Blogs from Africa

6:30 in the morning and we're on our way to Monkey Bay’s port. Here there are around a dozen ships docked, at least half are semi-derelict. They would probably sink if the water was a bit deeper. But our little ferry, MV Ilala, looks fine ,though she is showing her age. Three decks and a single yellow and blue funnel, the colours of The Malawi Shipping Company. She reminds us of the Clyde steamers built of heavy steel plate with rivets that have been painted over many times. All the decks are of well-worn hardwood planks. The Ilala was built in 1949 in Glasgow and, like all the ships on the lake, dismantled before being shipped as a giant kit to Africa. The parts came by sea then river before being carried or hauled over land! ... read more

We travel from Lilongwe to Monkey Bay on Mother's Day, a Tuesday this year. As it is a festival day, there are spirit dancers celebrating on the village roadsides. Dressed in grotesque masks and wigs, these dancers are incarnations of spirits and they perform at funerals and festivals. And for 500 kwatcha, 50p, a group happily dance for us. The dancing is not great but the costumes are amazing and quite scary. As well as ancestors, the sprits include a pink faced “white man” and wild and domesticated animals. The long haired elephant is amazing. No drive In Malawi is complete without stops for the driver: “Excuse me but I just have to ...” They've shopped for beef, water, electric plugs and, on every trip, petrol – all bought after getting our fare up front. They ... read more

More musings or as Lee condescendingly remarks more ramblings. Because it’s train time again and I have almost 2 hours on a line we have travelled before but in the opposite direction and no Julie I do not mean backwards! This time we are Fes to Kénitra whereas 4 days ago we traveled Kénitra to Fes. We loved Fes, did last time did this time. The atmosphere is friendly and more so than Marrakech, the souks just as enchanting, the food better and our accommodation the equal or better than anything we have experienced. Having our 40 anniversary, and advertising the fact well, sure helped as the riad went well beyond expectations with gifts and little bonuses but the place is delightful. The staff were terrific and they have a policy of leaving a tip in ... read more

Beste meelezers: wij zijn alweer thuis, hier het slot van onze mooie reis. Intussen heb ik overal foto's bijgezet. Er staan ook al 2 filmpjes in: Kijk in blog 2 naar ons helikopteravontuur. Volgende filmpjes gaan de komende tijd komen. Kijk dus nog eens een keertje. Wij hebben genoten, ik hoop jullie ook van onze verhalen en foto's! DINSDAG 01-10-2019 19e Vakantiedag Vandaag gaan we dit park weer verlaten. De nacht was wat onrustig: deels door het nog herbeleven van de middag, deels door het geluid van de onafhankelijkheidsfeesten, er was tot 7.00 uur muziek uit het dorp te horen! Eerst maar koffie, sap en een pannenkoek, boeltje opruimen, afwasje doen en dan zijn we reisvaardig. Uitgezwaaid door onze Zuid-Afrikaanse helpers gaan we op weg. Bij de gate van het Makgadikgadi ... read more

Happy Anniversary to us. Sleep in till quite late because we can and because Lee is recovering from a bout of tummy upsetness which is not a word but something all travellers know about. It was a concern a few days back when it would have been tough to travel and we had 6 hours on the train but now at least it’s sort of OK and should not stop us having an small anniversary dinner tonight (that’s a small dinner not small anniversary) nor travelling tomorrow. We have the trip back to Kénitra, the change of trains and back to Tangiers. Whilst we walked up to the Blue Gate today our riad flowered our room, left little notes wishing us the best and placed a gift on our bed. It’s a lovely small ceramic container ... read more