Day 57

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Day 57

Managed to leave Deans at about 7 and reached the border post of Mchinjii at about 8. As it was early we were the only people trying to cross over so we got through very fast and with no hassle, but I could see that the whole place was incredibly disorganised and had there been even just 10 more people there would have been complete chaos. So we were in Malawi, and amazingly the sun was shining! Malawi is beautiful but very cultivated - everywhere you look there is a field growing potatoes, or maize, or sugar cane or some other vegetable which so far I have been unable to identify…there are also so many people, everywhere! Little shambas and random villages every time you turn a corner in the road…I think that Malawi is meant to be one of the most densely populated countries in the world and it certainly felt like that, particularly with memories of Botswana and Namibia still fresh in the mind. We stopped briefly in the capital, Lilongwe, to take out money and drop Scott off at his hostel and then we continued on the road South towards Liwonde National Park where we were hoping to spend a couple of nights. Unfortunately when we reached Liwonde at about 4, we were told that because of heavy rain 90% of the park was off-limits. It was by this point too late to turn around so we drove into the accesbible part of the park and booked ourselves in for the night at a surprisingly cheap lodge/campsite. When the weather is good this place must be amazing - it consists of a series of covered areas, some with tables for eating, others with cushion lined edges where you can sit and relax. There is also a viewing area for watching animals, when there are any. Certainly the rain seems to have driven everything under cover - on our way in to the campsite, all we saw was one elephant, some warthogs and hundreds of impala! We drank tea in one of the cushioned enclosures until it was time to start making supper - for supper we made a very large chicken, tomato and sukuma casserole which we ate with rice and Robert’s expertly made chapattis, which was yummy and very filling and we had a little bit left which we gave to the night watchman.

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