Disclaimer: Right!!! Thanks to a computer cock up I am writing this a second time!! Due to the rage I am currently experiencing this may not be as detailed or as enjoyable as the 1st attempt was (and i can assure you it was brilliantly written, well structured, funny throughout whilst being informative at the same time). This one is likely to be shorter and spattered with rage!!
The following takes place from the 20th November to the 25th November 2010(inclusive). It incorporates 2 long driving days to get from Tanzania to our first campsite at the north of Lake Malawi. Then 3 days midway down Lake Malawi and a final day at the south of Lake Malawi.
The 20th started by leaving camp in Dar Es Salaam at 05:15 for a 12ish hour drive day to our overnight camp site in Tanzania - Ringa farmhouse. Now let me just clarify what leaving at 05:15 entails. It means waking up, washing - in what ever way you see fit, but often a wet wipe is sufficient. Then taking your tent down, eating breakfast and packing the truck!! No rolling out of bed at 5:05!!! We then had a 12 hour drive day to look forward to!! At this point let me explain abit more about truck life. Driving days could vary from a few hours to 12 hours in the back of a 24 seater truck which for our trip usually hosted 23 bottoms. They would often involve very warm (non-airconditioned) and very bumpy roads - it was not unusual to get airtime from your seat particularly at the back of the truck. Now this may not sound hugely appealing but I actually enjoyed most of the truck drives and found they often passed quite quickly. This was mostly due to the fat that we had a great group of people on the truck to help pass the time. Time was mainly passed by playing card games (bumpiness allowed), mind games, story telling, reading, listening to the invaluable ipod and trying to sleep whilst being shaken about. We would stop for food at lunch times (mostly) and occasionally stop to replenish rations. Toilet stops would often be bush-pees, Guys to the left and ladies to the right of the truck!! Life off the truck would involve setting up and taking down tents, taking part in truck chores such as cooking, cleaning, washing etc. The rest of the time spent chilling at camp with a beer (or beverage of choice). I really enjoyed the truck life - probably because of the people i was with. It is also amazing how good the food was that we got from the truck (thanks to Mark and Lindi for that).
Anyway back to the trip. As i said before we arrived at the Ringa farmhouse campsite after 12hours. Some people upgraded to huts but Sophie and I decided to stick with ours tent for the night. The campsite was beautiful and a few of us went for a lovely walk to see yet another great sunset before being treated to a night off from cooking and having a brilliant meal cooked for use as we sat in a little hut with a beer sharing stories and warning people about the dangers of drop bears and honey badgers!!
The next day was our 2nd consecutive mammoth drive day to our first camp site on the edge of Lake Malawi. The drive included an uncomplicated border crossing into Malawi. Chilled out on our beach camp for the evening and looked around a local market (Malawi is the place for wooden products). Once again if it wasn't for a tight budget and long trip i would now own a well crafted chess board but i did not fancy lugging that around or paying to send it home.
On the 22nd we then had a short drive to Kande beach which would be home for 3 nights. Lake Malawi is a truly spectacular back drop and a wonderful place to camp!! There was evena small island you could swim to. First night we chilled out in the bar and on the beach before camping the night through a truly epic thunder and ligthing storms - never heard thunder so loud!!
Tuesday 23rd was one of my most enjoyable days on tour. Sophie got up to swim to the island with Jason, Amy and Anna. So as i was awake anyway i went for a run along the beach with Andrew and Cara. Very enjoyable but very hot. Also running on sand and on a slope is not easy but felt good for it. The friendly campsite dog (every campsite had at least one friendly dog) joined us for the last part of the run!! We all then went to a local day care centre which serve sthe local children who don't alwasy get a meal a day and provides a great atmosphere for them to play and learn english through singing. It was called 'Mphisto' and was set up by an Aussie lady who loved the area. We provided some baby formula to help them as they are getting alot of orphaned babies in. They have set up as much as they can afford to help grow there own food. The staff there were truly lovely happy people (happy shiny people if you will). The children were wonderful. Singing and dancing with pure joy and smiles on all their faces!! After a talk from the staff we went to meet the children and join in the songs and games. They all wanted to be picked up or to hold hands for the songs and games and as stated before were so happy and smiley. Wesang numerous songs including 'ride ride ride the pony' which would plague our heads for the rest of the trip. We played a variety of the game 'british bulldog' were we had to run from the 'hyena's' and not get caught or we would ourselves become hyena's. Most of the children pick a 'mzunga' (white person) to run with. I carried mine as she wanted to be pick up. After a few runs a near disaster!!! I was running, whilst carrying the child, on sand in flip flops and tried to avoid being caught when i slipped and feel forwards. This all happenend in matrix style super slowly motion as i saw the floor coming with the child in between me and the floor!! To prevent squashing a child i managed to slow motion twist (matrix style) and fall onto my back. Needless to say i held the childs hand for future runs after having a image of me landing on top of the child!! This was such a positive place doing some excellent work that Sophie suggested fund raising for it. I then decided that i would do the 2011 great North run to raise money for this centre. This was such a truly memorable and humbling experience that I could have gone back again and again.
We then went bcak to camp. We found out that we would be holding a fancy dress 'truck wedding' on the beach that night complete with homemade punch, for Andrew and Frances. We were all given roles to paly. Sophie and I were bridesmaid and groomsman along with Andrew and Cara. All we could use for costumes were 2 black bin liners. After some discussion between groomsmen, bestman and Groom we decide to go tribal - topless with 2 flaps covering our dignity (over underwear) and numerous leaves and straps on arms and legs (photo's will not be following). Costumes vaguely ready i then went of to my afternoon activity ; Horse riding!! This was great fun but i was a little apprehensive having never ridden a horse and proving myself to be quite accident prone in Africa. Luckily there was a helmet big enough to fit my head. I was originally assigned a horse called Glen who apparently was a little feisty and had a nasty kicking habit (that he couldn't kick - ba da boom!!) Anyway glen and i didn't hit it off as he looked to take advantage of a novice rider so i was then re-assigned to a horse called 'Happy'. Far more appropriate. Happy and i got on very well although he did like to eat and would stop to nibble frequently. He also decided to try and kick the guide twice (must be a history between them) but luckily i managed to hold on and it was actually quite fun. The ride was really cool throught the locals villages and forested area. We then got bak to camp where we would ride the horses into the lake for a swim!! Now i have mentioned that i'm not hugely fond of water but gave it a go anyway (the horse would hopefully be a good swimmer). Unfortunately for me this bit would be bareback!!!!! Now when we took Happy's saddle off it turned out he had a very prominent bony spine. Thus began a very uncomfortable 20-30 minutes. It was a great experince taking the horse into the river tho - Happy liked tthe water and went really far in but rather unsettlingly made a really bizarre noise - kinda like a creaky submarine (i know this from my many experiences with submarines!!). Anyway he plaed in the water and we got out - whilst doing tis a tetsi fly bit me and it bled!! Hopefully I won't get sleeping sickness - Sophie was warned to keep an eye out if i became unusaully sleepy!! I said goodbye to Happy and walked of like a cowboy - not because I just rode a horse but because i was in a fair bit of pain!!
Back in camp the guys adorned our costumes!! Essentially i was wearing bright striped boxers with flip flops and bits of black bag attached to me!! The gorls all manged to put together fairly decent looking outfits!! We had the 'ceremony' at he bar and went to camp to begin the punch and eat, thus beginning a very mesy night. The punch was strong but tasty and would take many a victim by the nights end. The night was very enjoyable with everyone getting at least a little tipsy. Most far more than tipsy. Lots more drinking at the bar once the punch was over and fun times were had by all. I managed to survive the night and be in the group that was still standing by the early hours of the moring : Myself, Vicky, Rodney, Anna and Daniel!! Sophie lost her camera twice (the second time 30 seconds after she had been given it back). Amy woke up with a large wound on her knee - and no memory of how she got it. Jason woke up outside the bar. I woke up still in costume but in my tent!! A success I feel!! All in all a great day!
Last day on Kande beach was very much a chill out/recovery day on the beach and in hammocks! Our last day we drove to Senga bay (south of lake Malawi but still on lake Malawi. Another lovely campsite complete with collection of Baboons and a beautiful beach. As it was a beautifully sunny and hot day it was spent chilling on the beach. This campsite however would turnout to be my most accident prone. Accident 1: in the back of the truck i dropped someting from my locker - bent down to pick it up and as i got up smacked my back on an open locker door only to recoil forward and smack my eye into a broom handle which floored me. Amy and Sophie very sympathetically laughed there heads off!! Accident 2: at the bar (no not drunk dad!!) i gave myself an almighty smack on the head on a wooden beam - hurt like hell, felt like i would almost pass out and gave me a good old bump. Still nothing chilling out on the beach couldn't help recover me from. Had an almighty infestation of ants in our tent - but don't worry we gassed those suckers!!
Malawi (what we saw) was beautiful. Lake Malawi truly spectacular and the local care centre we visited truly memorable. After a great time here we headed to Zambia!!
