Nkhotakota & Lake Malawi

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Nkhotakota & Lake Malawi

I've just got back from seeing Lake Malawi for the first time at the coastal trading center of Nkhotakota - and two things struck me instantly upon arriving.

One - Lake Malawi is big.

Two - Nkhotakota is truly a hidden gem.

Sani Beach Resort

A friend/co-worker and I last week decided that we were going to get out of Ntchisi and see some of the rest of the country - so the obvious first choice was to see the lake. If anyone looks at a map right now, the lake I'm referring to is the big one is Southeast Africa called Lake Malawi (previously Lake Nyasa). According to Wikipedia - the definitive source for all such information - Lake Malawi is the 8th largest lake in the world and the 3rd largest in Africa.

Furthermore, we went to the ex-slave market turned coastal trading center of Nkhotakota, due to its proximity to Ntchisi. Proximity in this case should be thought of as relative, since it was a 7 hour transit one way, using the public transportation options available to us.

We stayed at a resort called "Sani Beach Resort", and a colleague and I were absolutely the only guests at the resort (it's off season for this kind of stuff in Malawi since it's the dead of winter). In fact, there are actually five resorts all next to each other on this beach, and as far as we could tell we were the only one's at any of these five resorts!

The experience of staying at a tropical, abandoned paradise is fantastic, and quite worth it. The water was clear, cool, and perfectly soothing, and the sand would range from the finest black sand I've ever seen to larger, almost gravel like at some points, creating a really comfortable atmosphere. In fact, the main attraction at the resort appeared to be the auzungu (whities) as the local children would always come up to us and feel completely at ease just sitting down next to us and talking.

I would seriously recommend going to this place if anyone gets the chance, as it is the definition of seclusion, beauty, and relaxation. The only sad part about the trip was the fact that we had to go back to work after only night...

I've posted some photos from the trip on my Facebook, which can be viewed through the following link: Nkhotakota Photos

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On a more lifestyle note, there truly is something to be said for the ability to drink South African wine, eating freshly caught fish, sitting at a quiet, peaceful resort watching the sun rise over one of the great lakes of the world. The views were semi-surreal, and the fact that we were basically left to our own entertainment devices made the trip that much better - I can only hope that the photos I've put up can do some form of justice to this place.

The one thing I should note however is that, like many SSA countries, there are some rather aggressive parasites that live in the water. Lets hope I didn't pick one or two up during my swim in the lake...

Best,

Jon

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