Observations of Africa: Malawi

Showing posts with label Malawi. Show all posts

30 July 2013

Puzzled Elephant

Playing around with some Photoshop actions and got this puzzle of an earlier image.

23 November 2012

04 November 2012

Liwonde Elephants

A couple of elephants beside the Liwonde River in Malawi

03 October 2012

Rhino Painting

This is a painting we got in Lilongwe, Malawi. It's painted on wood. The artistic talent throughout Africa is astounding. Since I can't create, I'll just appreciate. That I can do.

15 October 2011

Njovu -- Liwonde National Park, Malawi

30 July 2011

When we lived in Pemba, Moçambique we would make several trips a year out to Lilongwe, Malawi either to meet our older son coming home from school in Kenya or to take him to the airport to fly back to school. (Pemba has an airport, but service to Nairobi, Kenya was not available. Sometimes charter flights could be arranged with several groups sharing a flight.)

Most of the time we would drive from Pemba to Nampula (5 - 6 hours) and spend the night with friends. Then we would proceed to Mocuba and spend the night either with friends or at a guest house (6 - 12 hours depending upon road conditions). The next stage of the journey was either to Mulanje, Malawi where we would visit friends, or directly on to Blantyre where we stayed in a guest house. Usually the choice was based upon road conditions. It could be 4 - 8 hours to the Malawi border (Mulanje is just across the border) or 6 - 10 hours all the way to Blantyre. From Blantyre to Lilongwe was about a 4 hour trip on a good road.

(Click on map for larger view)

Sometimes, when the road conditions were "good" we would take a northern route from Nampula out to Malawi. This route would take us through Cuamba, Moçambique, across the border through Mangoche, Malawi and on to Liwonde, Malawi where we would spend the night. This would usually be about a 10 hour trip.

Friends discovered an economic place to stay in Liwonde that was clean and comfortable. They introduced it to us -- Warthog's Wallow.

Warthog's Wallow was a collection of rondavals on the bank of the Shire River. There was one for eating, an observation "tower" and several individual sleeping quarters.

A wooden walkway was constructed over the swampy bank of the river out to the water's edge.

(Younger son, Luke, coming back from the Shire River)

Although we never saw warthogs or any signs of warthogs, hippo sign (and sounds) were abundant. From the walkway one can regularly see fresh hippo tracks in the mud. At night the grunts of hippo can wake all but the soundest sleeper.

The observation tower is a good place to observe the hippo during their nocturnal wanderings. Although we wanted to observe the hippo, we were always too tired to stay up until they arrived.

There's even a small pool at Warthog's Wallow. We never used it. It was usually so late when we arrived that we would just eat our evening meal and go to bed. We would usually continue our journey early the next morning. The staff were always nice enough to have breakfast ready for us by 4:00 A.M. so that we could start in the dark and arrive at our destination before sun down (usually).

I don't miss driving for hours on the horrible roads, but I do miss the beauty of Warthog's Wallow and surroundings.

20 November 2009

Hard choices over food versus education in Malawi

How does a poor nation get ahead? Education is necessary, but can education take place if people are malnourished? What would you do if you were a leader in Malawi or Zimbabwe, or any other country facing this problem?

Hard choices over food versus education in Malawi

For those who think this is just a problem for developing countries, look at the U.S.A. Recent reports indicate that in some areas 1 in 6 people are undernourished. States are cutting back on the education budgets.

Whither the future?

24 March 2009

Bohm's Bee-eater

Africa has wonderful bird life.

Bohm's Bee-eater: taken at Mvuu Camp in Liwonde Game Park, Liwonde, Malawi.

10 August 2008

Puzzling Malawi Countryside

(Click on image to view full size.)

08 August 2008

Sabi Star

(Click on image to see full size.)

The Sabi Star (Adenium Multiflorum) is one of the beautiful flowers of Southern Africa. Usually they are found in hot areas. This photo was taken in the Liwonde Game Park in Malawi.

23 December 2007

African Roads I've Been Down

Here are a few of the roads I frequently traveled in Moçambique and Malawi. Click the above photo to start the slide show. Click on photos in slide show to view description.

A friend in Moçambique recently sent me his Toyota's autobiography. You can read it here:

A TALE OF TWO TOYOTAS

He also developed a system for rating African roads. You can read it here:

Africa Road ratings

02 October 2007

I'm glad I'm not . . .

I'm glad I'm not a chicken in Moçambique. As you drive down the road here, you regularly pass people waving something at you as you pass by. At first glance, it might appear to be a very thick tattered flag or cloth. A closer look reveals that it is a live chicken, held upside down by the legs that is being waved furiously.

That's not the only indignity chickens endure. It is a common sight to see someone with a dozen chickens tied together by the legs and slung over the handlebars of a bicycle. People are always walking around carrying a chicken by the legs or wings.

Goats also have an "interesting" existence. You can hear them being pulled around town all the time. They often are uncooperative and resist going where their owner wishes. They make lots of noise in the process. Perhaps they know that they're to be the main course at dinner.

Some goats in Malawi, on the other hand, get first class treatment. We've seen goats riding bicycles in Malawi! I don't know how that they do it, but we've seen goats sitting on the bicycle seat with their front hooves on the handle bars as their owners push the bicycle to town. (I guess the goats haven't learned to pedal yet.)

[From the December 1999 edition of johnsons' journal.]