Oceans and Lakes

So much has happened since the last time I wrote. Leaving Maputo we had our first chapas (sha-pa) experience. Chapas are public transport mini-buses - they have set routes and fares but they only leave once they are full. And believe me - our understanding of "full" is very different from the African view. We took a chapas leaving Maputo at 5am - we then drove around in the outskirts for almost 2 hours looking for more people to pick up for the ride. It was an interesting experience. Whenever the chapas stopped they are swarmed by youth and women selling fruit, nuts, samosas, cold drinks, toiletries etc. You can buy these by exchanging money for goods through the window. One thing that has been disappointing is the food. In many places so far you can only get things like pizza, hamburger and chips! I was really looking forward to authentic local cuisine but it is not easy to find. Many of the locals prefer western food.

After an all day ride in the chapas we arrived in Tofo (pronounced "tofu" - like the food) which is where my last short blog entry was written. Tofo was absolutely gorgeous. One of the most stunning beaches I have seen since Australia. Our hut was at the top of a sand dune right next to the beach. We slept to the sound of the waves rolling in. There was also a full moon while were there so many of the evenings were pleasantly moonlit. I also tried scuba diving. The first dive didn't go so well. I got seasick starting on the way out to the dive site. They said I would be fine once I got in the water. They lied. I had the special experience of vomiting inside my regulator during the dive (3 times!) and having to continue to breathe out of it. Once I got to the surface I got sick another 4 or 5 times. But I persevered. The next day I took some extra steps to prevent sea sickness and headed out again. This time the dive was glorious! I wasn't sick so I was able to enjoy the dive. I now have a PADI scuba diver certification! The children in Tofo were very charming. There was this one kid named Johnny Cash who managed to sell me two bracelets over two days when I was determined not to buy anything. I learned that you never say "maybe tomorrow" to these kids because they will come and find you wherever you are and say "Remember yesterday?". Another little boy made a chin strap for my straw hat for 20 meticais (met-ee-cash) - about 70 cents. We did find some local food in Tofo. In the market there was a chicken lady who would serve chicken with chima and rice.

I got my hair braided in Tofo in an attempt to get dred locks (communication gap) and discovered that there is a practical reason for the afro-style braids. It keeps you much cooler. Parting hair to make small brands exposes much more of your scalp to release heat. Every Canadian remembers their mother telling them as a child to wear a toque because you lose 90% of your body heat through your head. Makes so much sense I can't believe it never occurred to me before.

When our time in Tofo sadly came to an end, we set out to make the hard trek to Malawi. We took a chapas to Inhambane and then a ferry to Maxixe (Ma-sheesh). Once in Maxixe we took a chapas to Vilanculos (vee-lan-koo-lo) and nearly got ripped of for 600 meticais in the process. The boy who walked us to the bus depot tried to get us to pay him instead of the driver - almost got us. We passed right through Vilanculos, which suited us just fine because we were generally not impressed with this place. In fairness though, we did not go to the islands which are the main attraction. The one good thing about Vilanculos is this is where we met Patrizia. Patrizia is a Swiss girl on a one year world tour by herself - for all you naysayers about women traveling alone in Africa - we have met at least 10 solo female travelers so far!). We met at the buses at 4am and she was also headed for Malawi. Our chapas finally left around 6:30am to Chimoios (Shi-moy-oo) where we stayed at the Pink Papaya Backpackers. We planned to get to Blantyre, Malawi the next day. A french backpacker we met who was traveling the other direction insisted that this was impossible while the staff said it was possible, but not likely. But we figured our luck was going well so far and there was no reason for it to stop! To get to Blantyre you need to take a 4am chapas to Tete where you get another chapas to the Malawi border, cross the border and get another chapas to Blantyre. We did make it - but not without some help, some mistakes, and some humour. We left the hostel in Chimoios at 4am with the night guuard walking us to the bus. We arrived early afternoon in Tete. Mozambicans call Tete the "hottest place on earth" - and they were not joking! It was hot, we were tired, and then arrived Abilio to the rescue. He took us to the chapas, found a bathroom for us to use and even bought us some apples for the ride. We offered for some money but he wouldn't take it - just plain kindness and generosity! He also gave us his cell phone number in case we needed help! The chapas to the border was hilarious. Chapas are the size of extended vans (four benches - seats 14 by western standards). At one point we had 25 adults, 6 or 7 children, and 2 goats inside this chapas! I don't think I will ever forget that ride. It's a strange feeling when you find yourself thinking "was that a baby or a goat?". We arrived at the border at about 5pm. Perfect timing because the border closed at 6pm. I was sure that I read in a guide book that you first go through the Mozambican officials and then walk 300m and go through the Malawian officials. Like always were swarmed by people selling currency, goods, and rides across. One kid told us it was 5km, another 10 km and another 20 km. We thought they were trying to scam us so we continued walking. After about 10 or 15 minutes we realized that it was definitely not 300m. The border would be closing soon and we were stranded. Faced with being stuck in no-mans land between Mozambiqe and Malawi overnight, or hitching a ride, we opted for hitching. The first truck stopped (a transport truck) with a driver who didn't speak english. We made it just in time! Got our visas and off we were. But it was getting dark (and therefore dangerous) and we ended up paying way too much for taxi the remaining 110 km to Blantyre. We arrived at Fat Monkeys in Blantyre at about 8m. Long day! But we were proud of defying the odds. We stayed for two nights to explore Blantyre and recover. Blantyre is the nicest African city we have seen yet. From there we went to Cape Maclear. We took a mini-bus (Malawian word for chapas) to "petrol station at a junction". Then we took a matola the rest of the way. A matola is a flat bed truck used to transport anything going to the same place (goods, people, animals etc). The one we were on was insane! about 20 people on top of a truck full of food sacks, wood, petrol containers. We were hanging on for our lives (literally)! We thought we had a feather in our caps for surviving the chapas with 25 people, 6 children and 2 goats - until we experienced the matola!

Cape Maclear was stunning. We had great food and real coffee for the first time in what feels like ages (it's hard to believe its only been a couple weeks). We went on a a great snorkeling trip - tried to catch fish with our hands, and saw fish eagles diving for food from tree tops. We also hiked in Lake Malawi National Park to some great lookout points. We met some travelers who had just come from the north (where we were headed). They went on the ferry and said they froze on the deck due to heavy winds and the ferry arrived 20 hours late. We prepared ourselves for a tough trip. But of course, for us it was great weather and we arrived earlier than scheduled! We spent two days and nights chilling and reading on the deck and sleeping under the stars at night.

And now we have arrived in Nkhata Bay. Every place seems to top the last one. We are staying in this great backpackers with little huts or chalets set into a steep, rocky shoreline. We have a private balcony overlooking the lake with huge trees where you occasionally see monkeys climbing through!

It is an eery feeling that things have gone almost exactly to plan. But again - there is no reason why our good fortune should end now!

We will stay here in Nkhata Bay for a while and then head north again to Tanzania. Till next time!