Nkata Bay Days

The first leg of my post-internship travels is over. I’m back in Lilongwe after a week up north in Nkata Bay. I had planned to go up for the weekend and then stay and do a SCUBA diving course, but as I am a semi-solo traveler and no one else signed up for the course, they didn’t run it. Ah, well – there is always a next time. Perhaps I’ll just have to head back to Thailand or the Caribbean!

I went up to Nkata Bay with Amy and her roommate Daniel and his co-worker Benedict. As always, we had planned to leave about noon on Friday, which would have seen us arriving just before dark. We ended up leaving at 6pm, when it was already dark and only got there at midnight. Ugh. Too bad, because apparently it is a really beautiful drive up the Lakeshore road. I was however, greeted by the most beautiful view of the bay in the sunrise, when I opened my tent flap the next morning for my first glimpse of Nkata Bay. We stayed at Mayoka Village, which is a collection of little huts built into the hillside (unlike other areas of the Lake, Nkata Bay has no beach front). It is a big part of the local community and employs about 50 local staff; does community development projects and sells crafts made by women’s groups. I eat this cooperative stuff up. I bought three chitenje bags...

The guys that work at Mayoka are fun as well – quite good a schmoozing with the backpacker girls and enjoyably friendly if you don’t fall for it too much. Haha. They all seem to have interesting names – Special, Delicious and Respect - and apparently Happy Coconut and Cheese-on-Toast, although I never met those guys. My favourite was the Candy man – Kind of like a Malawian Willy Wonka. He’s this old man who sells Chocolate bars and candy at the bar every night, wearing an all purple outfit, complete with purple knee socks and hat. Amazing. Interesting too – apparently the senior Chief of the area and his father was one of the first doctors trained in Malawi. I think he probably sells candy at the bar every night so he can keep tabs on the Mayoka Boys.


the Candy Man

I stayed at Mayoka for about a week and after Amy and Daniel left, German Peter arrived for a couple days and then Christine and her friends Karen and Kathy from Blantyre came by on their trip around the North. Didn’t do much at all the whole time except go out on a boat trip one afternoon to feed the Fish Eagles and go snorkelling with Christine et al. We stopped at a village beach and Christine and Karen wanted to try their hand at paddling the dugout canoes that all the fishermen use here. Not as easy as it looks, but the girls did well considering they had quite an audience laughing at them - myself included



Got a ride back to Lilongwe with Christine, Karen and Kathy via Nkotakota where we stayed for the night. The lodge also is a pottery studio and shop, despite all better judgements we all picked up some things that hopefully will make the trip home!

If anyone has seen the BBC Planet Earth DVDs, you may remember a segment on the Lake Malawi Lake Flies. This is a crazy natural phenomenon when swarms of flies rise up over the Lake. Not sure whether they are mating or hatching or what, but it looks like smoke spiralling up over the water (potentially that creepy black fog from LOST...) and is actually a bazillion flies. The flies swarm inland and then the village women catch them in baskets and apparently make Lake Fly Cake. Cool.





Part 2 of post-internship travels is a trip to Mt. Mulanje. Leaving tomorrow and will hike the mountain Mon/Tues/Wed. It is supposed to be BEAUTIFUL, so I’m really excited. I’ve borrowed a warm coat, sleeping bag and hiking boots so I should be all good. Wish me luck!