Admiral Boom Goes Boom in Mzuzu

Remember this guy from Mary Poppins?

 

Sometimes I feel like I'm in that movie...where all the house shake violently after he shoots the cannon.

Well, my house doesn't shake violently, but the windows do rattle.

Yes, I am talking about when the cannon goes off practically in my backyard.

I know, I never thought that I would ever be talking about cannons either, but nevertheless, Africa is full of surprises.

Mzuzu is hilly, and I live on one of the hills. My backyard is a slope downward and goes down into the valley. It looks like this:

Well, across the valley is the military barracks. The soldiers stay there, and they practice their gunfire there as well. That is actually pretty amusing because they only get probably like 2 shots maximum. So they all get together, and shoot at the same time like maybe once a month. That's their shooting practice. haha. So you hear this random gun-fire echoing across the valley.

But the worst is the cannon practice. I heard the last shot a couple of days ago was because they were aiming for this "house" they had put up and were attempting to blow it up. Sure enough in the afternoon, all of a sudden, the cannon BOOOOMMS. The windows kinda rattle, and you are taken off guard by the loud noise. When I first moved here, I didn't know what had happened. I was kinda scared.

And all of this is taking place in one of the most peaceful countries in Africa.

I guess they have to be ready if they ever get in a cannon fight.

I better not get some random cannon ball landing in my yard.