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Published: March 22nd 2008
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Up at 5.30am in the dark for breakfast and tents down. Sunburn is much better but Kierans is really bad - he has blisters the size of golf balls on his back! Started the long drive to Malawi, part of which is through a National Park. We saw giraffe, zebra and baby elephants. The roads are really bad on this stretch and we saw several articulated lorries overturned, one had the dead driver lying next to it. Eventually reached the baobab valley, the landscape is hilly and covered in trees, mainly acacia and baobab, and a river runs down the valley which looks like chocolate! Arrived at the baobab valley campsite at 6pm - nice position but the swimming pool was swamplike. It rained quite a bit in the night and there were some amazing lightening storms.
Sunday 2nd March - Pancakes with banana and nutella at 6am. Got to our next stop at lunchtime - a farmhouse campsite. It proceeded to pour with rain so ate lunch undercover. Rain stopped and a local showed us round the farm - flowers, coffee and tobacco. Also saw massive millipedes and millions of ants. Had a shower and read in the sun for
a while, I finished 'The Lovely Bones' and started '39 Steps.' For dinner we were treated to a traditional meal in the farmhouse restaurant - veg soup, ugali (a maize or cassava stodge you roll into a ball to pick up your spinach and beans) also potatoes and meatballs (not traditional!) Had drinks and cake in the bar afterwards - a breeze hut with unusual stools and chimineas to keep us warm - weather is a bit cooler now we're higher up. Rained hard in the night.
Set off at 7am for our longest drive yet. After stopping for lunch we arrived at the Malawi border at 4pm but gained an hours time difference - 3pm. Reached the vast lake malawi which is so big it looks like the sea. Drove along it for a while then up into the mountains where waterfalls cascaded down sheer cliff faces. Weather got quite wet and foggy up there but by the time we reached 'Chitimba' campsite' back at the lakeside it was ok again. Pitched our tent right on the sandy beach next to the lake for the night.
Tues 4th - up early for breakfast duty - eggy bread. Drove along
the lake to our naxt campsite, stopping at a town market to buy fruit and veg and bad taste outfits for Dave's birthday - we didn't actually have to go into the market, it came out to us! Second hand, tacky clothes galore! Arrived at Kande beach campsite where we were to stay for the next 2 nights. Upgraded to an ensuite room but it was full of spiders and cockroaches and there was no lock on the door so we got our money back and pitched the tent. The campsite is quite big and there were a few overland trucks there. Pete, Sandy and I cooked sausage, mash and ratatouille for dinner. There is a lovely great dane called 'Seed' who comes and sits with us.
Wed 5th - went on an organised walk round Kande village. A group of local lads walked round with us as they had wares to sell. I was accompanied by Danny and Superman. Others included Christopher Columbus, Fred Flintstone, Mr Smooth, Mr Loverman, and Fantastic Steve! Walked through cornfields and cassava plantations and looked in a typical house - brick built with mud cement and grass roofs. Visited the local hospital and donated
some money for a mosquito net. We were shown round the Kande FP school - got mobbed by the kids! Spoke to the headmaster and looked in on some classes which are 100 pupils to 1 teacher! There are also a lot of orphans here. Bought some nice wooden carved items from the local boys before heading back for lunch. A few of us then took canoes out to a little island just off the coast where we swam and snorkelled off the rocks. Played some table tennis before dinner - Tony cooked us a traditional meal (he's from kenya) which consited of chapati, beef stew, ugali and fried cassava root. Few drinks in bar.
Up at 6.30 - Dave's birthday so we all got dressed up in our bad taste clothes - lots of animal print, boys in skirts and dresses, negliges and jumpsuits! We put Dave in high heels! Set off in Shangani for the short drive to the next campsite - had to have an emergency toilet stop as I had severe stomach cramps - us mizungus got a few stares as we walked through a town to the toilets behind a bar in our gold miniskirts!
Felt fine after 'dropping' into a hole in the ground! Stopped at a craft market on the way to Livingstonia campsite which sold beautiful carved wooden animals, chairs and ornaments. Lovely campsite on a beautiful secluded beach on the lakeside - we were the only ones there apart from the abundance of baboons, one of whom stole 2 loaves of bread from the truck! I chased him for a bit and he dropped one! Had a relaxing afternoon swimming and playing cricket and frisbee on the beach. Had a drink at the posh hotel just along the beach and then steak for dinner (tough!) Two hippos walked past in the water about 4 metres from shore! All got dressed up again and celebrated Dave's birthday in the bar. After a while the boys were doing catwalks on the bar in the high heels! At about 2am we sneaked along to the hotel and all got in the outdoor jacuzzi but had to scarper when the nightwatchman caught us! Really windy in the night so it was nice and cool in the tents.
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