Grete's Travels

I slept really well last night and didn’t particularly need that hot water bottle, but at least it kept my feet warm.

Breakfast

It’s a bright sunny day today, and the staff kindly put an umbrella up for us by the pool.

David at the buffet

David has cornflakes followed by a Full English breakfast

I choose fruit and yogurt, and while I order egg and toast, I somehow end up with a couple of sausages too

We sit on the balcony while we wait for the pick-up to the airport.

Kenneth Kaunda International Airport

Check-in is easy, and despite our luggage being 3kg overweight, we are not charged for the excess. I am even more grateful that they don’t weigh the carry-on, although they do suggest that I may have to check one of the bags in. Until I mention that it is all camera equipment.

Waiting for the flight

Airlink flight from Lusaka in Zambia to Johannesburg in South Africa

Some of you who have read my previous blog entries may remember that we received an email a few days ago from South African Airlines to let us know that today’s flight was cancelled. Instead of rebooking us on another airline the same day, they transferred us onto another flight tomorrow. Fortunately, Mark from Undiscovered Destinations came to our rescue and rebooked us on this flight with Airlink. Similar time and the same conditions. This is why I would rather pay a little more and have an agent arrange the flights for us.

The flight is pretty non-exciting, it’s a small plane with a 2-2 configuration and a little cramped side-ways. The highlight is the in-flight meal, a beef pastrami salad with fusilli pasta and almonds, which is absolutely delicious. This is accompanied by a honey and mustard-flavoured savoury snack, and some Turkish delight. The first time I tasted Turkish Delight, I was convinced I’d opened a packet of soap by mistake. I am sorry to say that I still think it tastes like soap.

Johannesburg Arrival

The service offered by Airlink on arrival at Johannesburg falls way below par. Having pre-booked assistance, I am dismayed when having walked down the stairs, I have to continue across the tarmac onto a crowded bus, where the flight crew has to turf someone out of a seat so that I can sit down. At the terminal, I have to walk up a ramp before I can find a wheelchair.

Approaching Johannesburg

The Special Assistance immigration counter has a much shorter queue than the others where passengers are snaked around the hall. It does, however, move considerably slower, and in the end, we are amongst the very last people to enter into South Africa.

Apart from the flight, this part of the trip was not booked through Undiscovered Destinations, so we made a point of pre-booking airport transfers. A very sweet driver is waiting for us just outside customs and takes us to our hotel.

Haughton Hotel

Being told that most of the lodges on our safari trip are going to be fairly basic (to be fair, they were better than expected), we have booked ourselves into a luxury hotel for the two days we are here in Johannesburg.

To get from Lusaka in Zambia to Maun in Botswana (where the next part of our adventure starts) involves two long driving days, or flying via Johannesburg: there are no direct flights between the two, which I think is crazy!

Instead of just flying on to Maun the same day, we wanted to have a couple of nights here in Jo’burg to catch up with laundry and meet up with some friends who live here and who we haven’t seen for a long time.

As soon as we exit the taxi, the porter grabs our bags and passports and proceeds to the reception desk, where we are offered a sparkling wine welcome drink and I am given a long stemmed rose.

The hotel lobby

The Piazza Penthouse

My thoughts for this section of the trip were “Go big, or go home”. So we are going big.

We are heading for the third floor!

What can I say? The penthouse is everything I expected it to be, and more. It is as big as our house at home.

The room is on two floors, with two bedrooms on the lower floor, each with an en suite bathroom.

The master bedroom

The bathroom has a large bathtub with a crystal chandelier hanging over it and a separate shower.

The sitting area features a stand-alone corner suite, a couple of swiveling armchairs, a coffee table, and a huge TV.

The electric curtains are operated remotely, and it takes us a while to figure out how to close them.

The open-plan room also has a dining area with seating for eight people.

To one side of the dining suite is a small kitchen, as you can see in this rather confusing photo below (it’s a panorama from my phone and went a little odd in the middle).

The kitchen viewed from the dining table end

I love the set of crystal glasses

My welcome drink and rose

Lots of fabulous artwork in the room

Off the kitchen is a utility room with a washing machine and tumble drier, which we will be taking full advantage of tomorrow, and behind the kitchen is a guest toilet.

Just inside the door, the stairs lead to the upper floor.

Stairs on the right with the entrance hall behind it.

Upstairs

On the upper floor is another lounge area with some quirky seating, another kitchen area, another dining table that can accommodate ten people, another toilet, and an outdoor balcony with a hot tub and a private swimming pool.

The stairs leading to the upper floor

The lounge area

The dining table

The kitchen and breakfast bar

The Hot Tub

The Private Pool

The outside balcony has part decking, part artificial grass, a couple of sun loungers, and a great view over the hotel grounds and apartments opposite.

Dinner

Having paid a small fortune for the room, we really do not want to leave it to go down to the cafeteria for food this evening. The main restaurant is closed for restoration, so the café is the only choice. We consult the room serve menu, and order in some food.

The food arrives on a trolley, and each dish is covered with a silver dome.

My prawn curry. I am disappointed that the poppadom has gone soggy by being left to touch the curry sauce

David is very pleased with his cheeseburger, however

We usually take a few cappuccino sachets with us on our trips, for those rooms that have a kettle.

I love the shape of the cup and saucer

It is nice to relax in these comfortable surroundings, and we retire to bed happy.

I wake up with everything hurting after a restless night with no electricity until the generator came on at 05:20 this morning.

Today is merely a travel day, as we will make our way south from South Luanwa National Park to Zambia's capital Lusaka for our next part of the adventure.

Breakfast

As we have a later start this morning, we are offered a full English breakfast, and it would seem rude not to accept.

I wander around the grounds of the Wildlife Camp this morning, struggling to tear myself away, knowing that we have two full days of travel ahead of us, and no game drives for another four days.

The restaurant, bar and lounge

The toilets

Some of the guest chalets

The reception area

The internet café

Some of the sculptures in the grounds

Our chalet

The lounge area

The road is initially straight, smooth, and almost empty, just occasionally decorated with goats and cattle; but lacking the usual potholes we have become accustomed to.

When Jim stops at a service station to fill up with diesel and suggests that we use the facilities there, I am reminded of why I much prefer to go behind a bush!

Picnic

Always prepared, Jim brings out a table and chairs, tablecloth, and flask of hot water and set up our picnic at the side of the road.

The lodge has provided us with a simple packed lunch consisting of a bread roll, a couple of eggs, an apple, and an orange. Much to my delight, they’ve even provided a pinch of salt wrapped in foil, as I am not keen on eating my eggs naked (i.e., without salt).

Passing truck drivers sound their horns and wave, and just as we are packing up, two boys on bicycles stop and stare at these strange creatures bringing their dining table to the roadside in the middle of nowhere.

From here the road becomes narrower, more winding, and offers roadside shopping opportunities.

And then the dreaded potholes disappear, just in case we have missed them.

The problem is that from a distance you can’t gauge how deep the pothole is, or even if it has been filled in, so you need to slow right down anyway.

At least they are doing some repair work on the road, smoothing the surface and filling in the holes.

As we get nearer the capital, the traffic increases, and the road is 'owned' by huge trucks, moving at a snail’s pace. To help the traffic move smoothly, they indicate left when they can see the road ahead and consider it safe for other vehicles to overtake.

Controlled bush-fire

Yet again we cross the Luangwa River, on a weak bridge with strict rules of only one vehicle at a time. The car behind us – a self-drive safari vehicle from South Africa – continues immediately after us, and subsequently gets stopped by the bridge-keeper and probably fined US$200. Ouch.

Wild Dogs Camp

The access to the lodge does not do the place justice, along a very uneven gravel track from the main road. Two security guards open the heavy metal gates, and they are obviously expecting us judging by the warm welcome and the fact that by the time we have gathered our personal belongings and exited the car, our luggage is halfway to our room. None of this ‘finding the reception and signing in’ here. I like it.

Our room

The lodge is set in lovely undulating grounds, with a restaurant and pool area to one side, and the rooms (two rooms to each chalet) on the other side.

The lush grounds

The pool area

It's a shame it is too cold to use the pool, it looks very inviting

The restaurant and bar

Winding paths lead around the grounds

The chalets - ours is the left-hand room of the right-hand chalet

Lots of little sculptures in the grounds

A wooden crocodile and an enclosure for their pet tortoise

Our room is lovely, with two large single beds, indoor seating, and a veranda.

I always appreciate a bed where the mosquito net is on the outside of the bedside table – not only does it make it easier to access anything on the table in the night, it also means my legs don’t get tangled in the net as I try to get out of the bed.

Seeing the hot water bottle on the bed, I am expecting the temperatures to drop drastically overnight.

Towels with a pink hibiscus flower - such little touches make a difference

The toilet roll holder and the spare

Hand wash and lotion in the bathroom

Facecloths

The shower is powerful with plenty of hot water

Just in time to empty the Duty-Free rum we bought at Heathrow, we enjoy a pre-dinner drink in the room.

Dinner

This is our last night in Zambia and our last night with Jim. He is also staying here at the Wild Dogs camp and is therefore able to join us for dinner this evening.

A table is laid for us on the patio by the swimming pool, and staff have kindly placed a chiminea next to it. It gives out an amazing amount of heat, to the point where I have to ask them to move it a bit further away from me as I am being roasted on one side.

Us with Jim

Chicken steak with mash – a huge portion of two chicken fillets

Tasty chocolate ice cream

It is always sad to say goodbye to a guide at the end of a trip, and today is no exception. Jim has been so much more than a guide, he has become part of our family and a very good friend. Just as we are sharing a last hug, the local street dogs start howling – very appropriate.

While we wait for the staff to come and fill our hot water bottles, we share the last dregs of the other Duty-Free bottle we brought with us – Tia Maria coffee liqueur.

Thank you so much to Undiscovered Destinations and their local team for making this portion of our Great Africa Trip 2024 so enjoyable.

When David flushes the toilet this morning, he notices our little resident frog swimming for his life against the tide. Thankfully, it survives the toilet-bowl-cyclone, and David manages to rescue him, creating a makeshift ladder with toilet paper for it to climb out.

Just as we are getting dressed, the electricity goes off. I really don’t enjoy putting my clothes on by torchlight.

Game Drive

We have a different vehicle this morning, this one has a larger front seat, and the tiered seating in the back is properly shaped seats rather than benches. It is classed as a Photographic Safari vehicle, whatever the difference is.

Giraffes

As we have done every morning here at South Luangwa National Park, we see a tower of giraffes just along from the lodge. There are seven of them this morning.

The light is gorgeous this morning.

Waterbuck

White Crowned Plover

Blacksmith Lapwing

Look at how well the chick blends into the environment

Warthogs

Impala

Saddle Billed Stork

Unlike many other safari-goers, who are only interested in seeing big game, I take great delight in watching this Saddle Billed Stork catching a fish and then stabbing it to death and washing it in the pond, before eating it.

Here you can see a short video of how brutally the stork stabs the fish to kill it.

Goliath Heron

Another warthog. It looks to the naked eye like she (you can tell it’s a female because she only has one wart, males have two) is eating sand, but if you look really closely, there are some tiny tufts of grass in the sand. It looks like too much hard work for very little reward to me.

Crowned Eagle - we see him swoop down to the ground and fly back into the tree, where he settles down to eat the baby baboon he just killed

More warthogs. These are digging for roots, tubers, and lichen. They leave the outer parts, which are then eaten by the baboons.

Yellow Baboons finishing off what the warthogs left behind

I love the way nature works in that these two species do not compete for food, they live happily side by side in a symbiotic relationship, both looking out for danger for each other.

Impala

Southern Ground Hornbills

Crawshay's Zebra

Temmick's Courser

Little Bee Eater

Baby Yellow Baboon

This little guy, who Andrew estimates is just a few weeks old, is full of life, much to his mother’s chagrin.

We even see a unicorn

Otherwise known as a Puku with a damaged horn

More Puku

South Luangwa National Park is traversed by a multitude of tracks crisscrossing a small area multiple times fairly close together. This means, of course, that we can see so much more in a small area, as it is more difficult for any animals to find somewhere to hide.

Map showing all the paths just inside the park entrance

Tea Stop

We stop in a safe place overlooking the river for our morning picnic with tea (or coffee) and a muffin.

Me, covered up against the dust

Before we left home, we invested in a foldable chair with a toilet seat for those awkward bush stops. Today is the first time I am using it, and it works very well.

It folds down flat and fits in my suitcase, which is very handy.

Egyptian Geese

Crocodile

African Spoonbill

It is time to move on to explore more of the park.

Andrew and I are in the front, David is in the back

Lilac Breasted Roller

White Fronted Bee Eater

Elephant Dung

Andrew explains that these droppings come from a young elephant, as the animal has not developed good teeth yet, and has ended up eating a lot of soil, making the excrement rather dark.

He proceeds to give us a fascinating insight into animal poo vocabulary: Droppings from a carnivore are called scats, from a herbivore they are known as dung and an omnivore’s droppings are called faeces.

Hippo

Further along the river, we spend some time watching a pod of hippos (also known as a bloat).

With so many animals in close proximity, there is bound to be some disagreement, either over (lack of) personal space, or dominance.

Yellow Billed Oxpecker and White Crowned Lapwing

Leopard

While we are busy watching and photographing the hippos, Andrew hears baboon warning calls and we swiftly head in the direction of the calls, where we see the tail of a leopard disappearing into the long grass.

He’s a young male and very skittish, but we follow him through the long grass at a respectful distance.

He briefly comes out into the open but we can tell he is very nervous.

A couple of other cars have turned up now, and one of them gets a little too close for his comfort, and the leopard sprints off into the undergrowth, not to be seen again.

Time for us to head back to camp, where we meet up with Jim, our usual driver, who we have not seen for the last couple of days.

Jim at Wildlife Camp

TrailCam

Back in the room, we check out the memory card of the motion-activated camera we set up facing our chalet, and are quite excited about what we find.

The first animal we see is David going down to get the card out of the camera.

Yellow Baboons

Lunch

Aubergine bake - it is not as gross as it looks, but it is still not my favorite meal on this trip

Yellow Baboons

The whole area around the restaurant is full of baboons this lunchtime, and they are cheeky as anything, eyeing up our food.

The barman does his best to keep them at bay, by scaring them away with small stones and a catapult. We wondered what the catapult on the bar was for.

As soon as the barman goes back to his real job, one of the baboons sees his chance, and in one fell swoop he steals a bread roll from someone’s lunch plate.

David in the elephant chair in the lounge

Afternoon Game Drive

More giraffes in the usual place, they obviously like it here

Scary Elephant Encounter

Where the track from our camp joins the sealed road from other lodges, there is a bit of a traffic jam. We soon discover the reason for the hold-up: an elephant in the road, eating happily on the shrubbery next to the track.

The elephant appears to get a little angsty as a result of all the vehicles, so the park rangers are called for.

Fearing the safety of the cyclists on the road, as well as tourists in open safari vehicles (an angry elephant can easily turn a large car over, and with so many cars packed into a small space, we are like sitting ducks), the rangers try to get the animal off the road and back into the bush where he belongs, by firing their guns in the air. Sadly it backfires on them (pun not intended), and it makes the elephant even more agitated, sending the drivers at the front into a panic.

Several more shots are fired, sending the now-terrified animal into a complete spin, and the frenzied safari drivers jamming their vehicles into reverse gear and trying to move backwards at break-neck speed. We are all holding on for dear life while our hearts are beating nineteen to the dozen, as we hope no vehicles hit the one behind them in the mad scramble to get away from the marauding elephant. They don’t, which is a miracle in itself. Some tourists are screaming hysterically, while others, such as myself, are trying to record the pandemonium – unsuccessfully, I hasten to add, as I had to delete most of the footage as it was way too shaky. Not sure if that was the movement of the car or my jittery nerves.

We all breathe a huge sigh of relief when the overwrought elephant escapes back into the bush, unfortunately in the wrong direction – towards the village, where he will no doubt be further harassed by humans.

With our adrenalin still running high after the intimidating encounter, not much is spoken in the car on our way to the park entrance. It certainly makes me appreciate who is in charge of the jungle, and it is not us humans. We are mere guests in their universe, and should show them the respect their deserve. I am sure the rangers know what they are doing, after all, this is their life, but I feel uneasy about how the unnerving situation was handled.

Mind you, they can’t be too careful – we read this in the news last night, it happened a few days ago (NOT in South Luangwa, though):

And now for something much more sedate

Crocodile

The Metatarsal Glands on the Impala's back legs (the black patches on their legs) are unique. When distressed, the impalas kick their legs, which makes the gland give off a pungent musky aroma. When a group of impalas reacts to a threat from a predator and they scatter in all directions, the scent makes it easier to find each other again once the threat is over. Ain't nature grand?

Puku

Spotted Hyena

Not a frequent sighting, Andrew gets quite excited when a hyena casually strolls over fairly close to our vehicle.

He walks straight past a group of impala, while a couple of giraffes look on with curiosity.

As the hyena rolls in the sand to mark his scent, the giraffe comes closer to check him out.

As do the zebra

Hippo

Hippo skull

Lucy, the Queen of the Valley

We join a few other vehicles to admire the most famous leopard in South Luangwa: Lucy.

She seems quite content as she looks out over her domain before sprucing herself up a little ready for tonight’s hunt.

When she feels clean enough, she has a good stretch and gets up, much to our delight.

Initially, she heads to our right, and we lose sight of her behind the other vehicle.

She then reappears right in front of our vehicle and proceeds to walk past our car, almost within touching distance.

She is too close to photograph successfully, but more than that, I feel extremely vulnerable, sitting in the front seat of an open car, with no front screen, no side wall, and no door, just completely open to the elements (and a dangerous predator). Realising the potential threat, Andrew starts the car engine ready to make a quick getaway should it become necessary.

Full of trepidation and a pounding heart, and with chills of awe running down my spine, I wonder how much more excitement an old girl can take in a day.

We leave Lucy to do her own thing as she slinks off into the bush, and we head for a suitable place to have a sundowner.

Savanna and popcorn, but no sunset to speak of

As we’re packing up the car to move on, Andrew says: “The leopard has followed us, I can see her”. What??????? Here we are, outside the vehicle, in the dark, and he just casually mentions that he can see the leopard close by. I wish I felt as cool and collected as he does.

We follow her for a short while as she is illuminated in the lights from the vehicles and spotters, then let her be to do her nocturnal hunting.

Dinner

We are late getting back from the game drive, and I go straight to dinner while David pops back to the chalet with the camera gear. He comes back telling me he saw a scorpion on the doorstep. I, in turn, can share that a genet walked through the restaurant while David was in the room.

Mixed samosa with a bit of a kick

Lamb curry

Caramel pudding

Freddy the Frog is still in our room when we get back, and we hope he has learned his lesson about taking a bath in our toilet.

And so a thrilling day comes to an end, and I want to thank Undiscovered Destinations and their local teams for making this trip happen.

After going to bed in a power cut last night, we were pleased when the electricity was restored at 00:14. At least it means we don’t have to get dressed in the dark this morning.

Morning Game Drive

Giraffes

Just along from the lodge, we are greeted by a tower of giraffes, all 16 of them!

These are Thornicroft Giraffes, a subspecies of the more common Maasai Giraffe, although some people do believe it is a species in its own right. It is endemic to Zambia.

Today I learn that while the collective noun of giraffes standing around is called a tower (which I knew already), when they are walking, they are known as a journey.

I love how the different colouring develops as the giraffes age

Impala

The reason for these impalas gathering on a mound under a tree is that there are monkeys in the branches above who drop fruit on the ground and also act as an early warning system for any danger.

Park Entrance

This morning there is a line of cars waiting to enter South Luangwa National Park; the delay is caused by a South African self-drive vehicle whose paperwork is not in order.

The security guard checks Andrew's papers and our permits

Blacksmith Lapwing

Black Crake

African Jacana

Hammerkop on a Hippo

The Hippo has a baby!

Puku

Impala

Saddle Billed Stork

Weaver Nests

The White Browed Sparrow Weaver builds nests on thorny trees for protection against snakes. The nests are usually found on the far end of the branch, as the snake would be too heavy to go out that far. The nests are built on the Eastern side of the tree in order to catch the early morning sun.

These elaborate nests have an added security detail in case of an attack by a snake – they have two entrances, so if the predator enters one of them, the bird can quickly exit through the other.

Mfuwe Pride of Lions

This is the most successful - and largest - pride in the area, although we initially see just two males under a tree in the distance.

The older they get, the darker the mane becomes

Moving closer, we see another 14 cats soaking up the warmth from the early morning sun spread out over an open area. Lions do not like walking in the long grass early in the morning or late afternoon, as the grass is damp from dew. In other words: they don't like getting their feet wet. But then again, who does?

At first, they are extremely inactive, barely raising a head to look around before lying down again.

Sub-adult cub, around three years old

Then one of them spots a couple of zebra, sparking some interest.

Hunting position - will we see a chase?

They soon lose interest.

Many of the other vehicles around the pride also lose interest, and leave, being replaced with others. We, and a hardcore of two other cars, stay to see what happens and are rewarded with some gentle action as the lions start getting up, one by one.

Having warmed their bodies in the morning sun, they now head into the bush to find a shady spot to spend the day.

After being blessed with a delightful hour with these beauties, we move on to see what else nature has to offer us today.

Red Necked Spurfowl

Grey Crowned Cranes

Helmeted Guineafowl

Picnic

As usual, Andrew finds us a safe place to stop and have a cup of tea and some biscuits.

Andrew and David

We overlook a small waterhole

Getting back in the car to continue our explorations of the park

Also known as The Modern Dinosaur, the Southern Ground Hornbill can live to 70 years old or more.

The stunning Malachite Kingfisher

Fork Tailed Drongo

Hippo

A magnificent Baobab tree

Crawshay's Zebra

Wildlife Hide

As soon as we get back to camp, we head straight for their hide, which is accessed across a rickety metal bridge.

Padded bench seats and a shelf for camera equipment and binoculars

There is not much going on out there at the moment

After sitting quietly for a while, a few birds and animals start to arrive.

Fork Tailed Drongo

Greater Blue Eared Starling

White Fronted Bee Eater

One of them is having a funny moment

The other one catches a butterfly

Banded Mongoose

Originally rescued from the floods in 2014 by the barman, they have stayed around and brought up their babies here ever since. The camp enjoys having them around, as they keep the snake population at bay.

Lunch

After having no dinner last night, I am really hungry when lunch comes around. So hungry, in fact, that I forget to take photos. The quiche with bacon is served warm, which I didn’t expect. I am normally not a fan of quiche, but I really enjoy this one – even the pastry is nice.

David tries out the local beer

Afternoon Game Drive

Waterbuck and Impala

Waterbuck

Saddle Billed Stork

You can tell their sex by the colour of their eyes: this one is a male (brown eyes, while the female has yellow eyes). The red patch at the front is where he has removed his feathers to help incubate the eggs. It makes us wonder where his mate is, as they mate for life.

They spread their wings like this to glean acid from their uropygial gland which they spread on their body to get rid of ectoparasites.

Elephant Loop

We take a drive down a track called Elephant Loop, and sure enough, we soon spot a little family of them.

The little baby (Andrew estimates he’s around three years old) is so cute. He is bothered by a fly, and does a little ‘dance’ while waving his trunk around trying to get rid of it.

Kudu

The chevron pattern of the forehead is designed to improve their night vision.

Female

Fully grown male with its magnificent horns

Cape Buffalo

Sundowners

We stop and alight the vehicle down by the river to indulge in some drinks and nibbles.

The light is fading fast now, and our spotter, Mago, gets his powerful spot-light out to shine on any animals we come across after dark.

Puku – I notice the one on the right has lost its tail.

Large Spotted Genet

I am really impressed how Mago manages to spot this tiny Flap Necked Chameleon in the foliage on the side of the road. What a treat!

Elephants

Initially hiding in the bushes, we are delighted when she breaks out and crosses the road. Even more exciting is the fact that she has a young baby with her.

Elephant Shrew - another tiny animal that Mago manages to see in the undergrowth

White Tailed Mongoose

Andrew assures us there is a Bushbaby in the tree. It’s not until it moves that we can see it, and even then only its tail and some more fur.

Dinner

We start with something they call “Half Moon”, which is pasta filled with spinach in a tomato sauce – basically like a large ravioli. It is very pleasant.

The main course is pork tenderloin with mash and vegetables. The meat is tender and rather enjoyable.

The dessert of waffles and homemade ice cream is delicious.

I set up my tripod and camera on the terrace in front of the restaurant, hoping to do some astrophotography, but I am disappointed to find that the Milky Way is lurking behind a bunch of trees. Time to go to bed instead.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this amazing Great Africa Trip 2024.

The power cut from last night lasted all through the night, and we have to get up by torchlight at 5am this morning.

Breakfast

The breakfast isn’t much to write home about, just some toast with either jam or butter, fruit and cereal. I’ve never been a lover of cereals (I don’t like milk), so I just have some fruit and toast with peanut butter. David has cornflakes but misses his full English breakfast.

Safari time

We are allocated a driver for our safaris here in South Luangwa, a nice chap called Andrew.

Giraffes fighting

Just along the track from the camp, before we even hit the main road, we see a couple of male giraffes trying to establish dominance.

The fighting involves mostly banging their neck against the opponent with a real thud, audible to us in the car.

After several minutes, there is still no clear winner, and they just walk off in unison.

These are Thornicroft Giraffe, a subspecies of the Masai giraffe, although some people believe it to be a species in its own right. It is certainly a new (sub)species to us.

Warthogs

Elephants

The elephants on this side of the park entrance get chased by the villages, who antagonise them. As a result, many have become quite aggressive and can be dangerous. They are right by the road and are eyeing us suspiciously.

When one of them starts to roar, I find it quite scary, and Andrew moves on hastily.

Luangwa River

We cross the river in the company of a troop of Yellow Baboons.

South Luangwa National Park

While we are waiting for Andrew to sort our permits out, we can hear a lion roar. It sounds like he is quite close. How exciting!

Elephant mama with her one-year-old baby

Andrew explains that because of the relatively small size of South Luangwa National Park, inbreeding is common, leading to the animals generally being smaller than they are in other parks.

Crowned Hornbill

Impala Dung

These common antelopes produce dung middens when mating – males create piles with strong chemicals warning off other males, and droppings / urine from females gives off signals to males that they are sexually active. As Andrew says: “These areas may only look like a pile of poo to us, but they are the centre of communications for Impala”.

Warthog

Lilac Breasted Roller

These stunning birds – one of my all-time favourite African birds – have got their name from their unusual courting actions: they roll in the air to attract a mate. As they are not songbirds, they have to show off their colours (seven) in order to let the opposite sex know they are interested and ready to mate.

Tree Squirrels

These cute little rodents are very territorial, although one male usually has several females in his harem.

Mangola Lagoon

We stop for a while at these wetlands with their rich birdlife.

At 1.5 metres in length and with a wingspan of two metres, the Goliath Heron is the largest of all herons, not just in Africa. They are monogamous, and both parents help raise the chicks.

African Open Billed Stork

Egyptian Geese

African Jacana are unusual in that they are polyandrous: the females mate with multiple partners to ensure successful breeding. After laying the egg, she leaves the male to raise the babies from eggs to young. These birds have a couple of different nicknames: Lily Trotters for their ability to walk on lily pads, or Jesus Birds as it appears they can walk on water.

Meve's Starling - also known as the Long-Tailed Starling

Yellow Baboon

Lions

In the distance, we see two male lions on the move, and from further away Wild Dogs are calling. These two species are enemies, and the dogs will vacate any area where lions roam. So that is my chance of seeing Wild Dogs scuppered this morning, my main target species for this trip.

Black-Faced Vervet Monkey

Puku

While this near-threatened antelope is not completely new to us, we have only seen one briefly some 22 years ago, so I am very excited about this sighting.

Hippo out of water

Although they tend to spend most of the daylight hours submerged in rivers and lakes with just their eyes and noses visible, you sometimes do see them on land. Their hairless skin is susceptible to sunburn, but they have the ability to create their own ‘suntan lotion’: they secrete a thick, reddish, oily substance from their pores which protects them by absorbing ultraviolet radiation. This is why hippos look pink when out of the water.

Namaqua Dove

Crawshay’s Zebra

This subspecies of the Plains Zebra is new to us, so one to tick off the wish list. They live in harems with one dominant male.

Tea Time

Andrew stops the car at a wide, open, flat area overlooking the Luangwa River where we have a short break with tea and biscuits while watching the wildlife in the water below.

Crocodile

White Crowned Lapwing

African Pied Wagtail

Hippo squabble

Andrew gets a call on the radio and quickly packs up the picnic stuff and we head off. He won’t tell us where, or why, we are going, just saying “You’ll like it”.

On the way, we spot an elephant in musth, as seen by the secretion of liquid from his temporal gland. This means that he is actively looking for a sexual partner, and elephants can be extremely aggressive at this time, so we hastily move on.

We do have to stop at the Zebra Crossing though.

In the distance, we see a gathering of safari vehicles and realise it must be an important sighting. Maybe a big cat? Andrew pulls up and we strain to look at a huddle of animals across a ravine in a small patch of shade under a tree. My eyes take a few seconds to realise what they are: Wild Dogs!

The wild dog is one of the world’s most endangered mammals and these are monitored by the Zambia Carnivore Program, and several of the dogs are fitted with collars for that purpose.

Photographically, these dogs are an enormous challenge, as they are in the darkness of shade with very bright grass in front and behind (and took a lot of editing in post-processing). There are also grasses on this side of the ravine that partially obscure their faces and bodies.

As hunters, Wild Dogs are the most successful of all the African species, with a success rate of somewhere between 70% and 80%. In comparison, lions have a mere 45% hit rate, with leopards a slightly better 50%.

This pack has obviously made a recent kill, judging by all the White-Backed Vultures gathering nearby.

We stay with the dogs for around an hour, and in that time many vehicles come and go (which means we can change our view point occasionally), including one safari truck with 16 (!) people whose occupants take a few snapshots with their phone while the driver doesn’t even switch his engine off before driving off after two minutes. When I comment on it to Andrew, he simply shrugs his shoulders: “They’re Indian, they’re only interested in seeing lions”.

African Wild Dogs live in packs of up to 27 – here there are seven of them.

We reluctantly say goodbye to the dogs and head back to the lodge for lunch, which we are already late for. It is worth it though, I am ecstatic to have seen the animals at the very top of my wish list. What a morning it has been!

Back at the lodge, we are asked how our morning has been and I quip: “It was boring. We only saw fighting giraffes, a couple of lions, hippos squabbking, and a baby elephant.” Everyone laughs, but when I add “Oh, and we saw a pack of seven wild dogs”, gasps are heard from other guests who are most envious as they too spent the morning looking for the dogs, but never found them. They are on a self-drive, however, so don’t have the added advantage of radio communication between drivers. That is why I would always have a local driver when I go on safari.

Lunch

Lunch is a creamy chicken stir fry which is very tasty (apart from the ubiquitous cucumber).

David, however, is not feeling great. He puts it down to drinking the tap water, which we were assured is safe as it comes from their own borehole. I have been drinking the same water, with no ill effect, and it is usually me who suffers (due to my severe IBS), while David’s cast-iron stomach normally protects him from tummy upsets.

After lunch, we spend some time sitting on the balcony, cleaning our cameras while watching a herd of elephants walk by.

The amount of dust after just a few hours in the bush!

It is slightly unnerving when an elephant looks straight at you like this

TrailCam

We also check out the movement-triggered camera we set up yesterday, to see if anything interesting walked past our cabin in the night or early this morning. All we’ve captured is a couple of Yellow Baboons and a service worker moving the chair on our balcony.

Afternoon game drive

Before this evening’s safari, we are offered tea and coffee and some cakes in the bar.

The bar is decorated with drawings of wild dogs

Coffee and Cakes

African Fish Eagle

At first, he looks relaxed on his lofty perch, then starts getting ready to fly.

We are quite surprised when he lands on the ground.

Hopping about, he finds a higher viewpoint, obviously looking for something.

We are not quite sure what he has caught – could it be a squirrel, or maybe some building materials for his nest?

Waterbuck

Often found near water or in marshes, these antelopes can splay their feet so that they don’t get stuck in mud.

Sacred Ibis - the Egyptians consider this bird the Goddess of Wisdom

Elephant Tracks

Andrew explains that the elephant has passed through here very recently, from right to left, dragging his trunk on the ground in the process. He goes on to say: "Although it could easily have been his ‘fifth leg’ as sometimes they bring it out to help cool down as it has such thin skin".

You can tell it recently passed by, as its footprint is on top of the track made by the last vehicle to come through.

Sundowners

We stop at a place overlooking the river for drinks and snacks as the sun goes down.

From here we can see the much more basic bush camp across the river, which is part of our lodge, some 1.5 km from the main lodge area where we are staying.

Crocodile in the river

Grey Headed Kingfisher

Not a bad sunset

Night Drive

This evening we have a spotter called Mago with us, who has a powerful spotlight to illuminate any animals we may come across after dark.

The first thing we see is a few hippos.

Leopard

Andrew stops the car and Mago shines the light into the long grass. I can’t see anything. “It’s a leopard”, Andrew says. Really?

OK, now I can see it. Just.

We move nearer, joining a couple of other vehicles.

The excitement soars when she starts to walk towards us.

She walks alongside one of the other vehicles before crossing the road in front of us. What a glorious sighting!

There is something really exciting about seeing animals in the dark, it adds mystery and the unexpected.

After settling down in a clearing for a few minutes, the beautiful cat disappears into the bush, probably to go hunting.

We start to make our way back towards the lodge, stopping to shine a light on various animals we see on the way.

More Hippoz

This one looks like it's had an encounter with a less-than-friendly crocodile or big cat

Large Spotted Genet

An elephant right by the side of the road just outside the park border

On return to the camp, we head straight for bed, giving dinner a miss, as David’s tummy is not feeling well at all.

Just as happened yesterday, there is a power cut at 22:10, but thankfully it is restored at 00:15. I hate having to fight with the mosquito net when I go to the loo in the night at the best of times, let alone by torchlight.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this amazing trip for us.

I slept well last night, despite a series of rather unpleasant dreams.

Breakfast

I start with a bowl of muesli to go with my weekly Lariam (Meflaquine) anti-malaria tablet. One of the side effects of Lariam is bad dreams, so I am looking forward to some lovely extra nightmares tonight.

I follow with some fried eggs on toast, while David has his usual Full English.

Packed and ready to go, waiting in reception for Jim who went home to his family overnight

Last minute bird watching in the hotel grounds: Dark Capped Bulbul

Today we are heading west, leaving Malawi behind and crossing the border into Zambia and on to South Luangwa National Park.

As usual, I practice some drive-by-shooting (taking photos from a moving car)

National Monument

Public bus

Wood on a bicycle

Charcoal on a bicycle

This would be hard to handle in the traffic!

Border Crossing

As we pull up near the modern border terminal, a lady comes to check Jim’s paperwork and is soon joined by a couple of men, also looking at the documents.

Very misleading sign!

Just inside the door of the terminal building, an official pre-checks our passports before we proceed to the immigration counter. He looks at David’s British passport and asks: “Are you winning the Euros?”

The first counter is the Malawi immigration. The officer struggles to find the stamp I received when we entered Malawi, despite looking through my passport several times. That’s the problem with travelling a lot, the stamps do end up in a muddle. Eventually, I take the passport from him and flick through to the correct page. Happy that I had entered the country legally, he stamps me out again.

At the Zambian immigration counter, the young lady asks how long I am staying in the country (6 days), stamps my passport, and gives me a 10-day permit.

We return to the car and wait for the vehicle paperwork to be completed. Jim is called back into the building again for some form-filling. There are now 14 cars waiting to be processed plus a huge overland truck, and not one of them has moved since we got here. At least the hold-up is not personal.

Jim comes back out again and asks if we have US$50 he can borrow to save him from going to the bank as he only has local currency. Apparently, the last time he came through here they messed up his stamp. The officials are reluctant to let him pass through the border, and have called their big boss – who wants his palms greased, hence the ‘fee’. He eventually comes out again with permission to go, and a letter to say he has to return to this point on the 6th of July to collect his new Transit Permit.

There are still bits of paperwork missing, and now their system has gone down, so we eat our picnic in the car while we wait. We also take the opportunity to perform a small ceremony for a young girl.

Clare Spruce

Way back in 2008, I was very friendly with a chap in the office called David Spruce. He was well-travelled, like me, and his daughter Clare was on a gap year through Africa at the time. Every morning David would stop and chat with me on the way to his desk, tell me about Clare’s latest experiences, and show me photos she had sent him. I felt I knew Clare personally.

On the 7th of November that year, I answered David’s phone as he was out of the office, to some bad news. Clare had been killed in Malawi. As is only to be expected, when he came back into the office, David was a mess. All I could do was offer my sympathies and a shoulder to cry on, something David took advantage of several times over the following weeks.

An article in the paper at the time

Despite never having met Clare, the incident affected me deeply, and I often thought about her over the years. Knowing that we would be crossing the same border as she did back then, I wanted to remember Clare in the only way I could think of, by scattering some rose petals over her photograph.

An emotional moment

Just as we think we are getting sorted for exiting Malawi, a chap (hired by our local agent to do all the legwork so Jim doesn't have to queue 'forever') comes back out to ask for Jim’s driving licence and passport, and not long after he returns with one of the $20 bills we gave out earlier, claiming he cannot accept it because it is torn.

I have always known that some countries will insist on completely pristine notes, but I have never experienced one being rejected before (if they had seen the state of some of the bills we accepted when I worked for a bank in the UK, they would be horrified!)

Finally, we have all the necessary paperwork for the vehicle (Transit Pass, Council Tax, Carbon Tax, Toll Fee, and Insurance), and the all-important sticker on the windscreen, and we leave Malawi behind.

The lady officer on the barrier to pass into Zambia wants to see all the paperwork. Fair enough, but when she complains that the Council Tax permit should be on a separate paper, Jim loses it, as it was the immigration officers who produced it this way, and he wouldn’t have got the sticker for the window if the paperwork wasn’t in order. After some arguing back and forth, she reluctantly lets us through. Two hours and 40 minutes it took in total.

Zambian Street Scenes - not that different from Malawian

Wildlife Camp

While our lodge is technically outside the main South Luangwa National Park, the animals do not know this, and wander freely across the park border. As soon as we turn off the main road to a dirt track leading to the camp, we spot a herd of elephants.

The welcome here at Wildlife Lodge is decidedly low-key and somewhat underwhelming. Reception is unmanned and as we loiter a little, the barman strolls over and introduces himself. We are given no briefing as such, just shown to the room, while Jim and David bring our bags down.

The rooms are individual chalets overlooking the now-almost-dry river, with a delightful balcony where we can sit and watch all the goings on.

The interior is spacious, albeit a little basic, with two single beds pushed together, covered with a mosquito net, a small table, a luggage rack, and a desk with a chair. There is also a coffee-making station. The floor is bare concrete with a couple of rugs.

The bathroom is home to a cute little frog.

With the addition of a couple of Coke Zero from the bar, we spend the rest of the afternoon on the balcony seeing if we can spot some of the local wildlife.

Impala

Warthog

Bushbuck

Yellow Baboon

Lazy Cisticola

David attaches the trail camera to a tree looking back at our room.

As the sun sets, we no longer feel safe on the balcony and retire to the room for a shower before dinner. It’s not just the large animals we are concerned about, but also biting insects. There is obviously a reason for the mosquito nets!

Dinner

The obligatory Savanna

Pumpkin soup. Creamy, tasty, slightly peppery, and very hot.

Lasagne. Not so hot. I find it tastes quite greasy, although it does improve with some salt and pepper

Unlike the last safari lodge we stayed, where the manager informed the chef we don’t like cucumber, here they end up left on the side of the plate.

Creme Caramel. Not too sweet, with a strange, almost curdled texture. Nonetheless, it is very enjoyable.

After dinner, we retire to bed. The lights go off at 22:20 (power cut), and I find the bed rather uncomfortable with a very unsupportive pillow. I try propping it up with my fleece underneath, but that just makes it lumpy. The room is way too hot, and with no electricity, we can’t cool down by using the fan. I open all the windows, hoping that will help some. Having taken the nightmare-inducing antimalarial tablets Lariam this morning, it all bodes for a ‘fun’ night.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this incredible Great Africa Tour 2024.

After a bad, bad night with some dreadful dreams, I wake to everything hurting: my knee, my sacroiliac joint, my shoulders, neck. and hands when I move – in fact even just blowing my nose and coughing sends pain through my body. Hopefully, after I move around a bit, it will ease.

Breakfast

After a very refreshing fruit salad of bananas and papaya, I have some poached egg and bacon, whereas David indulges in a full English breakfast as usual.

Yet again we are moving on to pastures new, this time towards Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe.

We’re all packed and ready to go. While, as a photographer, I really struggle to travel light, we have spread our stuff over more bags than ever on this trip!

Cameras, lenses, stool, tripod, photographic accessories, medical bag, walking stick, water, Duty-Free bag....

Chembe Village

As we did on the way to the lodge a couple of days ago, we drive right through the heart of the small fishing community as we leave.

There are racks with fish drying all over the village, and many have small temporary ‘huts’ underneath them, where the fishermen who come from elsewhere live while they are here.

Preparing the nets

Charcoal and tomatoes - an unusual combination

Every day is laundry day in Chembe

Firing up the BBQ

Electronics store

Clothes market

I find it interesting that here in Malawi, what we would call ‘sweet potatoes’, they merely refer to as ‘potatoes’, whereas what is simply named ‘potatoes’ in the UK, here they use the term ‘Irish potatoes’. These are what we would call ‘sweet potatoes’.

Butcher shop

We leave the village behind and make our way through Lake Malawi National Park on our way to Lilongwe, the country’s capital, for our last night here in Malawi before we cross over into Zambia for the next part of our adventure.

A man herds his goats across barren land

Floor mats

Jim (our driver-guide) spots a man on a bicycle carrying some woven mats and stops him. The salesman unrolls his wares, and after careful consideration, Jim buys three of them for the princely sum of approximately US$3.

These girls are carrying straw that will be used for thatching. Usually, it is put on the roof at the time of the first rain, as when the grass is wet, it is held down easier from the wind.

Most of the roads we have driven on between parks here in Malawi have been in a bad state: often just a series of potholes held together with bits of tarmac. Here they have made a concerted effort to repair the road, leading to a patchwork pattern.

Donkey cart

Cattle in the road

Loofah

I have always been under the misguided impression that the loofahs we use in the bathroom came from the sea. How wrong could I be! It is in fact a creeper in the cucumber family, and when the fruit is small, it can be sliced, cooked, and eaten as a vegetable.

The plant with the typically loofah-shaped fruit

Loofah flower

Baobab Tree

As they get older, the centre of these iconic, and extremely versatile, trees starts to die out, often creating a large hollow where animals have been known to make their homes.

Here is a few other ways the baobab is useful:

We see another baobab tree later, whose bottom part of the trunk looks like an elephant’s foot, complete with nails.

Beautifully colour coordinated!

Tobacco plants. They need to be processed before they are turned into cigarettes, although some plants can be smoked straight away, which are favoured by the locals.

Lots of activity at the week

Drying rice on the side of the road

KuNgoni Centre of Culture and Art

Based under Mua Mission, the centre was founded by Father Claude Boucher Chisale who came to Malawi as a missionary in 1967. The centre started as a cooperative for wood carvers. Later, the Chamare Museum was opened to promote Malawi culture with ethnographic collections on the Chewa, Yao, and Ngoni peoples who make this area their home.

We are allocated a guide called Chikondi, who takes us through the three rooms of the museum and explains the origins, differences, and customs of the three tribes.

The chameleon is the symbol of eternal life

The matrilineal society of Chewa are Bantu people who came from Nigeria, Cameroon, and Congo, and now make up the majority. The Ngoni are descendants of the Zulu and are patrilineal, as are the Muslim Yao who hail from Mozambique.

Much of the museum (where photography is unfortunately not permitted in an effort to preserve the local culture) focuses on the secret society of initiated men known as Gule Wamkulu. Dancers wear costumes and masks made of wood and straw, representing a great variety of characters, such as wild animals, spirits of the dead, and slave traders. Each of these figures plays a particular, often evil, character expressing a form of misbehavior, teaching the audience moral and social values.

I am not going to go into great detail about the dances and rituals (it took Claude Baucher Chisale 40 years to compile his information), but you can read more about the various characters here.

Gule Wamkulu has been inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Wood Carving Workshop

Exit is through the shop, where work from numerous artists is displayed, with the Mission acting as intermediaries and selling the art on behalf of the workers. We buy a mask to add to our already large collection.

Beautifully crafted items for sale

Lunch

We take a picnic lunch in the grounds of the Mission, under the shade of a tree.

I’m impressed by the beautifully decorated – inside and out - toilet facilities available here.

Ebony tree, also in the grounds of the Mission

In the local village, we stop to buy an empty crate to assist me in getting into the high back seat of Jim’s car.

Road Checks

Every few miles, the road is blocked for a police check. The people manning those checkpoints have just one speed: dead slow. They wait until the car has reached the barrier, when they will slowly get up off their chair and saunter over towards the car, check us out, and open the road for us. Every. Single. Time.

Jim suggests that taking pictures is not a good idea, but I sneak a little covert photo anyway

Overloaded cars such as this one is one of the reasons for the police checks

Cattle along the road

Spooky

We see a couple of the aforementioned Gule Wamkulu walking across the field and as I open the window to take some photos, Jim warns: “be careful, these people are dangerous”. I fire off half a dozen shots and we are on our way. When I look at the pictures on the back of my camera, not a single one has come out. “I am not surprised,” says Jim, "they have hidden powers" (there are over 200 different characters, some more approachable than others).

Soon afterwards, we spot another, lone figure, who Jim is more than happy to stop and talk to and ask if I can take a photo. He obliges, and I slip him a small banknote as thanks.

Two more Gule Wamkulu later come along the road, this time Jim does not stop, so I do some drive-by-shooting (take photos from the moving car).

Africa House

Our Hotel for the night is on the outskirts of the city, so we don’t get to see much of Lilongwe, the capital.

The entrance to Africa House

An inner courtyard leads to the rooms, each one named for an African destination. Ours is Zanzibar.

The courtyard

Our room

David thinks it looks like a warehouse and isn’t overly impressed, whereas I see it as a quaint boutique hotel.

The bar

A huge wooden dining table with beautiful hand-carved chairs, each one different

There are lots of little nooks and crannies where you can sit and get away from the other guests. There doesn’t seem to be many people staying, however, although we do see a chap on his laptop.

Everywhere we look there is African-inspired art.

Around 15:40, there is a power cut, so we sit outside on the covered terrace with a cider while we check our emails.

The terrace overlooking the gardens

South African Airlines flight changes

We are dismayed to find an email from South African Airlines informing us that our flight next week has been cancelled.

The fact that they are suggesting we travel from Zambia to SA one day later means that we will only have one night in Johannesburg, not two as pre-booked and paid for. It also means an extra night in Zambia we have not planned for. I message Mark of Undiscovered Destinations to ask his advice.

This is one of the many reasons we keep returning to Undiscovered Destinations when booking our trips: all pressure is taken from us, which is what you need when you are travelling in places with very limited internet and no mobile phone cover. Thank you, Mark.

At 17:30 the power is finally restored, and we return to the room with a couple of Coca-Colas from the bar to go with our Duty-Free rum. It’s only when we get to the room that we notice we’ve been short-changed on one of the Coke bottles.

Some rather nice mood lighting in the room

Dinner

We arrive just as the only other diner is just finishing his meal (probably the same chap we saw earlier on his laptop)

David's chicken curry - slightly sweet with a bit of a kick

My spicy stir-fried chicken with peanut sauce - while it is tasty, I would not class it as spicy, and I can only just taste the peanuts

Lightly fried bananas with cinnamon and a shot of Amarula - the combination works very well together and is a nice finish to the meal

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for all the efforts put into arranging this Great Africa Trip 2024 for us.

Despite the hot room and narrow bed, I slept well last night here in our lodge on the shores of Lake Malawi..

Mouse?

The first thing we do this morning is to sort out the cases. I notice that a pair of my socks has something sticky and brown stuck to them, and later discover that the sachets of cappuccino power that we brought from home have been attacked by a small rodent of some sort.

When I later mention this to Jim, he tells me that they had to repair the thatch on our cabin in Mvuu, after a tree squirrel managed to get in. It is strange that he (or she) went for the coffee rather than the cereal bars that are in the case. There is now a hyperactive squirrel in Liwonde, high on caffeine. Oops.

Breakfast

For some reason, I find the fact that we are presented with a breakfast menu this morning rather at odds with the somewhat basic standard of the lodge, especially as there was no menu for dinner last night.

Fruit salad - not on the menu, it just arrives

My pancakes

David has his usual Full English Breakfast while keeping up with the Euro 2024 news

Before we leave the restaurant, we are asked to order both lunch and dinner. I guess there is only us staying here again tonight.

We move one of the tables from the restaurant to our private veranda so that I can plug my laptop in while I back up my photos.

With my camera at the ready, just in case I see something interesting.

Black-Faced Vervet Monkey playing in the grounds of the lodge

White Tailed Skink

With breakfast

Fishermen on the lake

Lunch

The waiter offers to serve our lunch at the chalet, which seems to make sense.

David enjoys a succulent chicken burger

My sloppy fries are slightly spicy, with minced beef, beans, and cheese piled on potato fries

Sunset Cruise

We have to step into the water in order to get into the boat, as the jetty has been washed away by the recent floods.

Solomon, our guide for the afternoon

View of our lodge from the water - with a couple of ladies visiting for a late lunch

According to the locals, the water level in the lake has never been this high: many of the lake shore lodges are now partially under water.

Sangalala means "Be Happy". A bit difficult when your livelihood is flooded, I guess

All along the coastline of the lake are fishing villages. They catch a small fish known as Johnson, which they dry for three days before transporting it to sell in Lilongwe, Malawi's capital.

Johnson

David and Solomon

David and Jim

The captain, whose name I don't catch, despite asking three times

Cichlids

More than a thousand species of cichlids live in Lake Malawi, hundreds of which are endemic, and many of the fishtanks in houses around the world are home to these easy-to-keep aquarium fish. According to the Smithsonian, more than half the species in the lake have not yet been described.

We stop close to a series of boulders known as Thumbi Island, and Solomon brings out some cake which he breaks into smaller pieces and throws in the water.

There is instant chaos. Through the crystal clear water, we see thousands upon thousands of shimmering fish: blue, purple, yellow, brown, and the occasional flash of red swimming towards a small piece of cake as if their lives depend on it. Which in some ways it does, I guess.

Taken holding a waterproof camera under water over the edge of the boat

Fish Eagles

Once we have had our fill of cichlid photos, and the cichlids have had their fill of cake, Solomon eats the rest of the cake and we continue around the corner of the island for the next part of our adventure: feeding the African Fish Eagles.

A pair of eagles, known as Jo and Jerry, live in the trees on the island, and certainly know when food is being brought out on the boats.

Solomon whistles and calls their names, and they soar from their lofty perch to swoop down into the water where Solomon throws a fish.

Taking their supper back up into the trees to eat, once they have finished, they sit on a perch as if to say: “I’m ready for another fish, please”.

Eagle's eyrie

"Please may I have some more"

This scenario is repeated several times, until the birds let us know they are no longer hungry, but not appearing again after eating.

A time lapse photo collage of an African Fish Eagle diving

Sundowners

It’s time for our customary sundowners – I could get used to this.

"Would sir like a Savanna?"

No need to ask.

"And madam?" "I don't mind if I do."

Solomon enjoys a Coke as the sun goes down

It's not a bad sunset

Engine trouble

As is often the case with us and boats, the engine splutters and dies. After a few attempts by the captain and Solomon to get it going again, Jim comes to the rescue and declares it is caused by a ‘dirty filter’. Soon we are on our way back to the camp.

Chembe Eagles Nest

As we approach the lodge, I notice a couple of motorhomes have arrived in the campsite attached to the lodge.

Back in the restaurant, I try to log in to the hotel's wifi, but it seems they haven’t paid their bill.

Dinner

We are again the only diners in the restaurant this evening, and tonight Jim is not joining us either. The people from the campsite, however, are in the bar talking to the staff, apparently trying to arrange something. We chat to them as they return to their vans: they are from France and shipped their motorhomes from Rotterdam to South Africa and April and are making their way back to France overland, hoping to be home by Christmas. What an adventure! (they do admit to it being VERY frustrating at times)

The starter of chicken satay comes with a nice kick and a creamy sauce

The kampango fish fillet is more than big enough for the two of us to share. I find the coating a little greasy, but the flesh is quite nice and creamy. It is not until I get home and google the spelling of the fish, that I find it is a critically endangered large catfish. I feel guilty now.

Me: "What is it?" Waiter: "Dessert.". Me: "Yes, OK, but what is it?" Him: "Dessert". I give up and just eat it. I think it is meant to be a tiramisu.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this amazing Africa trip for us.

Today we are leaving Liwonde National Park behind and journeying north to Lake Malawi. But first, we ask if we can have a short game drive before breakfast.

Much to my disappointment, there are not many animals or birds out and about this morning.

The path winding its way amongst the Mopane Trees

Hippo on the airstrip

Grey Go Away Bird

Warthog

Rhino

Then our guide Danger gets very excited as he spots a rhino hiding in the undergrowth.

As this is a very rare sighting, we hang around for quite some time, hoping it will move. Eventually, after studying the animal very closely through the binoculars, Danger declares that he thinks that it is not a rhino as he first thought, but a buffalo. We drive closer to ascertain its species.

A buffalo identifying as a rhino

Helmeted Guineafowl

Impala

Tea Break

We stop at a suitable flat area overlooking Shire River to have a cup of tea and a biscuit.

Shire River

Danger making the teas and coffees

The sun is just rising

Breakfast

We return to Mvuu Lodge for breakfast earlier than we normally would, to give us a chance to leave at a reasonable time for today’s drive.

Breakfast overlooking the river

Granola, Yogurt, and Blueberry Jam. I follow this with two fried eggs and two sausages plus toast, but I forget to take a photo

During breakfast, we watch White Breasted Cormorants skim the surface of the river, hippos risking their eyes and nose above the water, and a couple of kingfishers doing what kingfishers do best: fishing.

White Breasted Cormorants

Hippos

Pied Kingfisher

It’s time to say goodbye to Liwonde National Park and head towards our next destination: Lake Malawi.

We're ready to roll

Jim stops the car a few times when he sees something interesting on the way to the gate

Livingstone's Flycatcher

Saddle Billed Stork

Python Vine - curls itself around other trees, always in an anticlockwise direction

Hippo highway

Sparrow weaver nests - always found on the north side of the tree, which helps anyone lost in the bush to navigate

ATM

Not far from the gate, we stop at a bank to get some local currency out of their ATM. David puts his card in the slot but is confused by the fact that the choices of amounts on the screen do not correspond to the amounts he was expecting (at ca 2500 kwacha to the pound, you’d expect to see amounts such as maybe 25,000 or 50,000 being available to withdraw, but the figures are in hundreds of thousands. It turns out that they do not add decimal points to the numbers). With Jim’s assistance, he tries to withdraw 300,000 (just over £10). The machine goes through all the motions (pin number etc.), and then finally a notice appears on the screen for him to “contact his bank”. The same thing happens with another card issued by another bank. Despite logging on to the app on his phone, David is unable to bypass these anti-fraud blocks, which I suppose is a good thing.

The only option left is queuing up inside the bank. The first teller he arrives at is unauthorised to process foreign transactions, so he has to line up again at another till. Finally, after showing his passport and giving them our accommodation address, he can walk away with the grand sum of just over £20 in local currency.

Picnic Lunch

At a suitable place along the road, we stop the car and Jim gets the picnic stuff out: table and chairs, tablecloth and a cool box with food prepared by Mvuu Lodge for us.

Chicken wrap (tasty and tender), fresh muffin, a bag of peanuts, an apple, and lychee juice

Gule Wamkulu

I see two people walking down the road dressed in some unusual outfits. Jim explains that these are men from a secret cult that is part of the Chewa society. They perform ritual dances at weddings, funerals, initiation ceremonies, and appointments of new village chiefs. These two appear to have come from the graveyard.

Lake Malawi National Park

The scenery here is very different, with huge boulders, different trees, and not as flat as the previous parks we have visited.

Public bus

Goat on bicycle

Chembe Village

Access to our lodge for the night is on a narrow track through the fishing village of Chembe.

Drying fish

Mending the fishing nets

Boys with their toys Africa style

Chembe Eagles Nest

The lodge is simple but more than adequate, with little cabins spread around the grounds just a stone's throw from the private beach.

Our cabin is the closest to the bar and restaurant

The inside is quite cramped with two single beds occupying most of the room

The secluded beach

The bar and open-air restaurant

The small swimming pool

We are the only people staying here tonight, and we make ourselves at home in the restaurant area, checking the internet and enjoying a Savanna Cider. It is hot and humid this afternoon, and quite cloudy.

View over Lake Malawi

Savanna Cider

Sunset

Despite the earlier clouds, or maybe as a result of those clouds, there is a reasonably good sunset this evening.

Dinner

There are two choices this evening: pork chop or a whole fish. As I don’t like to fight with bones in my food, nor do I like my food to be looking at me as I eat, I choose the pork chop. Jim, who despite not staying at the lodge, is dining with us this evening, has the fish.

Starter of crispy homemade nachos with a refreshing salsa

Pork chop (very tasty) with spinach, channa salad, mash and a tomato relish

David tries a different cider this evening - Hunter's Gold

Jim's fish

Dessert is described as "pancake with honey", although it tastes more like jam

We retire to a very early bed. The mosquito nets don’t quite reach all the way around the bed, so I leave one side open, as I hate having to fight with the net when I go to the loo in the night. It is very warm this evening, so we both spend most of the night sleeping on top of the covers.

Thank you so much to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this Great Africa Trip 2024 for us.

After grabbing a couple of biscuits from the restaurant, we head out for the early morning safari before it is even light out. The lodge provides some lovely fleece-lined wind-proofed ponchos to protect us from the cold, which is much appreciated in the chilly morning air.

Cheetah

When we saw the cheetah in Majete, Jim was insanely jealous, as despite all his previous game drives, he has never once seen one. I promised him we’d find him one in Liwonde, and the first thing we see this morning is a cheetah with a kill.

Jim is beside himself with excitement – his childlike enthusiasm is infectious.

The cheetah is restless, however, disturbed by the warning calls of the baboons, worried that this will attract other predators who may try to take his breakfast.

While we drive around to the other side of the cheetah to get a different view, the cheetah moves his prize, trying to hide it amongst the trees for protection.

We leave him to enjoy his breakfast in peace and move on to see what else nature has to offer us today.

Hippo

Red Billed Hornbill

African Jacanas

Little Egret

Tea Break

As the sun starts to rise, Danger (the driver) stops for a break overlooking the flooded Shire River.

Danger setting up the flasks of hot drinks on a fold-out table at the front of the vehicle

Jim and Danger (yes, that really is his name)

Tea and biscuits

Danger, David, and Jim enjoying the sunrise and a cuppa. I stay on board the vehicle as I am concerned about the very uneven surface underfoot.

Instead, I do some bird-watching from the comfort of the car.

Black Winged Stilt

African Jacana

Spur Winged Geese

Long Toed Lapwing

White Breasted Cormorants - I am fascinated by the way the tree has turned almost completely white from their guano

Yellow Billed Storks

Open Billed Stork

After a lovely break, we carry on with our game drive as we continue back towards the lodge for breakfast.

Kudu

Close-up of the kudu

Danger is excited when he spots a pile of rhino poo, but sadly we do not see any of the elusive rhinos

Impala

Red Billed Hornbill

Bushpigs – a rare sighting and a new one to us. There are two pigs, each facing in different directions to be able to look out for danger.

Crocodile

Meve's Starling

Waterbuck

Collared Palm Thrush

We see a Palm Nut Vulture and follow him when he takes off

We find him nibbling on the impala carcass with no sign of the cheetah from earlier.

Emerald Spotted Wood Dove

Breakfast

There’s a small buffet and a chef cooking eggs.

Yogurt, granola and pancakes

The chef is ready for my order

I choose an omelette with cheese, onion, tomato and peppers

We talk to another British couple staying at the lodge – the first Brits we’ve seen on this trip, and the first tourists actually carrying a ‘proper’ camera (as opposed to just using the phone). They've seen a rhino here is Liwonde, which is a rare sighting. The nearest we’ve got is rhino poo – not quite the same.

Waterhole Hide

Claudia and Danger have arranged for us to visit the lodge’s private waterhole this lunchtime, which is not attached to the lodge, but requires us to drive there.

Emanuel is coming with us, bringing his gun.

The waterhole

Entrance to the hide

The hide is dug under the ground, with an opening just above the water level for great viewing and photography at eye level with the animals drinking.

There is a long bench with padded seats to sit on and a shelf for the cameras.

As we get settled in, the only animal we see is the resident hippo.

Birds seem to use the hippo as an island to look around for potential lunch.

Grey Heron

Hammerkop

The Red Billed Oxpeckers have a symbiotic relationship with several animals, not just the hippo. While eating insects from the animals’ skin, they will be on the lookout for predators and act as an early warning signal.

After a while, more animals and birds start arriving, one by one.

Harrier Hawk

Warthogs

Impala

The silence of the jungle is interrupted by the piercing warning calls of baboons. The animals stop drinking and all stare in the same direction. Emanuel gets jittery, cocks his gun, and goes over to the entrance of the hide. “There could be lions around” Jim confirms.

Through the trees, we spot an elephant.

Then more arrive, including little babies, in complete silence.

Before long, there are 13 elephants around the waterhole. David and I both look at each other and whisper “Wow” at the same time. This is so special.

This guy's had an encounter with a crocodile by the looks of it. The short trunk doesn't seem to stop him from drinking though.

I use three cameras with three different lenses to capture it all – one with a 24-105mm lens, the second one with a 100-400mm lens, and the last one with my whopping great big 600mm monster lens. This is where that comes into its own, as there is no way I can handhold this thing, so the shelf with the bean bag we had made in Zomba is perfect.

The sable antelope is one of the animals on my wish list, so I get very excited when one turns up and starts drinking.

He is soon joined by Mrs Sable

Impala

They are very vulnerable to predators with their legs splayed like this

Warthogs

Yellow Baboon

It’s hard knowing where to look at this 180° panorama we have in front of us. This is where the much-overused word “awesome” really is appropriate. It is definitely the highlight of our trip so far.

And just as we think it can’t get any better, another seven elephants arrive, with more babies.

Many other animals come and go over the two hours or so we are there. It is truly magical.

The shy and elusive Bushbuck

Kudu

Impala and Kudu

Burchell's Zebra - a new subspecies to us

Impala and Zebra

Waterbuck

Hadada Ibis

More Sable, Impala, and Warthogs

Grey Heron

David is delighted to find that the boys have brought along refreshments in the form of Savanna Cider.

I’m not sure what Jim has spotted here, but he looks horrified.

All good things must come to an end, and while there is a lull in proceedings at the waterhole, we reluctantly say goodbye to this incredible photographic hide and return to the lodge.

Jim grabs my 600mm lens which is affectionately known as Big Bertha

Every time we have been out on a game drive here in Liwonde, Claudia, the manager at the camp is there when we return, clutching wet flannels for us to wipe away the dust and dirt from the bush. Having seen very few animals at the waterhole hide on her visits there in the past, she is delighted, amazed, and a little envious when we tell her about our incredible sightings.

Claudia waiting with refreshing towels. Note the steps to help passengers get in and out of the vehicle. I have been sitting in the front seat to save me from climbing up into the back, however.

Lunch

During the briefing when we arrived at the lodge, Claudia asked if we have any dietary requirements, and David jokingly mentioned that neither of us like cucumber. Today’s salad for lunch has been made especially for us, minus cucumber.

Lentil salad, flat yogurt bread, garden salad, and Waldorf salad. The Waldorf is refreshing, whereas the lentils are plain and uninteresting. A salad dressing is brought out, which totally overflows on the flat wooden board the salad is served on.

The fruit smoothie for dessert is tasty and refreshing

We spend a little bit of chill time on the balcony of our room, watching a couple of birds flit in and out of the foliage.

Collared Palm Thrush

I am intrigued by this strange fruit hanging down just above the bannister of our balcony. Jim later confirms that it is the fruit of the Toad Tree, which is often eaten by monkeys.

Afternoon Boat safari

Danger drives us the short distance to Mvuu Camp where there is a boat jetty. There used to be one at the Lodge too, but with the current high water level, it is not usable.

That high step is why I sit in the front

The jetty

Mvuu Camp and Lodge own several boats, and Danger has chosen the largest and easiest for me to get into this afternoon – a flat-bottomed pontoon.

This means I can take Big Bertha with me and set her up on a tripod in the boat.

There is plenty of space to move around, as well as comfortable bench seats.

David enjoying the late afternoon sun

Danger and Jim at the front. Should we be concerned about a captain called Danger?

Captain Danger

Jim with his stylish sunglasses

Our first encounter is a somewhat uneasy elephant in amongst the reeds. He isn’t sure about our presence and lets us know in the form of a mock charge.

This is not the time to have engine failure. Thankfully, Danger (is this how he got his name?) manages to get the boat going again.

Malachite Kingfisher

Hadada Ibis

Hippo grazing

Grey Heron

Open Billed Storks

Goliath Heron

Squacco Heron

Spur Winged Lapwing

From the line created on the trees, you can see how far up animals can reach when grazing.

Crocodile

African Darters

White Breasted Cormorant

We follow a pair of African Fish Eagles for a while

They are noisy buggers, squawking like seagulls

As the sky starts turning a lovely orange, it is time for us to partake in our usual evening sundowners.

Savanna Cider, plantain chips, and peanust

From the boat, we can see the guests from Mvuu Camp enjoying their sundowners on land – all 45 of them. They are all sponsors of an orphanage on a group tour – I am guessing the fact that so many of them are staying at the camp is why we have been upgraded to the lodge. It makes me very grateful that we are on a private safari.

The sun goes down behind the trees like a huge orange ball, and we return to base after an extraordinary day.

Dinner

The food here at Mvuu Lodge has been superb throughout, and tonight is no exception.

Cauliflower soup with crouton

Pan-fried fillet steak, garlic beans, grazed carrots (not sure what that means, but that's what it says on the menu), and arancini. Three words: tasty, tender, fabulous!

Creme Caramel to finish

WHAT A DAY!

Thank you so much to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this incredible private tour of Africa.

I damaged my sacroiliac joint a few days ago on the very first bump we went over on the very first game drive on this trip, and last night icied it with ice from the bar and self-massaged it with a wooden ball (as suggested by my chiropractor who I have been messaging). Despite this, everything I do seems to hurt this morning: getting out of bed, getting dressed, coughing, blowing my nose, walking, going to the toilet. I dose myself up with painkillers and hope it will ease as the day goes on.

Breakfast

My fried eggs on toast

David's Full English Breakfast

David riding a wooden hippo in the reception of Game Haven Lodge. As you do.

Moving on

Today we are driving from Chimwenya to Liwonde, giving me ample opportunities for my usual drive-by-shooting (taking photos from a moving car)

Who needs the latest iPad when you can have a motorcycle tyre!

Carrying firewood

Animal fodder

At the well

We stop to photograph this woman pumping water at the well, and Jim, always the gentleman, pops out of the car to help her.

Jim explains that the blue container attached to the pump is for chlorine which the government has provided to help prevent the spread of cholera.

The lady now has a two-kilometre walk back to her home, carrying the heavy bucket on her head.

Papaya Tree

The trees are gender specific, and this is a male tree. It carries flowers but no fruit and needs the help of bees to pollinate a female papaya tree.

The tree has another use, however, as infertile couples make a drink from its roots in order to help them conceive.

Pottery for sale

Zomba

Until 1975, Zomba was the capital of Malawi, and it still holds vestiges of grandeur as well as remnants of the British Colonial past.

The War Memorial to those who died during the First and Second World War

Botanical Gardens

Jim tells me just that little bit too late not to take photos of the entrance to the Presidential palace - fortunately no one noticed and I put the camera away after this shot.

Zomba Market

We wander up and down the various alleys of this colourful market.

Chillies

Papaya

Catfish

Bananas covered with leaves to help them ripen

Tangerines

Passionfruit

Metal workers

Jim buys this hammer, which is made from a wheel stud from a truck! I love the resourcefulness.

The people are quite happy to be photographed

The lemons are enormous!

Soursop

Photography Bean Bag

Jim purchases some thick green material to have a bean bag made for me to use in the safari vehicle to support my 600mm lens.

He takes the material to a tailor to sew it all together, then to another stall to fill it with rice.

The Baobabs Restaurant

For lunch, we stop at a small roadside restaurant specialising in African food.

The restaurant is open-sided, and just as I have ordered a plate of Chicken Braai (BBQ chicken), I am dismayed to see my lunch trying to sneak out of the restaurant.

Jim persuades us to try a couple of different canned drinks that are popular with locals: Cherry Plum and Cocopina. They are both very refreshing and make a pleasant change from the usual Coke or Lemonade.

Chicken Braai with a delicious side of sautéed mustard leaves

Today is Joyce, Jim’s wife’s birthday, so he calls her while we are at the restaurant, and we all sing “Happy Birthday” to her on the phone.

Liwonde National Park

It’s the usual procedure to check us in at the entrance gate to the park.

There was some doubt about whether we’d be able to enter the park through the eastern gate, as the road has been affected by flooding recently. Jim checked with the camp last night to make sure – otherwise it would be a very long diversion if we had to drive down to the southern gate.

Although we do some game viewing on the way to the lodge, Jim’s vehicle is not really suitable for safari driving, with its tinted windows (which do open, of course, but are not easy to lean out of), and windscreen that distorts images takes straight ahead.

Brown Hooded Kingfisher

Hammerkop

The very striking Python Vine, which curls itself around other trees. There is no evidence it causes the host tree any harm, apparently

Jim is shocked by the amount of flooding in this area, and claims it's the most water he has seen since 2003

The hippo seem to like the extra water, however

Waterbuck

Open Billed Stork

Lilac Breasted Roller

Meve's Starling

Red Billed Hornbill

A side effect of the flooding is the invasive water hyacinth that is now found in damp areas – spread by being carried on the backs of hippos.

Grey Heron

Little Bee Easter

Mvuu Lodge

As we pull up to our accommodation here in Liwonde, Mvuu Camp, we are greeted by a member of staff who informs us that we are in fact NOT staying at the camp, we have been moved to the lodge of the same name. This is quite an upgrade, so we are certainly not complaining.

The entrance to the lodge

From the car park, shaded paths lead to the main building and the rooms

The restaurant overlooking the river

The 'Beach' where there are chairs and a firepit

Our Room

We're in room number 6, also known as Nangondo, meaning "a body of running water"

The room is made from canvas, wood, glass, and straw, and set on a large wooden platform alongside the river.

On the platform is also a small, private plunge pool, and a couple of chairs to relax in the shade in the midday heat.

A series of glass doors open up to a narrow patio that leads to an outdoor shower.

The interior is spacious, with twin beds under a mosquito net, a sofa, a lounge chair, free-standing double basins, an indoor shower, and a toilet.

David lounging

The indoor shower on the left, toilet on the right

The free-standing basins

Interesting taps

Safe, mosquito spray, and a fog horn to alert staff should we have a medical emergency in the night (for safety, walking about outside after dark is not permitted). Note the African style lock (the code does not work)

There is also a drum to attract attention for non-emergencies

Claudia, the very enthusiastic manageress comes to give us a briefing on dos and don’ts and what to expect from the camp.

Afternoon Game Drive

As soon as we have had our briefing and dumped our stuff, we are off out on an afternoon game drive, in a proper open-sided safari vehicle.

Another Brown Hooded Kingfisher

Yellow Baboon

It may look like a cactus, but it's a Candelabra Tree - there are no wild cactuses in Africa.

Crocodile

Impala

African Fish Eagle

Helmeted Guineafowl

Green Backed Heron

Sundowners

As the sun sets, we stop for drinks and nibbles – awfully civilised.

Savanna (of course!), popcorn, biltong and cheese straws

With Danger, the driver (yes, that really is his name!), on the left, and Emanuel, the spotter, on the right

With Emanuel and Jim

Trying to get started again after stopping for the sunset, we find the car battery is flat, but with Jim and Emanuel pushing we manage to get going again.

Night Drive

The light fades quickly, and Emanuel sits on the jump seat right at the front of the vehicle with a spotlight as we continue our safari after dark.

It may not be ideal as far as photography goes, but spotting wild animals after dark adds an extra excitement, and allows us to see those critters who generally only come out at night.

Scrub Hare

Kudu

Porcupine

Spotted Hyena

Hippo

White Tailed Mongoose

Dinner

We head straight for The Beach to enjoy a drink in front of the camp fire before dinner, where we chat with a lovely young American couple.

David at dinner

Vegetable spring roll to start

Grilled chicken breast (boneless and tasty), served with garlic mashed potatoes and roasted root vegetables (thankfully not overcooked, but nicely al dente)

Dessert is ginger pannacotta, but I am too busy enjoying it (as well as Jim's portion as he didn't want it) to remember to take a photo. Sorry.

Thank you to Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this amazing Great Africa Trip 2024 for us.

It is drizzling slightly when we get up this morning – I didn’t expect that!

Breakfast

It seems the staff is not at all ready for diners this morning – we have to ask for juice, a knife, and fork, as well as cold milk for David’s cornflakes.

Freshly made banana muffins, still warm from the oven - light and fluffy and I can really taste the banana

Papaya

French Toast

Satemwa Tea Estate

The plan for today was to get a tour of the tea estate and factory, followed by a tea tasting. Sadly, as it is Sunday, no one is working in the fields or factory, so we have to make do with just visiting the estate. Jim does his best to explain things we see along the way to make up for it.

Trees are planted in amongst the tea bushes to help produce moisture.

Houses built especially for plantation workers. Satemwa is a huge estate with 800 workers, and the management not only provide housing, but also a primary school and a small hospital.

Guatemala Leaves help maintain the soil and stop erosion

Many estates have also introduced the production of Macadamia trees, whose nuts are an expensive commodity and therefore very lucrative.

Macadamia Tree

Macadamia flower

As they mature, the flowers turn a darker red

After pruning the top of the tea bushes to encourage new growth, the off-cuts are collected for firewood.

Goat Apple

Also known as Poison Apple, the fruit, which is similar to apple, only smaller, is poisonous to humans and animals. In traditional medicine, however, the juice of the fruit is steamed through a pipe to treat toothache.

Buffalo Bean

Also known as Madness Bean (Mucuna pruriens), the hairs on the bean pods will make your skin itch to the point it drives you mad! The seeds can be eaten if boiled for two days with five changes of water, otherwise, they are poisonous (I think I’ll just stick to a tin of Heinz beans, thanks).

The Buffalo Bean is part of a group of plants affectionately known as The Green Five (with reference to the more popular Big Five animals), and the other four are:

Elephant Grass
Leopard Orchid
Lion’s Tail Teasel
Rhino Bush

Coffee

Satemwa Estate also grows quite a lot of coffee. Jim teaches us something we didn’t know this morning: Red Bull is produced from the skin of the coffee beans.

The coffee beans are all picked by hand here, and only by women as they have more delicate fingers (that’s me out of the question, then, there is nothing ‘delicate’ about my hands!)

The top of the coffee plants are cut to help them spread out.

There is a real fear of erosion: when the plants become heavily laden with beans, they are likely to topple over as they have shallow roots.

Tea

Tea bush

Flower of the tea bush

Picking just the top leaf and rolling it manually in your hand produces ‘white tea’, while just the emerging new shoot will give you ‘needle tea’ – a very expensive variety.

Tamarind Tree

Huntingdon House

Once the home of the Kay family from Scotland (they still run the tea estate and the house), the gorgeous colonial house now offers accommodation and meals.

David on the wide porch

A worker explains the different teas available in the shop

We take lunch here.

Lemongrass chicken with rice - very nicely cooked with crispy tasty skin

Lemon tart - vert tart and very fresh

Hibiscus iced tea - absolutely delicious, very refreshing

While we are eating, Jim is holding quite a conversation with a Trumpeter Hornbill in one of the trees at the edge of the lawn (he is a real "bird whisperer" with a repertoire of different bird songs). He is unable to persuade it to come out for me to photograph it, however, so this is the best I can do.

Trumpeter Hornbill

African Pied Wagtail on the lawn

Mwala Wa Mthunzi

On the way back to our lodge, we stop at a large rock by the side of the road.

Legend has it that when the main road was being constructed, workers moved the rock to make way for the road, but by the next morning the boulder was back in its original place. Trying again the next day, the same thing happened, and it was then decided to leave the stone where it was. Many people come to pray and pay their respects to their ancestors at this sacred rock, placing coins, small stones, or leaves on top for luck.

Afternoon Game Drive in Chimwenya Private Game Reserve

When Jim saw Stephen (our driver from last night) earlier, Stephen commented on how “happy and friendly” his clients were. Mind you, we did have a bit of fun on the drive, but I am not sure what sort of tourists he is used to.

Adam (spotter) and Stephen (driver)

David, Jim, and me in the safari vehicle

Dark Capped Bulbul

Collared Palm Thrush

Chimwenya is a very small reserve, with limited game viewing, so today I try to make the most of the beautiful light from the low sun to make some creative images.

Zebra on the opposite side of the lake

A cute youngster

Close-up of the mane

Just the eyes

Impala

Male with his impressive horns

Shooting into the sun

Malawi Dwarf Gecko

Wildebeest

Having a mud bath

They are strange looking creatures

Zebra and Wildebeest on the golf course

A bit of Hammerkop love

Sunset

Dinner

We enjoy a pre-dinner drink in the bar, where I indulge myself with a Southern Comfort and Coke, a drink I haven’t had for years!

Tonight I only order a starter and dessert, after being overfull last night having had three courses.

Beef samosas

Malva pudding, a local speciality

David has a starter and mains.

His enormous salad starter

Chicken burger

My back is still very painful, so I ask for a small amount of ice to take back to the room. They give me a whole bucket full!

I also use the wooden ball I bought a few days ago, housed in a sock as self-massage (leaning against a wall pushing on the ball where the pain is).

Thank you Undiscovered Destinations for arranging this amazing Great Africa Trip.