day 1

Modes of transport- 6
Time of travel- 7 hours
From Nkhoma to Nkhotakota Pottery and Lodge

Mini-bus #1 from Nkhoma to Lilongwe was full but not too jam packed when we started. We then filled to 21 people before the end but of course this number fluctuates as you drive down the road and pick up and drop off. There was also a goat behind the back seat (where we were sitting) that for the most part was quiet but every once in a while would bleat the loudest I have every heard and I jumped. No one else seemed to notice but it scared me every time it happened. BAAAAH!! In Lilongwe we got on a bigger bus that said it would take us to Nkhotakota…all set and only 2 buses…oh too good to be true. We didn’t have to wait long when the bus tried to leave Lilongwe…and it succeeded but it did sound like it was not a very healthy vehicle. About 30 minutes out of town something happened and we slowed to 10km/hr…the other passengers kept asking to be dropped so they could get different transport but the driver wouldn’t stop until we made it to the next little town and he arranged a matola (truck) to take us to Salima. Changed to mini-bus #3 that said it would get us to Nkhotakota. Drove north to a broken bridge that we had to get out and walk across and once again had to find different transport…even some kind of forewarning would have been nice…of course we were dropped right at the bridge but on the other side the buses were 1.5km away from the bridge (job opportunity for bicycle taxis). We opted to walk as we’d been sitting all day. Another matola to the turn off for the lodge which was 4km off the main road. There we did get the bicycle taxis as we weren’t sure we’d make it before it got dark. With our bags the bike was fun to balance…and when we went uphill we had to get off and walk (behind our transport!) but we did make it to a nice camping area, restaurant right on the beach and were the only guests there (at least camping and eating—not entirely sure about the rooms or chalets).