To Mzuzu via Lakeshore

A few days ago, a friend of mine and I drove to Mzuzu via the Lakeshore Road.  It was heavenly. The road was not as busy as the M1, and had many pleasant scenes of nature.

It was nice to see the gorgeous line of hills on the left side that runs all the way from Sharpvale, through Golomoti, Mtakataka and Mua, before it tails off at Salima Boma.

At Nkhotakota, we saw the lake from afar and marvelled at its typical blue. Cruising further on, and getting to Dwambazi River, we stopped and parked the car by the road a few metres away from the bridge.  We walked back midway through the bridge, and stood there, holding the side rails, as we looked down into the river.  As the waters flowed downstream, they carried my heart along, to the end of the world.

From the bridge, we could see beautiful hills under which the Dwambazi centre nestles. The hills were rich and green, defying the odds of the dry season.  I nearly cried…

“This country is rich,” said my friend.

“Yes”, I replied; “You know, we can generate a lot of revenue through tourism.  Didn’t I hear that Malawi is the fifth most preferred tourist destination in the world?”

My mind then tossed to the Elephant Rock in the Chikangawa; the many beautiful hills and valleys in Dedza; the hundred little hills that stand on the Kirk Range in Mwanza; the Kuchawe Inn on the Zomba Plateau; the white rocks that form the peak of the Soche Hill; the green tea estates in Thyolo; and the wondrous Mulanje Mountain, among others.

“There are many countries in Africa,” I added, “that make a lot of money in tourism, but are not as beautiful as Malawi. I’m not sure about Kigali, but I’ve heard that that country has a thousand hills. You see, Malawi can stand on its own feet financially. The zero-aid budget may have its challenges for a start, but that is certainly the way to go”.

As we drove towards the Dwambazi Hills, it was amazing to see the lake so close to the road, and to breathe the air pregnant with the fresh smell of  fish. We were fascinated to see little children playingmpira womanga (a ball made locally with sacks and plastics) near the beach, apparently with nothing to worry about. We nearly got tempted to stop and join in the fun, or simply go and stand on the shoreline and let our faces feel the rush of the cool breeze…

At Dwambazi, the lake and the hills are very close together, and the road passes in between.

As you drive through, you have a feel of both worlds at once, and the thrill is difficult to describe. I thought the houses around were a kind of Cape Town, a town caught up between the Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean.

“I would love living here,” put in my friend.

“Yes,” I replied, “you know, country life is good. I envy these people. There is a lot of space between the houses. The air is fresh. And life is simple.”

This reminded me of the conversation that we had had at Dwangwa a few minutes previously. We had loved the sight of the massive sugar plantations that lie along the road, and my friend had envied the people who were working at Dwangwa Sugar Corporation, so far away from the noisy and sophisticated cities such as Blantyre.

As we cut through the beautiful highlands of Nkhata Bay, we could still see the lake on a number of spots on our right hand side. Then I remembered, that the lake stretches probably not less than 600 kilometres from Karonga down to Mangochi. O, what a beautiful country. We then increased speed, hoping to get to Nkhata Bay Boma in good time to see more of the lake, and to eat batara (large mcheni fish) as a snack.

Finally, we got to Mzuzu at 5.30, and the orange sunset was still hovering over the city.

The author is Director of Finance and Administration for Malawi Posts Corporation.  He is

a local tourist who loves nature, and this beautiful country.