The next day was an easy run through Mzuzu to
Makuzi where we were going to meet up with Lisa, Warwick and the kids who were
joining us for 10 days on our final leg of the trip. We hadn't seen the
grandchildren for over two months so I was really eager to get going and settle
in before they arrived.
The day before they arrived, Ken, who had been
trying to get out of the way so Ernest could park the car in the right place
for the kitchen to be accessible, had backed into a tree and smashed his back
window. Oh dear, it hadn't fallen out fortunately but the whole glass was shattered
into those tiny little pieces and didn't look like it was going to hold together.
So now we had to spend a bit of time covering it with everything from glad wrap
to duct tape in an effort to keep it from falling out. Amazing what glad wrap and duct tape can do
when you use enough of it. So after using pretty much the whole roll Ken felt
there was enough strength in the window to make a run for Mzuzu which was the
next big town on our route to Makuzi.
The first 30 Ks of the journey was up the
escarpment away from the lake shore road which was a real test of nerves. There
are 40 or so hair pin bends with sheer drops off the side down about 50 or 60
meters. The road has not been very well maintained and is very narrow, full of
pot holes and the verges broken away - this was not good for Ken as he was
trying to get to Mzuzu to do a better repair on the window. The trucks going
the other way have the usual attitude that they own the road and to hell with
anyone else which adds to the stress, as you go around each corner expecting to
see one of these 12 wheelers hurtling down the hill.
The view over the lake leaves one speechless and
even though you hang onto your seat around every corner it is something worth
seeing. The lake gets further and further away the higher you climb and you
eventually lose sight of it as you reach the plateau and eventually get to
Mzuzu. It is one of those bustling little African towns that are just bursting its
seams with people and activity. My gosh there are busses, taxis cars and
bicycles crammed into the towns so that it is sometimes impossible to move.
Ernest has developed the technique of driving on these roads down to a fine art
and has taken Kim's definition literally which is that the right of way in any
road in Africa is determined by the degree of intimidation one is prepared to
enforce. He just drives and everyone gets out of his way.
Low and behold we found a Shoprite and while I
was doing the usual top up of milk, eggs and veggies the rest of the gang were
..... You got it, drinking coffee at the local coffee shop. Unfortunately for
Steve he put his phone on the table and quick as a flash it was gone. We tried
to figure out how it was done just so quickly, two guys walked in, bumped
Ernest to divert attention and then moved in and took it right under Steve's
nose. You just can't leave anything unattended in Africa. It was his birthday
too so we were ready to find these little buggers and beat them up but we knew
they were long since gone. It is just such a terrible thing when someone has
their communication lines cut so abruptly, funny how we have become so
dependent on these dam cell phones.
So we left town without being able to retrieve
the phone and stopped again at Nakota bay where you can find all the Malawian
carvers who sell some of the very famous Malawi wood carvings. Oh my gosh they
are really master craftsman and there is such a variety of bowls, tables, lamp
shades spoons animals etc. There are about 15 little stores along the side of
the road and it is really like running the gauntlet trying to get from one to
the others and make a choice. In the end you almost have to buy something from
each one as they are the best salesmen on the planet. I also know that
everything is so cheap here and I would get home and regret not having bought
some of the bowls and lamp stands. So I kept sending Ernest running back to the
truck for more money for "just one more thing" until, he eventually
put his foot down and said "enough". The back bed is now knee deep in
curios. The one thing we have noticed is that Malawi is one of the poorest of
all the countries we have been to. One of the ways you can tell is that here
you only see "taxi bicycles"
where as in Tanzania and Kenya it's "motorbike taxis". There
seems to be very little industry and the lake is definitely the life blood of
the country so nobody is starving because of the abundance of fish but nobody
has any money. Probably the best thing about this country is that you never
feel threatened here, in fact they are probably the most welcoming and polite
of all the places that we have visited but gosh the poverty is heartbreaking.
The kids line the road and wave madly as you drive past always with huge smiles
on their faces. You pass many many schools but you wonder what the future holds
for these guys as there are so few jobs for them to work towards when they are
older.
Lisa, Warwick and the kids arrived late in the
evening. They had flown into Lilongwe and arrived at about 12 in the afternoon
but by the time they got their car and managed to leave the airport it was well
after 2. They eventually arrived at Makuzi at about 8 that evening after a
rather scary drive on those very narrow roads on a Friday evening. It is
definitely the worst time to travel in Africa as we had found out when we were
trying to get Ken to the hospital in Nairobi. The world and his mate is on the
road going somewhere and as I mentioned before they never put on their lights
till it is pitch dark. I think they think they are somehow saving their
batteries or saving petrol or something ridiculous and dangerous.
Anyway! They arrived safe and sound and after
much excited chatter we were able to feed them and put the kids to bed so they
could get up early and enjoy the wonderful Makuzi beach and water.
Signing out!
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