Tanzania 1st episode

Tuesday 17th April

After looking around Livingstonia we descended the hairpin bend road and then proceeded up the road back towards Karonga. Thanks for the email, Jean and the advice but we didn’t go down into Malawi very far. After stocking up at Karonga and getting tyre punctures repaired, we headed further N up to Songwa river and the border into Tanzania. The border crossing was fairly quick and painless and we were through by 4pm but that was of course 5pm in Tanzania as they are 1 hour ahead. The change in the country side was immediately evident and quite dramatic. There was of course much more land as Malawi only has a little land alongside the lake, the soil was a different colour and looked very fertile. The agriculture looked so much more organized and in fact there were fields upon fields of tea on our right hand side and banana plantations galore on our left hand side. We traveled for about an hour and then because of the late hour we pulled off to a mission station where we camped for the night for R21 a couple – so that was a real bargain. Last night, however, did challenge us all as it poured with rain and even the ground where we were camped was water logged! This trip is not always a piece of cake.

Our costs in Malawi were
Border processing fee R63
Internet Café R30
Petrol R1 675
Camping fees R328
Groceries R191
Drinks R306
Sight seeing R99
Gifts R70
Tyre puncture R184

Wednesday 18th April

We left at 7am which was really 6 am on our Malawi time scale so we did really well. We headed straight up for Mbeya where once again it was the normal routine of atm’s, petrol, internet cafes etc. Then we headed E for Makambako and then S for Songea. We are not quite at Songea and are camped at a bush camp but it is a 100 times better than last nights “bog”. I have made pumpkin soup and it was quite a story liquidizing it with a whisk – life in Africa can be challenging but we manage and actually it is quite fun. Today we drove through terrain much like Ashburton with thorn trees etc and then when we headed S it was like the Natal Midlands! Just when we think we have seen the absolute extremes with bicycle transportation, we enter a new country, and we find a further extension to the simple bicycle! Today we saw guys transporting HUGE baskets of tomatoes on the back school suitcase carrier with an additional 50kg bag of tomatoes strapped over the back wheel mudguard! Unbelievable!



Thursday 19th April

We left at 8am and drove down on good tar road to Songea. At least the tar roads in Tanzania are not full of pot holes so the going is quite rapid. We reached Songea at 11.30am and stopped at a very colourful hotel with purple tables, turgoise chairs and a huge display of animals in the front porch! There we had a drink before leaving for Makambako and here our troubles started- first of all it was a dirt road and an appalling one at that – but half an hour into the trip we came across a river with a bridge and there in the river was the 12 ton truck loaded with 20 tons on top of the collapsed bridge! This had happened 5 minutes before we got there! See the photograph. Luckily there was a local Landcruiser with us and he said that he knew a way around so off he led us at breakneck speed – him, followed by us 4 and we picked up a local police van at the rear. I have no idea what the local villagers thought as we roared past as they probably never see traffic on this back road, and there we were, an armoured convoy! Anyway half an hour later we were back on the road and back to our slower pace. The road was so bad that our pace was 30kms per hour! So of course it was a bush camp again.

Friday 20th April

Today our daughter, Carmen-Jo, graduates with her B.Comm Accounts and she got her degree Suma Laude (I think that is correct?) coming in the top 3 in her whole class! So we are extremely proud of her and I am feeling quite homesick that we are unable to be with her. Babes, we are so proud of you and we are thinking of you the whole day. You are a star!
We have had a tedious day just grinding our way along this appalling road at a rate of 25kms per hour! Why are we doing this? Anyway, after a refreshing shower, at our bush camp, we all feel better and are ready to tackle tomorrow.

Saturday 21st April

We left and proceeded on our laborious road but finally reached tar road at about 1pm –Yay! Our average speed increased to 85kms per hour and soon we were on the Tanzanian coast at Lindi. This is a real dive of a town and we decided to proceed down to Mikindani where we are now. We found a lodge called 10 Degrees which is situated right on the bay and the view is breath taking. We have had ice cold drinks and a delicious dinner of calamari and prawns! We certainly deserve it after a grueling 3 days of driving.
The terrain we drove through these past few days has been more like Malawi and not as fertile looking as when we first crossed over to Tanzania. Also the people and villages that we have been through have been really poor.

Malawi

Friday 13th April

We woke up fairly early and were on our way by 7.30am. We took 3 hours to complete the 80kms from Chitipa to Karonga on Lake Malawi and there we all drew money at an Atm, filled up with petrol and went to the internet café. Thank goodness petrol is now R8.50 instead of the R12 – R15 we were paying in Zambia! Downloading to our web is still proving to be a challenge – the café had a dial up connection with a speed of 26 kbs which is half the speed of a dial up at home. So it took us 40 minutes to just read our email and dump prepared text to the blog. There was no way we could download photographs. The cell coverage here is good and in Zambia it was intermittent, however, the towers do not have Gprs/3G data connection so we can’t get our emails via our cell phone. The satellite phone is very slow and very expensive so I’m afraid our communication is sporadic. I hope we are not frustrating you all too much but we are doing the best we can.
We then drove down the M1(a tarred road!) along side the western shore of Lake Malawi. The scenery is really spectacular and the lake impressive. We went about 80kms south before finding an absolutely beautiful campsite called Sangilo Sanctuary. There was a steep descent to Sangilo but the end result was worth it – a totally private beach with big rock boulders at either end. On the pure white, non salty beach was the kitchen, restaurant and bar area. The lake has gentle bobbing waves(just for me) and is a pleasant 25 degrees(just for Dave). We couldn’t resist their evening menu of an avo starter with cream cheese followed by a choice of lake fish or lemon braised chicken with veggies and sauted potatoes for R65 a head! It was the perfect end to an idyllic day.

Saturday 14th April

We decided to spend another day at Sangilo as it was just so restful. The owners are a married couple with 2 little girls – one turns 5 tomorrow on Daryl’s birthday and the other is 18 months old. The lady is a doctor from Scotland – she came here 10 years ago on a contract and has never left! The weather was wonderful and we just lolled in the lake and played cards and read our books. Another tough day in Africa!

Sunday 15th April

We left at 7am – we are getting good – and headed west inland over the mountains that surround the lake. The view was breath taking and we got a birds eye view of the enormity of Lake Malawi. We drove SW to Rumphi and then up into Nyika National Park. The Nyika Plateau is 2400m above sea level and is quite a different landscape from that around the lake. On the way we stopped and bought local produce along the road – whatever the locals have for sale, they just leave in a bucket on the road and when you stop they appear from nowhere to serve you! I bought a pumpkin for 50c and a cabbage + 4 tomatoes for R5! The tomatoes are absolutely delicious obviously organically grown! We are now camped at Chelinda Campsite in the Nyika Plateau and it is just like being in the Drakensberg. They lit a donkey and we had wonderful, steaming hot showers and are about to sit down beside the camp fire. Tomorrow is my boy’s birthday and you are really in our thoughts Daryl – Happy birthday son we hope you have a wonderful day and that everyone spoils you rotten! Hope you enjoy your presents – we love and miss you stacks.

This plateau is about 40 kms from the lakeside as the crow flies, but is almost 2kms up and you can certainly feel the temperature difference-Sunday night it went down to 9 degrees and the afternoon had been 19 whereas the lakeside was 25 to 30 degrees!

Monday 16th April

We left at 8am and headed back down the road towards Rumphi and then the Lake. We stopped to look at a “basket bridge” which was originally built in 1904 and is still maintained and used by the locals on a regular basis. Further up the pass over to the lake we took a turning to the Wungra Falls which was 8 kms off the road. A local met us and said he would guide us on a 20 minute walk-not too steep-to the falls. So off we all set except Maureen, in our slops, no water or anything. Well, 3 hours later we got back to the cars, with only Neville having actually made it the last 40 meters down to the bottom of the falls! You needed to be a mountain goat to do this walk and in fact it was very dangerous with a sheer, slippery, muddy path vertically down. As we said to Jeffram(our guide) it was VERY steep and you needed hiking boots, rescue ropes and definitely water! Anyway, we all lived to tell the tale although I, for one, can hardly walk today on Wednesday!
After our long walk we were all exhausted and decided to just get to the lakeside and find a camp instead of going to Livingstonia, as had been our original plan.

Tuesday 17th April

We left at 8.30am and headed 10kms up the lakeside before turning inland towards Livingstonia. This was a really exciting road which was 15kms long with 20 hairpin bends, besides other twists and turns, which ascended 1 000 meters, and was definitely more challenging than the Sani Pass road. The view was breath taking and the drive was really worth it. Livingstonia is an ancient mission town which relocated up into the hills to escape malaria.

Zambia 3rd week

Thursday 5th April

We got up at 7am and left our bush camp stopping at 8am for breakfast along the way. It was after 10am before we reached the tar road leading up to Mpika. The Karg’s and us went ahead to Mpika as we had to get to the immigration office to sort out our passports as we had discovered that we had only been given 7 days in Zambia while the others all had 30 days – us 4 were illegal immigrants at this stage. Mike from Mutinondo had written a letter on our behalf to the immigration office in Mpika explaining that we had never been asked how many days we required. Apparently this is a common problem at the border posts with people only being given 7 days. Anyway, as we drove into Mpika, Dave and I got a puncture, so Neville and Lorraine carried on and we joined them at the office 20 minutes later. Well, what an ordeal! Basically, they insisted that we each pay fines of around R3 500! We just said that we did not have the money and after much talking and Lorraine even mustering up some tears!! they finally agreed to amend our passports. So 2 hours later we could start fixing our puncture, going to the bank, internet café, grocery shopping etc. All 5 vehicles finally left Mpika at around 4 o’clock and headed N towards Shiwa N’gandu and Kapishya hot springs. We arrived at Kapishya at about 5.30pm and set up camp. After dinner we all went and lolled in the totally unspoilt hot spring. It was a real treat at the end of an exhausting day.

Friday 6th April

After breakfast and Dave doing the routine maintenance on Garfield, we set off 20kms back to visit Shiwa House which overlooks Shiwa N’gandu Lake. The name Shiwa means lake and N’gandu means royal crocodiles. Shiwa House was built in 1924 by Stewart Gore-Browne with financial assistance from his Aunt Ethel in England and the house was a model of a country house in England called Brooklands. All the crockery,books etc from England were transported 70 miles on foot from Ndola to the Luapula River then a 10 day canoe trip through Bangweulu Swamps and then another 70 mile hike on foot! To see the house which is now administered by his grandson, David, is quite a sight. By 1925 Gore-Browne was employing 1 800 local people and had workshops, a school and a hospital as well as the magnificent manor house.
After our tour of Shiwa House we went back to Kapishya hot spring and had a swim in the cool river running through the camp site before relaxing. After lunch there was a massive downpour of rain and we decided that the best place to
be would be in the hot spring. So we spent the best part of the afternoon submerged in the warm water with an umbrella over our heads to protect us from the icy rain drops!

Saturday 7th April

We woke up early and went for our final soak in the spring. Then we bade Anne-Rose and George goodbye as they were heading back to South Africa. The 4 remaining vehicles set off N towards Kasama which we reached at 12 o’clock and as it sports a Shoprite, we all did a bit of shopping. We left at 1 pm on a very pot holed road towards Mpulungu and by 4.30pm we had found Nkupi Lodge and were all set up and going for a swim in Lake Tanganyika which was over the road. The camp site was quite pleasant but the location was not great so we all decided to just spend 1 night and to move around the bay in the morning, to another resort called Isanga Bay Lodge. We did, however, meet another couple from Tanzania who run a hotel at the base of Kilamanjaro, and she gave us a lot of info and invited us to camp at her hotel, so that was great.

Sunday 8th April

We left at 8.30am and headed back through Mpulungu and Mbala and then back down to the lake. Well, a 20km road down to Isanga Bay took us over 3 hours! It was unanimously voted to be the worst road yet. Anyway we arrived safe and sound only to find out that we are the first vehicles to have made it through for a few months – everyone else comes over by boat! We are going to stay here 3 or 4 nights and then we will have to tackle the road up out of here. This afternoon we have snorkeled all around the bay and it was very pleasant as we saw hundreds of small, colourful fish. Lake Tanganyika is the deepest of the Rift Valley Lakes with a maximum depth of about 1 450 metres but the water is pleasantly warm between 24 and 28 degrees Celsius. There is a beautiful sandy beach here with coconut palms and swimming is quite safe in this area.
Today Rayanne flew back to Cape Town – I am thinking of you my Babsie and hope you had a good flight and that you have a wonderful second term at UCT.

Monday & Tuesday 9th & 10th April

We just relaxed and chilled out by Lake Tanganyika – swimming, snorkeling, reading and sleeping. Of course there are also house hold chores such as laundry and cooking meals but otherwise it has been a complete relaxation. Brian and Willie have had no success with fishing so we resorted to buying some Nile Perch from the locals. We had this for dinner on Tuesday night and it was really delicious. Nile perch can reach up to 80kg but ours were not this big. It is the most devine eating fish and we hope that they are successful at catching them in Lake Victoria when we get there.
My tapestry is coming on well although it is quite hard making up my own pattern – however it is really starting to take shape.
After dinner on Tuesday night the heavens opened and we were all chased to bed prematurely.

Wednesday 11th April

It rained continuously all night and we woke up to rain so we decided to pack up and attempt the road out. By the time the rubber duck was packed and everyone had packed up camp it was 10.30am and the rain had stopped. We left, all feeling a bit apprehensive about our upward journey! However, it was not nearly as bad as expected and by 12.30 we were on the way to Kalambo Falls. These are the second highest falls in Africa and have a single drop of 221m off the edge of the plateau. Now, at the end of March they are very spectacular as they are full but the downside is that marabou storks breed in the cliffs, but that is in the dry season. So, we will definitely have to go back again another time to see the storks. After lunch, we set off back to Mbala where we visited the Moto Moto Museum which is a very comprehensive museum with lots of info about the Bemba tribe. A lot of the stuff in the museum has been collected from above the Kalambo Falls as this is a very well preserved archeological site. We stayed at the New Grasshopper Inn in Mbala, although after inspecting the rooms, we opted to sleep in our own beds so we still put up our roof top tents. We did, however, go to their restaurant for chicken and chips which was very enjoyable.

Thursday 12th April

We left at 7.30am and headed for Tunduma where we had to clear Zambian customs because at Chitipa, where we were actually entering Malawi, there is no customs on the Zambian side. We reached Chitipa at 4 pm and after entering Malawi, traveled for 1 hour, before setting up a bush camp.

Zanbia has all in all been a wonderful experience- the people are so friendly and we have not felt threatened at all. The one bush camp we made was right next to a village and just after we had set up, a man came to introduce himself as our neighbour and to welcome us! This has been the general attitude of all the people we have met and I would highly recommend Zambia to anyone.

Our costs so far in Zambia are
Insurance for 6 months R681
Comesa yellow card R290
Ferry Kazungula R140
Border fees R372
Car repairs R707
Gifts R175
Accomodation R2541
Sight seeing R966
Groceries R1528
Beer R607
Park entry fees R315
Plug adaptor R50
Internet café R51
Petrol R7048

More Zambia

Monday 2nd April

We left Mutinondo at 8.15am after saying goodbye to Mike & Lari. They have a really laid back life and only manage to keep track of the days by instructing their staff to give them baked beans every Sunday so that they will know that the next day is Monday! If the staff forget, they say that everyone is totally confused as to what day it is. Mike wrote us a letter for the immigration lady at Mpika so that the dates in our passport can be sorted out – 4 of us were only given 7 days in Zambia by mistake. We proceeded along the Chiundaponde road which is 69mks long but takes 2 ½ hours! The Karg’s and us arrived at 11.30am and waited for the other 3 couples. Unfortunately, we had mis read the sms and were waiting further along than we were supposed to. So we had a 2 hour wait on our hands! Anyway, we just got out the cards and played bridge to pass the time. The Day’s and the Hardman’s got stuck and so all in all it was about 4 o’clock before we were all together and headed on the Shoebill Island road. This once again, was an atrocious road and the going was very slow. We passed right through villages and all the kids came out to greet us – it must be very tiresome to be a queen as just an hour of smiling and waving gets quite tiring! Eventually the light was fading but we decided to push on as we wanted to get to the scout camp. We only had 3 kms to go when the road, which was an elevated high road through a plain of bog, disintegrated! So, there we had our camp site, all in a row on this elevated road in the middle of a bog. And, to top it, Brian was stuck in at an angle and couldn’t even put up his roof top tent. Him and Maureen had to pitch a little tent on the road and sleep in there as it was too dark to attempt towing him out. We were in the middle of nowhere with a world of stars above our heads and sounds of lechwe, jackals and hyena all around us.

Tuesday 3rd April
What a wonderful sight! This has been our best camp site ever! We were in the middle of a huge plain full of Lechwe antelope and hordes of birds. The moon was still visible in the west and the sun was rising in the east – it was a breath taking sight to behold. We packed up our tents and then 2 vehicles got in line to tow Brain out. Success – we were all back on the road so to speak except there was no road! Just then a vehicle came towards us through the bog NOT the road. It was forging along through the water with a fountain of muddy water spraying up either side! He veered off to stop and talk to us and in doing so did a complete 360 with a scout hanging on for dear life on the roof rack! We all looked on with big eyes but he assured us that this was now the road to the scout camp and we must just hit out and go for it! Well, it was the only option we had, so off we set one by one. It was a very exciting trip with the wind screen wipers going full ball to keep the windscreen clear and the engine roaring to keep Garfield “swimming” through

Zambia 2nd week

Monday 26th March

We relaxed all day at Kalala camp on the edge of Itezhi Tezhi Dam catching up on washing, typing up web pages and reading. The guys of course had the regular maintenance of the vehicles to deal with! Brian eventually decided to take time out and to go fishing but the first fish he caught barbed him quite deeply in his hand – just above his thumb so then it was first aid time – luckily Maureen is a nursing sister. The day ended with a beautiful braai around the camp fire and we all retired to bed well rested and relaxed ready for the next challenging day of travel.

Tuesday 27th March

We left at 8 am and headed 80kms N on a very bad road full of pot holes. Our windscreen wipers stopped working – we are still being plagued by electrical faults! However, Dave hot wired them and our main problem was that the rain was intermittent – as each time the rain stopped or started we had to stop, open the bonnet and manually connect or disconnect the wipers! Very tiresome. We then reached the tar road leading E towards Lusaka and the going improved until Willies steering stabilizer on the right hand side packed in! Willie and Brian proceeded slowly while us, Lorraine & Nev and Anne-Rose & George went ahead. We reached Lusaka and George’s submersible petrol pump packed in! I am learning a lot about motor cars and their workings I can tell you. Anyway we finally all made it into Eureka Camp ground.

Wednesday 28th March

Another day spent doing motor vehicle maintenance! I don’t think anyone anticipated all this but still we are keeping going. In the afternoon Ingrid, Dave and I went into the Comesa office to find out about buying the Comesa Yellow card which is a once off 3rd party insurance for most of the African countries. We found out where to go the following morning and then went back to Eureka Camp. We had a delicious tuna pasta for dinner and then hit the sack for our early start in the morning.

We have found all the Zambians we have met, to be very friendly and as helpful as can be. They all speak English and so communication is no problem. The country side is beautiful and the land looks very fertile. Cell signal is very intermittent as there is generally only one tower in each town so you only get signal for a few kilometers around the town and nothing in the countryside. All along the roads there are locals selling tomatoes, sweet potatoes, potatoes and spinach. Lusaka, itself, is a thriving but typically African city with derelict buildings, intermittent electricity supply and hordes of street sellers. However, we never felt threatened at all. On the outskirts of the city we found modern big shopping centres to match any of ours in South Africa with all the shops we are accustomed to eg. Game, Checkers, Steers and Mr Price.

Thursday 29th March

We left Eureka camp at 8am and all headed off to do what we had to in Lusaka. Most of us went and bought our yellow card at the Nico insurance office and once again the lady was slow but ever so helpful, even volunteering to send an email off to Ingrid’s mother for her. We all met about 120kms out of Lusaka at a town called Kabwe at lunch time. Petrol is very expensive here at about R12 a litre, but of course we can’t proceed without the magical fluid! We all set off together at 2pm and headed N till 4pm stopping at a camp site just off the road, called Forest Inn. To camp was only 50 000 kwacha a couple! Don’t fret – that is only R90.

Friday 30th March

We left and carried on beautiful tarred roads towards Serenje. At about 12 we split up as the Kargs and Oldhams went to visit some farmer friends of the Kargs while us other 3 couples went to see Kundalila Falls which means “cooing dove”. It was wonderful to get some exercise as we had to hike down to the bottom of the falls. They were a beautiful site from the bottom and we had a swim in the icy waters at the bottom! We relaxed at the falls for the rest of the afternoon and then headed up towards Kasanka Park. We are now in a bush camp just outside the gates and are planning to go in early tomorrow morning. Tonight Dave and I decided to time ourselves- from when we stop at camp, it takes us exactly 7 minutes to be completely set up – with our roof top tent up, chairs out, shower cubicle up and beers and savannas in hand. Not bad hey? And tonight, we had pot roasted chicken with sweet potatoe, butternut and onion with lovely gravy!! Life is great in Africa.
On the way here the Kargs had a dark chanting goshawk fly into their windscreen-they thought they had killed it but they stopped and picked it up as they realized it was just stunned. Lorraine just kept it quietly in her lap and it seems to have recovered – she has put it in a tree tonight and we will see how it is tomorrow.
Today I have felt really homesick as Rayanne gets home today and I remember how excited I was to first see Carmen-Jo when she came home from UCT! Anyway I knew it wouldn’t be easy leaving my kids behind so I suppose I have just got to get over this. I miss you tons my children and I blow you a kiss to the stars every night.

Saturday 31st March

We woke up at 5.30am and left at 6 for Kasanka National Park and after entering reached the main office in the middle of the park at about 8am. After speaking to Kim, the lady in charge, we have established that this is not the right time for game viewing although it is perfect for spotting the rare Shoebill at Shoebill Island. The other 3 couples decided to spend 1 night in Kasanka anyway, while the Karg’s and us decided to head on to Mutinondo on the way to Shoebill Island.

Sunday 1st April

We have spent a wonderful day here at Mutinondo. There are huge granite whaleback rocks and a very clear river running through the centre over 3 waterfalls. We left at 7.30am and did a 8km hike along the river – stopping to swim under the waterfalls – and then back around these whalebacks to our camp. We used the back pack that Daryl gave Dave for Christmas and the juice was really welcome! At 11am we had a scrumptious breakfast of bacon, eggs and fried tomatoe on toast. The rest of the day we have relaxed, after doing laundry, and played bridge. Tonight we are planning a braai. The weather here is a lot cooler and your crocheted blanket is coming in very handy, Mom.
Love and hugs to all of you