The warm heart of Africa: Malawi!

We are sorry that it took a lot of time to upload a new blog, but our internet connection the past weeks was really unreliable. We aimed to show you many pictures of Malawi and therefore we decided to wait until we had found a place with good WiFi. At the moment we are in Zanzibar, and we stay in a very nice hotel with fast internet! Martijn (Erik's brother) arrived a couple of days ago and he will join us for three weeks, but we'll write more about that in our next blog post.

We arrived the 30th of May in Blantyre (from Johannesburg) and crossed the border with Tanzania the 4th of July. Although there was some uncertainty in relation to the 'visa-question' (Do we need a visa? If so, can we get it upon arrival?), we - in the end - could obtain a tourist visa for Malawi for 30 days upon arrival at the airport (although the Embassy said we couldn't). Although we didn't plan to stay for five weeks in Malawi, we felt in love with this country and the people, and we decided to extend our visa (which was very easy) and to spend some more time in this beautiful country than originally planned.

Arriving in Malawi

Visa for Malawi ($75,-)

In Malawi the currency is the Kwacha (800 Kwacha is 1 euro), which devaluated considerably in the last couple of years. They only have 1.000 Kwacha notes, and the maximum the ATM gives is 40.000 Kwacha (about 50 euro). In Malawi, you can hardly pay with credit card, and there are only ATMs in the major cities. This resulted in long queues at ATM machines, a lot of planning ahead and quite often we felt like a millionaire when traveling around.  

Our money for one week :-)

Buying credit for our phone (data bundle and airtime)

Malawi is one of the poorest (or least-developed) countries in the world, and we felt that immediately when we entered the country. Of course the difference between South Africa and Malawi are huge, but there are also major differences between Malawi and countries like Namibia, Botswana or Zimbabwe. The national GDP in Malawi per capita is $330,- and the country depends heavily on outside aid. Compared to other countries where we travelled, we met a lot of volunteers, as well as doctors or other expats working in the medical sector. Since the 'backpackers scene' is very small, you frequently meet the same people at different places, traveling more or less the same route. We traveled for a while with two girls from South Africa (Oliva and Teffy) and met two girls from Holland a couple of times. 

The minibus: most common mode of transportation in Malawi

You think this is busy? Next stop 10 more people will join! ;-)

Not so many people traveled the country as we did, with public transportation. We must say, it was sometimes quite hard-core. The minibuses go very slow, are over-crowded and take a lot of time (they stop every 200 meters to pick up people/chickens/gas bottles/fish/food), but it was a great experience and such a nice way to meet locals. We made many friends along the way, and after five weeks we could speak quite some Chichewa.

Compared to our time in Southern Africa where we traveled with our own car, we really took the time in Malawi. If we liked it somewhere, we decided to stay a couple of days longer. That was also the advantage of not having your own vehicle: you only have your backpack to look after, you don't pay rent for a car every day and you are more flexible. Although we didn't really plan everything ahead, we really enjoy this variation in terms of traveling.

We started our trip in Blantyre, one of the bigger cities (and commercial centre) in Malawi. We stayed here for a couple of days and discovered that there are relatively a lot of Indian people in Malawi. Later we learned that they take over a lot of the businesses of locals... not good. Nevertheless, we found some very good Indian restaurants in Blantyre, where we ended up to be frequent guests in 'Bombay Palace'! ;-)

Blantyre city centre

All advertisements painted by hand

Market in Blantyre

Market

Hindu Temple

Hindu Temple

Amazing Indian food at Bombay Palace in Blantyre

We also used our time in Blantyre to plan and prepare for a four day/three night hike at the Mulanje Massif, also known as Mount Mulanje. Tourism in Malawi is not so well developed, so you really need to take initiative if you want to go somewhere. In the hostel where we stayed we found a map of the Mulanje Massif, including an indication of all the huts, and we started to develop our ideas about the hike we wanted to make. We found out that we could drink the water from the mountain, but we needed to buy all our food in Blantyre, since there were no proper supermarkets in Mulanje. We were very happy when we found a nice bakery and a big supermarket in Blantyre! ;-)

Shopping for our four day hike

On our way to the supermarket

This will be enough for the next five days!

We took the minivan from Blantyre to Limbe, and from Limbe to Mulanje. It was in total about 65 kilometers, but it took us 4 hours... Welcome in Malawi. :-) Nevertheless, the road was very beautiful, we saw many tea plantations and typical African villages on the way. After two hours we saw already Mount Mulanje from a distance. Wow, this was quite an impressive mountain! We checked-in to our hotel and then walked to the village, where we enjoyed a good pizza (we would need the energy the next days!) and visited the Information Center. Here we made our plans for our hike more concrete, with the invaluable help of our guide. We decided to go up the plateau via the Boma path (very steep!) the first day to the Lichenya hut. The second day we would walk from Lichenya via Chombe to the Chisepo hut. The third day we would climb the highest peak (Sapitwa 3002 meter) and down back to the same hut and the last day we would walk all the way down via Chambe and the Chapaluka path to Likhubula Forestry Office. We could rent two sleeping bags and some cooking gear from the Information Center. We also decided to take a porter for one day, to carry our backpack up the plateau. The remaining three days we could carry our bag ourselves. We were very excited!

Mulanje Massif

Ready to go, waiting for our guide at 6.30am

Nice birds on the way up

Yes, the Boma path was very steep

Arrived at our first hut: Lichenya!

Bucket shower, but with warm water!

Cooking in the hut

Sleeping in the hut

Good morning!

Day 2: on our way to Chisepo

So beautiful

Time for lunch!

The weather in the mountain changes quickly

Day 3: on our way to the summit

Quite steep...

But beautiful views

Also quite technical in the end

Reached the summit!!!

Enjoying the view

The final part was a lot of climbing on rocks, as you can see :-p 

Going down

Without a guide it would not be possible to find your way

Nice views

Back in the hut: tea time!

Reading a book and enjoying the view

In the night it was really cold

Day 4: going all the way down

Nice view on the Chombe Peak

Short break

Filling our water bottle

Signing out

Taking the bicycle taxi back to Mulanje village

We made it!! Enjoying a pizza 

This hike in the Mulanje Massif was really one of the most beautiful hikes we have ever made. The nature was really beautiful, it was such a peaceful place. We were very lucky with the weather as well. After this hiking adventure in the southern part of Malawi, we went back to Blantyre for a couple of days. The 9th of June we took the AXA bus to Zomba, the previous capital of Malawi. We decided not to take a minibus, because we thought it would be faster to take a direct bus. Unfortunately, the touring car (of the most reliable company in Malawi) had some engine problems after 15 kilometers. We had to wait for an hour on the side of the road for the mechanic to arrive. We arrived in Zomba at 9pm, and the kitchen was already closed in the hostel where we stayed - and we only had a beer for dinner. In Zomba we stayed at Packachere, a very nice hostel managed by Kiran, a Dutch guy. In the backyard of the hostel there was a golf course, so the next day Erik played golf with a local while I worked a couple of hours in the golf cafe.

Working a couple of hours while Erik is playing golf

Erik with his caddy and greenkeeper

First hole

On their way to the 'green'

The 'green' ;-) 

During the night we learned how to play 'bao', a typical Malawian/Eastern African game that people play everywhere you go. We also went out for dinner and watched the opening of the European Championship football. Afterwards, we went to a concert of the famous band 'Black Missionairies'. Such a wonderful night, we really enjoyed ourselves in Zomba!

Learning how to play 'bao'

Watching the opening ceremony 

Concert of the Black Missionairies

The next day we made a day hike to the Zomba plateau with our guide Isaac. He worked for Packachere and was such a nice guy, we really had a lot of fun. He told us a lot about the plateau, but also about politics and family life in Malawi. I walked all day on my flipflops (24 km!), since I still had some blisters on my foot from the hike in Mt Mulanje.

Women carrying firewood down the plateau

Nice views

The peak is at 2087m

Easy hiking paths (flipflop proof) ;-)

Beautiful!

Nice views

Giant ants

Ant highway

Williams Falls

The next day Erik ran up the Zomba plateau together with Kiran and a volunteer from the US. Zomba is also well known because of all the fruits and vegetables that grow in this area. Every morning we enjoyed a pancake and fresh fruit, yammie! After a couple of days in Zomba, we traveled via Liwonde and Mangochi to Monkey Bay. In total the distance to be traveled was 180 km, but it took us a about seven hours. We initially took a direct minivan to Monkey Bay, but the left front wheel of this minivan broke and we had to switch to another minivan. The last 40 km we had to travel in a 4x4 pickup with at least 30 people on/in it (excluding bags, fish, charcoal, etc). We were happy when we finally arrived at our hotel in Monkey Bay around 9pm. Luckily the kitchen was open this time, and the chef made us delicious chicken with chips! 

Breakfast in Packachere

Nice place!

Ok, one more game before we go

In the minivan

Quite busy? No, 10 more people will fit in, for sure!

Next morning we slept in and had our breakfast, including a nice cup of coffee. We decided to go to Cape Maclear and arranged a taxi that picked us up around lunch time. We deserved this after all the minivans. ;-) In Cape Maclear we stayed at Malambe, a nice backpackers where we had our own little hut on the beach. The bar had a nice atmosphere and although there was no hot water in the shower and everything was pretty basic, we really liked it here. 

Breakfast time!

Malambe backpackers in Cape Maclear

Our little hut on the beach!

What we liked about Cape Maclear is that the village is so integrated within the 'tourism life'. People continue their normal life, they wash themselves (and their clothes) in the lake, they go fishing, relax, repair their fishing nets, repair their boats, etc. Besides that, there are some nice and quiet places where you can relax and enjoy a good cup of coffee and great food. I even found a pedicure in one of the hotels. After two months of hiking, walking on flipflops and camping, my feet didn't look very nice. When I went to her saloon, she looked at me when I sat down, and said: "I am sure your husband doesn't love you!" I started laughing, because what did she mean? She said: "With these feet, you scratch him during the night!" We couldn't stop laughing and had a very good time. :-) When she was done, I thanked her and left her place with a big smile on my face. 

Cape Maclear

Small school next to the lake

Erik playing 'bao' with the locals

Sardines drying in the sun

Beautiful sunset over Lake Malawi

Cape Maclear village

Village

The warm heart of Africa

Women doing their laundry

Banapaya: best fish in Cape Maclear!

Nice backpackers

Meeting our Dutch friends again

Fishing boat used for catching sardines during the night

How we spend most of the day

Or like this :-)

Beautiful sunset again

After a couple of days relaxing in Cape Maclear, we took the motorbike back to Monkey Bay, where we stayed in the same lodge. In the afternoon we made a short sunset cruise with the other backpackers.

Taking the motorbike back to Monkey Bay

Sunset cruise in Monkey Bay

Nice sunset!

The next morning we woke up early to take the Chilembwe from Monkey Bay to Likoma Island. We decided to take this boat for a long distance, in order to prevent traveling with minibuses. This meant that we needed to travel about 24 hours on this boat. The Chilembwe is build by a Dutch company, Damen Shipyards and was a comfortable way to travel.

Buying a ticket for the Chilembwe

Boarding time!

Dutch boat in Lake Malawi

The boat was brand new

We made a couple of stops along the way. After a few hours we stopped at Chipoka, a very tiny village where we went to the local market to buy some food. On the boat, they only sold soft drinks and beers, but no food. We managed to buy bread and banana's, so we survived! ;-)

Buying some food for the boat ride

Nice market

Bread and banana's

Sun is setting, so beautiful

Cheers!

Our boat!

A couple of hours earlier than expected we arrived at Likoma Island. We stayed in Mango Drift, one of the nicest and most relaxed places where we have stayed in Malawi. The restaurant/bar was really nicely decorated, and also the huts were we slept were beautiful. We arrived on a Saturday, and the next boat at the island arrived on Wednesday, so we were 'forced' to stay on this island for four nights! ;-) We really had a good time here, together with two South African girls we met in Monkey Bay, Olivia and Teffy. 

Mango Drift, such a lovely place

Yes, playing 'bao' again!

Since the island was quite small, we mostly were reading our books during the day, relaxed, took a SUP to paddle around or went for a swim. One other thing Erik did, was taking up the dugout canoe challenge. These canoes are still used by fishermen to catch their fish, but this one was slightly modified. The challenge was to peddle the canoe to a buoy and back to the shore. Below you'll find the rules:

Rules dugout canoe challenge

Keeping his balance...

...not always with success...

...but he managed!

Free drink: gin-tonic!

SUBing during sunset

The 20th of June was Erik's birthday. As a surprise, I arranged a romantic breakfast on the shore of Lake Malawi. After our breakfast, we made a hike and explored the island.

Happy birthday!

Hiking Likoma Island

View over Mozambique

Just love the baobabs

Village at Likoma Island

Having a short break

Extending our visa

Check: 30 days extended

St. Peter's Cathedral at Likoma Island

Build by the Scottish missionaries

Having lunch (fish, rice and beans)

Fishing nets

Boat to the mainland

Sunset at Mango Drift

On Wednesday the 22nd of June we took the 'taxi' (in the back of a pick-up) to the harbor and waited for the boat to leave to Nhakata Bay. We were told that it would leave around 7am, but of course we only left Likoma Island around 9.30am. Our boat was first loaded with fish, dogs, motorbikes, goats, chickens, furniture, bags of vegetables and of course many people, before we could leave the island. Luckily, we had found a good spot in the front of the boat and enjoyed the sun while reading a book.

Taking a 'taxi' with our South African friends

Boat to Nhakata Bay

The boat was full with stuff

More people and luggage

One of our stops at another island

Fishing village

Arriving in Nhakata Bay

When we arrived in Nhakata Bay, we were invited by an Malawian lady to have dinner at her house. Of course we couldn't say 'no' to this generous offer, and together with Teffy and Victoria we enjoyed a delicious meal (fish from the barbecue) at her place. We stayed in the Butterfly Space, a lovely backpackers where a lot of volunteers stayed as well. 

Having dinner with a Malawian family

Toilet

Bar

The Gym

Erik's workout

Erik playing 'bao' with the barmen

Enjoy reading my book

Nhakata Bay market

Market

Main street Nhakata Bay

Want some fish from Lake Malawi?

PTT Post

The next destination after Nhakata Bay was Livingstonia. During our travels in Southern Africa, many people told us very enthusiastically about the Mushroom farm, so we decided to check this place out. We were not disappointed at all. We made a reservation for four days, but in the end we stayed for seven! Never during our travel we stayed somewhere so long, but this place had something magical. We really liked it: the atmosphere, the people, the environment, the staff, everything was just perfect.

Road to Livingstonia

Almost at the Mushroom Farm

Bar at the Mushroom Farm

Our safari tent

Such a nice place, the decoration was awesome

View from our safari tent

Even the compost toilet was beautiful

How to use the compost toilet

Kitchen in the Mushroom Farm

The first morning we woke up around 5.30am, because some people told us that the sunrise was very beautiful from the Mushroom Farm. And indeed... wow!! We watched the sunrise, from our bed in our safari tent, overlooking Lake Malawi with the mountains of Mozambique at the background. It was just magical! The food in the Mushroom Farm was delicious as well. 

Sunrise: not bad to wake up like this, right?

Breakfast

The first day at the Musroom Farm we didn't do much, just relaxed, enjoyed their good coffee and food, and we were reading our book. The second day we walked with our friends from South Africa, Colombia and Kenya to the village Livingstonia (another town founded by the Scottish missionaries). We had a coffee in the craft coffee shop, we visited the church, the university and the Manchewe waterfall.

On our way to Livingstonia

Enjoying a local coffee

Group picture!

Livingstonia museum

Livingstonia Mission Church

Going up the clock tower

Nice church

Typical house in this area

With Tiffy and Olivia!

Coffee plantation (almost harvesting season)

Walking down to the waterfall

Nice hiking path :-p

Manchewe waterfall

Nice light

Quite impressive!

Having a drink in Lukwe

In the Mushroom Farm, there was also a nice vegetable garden. We love these kind of places and became good friends with the gardener. We showed us around in the garden and learned us a lot about the local fruits and veggies.

Kassie

The seeds

Tomato

Relaxing with a view

During our time in Livingstonia, we also made a hike to the Chombe plateau with our guide Mc Donald. It was about 16 km and the views from the plateau were breathtaking. 

The people in Malawi are so friendly

Cassave

Starting the climb up the plateau

View over Nyika National Park

On top of the plateau

Enjoying the view over Lake Malawi

Such a beautiful day

Enjoying the view

Traditional house

Another sunrise (part 1)

So beautiful (part 2)

Part 3

The owners of the Mushroom farm really liked good coffee. They even roasted their own coffee beans! We were happy that we could be part of this and had our own coffee tasting experience. :-)

Grinding coffee beans

Rok espresso maker

Women's group of the Mushroom Farm

The final days in the Mushroom Farm we decided to make an overnight hike to Nyika National Park. You are only allowed to go inside the national park with a ranger (who has a gun), so we made an appointment with Henri, the ranger, and discussed our plans. We decided to climb one of the peaks in the park, camp there for one night and hike back to Livingstonia via a different path. We could borrow a tent from Henri and two mattresses from the Mushroom Farm. It was a beautiful hike in grassland, with nice views over Lake Malawi on the one side and the National Park on the other.

Buying some food at the market in Livingstonia

Our ranger buying some food as well

On our way to the summit of one of the peaks

Henri and Erik

Children following us during our hike

Coffee plantation

Graslands

But it was really beautiful

Short break

Almost at the summit

Almost there!

Henri was such a nice guy

Enjoying the view over Nyika National Park

On our way to our 'camp'

Preparing our tent

Taking a 'shower'

Making a fire

We cooked our dinner on the fire, and went to bed early. The next morning, when we were having our breakfast, two poachers came close to our camp. They were taking the same path that we took, and they saw our camp just in time. Our ranger Henri ran after them and used his gun twice, but they ran away in the forest. One day earlier we also came across two guys who illegally chopped wood in the national park. Henri wanted to arrest them, but they dropped the wood and also ran away. This time Henri recognized the guys and he told us that he will go to their houses when we were back in Livingstonia. It was actually crazy to realize that the ranger had such a big area to cover just by himself, that illegal poaching and wood chopping in the national park could not be prevented. Well, after our breakfast we packed our stuff and started day 2 of our hike. It was quite foggy and the views were - unfortunately - not so good. However, after a couple of hours the sky was clear again and the final part of the hike back to Livingstonia was quite tough. 

Early morning hike

Our ranger Henri

Almost back in Livingstonia

Village life in Malawi

Typical photo for Malawi

Leaving the National Park behind

After one week at the Musroom farm we decided to go to Karonga, our last stop in Malawi before we would cross the border with Tanzania. We met a very nice Dutch family the day before we left, and they were so kind to give us a ride. In Karonga, we had lunch in our hotel and explored the town. We visited the museum and went to a concert as well. Erik even went to the barber shop and the next day we took a shared taxi to the border.

A lot of bicycles in Karonga

Fried sweet patato

Karonga museum

Earliest human ancestors

Interesting museum

Concert in Karonga

The video below gives a better idea of the atmosphere (African beat and dance):

Barber shop

Changing our last Kwacha's to Shillings

Crossing the border to Tanzania

All in all, if we think back about our five weeks in Malawi, we get a big smile on our face. The friendly people, the amazing backpackers places where we stayed and the beautiful hikes that we made, made it an unforgettable experience.

Big hugs and kisses,

Erik & Annemarie