Three days later and we are in Nhkata Bay, an oasis in the middle of Africa, after some very interesting travel. After finishing our Kili climb and safari we were leaving Moshi, Tanzania for somewhere in Malawi. Our bus left Moshi at 7am (which turned into 7:30am) and was set to be in Mbeya around midnight (which turned into 3am). After getting on the road we were already broken down which turned into a bathroom break on the side of the road, the 'usual' for African travel. A few guys got out to fix it and about 15 minutes later we were back on the road only to break down about five more times during the trip.
On the bus itself, you see some of the most interesting things and people. The two seats next to us were occupied by a mom, her 2 girls and another teenage girl (maybe also her child). The baby (maybe around a year old) had a full mouth of teeth and was drinking Coca Cola, orange soda and water and was eating muffins, meat rolls and wafer crackers during the trip. Yet she was also breastfeeding. We also had a man on our bus who's luggage was a bag of hay and another had a bag of straw (maybe wheat). They tend to travel with the strangest luggage across the country and only a few actually travel with clothes as luggage.
After driving for 17 hours (around midnight) the bus made another stop, the attendant said something in Swahili and people started getting off. Turns out we were changing buses on the side of the road in the pitch black at the same time we should have been getting to Mbeya (still no idea on how much of the trip was left). By the time we got off the first bus and onto the second one everyone else had already gotten on. We also had all of our bags (the bus was smaller so they wouldn't fit underneath) and only the back of the bus was left. As soon as we started driving it was clear why everyone rushed to the bus to get seats up front. The ride back there is so bumpy, but it turned out to be okay and three hours later we were pulling into Mbeya.
After getting off the bus and being hounded by touts at 3am (yes they were still out there at 3am), we walked across the street to the New Millennium Inn. They told us they had no room left so we walked next door to Motel No. 1 and got one of the two rooms they had left and at 20,000 TSH it was a steal. We got in and got straight into bed as we were leaving again in a few hours. Sleep was somewhat non-existent though as the monkeys and dogs sounded like they were killing each other the entire night and then around 5:30am the Mosque had a call to prayer that seemed to last for eternity.
We got up around 6:30am and walked back across to the bus station to try and find our next bus we needed. Most of the same touts were still out at the bus station (it seems as though they live there) and were all trying to get us to go with their company. After a few minutes we walked back to the motel to grab our stuff and then try to find the right coastal going to the border. We actually got lucky and walked out right as one was driving past so we were able to jump on. We were then charged the "white person" price which was about 1,500 TSH extra which wasn't a huge problem until they then tried to charge us a "baggage fee". We refused to pay it as it doesn't exist (you should see what the locals carry on the buses with them) and after our next stop the guy trying to get the money from us disappeared off the bus.
The coastals themselves are quite an experience. It took us about 5 hours to go 180 KM as we stopped every 10 minutes to pick people up and drop people off. The 'long distance' coastals are supposed to hold 30 people, at one point we probably had about 40 people on ours and ended up getting stopped at a road block (they have them everywhere in both Tanzania and Malawi and the cop just tell people to pull over at random). We ended up sitting there for about 20 minutes while the driver and attendant were out on the road with the police and everyone on the bus was laughing, we were clueless as to what was happening. After many more stops, drop offs, pick ups and people traveling with hay, straw and wheat we made it to a little over the half way point. All of a sudden we stopped and they got on and said to us, "get off the bus, there is something wrong with it, you need to switch". Next thing we know they are pulling our bags off the bus and everyone left on the bus is laughing at us as we had no idea what was happening. Not wanting to be separated from our bags we jumped off and got onto a new bus. The new bus finally started moving and we continued the process of drop offs and pick ups. At one point we stopped to pick up someone who was traveling with about 10 buckets of who knows what and about 5 bags of hay. After a couple more hours we were told to get off the bus again as we were at the border. We jumped off and started walking towards the border (about a 3 km walk).
Of course there are many more touts at the border trying to exchange money on the black market and offer taxi rides across. We got into customs and out of customs in Tanzania then crossed the border into Malawi. The Malawi side was just as filled with touts as the Tanzania side as everyone wants your business. We finally found a mini bus that would take us to Karonga for 350 MK each as opposed to 500 MK each so we hopped on and were on our way. Shortly after leaving we were already stopping for gas, which they bought from some kids on the side of the road. After filling up the van and paying them, the ones selling the gas got pissed and jumped on the bus. The driver and other guy were yelling back (we couldn't understand any of it) and then we started moving so they eventually jumped out. We found out later that people get gas on the black market as well since they can go days without any fuel in the petrol stations. With all the stops for drop offs and pick ups it took about 1 1/2 hours to go 40 KM which wasn't nearly as bad as the coastal. We made it to Karonga and were on our way to the next minibus that would take us to Mzuzu. This time it would be a 4 hour trip for about 200 KM but an hour into the trip we got a flat tire. While they were fixing the tire we had people walk past, cycle past and a few kids drive their cows past us on the M1, the main and what seems to be the only road. After fixing the flat and a bunch of drop offs and pick ups we finally made it to Mzuzu five hours later. Mzuzu itself is actually a pretty big town and has it's own university. We pulled into the bus station and were instantly hounded with people asking where we wanted to go, luckily the bus driver already said he would drive us to the hostel so we just stayed in the bus. After being dropped off at Mzoozoozoo and tipping the driver he made a point to be say "That's it? At least give me 500, they would have charged you 1,000" but what we gave him was more than fair (as the taxi price is only 500) so we got out, went inside and he left. We spent the evening at Mzoozoozoo, had some dinner and went to bed around 8pm.
After sleeping the entire night, we were up by 6:30am and out the door to find an ATM and a taxi to Nkhata Bay. Finding a working ATM and one with money was the hardest thing we did that morning, an hour later we finally had money and a few minutes later a taxi driver found us (which saved us from having to go into the bus terminal area). The drive to Nkhata Bay only took about an hour and we were at the hostel by 9:30am. The hostel, Big Blue Star, is great. It's right on the water with a bunch of little cabins, dorms and tent sites on the hill side and it's only costing us $16 US a night for a double room on the water. There is also a restaurant on site and it's just a few steps into town. We quickly decided that we would spend a few days here before moving on to our next destination which is still undecided. Since we've been here we've done some shopping in town, relaxed on the patios, took a walk and have just been hanging out, it's been good so far and the lake is absolutely gorgeous. We will probably head out in the next few days for Lilongwe and then from there onto Lusaka then Livingston for our white water rafting and microlight flight at Victoria Falls!
On the bus itself, you see some of the most interesting things and people. The two seats next to us were occupied by a mom, her 2 girls and another teenage girl (maybe also her child). The baby (maybe around a year old) had a full mouth of teeth and was drinking Coca Cola, orange soda and water and was eating muffins, meat rolls and wafer crackers during the trip. Yet she was also breastfeeding. We also had a man on our bus who's luggage was a bag of hay and another had a bag of straw (maybe wheat). They tend to travel with the strangest luggage across the country and only a few actually travel with clothes as luggage.
After driving for 17 hours (around midnight) the bus made another stop, the attendant said something in Swahili and people started getting off. Turns out we were changing buses on the side of the road in the pitch black at the same time we should have been getting to Mbeya (still no idea on how much of the trip was left). By the time we got off the first bus and onto the second one everyone else had already gotten on. We also had all of our bags (the bus was smaller so they wouldn't fit underneath) and only the back of the bus was left. As soon as we started driving it was clear why everyone rushed to the bus to get seats up front. The ride back there is so bumpy, but it turned out to be okay and three hours later we were pulling into Mbeya.
After getting off the bus and being hounded by touts at 3am (yes they were still out there at 3am), we walked across the street to the New Millennium Inn. They told us they had no room left so we walked next door to Motel No. 1 and got one of the two rooms they had left and at 20,000 TSH it was a steal. We got in and got straight into bed as we were leaving again in a few hours. Sleep was somewhat non-existent though as the monkeys and dogs sounded like they were killing each other the entire night and then around 5:30am the Mosque had a call to prayer that seemed to last for eternity.
We got up around 6:30am and walked back across to the bus station to try and find our next bus we needed. Most of the same touts were still out at the bus station (it seems as though they live there) and were all trying to get us to go with their company. After a few minutes we walked back to the motel to grab our stuff and then try to find the right coastal going to the border. We actually got lucky and walked out right as one was driving past so we were able to jump on. We were then charged the "white person" price which was about 1,500 TSH extra which wasn't a huge problem until they then tried to charge us a "baggage fee". We refused to pay it as it doesn't exist (you should see what the locals carry on the buses with them) and after our next stop the guy trying to get the money from us disappeared off the bus.
The coastals themselves are quite an experience. It took us about 5 hours to go 180 KM as we stopped every 10 minutes to pick people up and drop people off. The 'long distance' coastals are supposed to hold 30 people, at one point we probably had about 40 people on ours and ended up getting stopped at a road block (they have them everywhere in both Tanzania and Malawi and the cop just tell people to pull over at random). We ended up sitting there for about 20 minutes while the driver and attendant were out on the road with the police and everyone on the bus was laughing, we were clueless as to what was happening. After many more stops, drop offs, pick ups and people traveling with hay, straw and wheat we made it to a little over the half way point. All of a sudden we stopped and they got on and said to us, "get off the bus, there is something wrong with it, you need to switch". Next thing we know they are pulling our bags off the bus and everyone left on the bus is laughing at us as we had no idea what was happening. Not wanting to be separated from our bags we jumped off and got onto a new bus. The new bus finally started moving and we continued the process of drop offs and pick ups. At one point we stopped to pick up someone who was traveling with about 10 buckets of who knows what and about 5 bags of hay. After a couple more hours we were told to get off the bus again as we were at the border. We jumped off and started walking towards the border (about a 3 km walk).
Of course there are many more touts at the border trying to exchange money on the black market and offer taxi rides across. We got into customs and out of customs in Tanzania then crossed the border into Malawi. The Malawi side was just as filled with touts as the Tanzania side as everyone wants your business. We finally found a mini bus that would take us to Karonga for 350 MK each as opposed to 500 MK each so we hopped on and were on our way. Shortly after leaving we were already stopping for gas, which they bought from some kids on the side of the road. After filling up the van and paying them, the ones selling the gas got pissed and jumped on the bus. The driver and other guy were yelling back (we couldn't understand any of it) and then we started moving so they eventually jumped out. We found out later that people get gas on the black market as well since they can go days without any fuel in the petrol stations. With all the stops for drop offs and pick ups it took about 1 1/2 hours to go 40 KM which wasn't nearly as bad as the coastal. We made it to Karonga and were on our way to the next minibus that would take us to Mzuzu. This time it would be a 4 hour trip for about 200 KM but an hour into the trip we got a flat tire. While they were fixing the tire we had people walk past, cycle past and a few kids drive their cows past us on the M1, the main and what seems to be the only road. After fixing the flat and a bunch of drop offs and pick ups we finally made it to Mzuzu five hours later. Mzuzu itself is actually a pretty big town and has it's own university. We pulled into the bus station and were instantly hounded with people asking where we wanted to go, luckily the bus driver already said he would drive us to the hostel so we just stayed in the bus. After being dropped off at Mzoozoozoo and tipping the driver he made a point to be say "That's it? At least give me 500, they would have charged you 1,000" but what we gave him was more than fair (as the taxi price is only 500) so we got out, went inside and he left. We spent the evening at Mzoozoozoo, had some dinner and went to bed around 8pm.
After sleeping the entire night, we were up by 6:30am and out the door to find an ATM and a taxi to Nkhata Bay. Finding a working ATM and one with money was the hardest thing we did that morning, an hour later we finally had money and a few minutes later a taxi driver found us (which saved us from having to go into the bus terminal area). The drive to Nkhata Bay only took about an hour and we were at the hostel by 9:30am. The hostel, Big Blue Star, is great. It's right on the water with a bunch of little cabins, dorms and tent sites on the hill side and it's only costing us $16 US a night for a double room on the water. There is also a restaurant on site and it's just a few steps into town. We quickly decided that we would spend a few days here before moving on to our next destination which is still undecided. Since we've been here we've done some shopping in town, relaxed on the patios, took a walk and have just been hanging out, it's been good so far and the lake is absolutely gorgeous. We will probably head out in the next few days for Lilongwe and then from there onto Lusaka then Livingston for our white water rafting and microlight flight at Victoria Falls!
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| "Congratulations Barack Obama Shop" - Notice the American Flag is backwards |
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| Completely normal for Tanzania |
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| Tanzania border sign |
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| Malawi border sign |
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| Young boys "driving" down the road |
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| Lake Malawi water |
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| View from the hostel |
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