Lake Malawi was everything that we imagined and more: a serene expanse of clear blue water, so large that it was difficult to see the other side. Although many places along the lake sounded nice, but, in the interest of taking a break from travel, we chose only two: (i) Nkhata Bay, one of the main ports located about halfway up the lake; and (ii) Likoma Island, an island about 70 kilometers from Nkhata Bay and surrounded by Mozambican waters.1 Both places were magical.
But before I commence full-on gushing about Lake Malawi, allow me to share one more travel anecdote:
From Lilongwe, we took a bus up to Mzuzu, the regional capital and transportation hub for Northern Malawi. In Mzuzu, we then switched to a minibus to complete the remaining almost 50 kilometer journey to Nkhata Bay. We squeezed into a crowded minibus, our legs cramped with luggage under our seats, our knees digging painfully into the seats in front of us, the guy next to me basically sitting on my lap, and Marc seated on a folding seat with no back. Just as I was starting to get anxious about the 90 minute journey ahead of us, a guy boarded the minibus and sat directly in front of Marc – across the back of his shirt was the phrase, “Don’t worry.”
He turned around, and, with a smile, asked us where we were going. Marc and I often are the only white people on buses and minibuses, and we tend to inspire curiosity and attract people who want to chat us up. Although these aren’t the most comfortable environs for small talk, we generally welcome to opportunity to interact with local people outside of business transactions.2 After we told him we were headed to Nkhata Bay, he asked where we were coming from (Lilongwe) and where we were staying in Nkhata Bay (a place called Mayoka Village).
At that point, his friendly smile became beaming, and he asked, “Are you Marc?” He showed us a piece of paper he was carrying that said, “Marc x2 from Lilongwe.” He introduced himself as James and told us that he was a long-time employee of Mayoka Village. He happened to be in Mzuzu purchasing bus tickets for other guests and had been given notice that we would be coming through that way, in case he happened to stumble upon us – which he did.
It turned out to be very lucky that we had James with us. Partway from Mzuzu to Nkhata Bay, the minibus determined it was not going any further and sold James, two kids, and us off to a shared taxi that already had a nice woman and her groceries inside of it.3 (Nice woman in the red suit, wherever you are, I apologize for sitting on your lap while so sweaty.) James helped ensure we didn’t have to pay again for the taxi – and got the taxi to drive us directly to Mayoka Village, rather than dropping us off in the middle of town.
Once we arrived at Mayoka Village, it was love at first sight. The place is composed of a smattering of buildings built onto a rocky hillside overlooking Lake Malawi, with winding pathways connecting the structures. Everything was lush and green, and you had a view of the lake from nearly anywhere you stood.
The day of arrival coincided with our 100th day in Africa, so we grabbed some drinks and settled in to watch the sunset over the lake.
Nkhata Bay was the largest concentration of independent travelers we had encountered since leaving South Africa, and we made some great friends while there. (Hi, guys!) On our first morning there, we discovered that we had previously met the couple in the chalet next to ours: While in Victoria Falls, they had asked us to take their picture, and then had taken one of us. We laughed about the coincidence, and then enjoyed spending time with them in Malawi and later in Zanzibar.
Later that afternoon, we swam out to a pontoon floating in the lake not far offshore from Mayoka Village. While relaxing in the sun atop this pontoon, we met a Finnish couple also on a long journey across Africa. We made plans to take the ferry to Likoma Island together, and later traveled with them up to Tanzania.
Mayoka Village was a perfect oasis to recuperate from our several days of bussing and our battered morale from the cold in the less tropical parts of Southern Africa, but we dragged ourselves away and into town on a few occasions. We found Nkhata Bay to be a lively, friendly place, and we enjoyed walking through its streets, purchasing necessities like bread and bananas (for peanut-butter-and-banana sandwiches, a travel staple) and a pen (because I go through more ballpoint pens than anyone I know).
Where We Stayed:
☆ Mayoka Village. Four goats. We stayed at Mayoka Village for a total of seven nights: two nights when we first arrived, and then another five nights after we returned from Likoma Island. Highlights include the proximity to the lake, free wifi, and the food (see infra), as well as free canoes and a boat trip that we didn’t take advantage of. Lowlights from our visit are likely the fault of other guests: when we returned for our second stay in Mayoka Village, the place was full to bursting with people, among them a loud and rowdy group who drunkenly hollered into the night. Also, our stay coincided with the World Cup, and it was sometimes hard to find a seat for dinner because there were so many people there watching the games.
Where We Ate:
☆ Mayoka Village. There’s a different buffet on offer each night (look for the curry buffet and pizza night!), as well as a nice menu. My favorite meal was (predictably) the veggie burger.
☆ Kaya Papaya. Thai restaurant located in the town. We went there with friends for the special weekend three-course meal: salad with little corn fritters, beef curry, and ice cream with cookies. The salad was really good (the beef less so), and we returned the next day for lunch to get more salads. Also: there are peanut butter cookies for sale!
1 With a few notable exceptions in Mozambique and Cape Town, our efforts to travel more slowly (and take full advantage of the large amount of time we had blocked off for this trip) had been all talk and no substance up to this point – just take a look at the map of Where We’ve Been. In Malawi, however, for the first time on our trip, we tried to practice what we had been preaching and shifted our travel focus to quality over quantity.
2 Although we greatly enjoy them, the scope of our interactions can oftentimes be limited as they are largely confined to guides, taxi drivers, retailers, and restaurant/hotel employees.
3 As our faithful readers already know, the incident would have perhaps been more startling had we not already experienced being sold off from one minibus to another a week earlier in Zimbabwe.
