After we dropped Annemarie at the airport in Iringa Sonja and I travel together in Tanzania. We want to enter Malawi the next day.
In the evening we find an idyllic location on a river near the Mpanga Game Reserve and Kilulo National Park, the Riverside Campsite. In the nearby village a rope over the road must be lowered before we can continue. When we arrive at the campsite, we understand why, less than 5 minutes later, a boy arrives who introduces himself as our night watchman. Using Google translate on Sonja’s phone, we understand that he first goes home to eat, and then he will spend the night near us.
We eat the mushrooms we bought on the way.
The next morning we have breakfast together, an omelet and fresh bread.
The border crossing at Kasumulu goes smoothly, stamps out, stamps in, pay road tax (TZS 44,000 = € 18.20), insurance (TZS 28,000 = € 11.60) and arrange a local sim card (TZS 2500).
At the first police checkpoint, one of many in Africa, we are welcomed by the officer with:
“Welcome to the warm heart of Africa, feel free!“.
We spend the evening at Floja Foundation B & B.
We meet Sandra and Peter again at Floja, we met them earlier on in Uganda. They are a little tired of cycling and all the impressions while you’re always so close to the people on the street …
When we leave we load their bikes on the roof rack and take them across the mountains to our next address on Lake Malawi in Nkata Bay Mayoka Village.
The places there appear to be only for small tents, so we get a cottage overlooking the lake for the price of a campsite, also Sandra and Peter for that matter …
The lake is really great and Mayoka village is beautiful, spacious rooms, good bar and restaurant, clean eco-toilets and shower in full view of the lake, this is a super stay.
Snorkeling in the lake is great, lovely fresh water and a variety of fish.
What is really surprising, the smoke that morning at breakfast emerges on the horizon.
This turns out to be Lake Flies, insects that emerge from the lake by the millions. People do benefit from them, from the captured insects they make a kind of burger, see this website.
Sandra and Peter remain a few days longer, we continue along the lake. Our next stop is the Sunbird Livingstonia Beach Hotel Campsite in Senga. We swim a bit in the lake, buy some fish from the local fishermen and lounge a little at our tent on the beach.
Here we meet Morten and Peter, two Danish friends from Denmark who overlanded, through Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.
Together we barbecue our purchased fish.
We drive on through Lilongwe.
That goes so well that in the evening we arrive in Chipata, Zambia where we can sleep at Dean’s Hill Lodge. An Italian / Mozambique / French couple, acquired this beautiful place some years ago and tackle the ambitious renovation nicely. Nice spot!