans. (Our office did not have AC and the room temperature was 39C plus. ) Sometimes the blackout lasted 24 hours and a week. We had to stop running the generator for avoiding the overheat. We had sweltering dinner in the dark and long hot nights. That was the life in Chad.
Here in Malawi, we don't have a generator in this flat. We have to live in this situation. My husband, Jim created simple movable lights with a long cable．These lights can be operated on electricity stored in a battery which he bought. When I cook dinner I bring it in the kitchen. When we eat dinner, we bring it in the dining room. Such a handy tool! When the power is out, candle lights blink on up and down in the neighbors' rooms but our light is the quickest and brightest! I am very proud of Jim.
Our cooking stove requires electricity. The first month we arrived in this town, we just ate salad for dinner because I could not cook. Now we got a propane tank for blackout cooking. It is just like an indoor BBQ.
I stat preparing dinner around 4 PM because of the unlucky 5:40 pm. I learned some tips. Cook when I can cook and defrost when I can defrost! This is the life in Africa!
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