week seven

Firstly- I would like to apologise for a previous spelling mistake that my Mum made me aware of. Due to some lapse in spelling abilities I have been spelling "paid" wrong. I'm very sorry and apologise for any other spelling mistakes!

Back to blogging.

After an ambulance ride, a 6hr mini bus ride and a short but expensive "taxi" Alicia and I arrived at Cape Maclear on lake Malawi. It is beautiful here. Our lodge is right on the beach. The waters edge is always busy with locals washing their clothes and dishes, children playing and fisherman tending their nets and boats. The lake is famous for its snorkelling and diving, and also for its schistosomiasis. Schistosomiasis, or Bilharzia, is a parasitic disease that can cause bladder problems in the future. After learning that all the water for showers at our lodge comes directly from the lake, I decided I wasn't going to miss out on the awesome snorkelling here when I had already been exposed by showering (by the way, I had my first shower in six weeks here as our house in Mulanje only had baths that were too slow to fill. Note: I still washed, but with a bucket of cold water).

So yesterday Lish and I went for a snorkel, followed by a hoard of men looking to sell their wares. Unfortunately it is low season here at the moment and during the week the cape has few tourists. As a consequence, many of those who rely on tourism for their incomes, are currently relying on the two of us. We are the only ones staying at our lodge at the moment so a lot of time is spent saying no to the various tradesman (and I am quite bad at saying no, so I usually have to call Lish in to do it for me).

Tomorrow is Lish's birthday so we are going on a boat ride to a nearby island to do some more snorkelling. We haven't done a whole lot here, just relaxing and reflecting on the past six weeks. On the weekend we are off to Lilongwe before flying out to Tanzania for safari. Should be good!