Day 2 in Ntcheu

Greetings everyone!
We are excited that we are able to write emails a little more often now that we are in a place where we can connect to a phone for dial-up service. We pay 600 kwacha for about two days worth of telephone connection, which is approximately $4.00. Kind of expensive, but we are happy to pay that price to communicate with all of you.
I am writing this email as we sit in the SOM office in Ntcheu, which is about a 12 x 12 office with one desk and 6 people working in it. We arrived in the office this morning at around 8:00am after walking from where we are staying, about 3/4 of a mile away. We are currently living in Chandu, a hostel, that is at the level of a motel. They rank sleeping places here as hotel (best), motel (next best), and resthouse (last best). We have decided to stay in the hostel permanently instead of renting a house as we thought that it made more sense since we will only be here for 18 more nights. If we were to live in a house, we would have to buy a bed, furniture, connect the electricity, pay for water, hire a security guard, and hire someone to clean the house for us. Though the hostel is not a place we would normally choose to stay in the U.S., we are happy to be there. There is a gate in the front with a watchman there all day, and we have someone who will clean the place whenever we want. Plus, all we pay per night is 1,000kwacha or about $6.80 per night. Plus, the most exciting news is that we have HOT water for showers!! That is what really clinched the deal for me as I stood in a steaming shower last night and thanked God for this simple luxury.
Life is different between Songa and Ntcheu we have already learned.
First, it is much colder here than in Songa. The temperature today is in the low 60s, and we are realizing that we did not bring enough warm clothing items. Ntcheu is much more of the city living, not like the small community living in Songa. We don't walk or ride bikes to as many places, but instead use the SOM truck to travel to places that are of any significant distance. They do many activities in the communities in Ntcheu district, but with the mountains that surround this area, it takes a long time to go from one place to the other. Plus, unlike Songa, we are surrounded by shopping options - 3 superettes
(supermarkets) and one wholesale place. These are not like grocery stores in the U.S., though, as we cannot buy fresh produce there - just bread, butter, sugar, soap, etc.
We haven't quite figured out yet how we are going to cook for ourselves yet in our hostel room, but we think that we may be buying a hot plate and a pot. However, for the last two nights we have been eating at Naomi's house. Naomi is the Evangelism coordinator for SOM in Ntcheu district. She lives in a 500 sq ft house with her sister, Jane, her three sons, and Jane's son. We have enjoyed getting to know them, and they have shown us incredible hospitality. Naomi has also said that she and Jane will wash our clothes for us. We feel bad about having her do this as the two of them already work so hard. Naomi for example is currently building her own house (she's been working on it for 3 years now), growing her own crops, taking care of her sons, and working full time for SOM. We are amazed at her kindness and resourcefulness.
That is all I will write for now as we have much more to do today, but I hope that you have gotten an idea for where we are now living.
We miss you all and pray for you daily. We look forward to hearing more news from home!
Blessings,
Nate and Bekah