February
28-March 4
Hello
everyone!
Due
to the lateness of Easter this year, our school used one of Malawi’s national
holidays as the basis for a long weekend. Once again, this offered us the
chance to escape the confines of the capital. This time we headed north, to two
very different locations.
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| South Viphya Forest Reserve |
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| Nkhata Bay |
Firstly
we drove just under 4 hours north to the South Viphya Forest Reserve, a
relatively vast area of local and exotic trees. Within the protected area is a
village called Luwawa.
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| The Lodge at Luwawa is difficult to get to without your own car |
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| Luwawa Dam |
I
have been here twice before but this was a very different experience. This time
I was visiting in the lush rainy season, whereas my previous trips were in the
relatively arid month of August. Oh, and this time I don’t have to look after a
class of 9-year-olds…
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| Flowers like these are rarely seen in August |
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| A Year 5 trip in September 2016 |
Luwawa
is a lovely place with a different climate and atmosphere to Lilongwe. It is
situated about 1700 metres above sea level, meaning it is above the malaria
zone. It gets pretty chilly at night and dew is prominent in the morning.
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| One of the walking trails involved balancing over slippery logs |
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| Pine trees dominate many areas of the forest |
The
weather had transformed the forest and its hills into a scene reminiscent of
the British countryside. Rolling green speckled with tall, thin trees was a
sight to behold, often in 360’. It was a lovely backdrop for running.
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| Mini enjoying a stroll through the forest |
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| The trees looked beautiful in the evening light |
Less
lovely was running through those trees when they became clumped and the
branches hung low over the earth footpath. In one such instance, I made the
mistake of looking at my feet rather than what was directly in front of me. The
result? Getting covered by a sticky, icky spider web. Luckily I missed the
eight-legged freak, who was quite big…
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| This was the path I was following. The web was strewn across it. |
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It didn't come out well on the GoPro but
there's a spider in there somewhere! |
Other
critters were making themselves seen as well, such as these caterpillars.
Larger animals do exist, though they are few in number and none of them are
remotely dangerous.
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| The Very Hungry Caterpillar |
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| Local villagers use the wood for fire |
Luwawa
is tricky to get to without a car so is relatively peaceful and free of
tourists. Our next destination, on the other hand, is one of Malawi’s most
popular spots.
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Mayoka Village has huts dotted precariously on the
cliff face - this is their restaurant and relaxing area |
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| The calm waters are perfect for paddle boarding and kayaking |
Nkhata
Bay is one of the few places in the country which I would describe as having a
backpacker vibe. The drive down to it, via the city of Mzuzu, has some
spectacular views and very windy roads.
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Nkhata Bay is less than 500 metres above sea level -
it's a long way down from Luwawa |
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| Mini enjoyed the ride... |
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| ...when she wasn't dozing! |
The
reason we have a long weekend is because of an event that happened in Nkhata
Bay. Martyrs’ Day commemorates the killing of about 40 people who were
protesting the arrest of many resistance leaders. Some Malawians believe that
the events on this day in 1959 accelerated the drive towards independence from
the UK.
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| Nkhata Bay is predominantly a fishing village |
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The town itself is at the bottom of the hill -
running up even a little bit of this was very hard! |
Nkhata
Bay is a lovely place to visit, free of the crocodiles which occasionally haunt
the southern shores of Lake Malawi.
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| Most of my time was spent relaxing here... |
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| ...or playing with this little one. |
These
two contrasting places show how diverse and magical Malawi is, particularly
during the green season. Though difficult for us to realistically reach and
enjoy on a regular weekend, both Luwawa and Nkhata Bay are beautiful spots
which made our long weekend very relaxing.
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| Sunset at Luwawa Dam |
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| Sunset at Nkhata Bay |
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| Walking Mini through the forest near Luwawa |
Love
you all,
Matt
