What I'll Miss from Malawi

With two days left to go, it is hard not to get nostalgic. I was planning on adding pictures over this last week of all the things that I'll miss, but it really is pretty simple: the friends below. It is a beautiful country not to be missed if traveling this way. However it is the people that have let us into their lives that have made this experience for us. Cheers to you all. May we meet for sundowners again very soon.

From the wedding. 

Topiary Chickens

On my block they love landscaped gardens. Who would have ever thought they loved to make topiary chickens. It is all the rage on our block.

A garden facing the street. Notice the huge gutters or trenches that are everywhere in this country. Watch it when you make u-turns in Malawi.

And now onto the parade of topiary chickens.

Kevin with the "L"

In Malawi they have trouble spelling and saying my name. For some reason, whenever I say it, they write it down "Kelvin." It must be something linguistically or just a lack of unfamiliarity with the name or someone famous who once had the name. This was all pretty humorous until we went to get our wedding certificate. No matter how much begging, pleading, role playing, and demonstrating, I couldn't get them to return a certificate with the right spelling. Finally after 3 months the right documents have come back. I just wanted to document a few instances for posterity. Though, I have now given up the best marital excuse ever: "Well, you married Kelvin and not me." 

My birthday cake with some minor changes.

The second handwritten marriage document. The first had something else wrong on it and we asked them to do it again. This is where the chain of events started.

Third try. So close. Ouch.

My doctor's receipt.

And finally, perfection.

Visa Run to Zimbabwe

I had to make a visa run over the weekend. Every time I arrive in Malawi I get a visa for 30 days and then I extend it for 60 more. So I then have to leave the country every 90 days to stay legal. We found a cheap flight and were off. We weren't expecting much, but were just hoping for an escape to a new place with new sights and novel restaurants. We found that and more. But this is a strange and beautiful place. 

The balancing rock at Domboshava. Africa is full of these and they are wonderful.

They also have some pretty interesting cave paintings as well at Domboshava

I'm a sucker for an 8 foot tall metal chicken.

They use USD as their currency. It is amazing how worn these bills are. Also, no change.

They have police ninjas in Zim. 

There is a theater in Harare with 3D. We went to two shows.

High tea at the Bronte Hotel.

Mount Mulanje and J.R.R. Tolkien

I'm slowly ticking off the last things on the Malawi lists of sights that I need to see before returning. One of the biggest omissions was Mount Mulanje in the far southeastern corner. I've come to find that there are numerous places in Malawi that are astonishing and one has never heard of them. After all, why would you climb Mulanje when Kilimanjaro is nearby? But once you get here, it is mistake to miss places like Lake Malawi, Mulanje, and Nyika. They are unique and unforgettable. The peak of Mulanje reaches 3000m high and one can climb up to the plateau and spend days between the mountain huts.

The plateau with Mulanje Plateau rises up out of nothing.

Island in the sky is a perfect description.

One thing that is fascinating is the J.R.R. Tolkien of visited Malawi in the 1930s. A number of place names made it into the Lord of the Rings. I doubt it was set here in his mind, but who knows. Here are a few parallels: 

-The Shire River (pronounced Shir-ee).

-The 10,000 foot apex of Mulanje, Sapitwa, is known in local legend as “the place where you are not supposed to go.” Mount Doom anyone?

-A community of diminutive people is said to have once lived on its plateaus (Hobbits, anyone?). Malawians are not a very tall people anyways.

The tea estates on the lower fields. This is looking out at Mozambique.

We climbed up to the plateau one day.

It was far steeper than one might imagine. Compared to Kili, it went up much faster. People who go to the peak never fail to come back struggling to walk because their muscles are so sore.

On the way to Likhubula Falls, we ran into a bunch of guides who wanted employ. Ten of them chased the car to the car park! 

Likhubula Falls

Going Home on June 27

After a lot of deliberation, we've finally set the date to return home: June 27.  About 9 weeks from today. We thought about getting back earlier, but Meredith's contract ends on June 30th and I will be in an online class until June 12.  There is a wedding we want to go to in South Luangwa of some friends on June 20th and we have a house to pick up. June 27th it is.  

 Of course, there are some changes already. This is from a conference that Meredith just went to.  We both took pictures and replied: "Can you believe this?"

Andrew's Visit: From Mushroom Farm to Mvuu

Andrew came to Malawi! Originally, it was going to be Dan and Anu as well, but they got hung up in Amsterdam after being bumped from a flight. 7 months of planning came unglued because of an overbooked flight. Jeez. The airlines need to do better than that. Still, it was incredible having Andrew here.

We took Andrew out to Blue Zebra right from the flight. We figured might as well get over jet lag on a sunny beach. 

Then we went up north to the Mushroom Farm. Hard to describe this place other than it is a backpacker site on the edge of a cliff with some of the best food I've had. We spent 3 nights here.

Manchewe Falls by Livingstonia

Ran into our friend Joe behind the waterfall!

We also just stumbled onto a choir rehearsing for Easter. Here is one of their songs. Watch the lady on the left with her baby in a sling.

One day we hiked to Livingstonia this little girl just walked up and grabbed one of our hands and started walking with us. Soon all of here friends did the same. This event would melt even the most cynical of hearts.

She didn't like it when I paused to take a picture.

On the following day, we ran into a bunch of women carrying firewood. It is insane how much they carry on their heads.

Makuzi Beach where we spent a couple of nights.

Back in Lilongwe we paid the toll and went to the used clothing market. A shaky bridge over a polluted river in a land where the average weight must be 120 lbs. This is more nerve wracking than Devil's Pool for me.

The view from Zomba Forest Lodge where we spent a night. I must have a thing for pictures of people carrying things on their head.

These are from Mvuu Camp. We went back there just because Andrew needed to see some game before leaving Africa. The hippos would come right into our camp at night.

A Kingfisher. 

We found the herd of elephants in our boat and just sat and watched them for 30 min. I could have spent all day there.