Malawi & More

  After I got up I had a lovely chat with Rosie using the miracle of face time and then headed to the sick teachers flat with leftover macaroni cheese and cans of Pepsi.  Then I pottered about getting water in and picking the weeds out of the strawberry patch, only to hear A shouting MUM from the bathroom. I had been booked to dye her hair. Purple this time. I love these moments, she asked if I ever did it with my mum, but I was never brave enough to dye my hair. But I've had plenty of bathroom chats and remember fondly the joy of peeling off my mum's face mask. We laughed as I tried to avoid getting the dye on her face and ears and neck. It looks great, not quite what I was expecting. BigA took her over to a friends for a sleepover and then we watched films and an Arsenal game. Our pal came over and fell asleep in the second half.  Sunday was a day for me in the garden mostly, my seedlings had mainly survived and I enjoyed planting out the lush looking basil seedlings. I...

 The journey to our next stop was simple enough, the roads getting lower in quality but still ok, wide in most places. The scenery turning more hilly and in most places lush and green.  Our night stopover was a very pleasant place, a view of a river from the bar and, if we had wanted, a short boat trip over crossing into Mozambique.  A lone female backpacker was struggling to figure out how she could get money she needed, and true to form BigA stepped in and gave her what she needed, with a promise she would pay him back. With a lot less stress in her voice she set off for Mozambique. Then we unpacked, set up and got into our swimming costumes and headed to the pool. It was beautiful, still a little cold for perfection but really lovely.  Unfortunately the machine that issued visas wasn't working and so she came back that evening, arriving in a taxi looking like she was rather bored of it all. I think she was trying to stay positive. Poor thing, all in her own so we ...

  I think it is law that if you are in Victoria falls, you go and see the falls. We got the tram there, crossing illegally into Zambia, all ok apparently, if you're on the tram. We took a short walk to a couple of viewing platforms and it helped me decide I was not up for any of the adrenaline activities on offer. We had a cup of tea in the middle of the bridge, the first one which was commissioned by Rhoades over a century ago. Very impressive and great to see the water, falling. The drop of around 129m. Still one of the natural wonders of the world. I was impressed, having seen Niagra falls, this was better.  This area is still in a national park and as if to prove that we saw a few elephants just off the tram tracks.  We lounged by the pool for a few hours after that, too cold to swim in but refreshing to dip our feet in. Camping in berks places helps you appreciate the importance and value of a good shower. The ones here being the best so far. Proper hot water, guys f...

  I won't keep you in suspense any longer. The meal that reminds me of aunty Ros is... Lamb shank. I've never had one as good as hers. I think it might be that she uses more orange than most, or more likely, a lot of wine.  Another long one... The Saturday began with a rather frustrating search for money. The economy here is, to say the least, fragile. Most places prefer dollars to the actual Zimbabwean currency. But it's hard to find and extremely hard to get anything below $10. Given the number of toll roads and just normal bills it's annoying but at least just an interesting part of our adventure.  We picked up my literal scans and the disc to go with it and then hunted for diesel. We got there in the end. Bulawayo looks like someone stopped the clock on it in 1950 and then a few places sped up, but stopped again around 1990. The buildings look sturdy and tired. The people are kind, we stick out as tourists. The shops have clothes that, while modern, just somehow are...

 Warning, this is a long one... You might want to get a cup of tea.  The last jobs to be done, rapid tests, I got my 4th booster and photos for who knows what and the rest. So done KC invited us over for an evening meal, which was lovely. BigA packed up the Bongo in the most logical way, I only helped by taking things near it. BigA did some final checks, and realized our fire extinguisher was out of date and set off to get a new one. Which it turned out to be very important as during our travels it was checked quite a few times.  Then on Sunday, bright and early we set off to try our luck at the Mozambique border. We had so many bits of paper, yet still didn't feel 100% optimistic about getting through.  We got through, it wasn't stress free but because of BigA's diligence and good humour it went well. The cheapest we had hoped for too, in terms of the visa. It nearly went wrong as we had accidentally 'left' Malawi illegally but luckily BigA noticed we lacked th...

  Saturday started with a longish drive, 4 teenagers, which happily meant they slept mainly and I listened to my podcasts. It's a rather dull 4 1/2 hours of long roads and lots of speed traps.  Then almost straight into frisbee, Blantyre won. I played a little bit but not very much on the Saturday then quite a bit more on the Sunday. One nasty smack to my broken finger but I have a feeling that may have helped! BIgA got really nasty cramp but it sorted itself quickly. A played very well, until she got a painful muscle. But I'm pleased to report it meant she didn't do any homework over the weekend and gotta proper brain break. Much needed in my opinion. Monday rolled around, a public holiday and for us an appointment at the British high commission in Lilongwe, to get A's passport sorted. No such luck. Despite us telling them it was a holiday they booked us anyway and then we weren't able to have it as no Malawi staff were there. And they said the £100 for the appoint...

 It's been another week in grey wet England and what a lovely time we are having. Despite the lingering worry of catching COVID things are peaceful and restful. Christmas day was a lovely one, I went to church with mum, I'm still a little annoyed by how many 'with your spirits' that have cropped up in the prayers and call and response. My feet were very cold but is was good to get a descant of O Come all Ye Faithful out, even with the mask muting me a bit.  I was very pleased by the feast I cooked up, enjoying an oven that stays at the temperature it says it is and, despite getting the pan size a little wrong I was very proud of the yorkshire puds that came out. We laughed lots, ate well and drunk a good amount of prosecco. We played cards and by 6:30 I was done in, in bed and fast asleep by 7pm.   The rest of the week, filled with cuddles, kisses and a few walks, able to catch up with a couple of friends too. Outside to be safe but very happy with the milder te...