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| game viewing hike |
Was able to get out of the city this weekend and took a nice trip about an hour and a half outside the city to a place called Kuti Game Reserve. In the reserve there are no "big Five" game, so it was a nice basic introduction to game viewing for the kids. They had a great time hiking some of the trails, checking out zebra, Kudu, sable, monkeys, warthogs, etc.. Plus the scenery was beautiful. The place felt extremely remote and away from civilization. We stayed in a thatched roof chalet that was situated in the middle of the park. We were surrounded by the bush, with no one else around us. The place came with an awesome outside cooking area, 6 beds , a huge shower (hot water supplied by a wood burning stove), and someone from the park who would start your fires and cook for you if you'd like. The gentleman who took care of us cooked for a while, then I wanted a turn.. the outdoor cooking area was so awesome..
Malawi is one of the worst countries in the world for deforestation. So, in some villages they have started to cook over a very thick but small ceramic pot called a Mbaula.. Since many of the meals they cook are fairly small, this vessel holds just a small fragment of wood (as opposed to a cooking fire or using wood charcoal chips) and maintains a very hot temperature.. So cooking seems to take less time while also using less wood. They also use these metal containers that uses pressed paper, leaves, twigs, wood, etc.... I don't know what the name of it was called, but it is another alternative to using an open fire. It was a cool little contraption.. All you had to do was start a small fire (I used grass , leaves and a few twigs, but the device over the top of your small fire, load the recycled material nuggets , and you could cook/ heat food for quite a while.
Aside from that, we hung out in the quiet African landscape, took in a few game drives, watched a beautiful sunset over at a wetland, and then slept in a place of complete and utter quiet.
We have our eyes on an old Mitsubishi Pajero that is for sale and am going to have it checked out tomorrow to see if it is worth pursuing. This car ordeal has been going on long enough and I hope that this vehicle will put us over the hump. We had a Pajero in Botswana (her name was Babs) and we loved it.. It is perfect for what we want and will get us off roading , on safaris and to the lake.. We've decided we probably should go with this type of vehicle since many of the roads are tough to travel during the rainy season and it seems like a 4x4 is a must. Plus, we need 7 seat belts, and this truck has that too.. AND it has a roof rack the kids can climb on for game drives, etc... AND, this is the best thing yet.... it has purple rims.. which was on my wish list for sure. Ill send a photo soon if it gets a clean bill of health. Headed to teach this mooring.. 1 point perspective to my 7th graders..
Hope all is well at home.
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| baobab trees |
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| checking out the zebras |
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| Sunset over the wetland |
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| Mbaula |
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| Sunrise |
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| thatched roof chalet |
