Dancing, Drumming and Dust on Likoma Island

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Likoma Island is a small array of dry, rocky hills that pop up through the dazzling blue surface of Lake Malawi, just a few kilometers off the shore of Mozambique. It's part tranquil fishing village, part historic missionary center, part laid-back beach paradise, and part hellacious dusty furnace. There are only a few thousand residents, which leaves several stately baobab and very productive mango trees for each of them.

For us, the highlight was a local dance festival, held in the dusty mango-shade of a sweet little cove on the northern shore. Here, bunches of ladies, spanning every age, size, and shape, clustered into their respective dance troops to groove in perfect proud synchrony with the intricate rhythms of two drums and a metal clanger-thing.

We were lucky to have been informed about this local event by the kind and reserved Vincent, the vicar of St. Peter's cathedral. Vincent had earlier given us an exceedingly thorough tour of the fascinating 100-year-old Cathedral of Saint Peter - oddly, the largest Cathedral in Malawi, with its intricate brickwork, and distinctive bat guano aroma.

The rest of our days on Likoma, we enjoyed walking among the stunning island huts, snorkeling with the biologically unique and exceedingly colorful freshwater chiclid-fish, watching a dust-cloud-generating soccer game on an undulating dirt field, and hanging-out at our idyllic backpackers joint, Mango Drift. -jjk

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Photos

Vincent the Vicar
A sweet and solemn man, Vincent duitifully explained all the history and design details of St. Peter's Cathedral.

Vincent the Party Boy
One hour later, sportin' fine duds at the dance fest, Vincent was offended that we didn't recognize him...but he got over it.