Planes, trains, and automobiles...oh, and boats

Dec. 21 - Lusaka - Lilongwe, Malawi
We take a 10 hour bus ride with people jammed into the isle, amongst the piles of luggage. Bus capacity - about 55 people. Actual amount of people - at least 80. The window across from my seat was non-existant, instead there was a wood board in its place. We arrive safely and head to a hostel, hoping there would be space for us. We spent two nights in Lilongwe, met some fellow backpackers and traveled up to Nkhata Bay with them. Lilongwe is an alright town - fun to walk around but not all that exciting.

Dec. 23 - Lilongwe - Nkhata Bay, Malawi
From Lilongwe we originally planned to travel to Cape McLear, the southern point of Lake Malawi. However, not really realizing how big Malawi actually is, we wouldn't have had enough time to do so. Instead, we traveled to another part of the Lake, more north, as we eventually had to make it up to Tanzania. We traveled there with the people we had met in Lilongwe which was nice. It took a full day of buses to get there. There were 9 of us so we even got to hire our own mini-bus for one of the legs! We spent 3 nights at the lake, which was wonderful. Very relaxing and peaceful. Nkhata Bay is a lovely, very small fisherman's town. Christmas eve we had a 5 course thai meal at a cute restaurant with some friends. Christmas day we spent at the hostel next to our, which was much more lively. Our hostel was quiet and didn't do much for Christmas. So we listened to music, ate lots of food, and relaxed by the water.

Many differences between Zambia and Malawi. For example, Zambia has mostly mango trees along the roads and Malawi has mostly banana trees. In Zambia the people are quite friendly, in Malawi the people are very friendly - many people actually came up to us and introduced themselves by name. The village huts in Zambia are round, Malawi they are rectangle.

Dec. 26 - Nkhata Bay - Mbeya, Tanzania
Boxing day was a very long travel day. We made our way up to Tanzania, by taking 4 different mini-buses up the coast of Lake Malawi, over the boarder, and up to Mbeya. Beautiful drive but quite windy through the mountains. The next morning, we headed to the train station and hoped for the best!

Dec. 27 Mbeya - Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
As mentioned in a previous post, I had made a booking for the train from Mbeya to Dar Es Salaam. The woman who made the booking in Lusaka wasn't much help however - didn't give us a confirmation number or ticket or anything, didn't know the time the train left, or how much it cost. But alas, much to my surprise, there we were on the list of bookings! And thank goodness too, because the train was fully booked. We boarded the train and found our "4-person" first class sleeper. For $27 we were on our way! I use the term "4-person" lightly, as Heather and I ended up sharing the compartment with a woman and her 2 kids, and another woman with her baby. It sure was cozy! The train was an interesting experience. Approximately every 2 minutes or so the train jerked forward as if the driver was slamming on the breaks. Once I actually fell off my seat! It made eating interesting...and sleeping...and going to the bathroom...and walking from car to car...yes, an interesting experience indeed. The train is quite old and needs a lot of repairs, and word has it that any day now it will not be used anymore. It took about 27 hours in total, yet was only 849km. It was a beautiful ride - right through a national park where we saw giraffe's and other animals. I am glad I did it but would never do it again.

Dec. 29 Dar Es Salaam - Stone Town, Zanzibar
After spending one night in Dar, we headed to Zanzibar early the next morning. The ferry is about 3 hours, and I am very glad I took my gravol. I don't normally do well on boats. We met up with our friend Logan and a few of her friends. Logan is an intern from the same Canadian NGO as us who is doing her internship in Kigali, Rwanda. Stone Town is a beautiful town - interesting buildings, friendly people, and a vast history. We went to the markets, ate good food, watched the sunsets, visited the former slave market, and relaxed. We also met up with our roommate Sanna who was in Zanzibar with her boyfriend.

Dec. 31 Stone Town - Nungwi, Zanzibar
For new years eve Heather, Logan, her friends, and I headed north to the beach! We left early in the morning, took the 1.5 hour mini-bus ride, and spent the day by the water. The beach is quite spectacular - turquoise water with white sand. Couldn't ask for anything more! Unfortunately, I stepped on a sea urchin and got about 15 sharp spikes in my left foot. It was quite painful. Luckily a beach boy was there to assist. Apparently pouring kerosene and rubbing the juice from an unripened papaya is supposed to help make the spike slivers come to the surface! We spent new years eve at a beach party with about 2000 other people. There was music and dancing - good fun! Unfortunately I had to make my way back to Stone Town on New Years day, which is where I caught the ferry back to the mainland in order to make my flight early the next morning.

Jan 2 - Dar Es Salaam - Cape Town, South Africa
Off to see Halli! My good friend Halli from undergrad has been living in Cape Town for about a year and a half and since I had an extra week off work than Heather, I figured it was the best time to go visit her. I flew Dar - Jo'burg - Cape Town. On the second leg of the trip I got bumped up to first class. It was wonderful - with a massage chair that fully reclined into a bed. Too bad it wasn't a longer flight! I had an amazing week with Halli and her boyfriend Kevin. Enjoyed the company, saw the sights of the city, visited museums, ate good food, relaxed, and actually unpacked my stuff (which was nice considering I had been living out of a backpack the last 2 weeks). I went through "reverse culture shock" while in Cape Town, in awe at many things I somewhat forgot existed. "What? Dogs are on leashes here?! Everywhere has hot water?! The tap water is perfectly safe to drink?!"

Jan 9 - Cape Town - Lusaka, Zambia
I really missed Lusaka! On my flights home I was so eager to get back - a good sign for sure. I purposely booked my flight home on a Friday so I could go to Mwande's on Saturday. And that I did, and today I am resting up for work tomorrow.