| Highlights of Malawi and Western Tanzania (April / May 2007) | ||||||||||||
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Malawi is one of the world's poorest countries. Still, visitors are assured great hospitality in "The Warm Heart Of Africa".
Tracing the coast of Lake Malawi we teach computer skills on the shore of the great lake before heading north through the harsh bush of western Tanzania. |
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Lake Malawi
We paddled across the massive lake towards the isolated north-western coast. Stopping in at picturesque fishing villages, we were greeted like visiting royalty. Young men, in particular, seemed to have the mistaken belief that getting hold of our address would be the ticket a life of riches in the west. |
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Abort!
At first we tried to use traditional wooden dugout canoes ourselves. The locals made it look easy, but we could barely haul ourselves aboard before capsizing! |
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A Forgotten Coast
We drifted up the lush green coast of the lake, with perfect beaches on our left and blue waves stretching to the horizon. It created the illusion of being on the edge of a great ocean, though we were bang in the centre of the African continent. |
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Kiddy Kung-Fu
Somehow ALL kids in central Africa seem to respond to the sight of a camera... With an irrepressible need to go kung-fu crazy! |
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Flying Fish Eagles
A dark shape cuts across the sun, then hovers over the lakeshore. Spotting an unwary fish near the surface of the water, the eagle dives, breaking the water surface with precision timing, before flying off with lunch flapping helplessly in its lethal talons. |
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Teach The Teacher
In Nkhata Bay we started a programme to train school teachers in computer skills, to then be passed onto their students. We had to adapt to local culture with teachers commonly arriving from an hour to a few days late for appointments! |
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Now What?
Heading north, we dodged corrupt officials and crossed the border into south-western Tanzania a remote area with no decent roads. Wanting to reach Rwanda, the only option was a grueling 5 day marathon of draining bus journeys across red-dust bush roads. Our buses spent more time broken-down than running. Stranded in the baking heat with no shade for relief, we had little hope of reaching the destination before dark. |
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Spam?
Marooned by our second flat of the day (only one spare tire, of course...), we scouted for lunch. These ladies had a wonderful selection: we could have anything we wanted, just as long as it was a sweet potato. No chance of a nice, refreshing salad, or a cool drink then...? |
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Msellem Meets Marooned Mzungus In Mpanda
In Mpanda we hit the end of the line; no cars, trains, vans, trucks or bikes could travel further north. The only road was hopelessly impassable and recent bandit attacks made it unsafe in any case. At a loss, we were swept up by Msellem, a local muslim community leader. Over lunch with his family we hatched a cunning plan which - albeit involving a quite ridiculous train-bus-bus detour - would eventually land us at the Rwandan border a few days later. In return, he was delighted to be able to drive around town, showing off his captive Mzungus (white people) to all his friends! |
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The Train To Tabora
This ancient train line was built (and apparently last maintained) by the Germans 100 years ago. We creaked across the empty Tanzanian bush, periodically stopping for hours on end in the middle of nowhere. Here refugees from the Burundi and Rwanda civil wars camp in their thousands, surviving by hawking goods to the passing trains. |
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Lake Victoria Vista
Woozy from an unsatisfactory sleep on the uneven train tracks, we bused onwards to Mwanza, a port town on the shore of great Lake Victoria. Artistic boulder formations line the lake leading out to the distant Ugandan shore. |
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Rwandan Roads Rule!
After flying up and down on the geriatric suspension of one final Tanzanian bus, we finally reached the rapids that divide Tanzania from Rwanda. Strolling across the border we nearly cried in relief to find clean, smooth, paved asphalt roads stretching out across lush green hills into the distance... |
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