The warm heart of Africa – Malawi and Zambia

We returned to our past campsite and everyone upgraded to basic bungalows on the beach so we didnt have to put up and take down tents in the rain. We have to leave at 5 am so its worth the $14 to not have to tear down in the dark. I had a great sleep with the sounds of the ocean in my ears. This was fortunate since the next day I noticed the bottom of my day bag was ripped, I thought maybe just worn out until I pulled out my snack bag at the bottom that was chewed to pieces. By rats. I am missing a melted chocolate bar that I should have taken out of my bag.
On our way to Malawi, the warm heart of Africa. On the way we drove through a national park where we spotted elephants, giraffes, impalas, wildebeest, but you cant stop to take a better look or you can be fined. We also drove through a protected area for the huge baobab trees that live up to 2500 years. At our camp that night in the middle of nowhere, there was a cool little cave-like tavern where they served hot chocolate with amarula for $2. The hot showers were fueled by a wood burning stove, and there are no mirrors here! This is probably best anyway. That night it rained, again we tore down damp in the dark and rain to get an early start on another long drive. Later we were told that there were electrified fences around this compound because on a previous visit, the group coming in the day after was robbed at gunpoint, probably by police.
The next day we drove along the edge of the Great Rift Valley, reaching the border of Malawi. The border process wasn`t too bad until the guy working the gate to let our truck through decided to take a break for half an hour or so and we could not get through. Once in Malawi, the road is lined continuously with villages and people. We had not seen a decent toilet for a while so I pleaded for a bush stop, which is almost impossible to find. We finally stopped on the road where some kids gathered, calling for adults to join, to watch me as I dashed into the bush to successfully find a big tree while our tour leader kept the locals at bay. We continued on to another camp in the middle of nowhere, on the shores of Lake Malawi, a huge lake covering one fifth of the country.
Malawi is one of the poorest countries in Africa, and known to have the friendliest people. They have
great woodcarvings, and around every camp he carvers set up a stand and watch for anyone leaving the
security gates so they can strike up a conversation and try to get your kwachas, the local currency.
That night we sat around a campfire on the shore of the lake and watched sunset. And I got in a sunrise
the next morning too, the roosters woke me up around 5 so might as well get up. We headed up into
mountains overlooking Lake Malawi to see fantastic views but they were obscured by rain. That
morning we made a stop at a big market, where we were each given 1000 kwachas and a vegetable to
buy. You must bargain, but in some other countries we tourists would still pay ten times what a local
would pay, a skin tax. Here is Malawi this is not a problem, so we got the same deals our cook would
have.
Our stop for the next two nights is Kande Beach Camp on the shore of Lake Malawi. Its Easter weekend
so there are locals from nearby cities here as well as the overland trucks, and its just like at home, lots of
loud drunk people. I walked outside the security gate and was accosted by the woodcarvers, who
taught me how to play Bao, a board game with seeds as markers.
We went on a walk to the village nearby, accompanied by locals on all sides who wanted to practice
their English and find out about our countries. At the village, the adults were replaced by little kids who
wanted to play and hold our hands as we walked. We visited a school, where classes are up to 200 kids,
with Canada flags all over on equipment donated from our country. I almost wanted to stand up and
sing O Canada. Then the hospital, a dingy little affair where 2 workers care for thousands, and a doctor
shows up once a month. A baby had been born just before we got there so we were welcomed in to the
room with mom and baby. Seems to be no concept of privacy here.
Two of us went on a horse ride through the woods and fields around the lake, with a guide, on a couple
of ornery horses. My partner was thrown. It was a relief to get off these rude beasts when we reached
the lake, but the finale was getting back on bareback and being led deep into the lake, where the horses
had to swim in the warm water.
Now on to Zambia. On the way another one of many police checks cost us about an hour. Every once in
a while along the main road there will be a crude barricade set up with a few uniformed people who ask
a bunch of questions. There is no known reason for this. At the last check in Malawi our tour leader got
into an argument about some regulation they made up and wanted a bribe for.
We made a stop in the middle of nowhere for lunch, and were very quickly surrounded by little kids
moving closer and closer, as well as some adults who told us we should be giving them food. This is a
little disconcerting. We are next to a field of ripe maize so we know there is no one here going hungry,
but western travellers have taught the locals that it pays to beg. We drive away without leaving
anything. Travel companies like Intrepid that I am using prefer to contribute to the economy in more
positive ways, like paying a village for a tour.
Crossing the border to Zambia is a really annoying process since the $50 we must pay for a visa is
counted several times, due to corruption. There is a city just after the border, and a dramatic difference
from Malawi since people live in cities and are well-dressed. Its Easter Monday and the change bureaus
are closed. Our tour leader procured the services of a dodgy guy to change our money, bringing him in
to the truck and declaring Here is the dodgy guy who will change your money. Zambian kwachas
recently were reprinted due to inflation, instead of a 20,000 note it is now 20, but the smaller notes are
still with the larger values, so it is a little confusing to say the least.
We are in Zambia really just to transit to the highlights of Zimbabwe. It is a long couple of days on the
truck. The tours used to go through Mozambique for a shorter transit time, but there were delays of up
to forty hours at the border so that country has been abandoned by tours.
We spent the first night at a campsite which is owned by the same South African guy who managed the
supermarket we stopped at, and after dinner he gets up and sings karaoke. A little strange… My friend
Mel from the outback in Australia, a cute little girl who is a hardcore Jack Daniels fan, and I stayed up
with him for a couple of drinks just to be rebels, since everyone else went to bed about 9. I caved in at
11 but Mel kept going until 3, with alarms set for 5:15 am so we can tear down, have breakfast and be
on the road by 6:30 for our next long travel day.
Most boring day on the road every, only interesting thing was a suspension bridge over a river but we
would be arrested if we took pictures, in case we wanted to sabotage the guarded bridge. TIA – this is
Africa.
We stopped in Zambia`s modern capital, Lusaka, for supplies and replacement of an oil pipe in the truck.
Our driver Ben fixed the pipe but this kept us an extra half hour and put us in rush hour traffic jams, so
we didn`t reach our camp until almost dark at 6:30. We had just enough light to see the zebras hanging
out on the edge of the camp.
Up at 4:30 the next day – it would have been earlier if I had put up a tent but instead opted for an
upgrade with Zoe, daughter of a Brazilian soccer player. On the road by 5. This trip has turned from
travel holiday to boot camp.