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Published: July 17th 2008
Day 8
22/06
Today we did an incredible trip to Livingstone Island, with is a small island that is not only located in the Zembezi river in Victoria falls, but actually has a border that lies on the falls edge. It was an expensive trip booked through a very fancy hotel called the Royal Livingston but worth it in the end. We took a motor boat out the island, which is crazy enough. We walked onto the island and got to see the falls from very close- which is also crazy enough. Then we got raincoats and walked all the way out to the edge- I mean, we went one at a time with a guide, who held our hand the whole way- waking through knee-high water and going close enough to look over the edge. It was slightly terrifying and incredibly intense. Then we sat at this qaint little table and had "high tea", with nice little snacks and an open bar. Leave it to the british. But colonialist jokes aside, it was pretty awesome, for lack of adequate adjectives.
Day 9
23/06
Long story short- 18 hours on a bus from Livingstone, Zambia at 4:30am, to Lusaka (the
capital) by 12:30pm and then Chipata (still Zambia) by 10pm. After a bad taxi experience we arrive at a cheap, crappy resthouse but take it and dont spend much time awake, for fear that we'll come to our senses and want to leave.
Day 10
24/06
Leave early and cross the border into Malawi to take a mimbus to Lilongwe. Here I part ways with the girls that I was with- we wanted to do different things in Malawi and it was best anyway. I buy some bread and peanut butter and hop on a bus to Monkey Bay, on the southern shore of Lake Malawi- a freshwater lake which takes up two-thirds of Malawi's area.
On the bus, I set next to James, a Malawian sinner-turned-pastor once he found god. He shared with me his revelation, which came through a dream. The bus was over crowded, the engine sounded like it was on its last pistons, the ride was bumpy, and too long. Five hours turned into ten hours and I arrive in Monkey bay in the dark- two guys appear wanting to be my friends and help me- I assess them as clearly wanting to make
a quick buck but not at all a personal threat and, being in a new place in the dark, I take their lead to the nearest resthouse. Its gross and way overpriced but I take it because, at this point- after two days of hellish traveling- I just want to be lying on a bed in a room with a lock.
Day 11
25/06
The day of the anniversary of my birth starts out on a downbeat- mosquito had gotten a hold of my face in the night and the resthoust was even more awful in the daylight. I got out early (having told my friends from the night before to meet me at 10 am) and found some friendly guys to help me find a ride to Cape Maclear. The only real transport there is getting a ride on a matolla- which is a cross between a pickup and a flatbed truck. Finally I do and, once I find a seat on the sack of potatos under me, I get underway. An hour or so later I arrive to Cape Maclear and my birthday begins looking up- Cape Maclear, also known as the second paradise, is a beautiful
beach area,
with my backpackers squat in between two small villages. I checked in, set up my tent about 10 feet from the beautiful, warm, clear/blue/green water and begin to relax for the first time in a few days.
I go for a walk and meet alot of really friendly people- this time, they are not friendly because they want to sell me something but because Malawians are, for the most part, an very friendly people. I make some friends and one guy, Quentin, walks with on the shore, just talking about Malawi and my trip. He offers to take me to this spot called Otter Point- we walk further up and I ask about hiking int he area and he says that he can show me around a local mountain- we negotiate on a price and it comes to about 1000K, which is 7/8
dollars, including lunch.
We continue to walk and he tells me that we are technically crossing into a national park and that, if a white lady comes to me asking for entrance fees, I should tell her that I'm volunteering at Billy Roirdan Hospital, as volunteers dont have to pay. Luckily we don't
run into her and go to Otters Point- which is a beautiful spot there two bays meet and there are many huge boulders in the clear water. There are tons of fish swimming around, big and small, and all different colors- it is pretty much most peoples paradise. We swim and talk a bit- some more people come and we talk to them. I get tired and we go back to the hostel- agreeing on a meeting time tomorrow.
I get back and relax on the beach, making friends with a group of kids there- one american and two english- we decide to go to the nearby Reggae beach bar for the night. I tel them its my birthday and, at first, they question whether I try this at every backpackers for free drinks. they beleive me and sing me happy birthday. The guys at the bar are really friendly- they start up a fire on the beach and take out some drums. I join them in playing music and thus ends my very unusually and very awesome birthday.
Day 12
26/06
I meet Quentin the next day after grabbing breakfast and we start hiking. His lunch is
bread and banana (which is my usually, actualy) and his 'included water' meant him asking me to bring empty bottles and we filled them up at the pump and started hiking. It got very hot quickly and it also became apparent that Quentin doesn't know shit about these hiking paths. We aren't lost because the landscape is simple- a mountain facing the lake, so lost isnt the problem- its just he doesnt want to admit he doesnt know what he's doing and the grass is annoying to walk through. After a while, we sit to have some food- it is nowhere near lunch time, but Im accepting that this isn't going to be a dayhike. Its too hot, we dont have enough water, and it was getting frustrating that we hadn't found the path he kept saying we would find. We both decide to turn around and go for a swim at Otters Point again.
We make our way down the hill and to Otters pnt, and go for a swim. The water feels great and it doesnt really bother me that I won't spend the day hiking. I'm feeling exhausted and tell him my plan- to go back
and rest/take a nap for a couple of hours. and then we can meet up later and we can go to the other side of the bay, through the village. He agrees and at this point, I am still not 100% sure if we are really friends or I am his client- so I decide to test it. Before we split for a rest, I offer to give him the money for the day hike (if he only wanted the money, he wouldnt come back later that day)- he accepts the money and we split. After 2 hours of rest in a hammock, he shows up to walk through the village and I feel embarassed for doing a lame little test but its nice to know that hes actually being friendly- its hard to tell sometimes.
We walk through the town which is, despite the tourist presence, very traditional- woman wash the clothing in the lake, everyone bathes in the lake, people are starting fire to cook dinner, children are playing games and singing- its kind of like a movie, except its real. We walk through a fishing area where men are comparing their days catches and lying them
out to dry before they ship to the main cities to make some money, as jobs in Malawi and hard to come by and fishing in a main trade here. We get to a sunset spot and we just sit and talk, he looks through the pictures on my camera and tell him about the places- I can honstely say Malawi is the first place where I really make friends that were Africans, even after 4 months in South Africa- the culture is just different here.
Day 13
27/06
I woke up in terror because my clock said I had overslept, which would have meant missing the matola to Monkey Bay and the Ilala ferry to my next destination, I gotoutside the tent and found that it was most definitely not too late- in fact it was probably in the middle of the night. At this point, though, I was stuck in a bad position because my clock was obviously wrong but if I went back to sleep I'd probably actually miss the matola. So I decided the only thing to do was pack up everything, regardless of the time, and then sleep in the hammock at the hostel
until I heard other people moving around because I wasn't the only person taking the matola. Luckily, a security guard guy heard me and came to see what was going on and told me it was 4 am. So I set my clock correctly and went back to sleep.
Later that morning, I woke up and packed and got into the truck, later renamed the Mzungu Matola (white person matola)- this truck was packed with some sacks of flower and potatoes, a few local Malawians, and about 25 white travellers- almost all of us heading to Monkey Bay to catch the Ilala Ferry. The Ilala ferry is the only commercial transport available on Lake Malawi- there are 3 classes on it, it is very slow, and always late, and kind of smelly but an important part of the Lake Malawi experience. We get into town early enough to buy some breakfast and some food for the ferry ride, which would be (for me and about 7 others) about 36 hours to Likoma Island.
The ferry left about 2 hours late, which wasn't too bad, and- though I bought second class tickets- I sat on the first class deck
with some new friends until they came around to check tickets. The first class tickets, to Likoma Island were just under 70usd and, in my opinion, didn't really give them anything much better than second class, which was about 20usd. The first class had a spot on the top deck in the sun, whereas the second was two levels below, but with cusions seats whereas the top deck had hard benchs, a few chairs and mattresses scattered around (but not enough mattresses for everyone on deck). In second class, I soon made friends with a Malawian guy named Mike, who was from Monkey Bay. He teached me how to play Bowu on a set that I borrowed from Nick in first class- Bowu is the game from which mancala originated (you know that game that got popular for a few months back around 2000 with the jewels? I played against him and also against one of the two little kids sitting around us, with the help of the other kid. I take a break and sneak up to first class which isn't hard because I don't think anyone really cares and I sit with them upstairs and watch the sunset
but honestly I feel weird because the first class is all white passengers and the Malawians are all second/economy class... something ironic there.
Back in second class, I learn some words in Chichewa from Mike but soon he has to leave because they come to check tickets and he isn't actually in second class- he is in economy. I sit with one of the young kids before who has taken a liking to me that is getting annoying, but we sit and try to communicate, despite our lack of a similar language- I know five words in Chichewa and he knows maybe 10 in English. Eventually I get him to understand that I want to sleep.
Day 14
28/06
Sleep was okay but around 4:30am the room got loud because we had stopped somewhere on Mozambique and picked up alot of people and shipments- economy was overflowing into second class and the ticket checker was yelling at people to leave if they didn't have the ticket for 2nd class. I go watch the sunrise and talk to an English guy for a bit before I go back downstairs. The day is uneventful really- I wander around talking to
people on first and second class- I get kicked out of first class once, too. I meet some more Malawians- learn about their lives- how they are making work or trying to complete education but no one has enough money to do anything. They all secretly want me to reveal that I am a millionaire and can sponsor them through university- they don't say it but they ask it (this is something that people have asked me before and will ask me later during my trip in Malawi). One guy is Noel, who is going to Likoma Island, and likes America very much. We talk a bunch but he has to go (also economy). Another guy is Crusal, who has moved- unofficially and illegally- to Mozambique and works as a carpenter there and has been somewhat successful- he tells me about fake documents and alluding the customs guards to enter and exit the country, when he goes to visit him family.
We get to Likoma Island much after dark and a separate boat has come to the boat from a backpackers place, called Mango Drift, (someone called ahead). We all load into it (about 16 people total) and we
go straight to shore. The guys from the hostel tell us half must get out and wait ashore because the boat is too heavy for all of us- they say they will return in 45 minutes to pick us up. Half of us unload our stuff and find spots on shore- there are alot people around- it is a large fishermans camp and people are starting fires and cooking dinner on them- the power has gone out (I learn later that Likoma Island only has power for certain hours during the day). Some guys nearby invite us to come learn how to make Sima, which is a traditional dish (and almost identical to Puthu, the Zulu dish, and a Pap, the Sesotho dish). We gather around the fire and watch and talk- the fisherman are very nice and one speaks english very well. He jokes about charging us a fee but we are unsure how much he is joking (he is, though). Once its finished cooking, he insists that we try it- its okay, not as good as the stuff I had further south (in Souh Africa and Lesotho).
One hour goes by and we begin to worry but
we decide to wait it out. Another hour goes by and its getting very late- we have neither a phone among us, nor the phone number of the hostel because its not listed in the guide book we have. We ask around and people tell us its not good to walk at night but they show us a resthouse nearby and we go to book rooms- assuming that something has gone wrong and we may not get picke dup today (its about 2 am at this point, i think). We ask around and some local fisherman tell us that its not safe to walk at night but there is a guesthouse nearby so we make our way, wake up the owner, and start to arrange for rooms. Sabrina, an american girl, asked me if we shouldn't go check one last time for the boat at the shore- we ran back and, sure enough, the guy was standing there- not looking particularly worried that 11 foreigners were missing on the beach at 2 am. We apologize to the hotel owner and hop into the boat for the long ride to Mango Drift, the hostel we intended to go to originally.
Day 15
29/06
I woke up early and took a long hike over the mountain behind Mango Drift and into town. The largest town on the island is a very small market, a few bars, and a couple of restaurants. I'm wandering through and a guy comes up to me to make conversation, he introduces himself as Brave and says that he also just walking around and so he offered to walk with me. I asked if he lived nearby and he said yes and offered to take me to his home. So we walked through town, he explained that he had not done well in school but hoped to make some money so he could return to school, but now his family was strapped for cash, as his father was not alive and his cousins lived in his mothers household as well. When we got to his house, he introduced me to his grandmother and insisted that I take photographs of them, I told him that I did not want to make anyone uncomfortable but he continued to insist and so I did. I met more members of his family and then we continued to walk around town.
Boabab tree
One of the many boababs that scatter Likoma Island- they are HUGE!We made our way to the bar with the only pool table on the island, something that was new to the island and clearly very exciting to Brave. We played a game and it lead to a few more- with a couple guys who were around- at least one of whom was definitely motivated by the desire to beat the american (in a playful way, only). I held my own for a couple of games but was beaten in the end.
We waited until church would be finished, so that Brave could show me the pride and joy of Likoma Island- a beautiful, old church build my missionaries long ago. We walked up as many church goers were still leaving and I got stared at by ever person- not harshly but curiously. Brave showed me the church, which was very impressive, and even led me to a secret stairway that led up into the attic space, and up two old wooden ladders onto the roof of the church- with a view over the whole area.
Once back in town, someone called out my name- which was pretty shocking to me considering I don't know anyone on the whole
island- but it was Noel, a friend I had made on the ferry over. He joined Brave and I as we walked, he told us that he was waiting for a boat later that day to go into Mozambique- where he would pick up a large shipment of fish and bring it back to the city in Malawi where he is from. That is how he makes his money- importing fish from mozambique, via Likoma Island.
Soon I told that I wanted to go back to Mango Drift, Brave went home but Noel offered to walked with me back- he had nothing to do until his boat ride anyway. Noel and I talked about alot of things, sometimes he was hard to understand but his english is pretty good and he was so friendly.
I spent the rest of the day being lazy, with a quick trip snorkeling just 10 feet off short- and it was amazing. As soon as the water is deep enough to swim, the lake floor is covered with sea life- blue crabs, schools of fish of different sizes, shapes, and colors.
Day 16
30/26
I walked to town again in the morning and bought some food, but didn't stay long and came back to the hostel to relax, swim, and snorkel some more.
Day 17>18
01/07
Woke up early to catch the ferry back south down Lake Malawi- some people were getting a boat to the other side of the island, but there weren't really enough to fill a second boat- so a few of us put our bags in the boat and started hiking to the port. We made it with plenty of time, boarded the boat, got our bags, and settled in for the long journey to Nkhotakota, the town on the way back to Lilongwe, which is where I would meet my brother in 2 days time.
We arrived at Nkhotakota around midnight and all 12 of us unloaded together and walked into town- after a bit of wandering in town in the dark, we found the bus station and settled down to wait for the first bus- three of us going to Lilongwe next, a few to Blantyre, and the rest going up north to Nkhata Bay. Around 3am, I caught a half-bus direct to Lilongwe with Tom and Yaneka, two dutch travellers.
The next day we arrived in Lilongwe and I was finally able to get a cash advance from an exchange place. Now that I wasn't tight on money for the first time since I lost my debit card at Vic Falls, we went for a nice breakfast, enjoyed sometime on the internet, found a good hostel, and eventually came back into town for a great Indian food dinner.
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Sungani
non-member comment
Malawi Flag
I love your story. It is very touching and inspiring. Please come to Malawi again I have copied your picture of the Malawi Flag. Sungani