Malawi was always going to have a lot to live up to after the special experience in Tanzania.
Like normal on this trip, we are tomorrow about to leave Zambia and I am only just gathering my thoughts on the country before.
Normally my lack of speed is due to the rhythm of the tour. It stops for no one and when we do get rest days I have either been cramming in too many activities in. Or I am too tired!
But in the case of Malawi, I don’t think I will ever get a job for the Tourist Board, as I have struggled a lot to put pen to paper on what we saw.
The one thing which was evident was the spirit of the people. We again experienced great support from the road side, particularly women. Which was only surpassed by the over enthusiasm of the kids.
One thing I was not expecting to see in Malawi was a Malawisaurus as I headed towards prison camp, not the official name of the accommodation.
Can you believe some riders didn’t even see this, and we rode past it twice!
Then there was the rains, I think I spent most of the days wet, with constant wet feet, tent and damp clothes. It didn’t enhance my experience of camping. I smelt constantly like a damp dog.
Even the upgrade options now go down in TDA history. What a dump this was. A time when camping was a much better option.
As we exited Malawi we hit a landmark moment making it to the halfway point in terms of kilometres covered. This felt both an achievement and a scary prospect knowing I have the same distance to cover again.
Just like that Malawi passed, and we entered Zambia, when all my bike issues started. But more to follow on the trials and tribulations that caused. In the next update!
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