so it's been a while, but i have found some time to do some blogging...
before i get to teaching (been at it for 3 weeks), i wanted to tell you about the hike i did on new year's and a visit i had with friends to matema beach on the shores of lake nyasa.
two of my fellow trainees, linda and aliesha live in tukuyu, the next biggest town to the north of me (about a 45 min bus ride). about a 3 hour walk (through beautiful rolling farmland that dips into a valley with mountains in the distance) from aliesha's house you stumble upon this perfectly concealed, perfectly gorgeous waterfall, that begins the gorge in front of it.
it's really quite crazy, because you go from seeing rows of corn and to the left and right of you, and you turn into the gorge making a steep descent into seemingly a jungle with banana trees and other exotic plants. and the waterfall, which probably drops from about 150-200 feet, is right in front of you. it doesn't have a lot of water (coming only from a small creek), but the view that it creates in front of you is incredible. and the best part is the wide cave that sits behind the waterfall...when you are sitting there, with the falls directly in front of you, the earth cantalevers over you ready to crumble at any second on top of you. i think it was my first time behind a waterfall, and i loved every second. and then i made the treacherous descent to the waterfall pool, and despite the fear of getting schistosomiasis, took my first swim in african waters, and i loved every second...
and then the weekend after the first week of school, aleisha and linda paid me a visit, and we decided to head to matema beach, a few hours away the next day. after an evening that included sharing frustrations about school and a mango curry, we got up early and headed to kyela, me on my bike, and them by bus (i really wanted to see if the estimated 3 hour bike ride to matema from site was accurate). well in kyela they were told a bus to matema wouldn't be leaving for several hours so they decided to rent bikes and bike together, only to have a bus pass us an hour later heading towards matema. the trip across the flatest farm valley i have ever seen, through small towns, through forests, and along a small mountain range took about 4 hours, but was slowed due to crappy rentals and bad backs, but eventually we made it to the beach and were blown away!
matema beach, on the shores of lake nyasa, is a paradise! the mountain range i mentioned meets the shore to the east and gradually descends in the distance. for those of you who have shared the beauty of monterosso in the cinque terre of italy, it reminded me a lot of how the mountains and coast met the sea there. it is gorgeous. the three of us enjoyed the evening on the beach and plenty of swimming in the warm and beautiful aquamarine water (which seemed really clean so that's a good sign). then after a dinner of fried pork and cooking bananas which taste like potatoes (delicious!), and a decent night sleep, we got up to watch an incredible sunrise. once again i was in awe of the clouds here in africa...from big puffy cumulous clouds, to those popcorn clouds, to those wispy and stringy ones, you name it you can find them. and i don't know but they are just so majestic here...i could look at them forever! and then the girls, not wanting to hastle with biking back, caught a bus, and i rode my bike back in a little under 3 hours, so i guess that estimate is pretty good. so my first trip to matema was awesome, and anyone who visits can expect a visit there...
and then the weekend after the first week of school, aleisha and linda paid me a visit, and we decided to head to matema beach, a few hours away the next day. after an evening that included sharing frustrations about school and a mango curry, we got up early and headed to kyela, me on my bike, and them by bus (i really wanted to see if the estimated 3 hour bike ride to matema from site was accurate). well in kyela they were told a bus to matema wouldn't be leaving for several hours so they decided to rent bikes and bike together, only to have a bus pass us an hour later heading towards matema. the trip across the flatest farm valley i have ever seen, through small towns, through forests, and along a small mountain range took about 4 hours, but was slowed due to crappy rentals and bad backs, but eventually we made it to the beach and were blown away!
matema beach, on the shores of lake nyasa, is a paradise! the mountain range i mentioned meets the shore to the east and gradually descends in the distance. for those of you who have shared the beauty of monterosso in the cinque terre of italy, it reminded me a lot of how the mountains and coast met the sea there. it is gorgeous. the three of us enjoyed the evening on the beach and plenty of swimming in the warm and beautiful aquamarine water (which seemed really clean so that's a good sign). then after a dinner of fried pork and cooking bananas which taste like potatoes (delicious!), and a decent night sleep, we got up to watch an incredible sunrise. once again i was in awe of the clouds here in africa...from big puffy cumulous clouds, to those popcorn clouds, to those wispy and stringy ones, you name it you can find them. and i don't know but they are just so majestic here...i could look at them forever! and then the girls, not wanting to hastle with biking back, caught a bus, and i rode my bike back in a little under 3 hours, so i guess that estimate is pretty good. so my first trip to matema was awesome, and anyone who visits can expect a visit there...
No comments:
Post a Comment