Malawi – The Big Smoke in the South

April 2-5

Hello everyone!

I live in Lilongwe, the capital of and biggest city in Malawi. Though it has been capital since 1975, it has only recently become the most populated city. For a long period of this country’s existence, that honour was bestowed upon the main city in the southern region of the country: Blantyre.

Downtown Blantyre, as seen from the new Amaryllis Hotel

21 Grill - a tradition for each Blantyre visit

  

I’ve actually been to Blantyre many times but have never felt the urge to write about it. Partly it’s because there isn’t too much to actually do in the city. It is Malawi’s financial centre and not a place you would be desperate to visit if you came to the country.

Many banks have their offices in Blantyre

One visit was to support Hannah in the Malawi Open, where she got to the semi-finals

  

More than that, however, is the fact that I’ve generally been to Blantyre with school. There are three large international schools here (ours is really the only one in Lilongwe), meaning that most sports competitions will take place in Malawi’s second city. Spending almost all time looking after children who are 10 or 11 years old, and attempting to get them to play rugby, leaves little time to explore and enjoy the surroundings.

The two cities are connected by the M1, Malawi's main motorway - one lane in each direction...

Mandala House is Blantyre's oldest building

  

Being Malawi’s financial capital and hosting a surprisingly large expat community has resulted in Blantyre having many international amenities. There are several good restaurants, with the crème being 21 Grill. Though the food was a bit disappointing on my most recent visit, it is generally the best place to get a steak in Malawi. It is a fancy place – they even have a dress code…

My favourite is the Jack Daniels steak, which is lit on fire
at your table before being served. Sucker for pyrotechnics...

The interior of 21 Grill contains a tree and
many books from Reader's Digest

  

21 Grill is in the complex of Ryalls, an extortionately-priced hotel. It is a nice setting but not worth the cost of a room.

The gardens of Ryalls

The hotel has a swimming pool - this is me celebrating
finishing part 1 of a training course next to it

  

Blantyre’s setting is quite pleasant, sitting between a triangle of hills. It is easy to see why missionaries set up a base here in 1876.

Internet image of Blantyre

One of the hills is called Soche - rumour has it that it was renamed
after an upmarket hotel, from which you could see the hill...

  

There are some differences between Blantyre and Lilongwe. Blantyre’s outer regions seems greener, a reflection of the landscape and how the rain falls during the rainy season. Blantyre also feels more like a city – there is an obvious centre, the financial district, which is compact and has a complex one-way system.

View from above of the area just north of Blantyre

Blantyre also has had a dual carriageway for a
while - Lilongwe has just had one built!

  

There are also many similarities which you won’t see elsewhere in Malawi. The international supermarkets and fast food chains, such as Food Lovers and KFC. The airports which get more than one plane a day. The intoxicating traffic. Both have a President’s Palace – I didn’t realise Blantyre had one until accidentally running up to it on my most recent visit. The security guards didn’t seem convinced by my naivety, warning me to, “Never do this again. Never.”

Chichiri Mall used to be the largest in Malawi

Blantyre's runway has many cracks in it - they're
actually closing it in May for 2 months

  

As more investment and infrastructure is poured into the capital, I wonder what will happen to Blantyre in the future. At the moment Lilongwe seems to be ‘first among equals’, though there is still lots of construction in the second city. The hotel I was at for a training course, the Amaryllis, is an example of that.

There are quite a few slums visible on the way out of Blantyre

The food at the new Amaryllis Hotel was sensational

  

Blantyre is a useful location for someone travelling around Malawi. It is a good place to stock up on supplies, enjoy a different cuisine if you are fed up of nsima, and a pleasant and busy enough city to spend a day in before heading to more exciting or exotic destination, whether that is north to Lake Malawi, south to the Satemwa Tea Estates or Majete National Park, or east to Mount Mulanje.

Blantyre Sports Club has an interesting 9 hole golf course

Love you all

Matt