Adam & Tracy's Adventures: Lake Malawi

So we had a weekend getaway this weekend. At our guesthouse, previous volunteers had left a brochure for Safari Beach Lodge on the coast of Lake Malawi. It is rather a charming place to stay for a weekend. The six of us were put up in Gazebo 11. It just so happened that it had 4 single beds on the ground level and a mezzanine level with a double bed. So for Tracy and I, it was like being husband and wife again instead of being bunk mates (our room in the guesthouse just has a bunk bed).

Our lodging was up the hill from the shore and had decks overlooking the water on both levels. Very relaxing. And we had royal meals compared to the standard Malawi fare.

We had heard about the amazing food at a place called Cool Runnings within walking distance, so on Saturday, we thought we would go there for lunch. We had to walk back along the main road a good distance. After we all thought we had surely gone too far, we realized there was a sign for the place at the next turn off. So we turn down this dirt road, following the signs which take us through the dusty streets of a pretty large and lowly village. It almost seemed we had to double back half the distance we had already walked until we found the place. Here's a bummer: they only serve their own guests (they're a hotel with a restaurant). So we walked all that way for nothing. But really not for nothing since we all felt up for a good long walk anyway, but what's more is that the wondering path through the village of brick and mud walls and thatched roofs really gave us a much better sense of the place and the local lifestyle than we could have gotten had we just stayed at the Safari Beach Lodge. Walking back the direction we came, there was a place called the Red Zebra that served good food (among the items we ordered were juicy hamburgers, grilled cheese, chicken kabobs and fish).

Next we wanted to stop and check out the Livingstonia Hotel, the oldest hotel on Lake Malawi. The place was very nice, but also felt so opulent compared to the Malawi standard of living. But we sat down for drinks and shared some desserts and relaxed.

The rest of the time was basically just chilling and relaxing at our hotel and enjoying the scenery of the Lake. One crazy thing about this place -- in the mornings, we could see wispy, billowy formations out over the lake. We were trying to figure out what it might be. Could it be some kind of mist? Maybe exhaust from some barge that had gone by? But it wasn't moving or dissipating nearly fast enough to be any of these. Later in the morning, when onshore winds kicked up, you could see millions and millions of specks blowing past the trees. We discovered they were some kind of tiny insect that just get blown along in large clouds.

Also on the second morning, we got to see a family of young monkeys playing and wrestling (I think they may have been vervet monkeys). One had visited our deck the previous morning.

On the way back, we encountered some torrential downpours. Fortunately all the roads were fine and we arrived safe and sound. Later that day, Marideth, Tracy, and all discovered the hotel had left us a nice parting gift: dozens of welts that we suppose may have been caused by bedbugs.

Stay tuned -- coming soon will be stories of new housemates (arrived over the weekend) and my first attempt at cooking gnocchi...

Some sights on the way to Safari Beach Lodge