Malawi fun

After Senga Bay we head up the Lake to Kande Beach, home of many legendary overlander parties! We have two nights here so the whole group decides to upgrade - some into dorms, and others into beachside chalets. The main reason for this is to avoid putting up tents. However this strategy is flawed as the tents are still wet from the immense storm the day before so have to be put up and aired anyway!

We head out for a dinner in the village, hosted by 'Mr Smooth', a local villager who has changed his name so its more memorable. He is not the only own - we also meet Mr Potatohead, Mel Gibson, Spiderman and Vin Diesel. During our meal we sit on raffia mats outside, and eat traditional Malawian fare - pap, spinach, rice, eggs and soup. After the meal the village children come and sing to the group and demonstrate the very athletic Malawi dancing - their number starts off small - 2 or 3 kinds, and gradually as the others lose their shyness, the number increases to about 20. All the pax are then invited/ dragged up by the kids to show off their dancing skills, with varying degrees of success.

The next morning we head over to the local daycare centre, which has been set up by an Australian lady called Robyn Casey. It is part of a network of ten daycare centres in the area, and provides much needed assistance to the local community. More info can be found here: http://www.mphatso.org/ Unfortunately it is a public holiday so the children are at home, so after a brief visit and explanation of what the porject is aiming to achieve, the pax go for a walk round the village where is quickly becomes apparent that the definition of 'not far now' must be viewed (very) flexibly.

Today is the day that some pax have been waiting for - and we have arranged for a goat to be cooked on a spit. I go back to supervise the goat's demise, and then, less dramatically to make bread, prepare veggies and whip up white chocolate and passionfruit mousse for dessert. We are also hosting another Acacia group (southbound) for lunch as they are temporarily without a truck while it undergoes some 'maintenance' nearby.

Shortly after we wave them off, and in the evening the goat lives up to expectations and everyone is completely stuffed!

Our last campsite is in a village called Chitumba, and here is where the serious trading takes place. Malawi is famed for its woodwork, and the craftsmen/ sellers are happy to trade for literally...anything! Hats, tissues, socks, boxers, cameras, and even teabags are handed over in return for souvenirs.

We spend some time learning the traditional local game - the Bao counting game, which some (Bree) prove better at than others (Michael!). This campsite has also got some resident wildlife - two baby table owls, which enjoy terrorising guests by flying/ swooping round the bar and a baby blue duiker, which was destined to become a local meal until the campsite owner saw it.