April 22 2009
Rainy season has turned into caterpillar season, well almost. The rains appeared to be over but today there are some heavy clouds dropping buckets here and there. At least it managed to miss us on the golf course today. Meanwhile it's certainly raining caterpillar droppings around the school these days. Haven’t seen so many of the little critters since we first moved to Alberta many years ago. The temperatures have also dropped considerably. It really does feel like an Edmonton summer right now, except the days are getting slightly shorter instead of those lovely, long northern evenings.
We also had interesting glimpses of Malawi election fever during our recent holidays. Travis, who had just dropped in from Australia, was rather impressed by the warm welcome northern Malawi had prepared for him. As we headed north from Lilongwe we met no oncoming traffic and brightly dressed people lined the streets each time we approached a town or village. There was much waving and even some singing and dancing. Of course, it soon dawned on us they were expecting someone much more important than us. Turned out our route coincided with one of the President’s election tours and, fortunately for us, we were travelling in the same direction, but at least 30 minutes ahead of him. We also found it interesting to see many pick up trucks along the way, filled with new bicycles, brightly painted in the government party’s colours. I guess there were going to be some “door prizes” at these events.
Now, any traveler will tell you learning to read between the lines of the guide books and tourism ads is an essential skill. It tends to narrow the very important gap between expectations and reality: generally, the narrower the gap, the happier the travelers. As a case in point, one of the important discoveries of thi
s trip was to interpret the phrase “the lodge is situated X number of kilometres off the paved route down a well maintained track” to mean four wheel drive with some clearance necessary, particularly in the rainy season. Happily our little car has four wheel drive, and the clearance was adequate to get us to the lodges of our choice. Another frequent claim is that “Malawi has some of the best roads in Africa”. Read that as, drive carefully. Expect giant potholes, unmarked speed bumps, pedestrians, cyclists transporting all manner of goods, and a variety of domestic animals at any time, not to mention police check points. Motorists who don’t have all their stickers and safety equipment in order, beware! In fairness, it must be said there are new stretches of road in excellent condition, and familiarity with some of the roads has certainly made travel less stressful over time.
All that b
eing said, Northern Malawi did live up to the guidebook claims of providing some spectacular scenery and hospitable lodges with good food. The rain and cool temperatures at Luwawa Forest Lodge made the fireside lounge even more enjoyable. J-M got a little soggy but thoroughly enjoyed one of the trails, while Travis and I experienced a rather wild Land Rover ride to the waterfall. Our intrepid driver was determined to get us as close as possible before we had to hike. Neither fallen trees, washed out roads nor parked logging trucks stemmed his enthusiasm. His trusty panga knife (machete) helped repair the chain saw and cleared trail when needed. We bounced, we cringed a little, but mostly we laughed a lot: a great adventure! From Luwawa we left the highlands and the rain for Sangilo Lodge, further north, tucked away in its own private cove on the lakeshore, just down one of those delightfully “well maintained tracks”. We were very happy colleagues at school had recommended this place, back in the sun, warm enough to swim, just plain relaxing.
Sometimes it
pays off to just be a tourist. There aren’t really many tourist attractions in Malawi so when we see one we can hardly be faulted for checking it out. As luck would have it, the Kandewe Cultural Heritage site and suspension bridge was a wonderful find. I’ve lost count of how many guided tours and visits to museums, galleries and cultural exhibits we have experienced in the last five years but the guide at Kandewe gets top honours in the enthusiastic tour guide category. The bridge itself is interesting but the guide’s explanation of the artifacts and culture, as well as his evident pride in this tiny museum far surpasses most well trained professional tour guides. Our only regret was not having more time to go on the waterfall excursion he proposed.
Luckily there is a secondary road, also paved, that follows closer to the lakeshore from Nkhata Bay to Salima. This made an interesting route for our return journey and all too soon we found ourselves back in Lilongwe with just enough time to do laundry and get ready for Zanzibar.
Zanzibar highlights: • Palm trees • White sand • The stunning blue waters of the Indian Ocean • Snorkeling around beautiful coral reefs • Trade winds: less heat, less mozzies to worry about • Sundowners in Stone Town • The Easter Day choir • Dhow watching • Great seafood • The Tembo Hotel in Stone Town • The Evergreen Bungalows on the East coast • Friendly hospitality • Backgammon and bao at the beach bar • Hisbiscus flowers on the bed • Do we have to leave here?
Zanzibar lowlights: very few
Dar Es Salaam was a brief stay but enjoyable for the most part. We especially appreciated the Swiss Garden Hotel, truly a lovely little green oasis in the midst of a big city. Conversation was lively over dinner in the evenings as guests were all seated at one table, a great opportunity to meet some interesting people.
Overall: happy travelers, just sad to have to say good-bye to Travis in Nairobi on the way back. Now the countdown is on. We are into the final term of the year: headed for exam time, packing and for the trip home.
Pictures are available in these albums:
Northern Malawi
Zanzibar
Rainy season has turned into caterpillar season, well almost. The rains appeared to be over but today there are some heavy clouds dropping buckets here and there. At least it managed to miss us on the golf course today. Meanwhile it's certainly raining caterpillar droppings around the school these days. Haven’t seen so many of the little critters since we first moved to Alberta many years ago. The temperatures have also dropped considerably. It really does feel like an Edmonton summer right now, except the days are getting slightly shorter instead of those lovely, long northern evenings.
We also had interesting glimpses of Malawi election fever during our recent holidays. Travis, who had just dropped in from Australia, was rather impressed by the warm welcome northern Malawi had prepared for him. As we headed north from Lilongwe we met no oncoming traffic and brightly dressed people lined the streets each time we approached a town or village. There was much waving and even some singing and dancing. Of course, it soon dawned on us they were expecting someone much more important than us. Turned out our route coincided with one of the President’s election tours and, fortunately for us, we were travelling in the same direction, but at least 30 minutes ahead of him. We also found it interesting to see many pick up trucks along the way, filled with new bicycles, brightly painted in the government party’s colours. I guess there were going to be some “door prizes” at these events.
Now, any traveler will tell you learning to read between the lines of the guide books and tourism ads is an essential skill. It tends to narrow the very important gap between expectations and reality: generally, the narrower the gap, the happier the travelers. As a case in point, one of the important discoveries of thi
s trip was to interpret the phrase “the lodge is situated X number of kilometres off the paved route down a well maintained track” to mean four wheel drive with some clearance necessary, particularly in the rainy season. Happily our little car has four wheel drive, and the clearance was adequate to get us to the lodges of our choice. Another frequent claim is that “Malawi has some of the best roads in Africa”. Read that as, drive carefully. Expect giant potholes, unmarked speed bumps, pedestrians, cyclists transporting all manner of goods, and a variety of domestic animals at any time, not to mention police check points. Motorists who don’t have all their stickers and safety equipment in order, beware! In fairness, it must be said there are new stretches of road in excellent condition, and familiarity with some of the roads has certainly made travel less stressful over time.All that b
eing said, Northern Malawi did live up to the guidebook claims of providing some spectacular scenery and hospitable lodges with good food. The rain and cool temperatures at Luwawa Forest Lodge made the fireside lounge even more enjoyable. J-M got a little soggy but thoroughly enjoyed one of the trails, while Travis and I experienced a rather wild Land Rover ride to the waterfall. Our intrepid driver was determined to get us as close as possible before we had to hike. Neither fallen trees, washed out roads nor parked logging trucks stemmed his enthusiasm. His trusty panga knife (machete) helped repair the chain saw and cleared trail when needed. We bounced, we cringed a little, but mostly we laughed a lot: a great adventure! From Luwawa we left the highlands and the rain for Sangilo Lodge, further north, tucked away in its own private cove on the lakeshore, just down one of those delightfully “well maintained tracks”. We were very happy colleagues at school had recommended this place, back in the sun, warm enough to swim, just plain relaxing.Sometimes it
pays off to just be a tourist. There aren’t really many tourist attractions in Malawi so when we see one we can hardly be faulted for checking it out. As luck would have it, the Kandewe Cultural Heritage site and suspension bridge was a wonderful find. I’ve lost count of how many guided tours and visits to museums, galleries and cultural exhibits we have experienced in the last five years but the guide at Kandewe gets top honours in the enthusiastic tour guide category. The bridge itself is interesting but the guide’s explanation of the artifacts and culture, as well as his evident pride in this tiny museum far surpasses most well trained professional tour guides. Our only regret was not having more time to go on the waterfall excursion he proposed.Luckily there is a secondary road, also paved, that follows closer to the lakeshore from Nkhata Bay to Salima. This made an interesting route for our return journey and all too soon we found ourselves back in Lilongwe with just enough time to do laundry and get ready for Zanzibar.
Zanzibar highlights: • Palm trees • White sand • The stunning blue waters of the Indian Ocean • Snorkeling around beautiful coral reefs • Trade winds: less heat, less mozzies to worry about • Sundowners in Stone Town • The Easter Day choir • Dhow watching • Great seafood • The Tembo Hotel in Stone Town • The Evergreen Bungalows on the East coast • Friendly hospitality • Backgammon and bao at the beach bar • Hisbiscus flowers on the bed • Do we have to leave here?
Zanzibar lowlights: very few
- The touts in Stone Town: everyone wants to be our friend, guide and sell us something
- The ferry to Dar Es Salaam: high seas, highly bouncy ride. Note to self: take motion sickness meds or fly if there is a next time.
Dar Es Salaam was a brief stay but enjoyable for the most part. We especially appreciated the Swiss Garden Hotel, truly a lovely little green oasis in the midst of a big city. Conversation was lively over dinner in the evenings as guests were all seated at one table, a great opportunity to meet some interesting people.
Overall: happy travelers, just sad to have to say good-bye to Travis in Nairobi on the way back. Now the countdown is on. We are into the final term of the year: headed for exam time, packing and for the trip home.
Pictures are available in these albums:
Northern Malawi
Zanzibar
