African History and Legal History

 [We have the following announcement on an online event, sponsored by the Max Planck Institute for European Legal History.  DRE]

On November 5th, the "Global Legal History on the Ground" project will host an online event on court cases in the writing of African History and Legal History.

Time: 10 am - Atlanta; 12 pm - Brasília; 4 pm - Frankfurt am Main and Luanda.  Registration per e-mail: diaspaes@rg.mpg.de

 

Mariana Dias Paes (Max Planck Institute for European Legal History) - Introdução e apresentação das integrantes do projeto

Fernanda Thomaz (Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora) - Fontes judiciais e conflitos de formas normativas na história de Moçambique

Mariana Candido (Emory University) - As mulheres na documentação do Tribunal da Comarca de Benguela: novas fontes e questões para a história de Angola no século XIX

José Évora (Arquivo Nacional de Cabo Verde) - O acervo documental do ANCV e o desafio de uma história vista a partir do rés-do-chão: pistas para uma história do direito cabo-verdiano

This event will be held in Portuguese, but we will organize other talks in English and Spanish during 2021.  For more information on the project, [here].

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Lake Nakuru in Kenya Africa

Situated in the heart of the Great Rift Valley 160 kilometers northwest of Nairobi, Lake Nakuru is a bird watcher's paradise. A unique game-viewing venue and a notable spot for the Rothschild giraffe and home to the black and white rhinos. The lake is world-famous as the location of the “greatest bird spectacle on earth” by renowned ornithologist Roger Peterson, for its spectacular bird life particularly the myriads of flamingos that congregate the shallow soda lake together with tens of thousands of other bird species. Lake Nakuru is one of the world's première wildlife destinations.

Lake Nakuru was declared a national park in 1961 and covers 188 square kilometers of land of great ecological diversity - from lake water, woodland, bush grassland, to rocky ridges. It is the most accessible and most visited of the soda lakes of the Great Rift Valley. The national park was created mainly to protect the flocks of flamingos and other species in the hills and plains around the lake. Its algae-soaked waters attract the millions of lesser flamingos and the greater flamingos in the park that turn the shores pink.

Apart from the spectacle of the flamingoes, Lake Nakuru National Park offers its visitors great wildlife - a special sighting at the park is a number of rare Rothschild giraffe, trans-located for safety from western Kenya beginning in 1977. Moreover, Lake Nakuru National Park has recently expanded to include a large part of the savannahs to accommodate and provide a sanctuary for both white and the rare black rhino. The park boasts the most number of leopard per square kilometer than any park in Africa. Because of the park's proximity to nearby towns, the park is fenced to prevent the animals from wandering into town and most especially to keep the poachers out, not restricting the movement of wildlife. Nakuru officially became the shelter for protection for these endangered animals in 1987.

At the park, you will also see a healthy population of predators like lions and hyenas, black and white colobus monkeys, hippo and crocodiles, zebra and fish eagles, antelope and buffalo and large-sized python snakes that dwell the dense woodlands. The best vantage point to track the lake shore and watch huge flocks of feeding flamingos is from the Baboon Cliff. Other viewing spots are from Lion Hill and Out of Africa.

Thus, this lake offers one of the world's most spectacular wildlife sights. So if you are looking for the best possible wildlife photography opportunities, Lake Nakuru is the perfect place to be as animals are never out of sight. And if you still have the luxury of time, an overnight stay in here, will definitely complete your safari travel adventure.

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Lake Malawi

Lake Malawi is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Malawi because this is one of the most well-preserved and awe-inspiring lakes in the world. This beautiful, fresh water lake is the third largest lake in Africa and second in depth, while also being the eighth largest lake in the world. The actual measurement of the lake is estimated to be around 360 miles in length and 52 miles in width. This is also considered as a border lake for other African countries, such as Tanzania and Mozambique.

Lake Malawi is an important natural resource for this country, which is also why the government is doing its best to preserve this freshwater lake. Economically, it has provided several sources of employment for its locals. There are several net makers, fishermen, fish traders, and canoe makers in the area. The lake is also a significant part of Malawi's history, which is reflected in the dispute over its official name. International maps refer to Lake Malawi as Lake Nyasa but despite geopolitical disputes, the official name has been retained for this lake.

What is it about Lake Malawi that make it a worthy attraction to visit? This is without a doubt a paradise that offers plenty of things to do to fill your time. You can go swimming, snorkeling, diving, or kayaking at the lake. There are also boat cruises available for tourists via the MV Ilala wherein tourists can get upclose and personal with some of the best sights in and around the lake. There are also sailing safaris available wherein you can ride the Mufasa yacht. Make sure to not miss this when you visit.

The waters of this beautiful fresh water lake is crystal clear and placid all year round. The government wanted to keep these waters unspoilt, which is why they have discouraged commercialization in the area so as not to lose its charm. Thus, visitors can expect lots of affordable and low-key accommodations in the area. However, there are also luxury accommodations for those who wanted to avail of relaxing amenities. Regardless, it is a nice way to escape from it all and get friendly with the locals.

Aside from maintaining the beauty of this lake, there are also several wildlife and unique species found in the area, such as cichlid and the kampango. Because of the threat from water pollution and overfishing, these species are kept well preserved and this is part of the efforts to maintain a low key aura to protect all the wildlife that inhabit in this lake.

If you wish to visit Lake Malawi, there are several ways to get there. You can catch a bus at the Monkey Bay or Mangochi to take you there. There are also local taxis available for rent if you want to get around the area. If you would like to visit the Northern Lakeshore, you can hire a bus to take you to Karonga, Nkhata Bay or Mzuzu. There are also car rentals available for those who wish to drive themselves to Lake Malawi, which is a good option because this is a safe country. However, you must be willing to shoulder the expensive petrol prices in the country.

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Malawi - One of Africa's Beautiful Countries

Malawi is a landlocked country and used to be known as Nyasaland. The country is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast and Mozambique on the east, south and west. It has a population of around 14million people and covers an area of 118,00km2. It's separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. The country's name comes from the word Maravi an old name for a local community known as Nyanja that used to inhabit the area.
 
Malawi is not very developed and the most attributable reason to this is that it's very densely populated. However, the economy relies mostly on agriculture. A lot of fishing also takes place from Lake Malawi and the country exports a lot of it to other countries. One of the favorite fish species exported from the country is known as Chambo. Before, the country was known as Nyasaland while under the rule of the British. The country received Doctor David Livingstone as one the earliest European visitors back in 1859 after the Portuguese had left.

Malawi has nice tourist attractions like the Golomoti Escarpment. Visitors can also take boat rides in Lake Malawi. One can also access great African rivers like Zambezi and Shire while in this country. To the south of Lake Malawi lies the Shire Highlands that rise 3,000 feet above sea level. Also the Zomba and Mlanje mountain peaks can be observed and they rise 7,000 feet or 2,134m and 10,000 feet or 3,048 above sea level. The country's capital is Lilongwe, but the biggest city is called Blantyre, a commercial hub with a population of around 500, 000 people.

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Information About Mount Kilimanjaro

Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa at 5,895 meters / 19,341 ft above the sea level. It has three volcanic cones - Kibo, Mawenzi and Shira and is an inactive stratovolcano in north-eastern Tanzaina. Mount Kilimanjaro is at the same time the highest freestanding mountain as well as the 4th most prominent mountain in the entire world, rishing an impressive 5,882 meters / 19,298 ft from the base.

The etymology of the word "Kilimanjaro" is uncertain. Many consider it as a combination of the Swahili word "Kilima" (mountain) and the Kichagga word "Njaro"(whiteness), thus giving the name White Mountain. Other people think it is a result of the word "Njaro" in Chagga/Kichagga" (our) and from this it results - Kilimanjaro = our mountain. This is from the Chagga people that in the past used to live at the base of the mountain. The name "Kibo" in Kichagga means "spotted" and refers to rocks observed on the snowfields. The Swahili word"Uhuru" means "freedom", a name attributed in order to celebrate the Tanzanian independence from Great Britain gained in 1961.

Moving on to geology, it is the fourth highest mountain of the Seven Summits. The Uhuru Peak rises to an incredible altitude of 5,895m AMSL (Above Main Sea Level). The mountain is composed out of three different volcanic cones, as follows: Kibo - 5,895 m / 19,341 ft; Mawenzi - 5,149 m / 16,893 ft and Shira - 3,962 m / 13,000 ft. The Uhuru Peak is the highest summit on the Kibo crater rim. Although it is dormant, the mountain has fumaroles that emit gas in the crater on the main summit of Kibo. Experts in geology and scientists have concluded in 2003 a study from which it resulted that motel magma is just 400m / 1,310 ft below the summit crater. Many collapses and landslides took place on Kibo in the past century, one of them creating the area known as the Western Breach.

Due to the reason that it is a sky island, Kilimanjaro has unique vegetation like water holding cabbage in tussock grassland as well as other plants like this all adapted to living in alpine conditions. Kilimanjaro is known to have a wide variety of forest types over an altitudinal range of 3,000 m / 9,843 ft which contain more than 1,200 vascular plant species. The Montane Ocotea forests occur on the wet southern slope. The Subalpine Erica forests at 4,100 m / 13,451 ft represent the highest elevation cloud forests in all Africa.

However, the degree of endemism is low despite the immense biodiversity. Forest relicts in the deepest valleys of the cultivated lower area suggest that a very rich forest flora inhabited Mount Kilimanjaro far in the past, with restricted-range species, otherwise only known from the Eastern Arc Mountains. This very low level of endemism on the mountain may be the direct consequence from destruction of lower altitude forest rather than the relatively young age of the mountain. The forests do not have a bamboo zone in comparison to other tall mountains in East Africa that have a similar high rainfall.

As you can see, Mount Kilimanjaro is one of the most interesting locations on the planet and only by visiting it and trying to climb the top you will find out the entire story behind this magnificent location that draws more and more tourists every year.

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These are Africa Photos

Today we leave Africa. We got rid of the tent that S and R gave us -- pay it forward; it is the traveler's way. We are headed to India to start a new adventure. You can find some photos of our adventures in South Africa HERE. Enjoy.

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Hiking and Cranky Hostel Owners

We went to the Drakensburg Mountains in South Africa, which are known for their hiking. We had a couple ideas of what we wanted to do, and we looked up the hostels in our guide book and settled on one that said was "closest to the Amphitheater", which is a place we wanted to hike. We arrived in the evening and met the owner, who was a bit snarky. He explained all the tours to us, places we could pay about 70 USD per head to go and he would be the guide for the hike. He also said, and I quote, "there are other ways to get there but I can't tell you how".

Okay, so let me just be clear on one thing. Aside from guidebooks, we RELY on hostel owners and employees to give us the lowdown on the surrounding area. Usually they do this with gusto and pride. They are a very important wealth of information to us. This guy was not a wealth of anything. So, we decided to just set off on our own and maybe ask someone else along the way.

The first day we had no problem finding the base for the Amphitheater hike. There was a bit of a dirt road (we have a TINY Hyundai with NO power), but we had no problems driving it, finding the trail head or any problems keeping to the trail along the way. We got back to the hostel that night and met a couple who had just arrived and were disappointed because they had wanted to go to the Amphitheater but the owner had told them that, "it was very hard to find, it was essential to have a 4 wheel drive for the road up there and the trail was not well marked". Which, as I explained before, is total BS.

Our plan for the next day was do another, more difficult hike, one that this hostel offered as a guided tour for about 130 dollars. We knew we didn't want to pay that much and clearly we could not ask the owner for advice, so the next day we set off on our own to tackle the mountain. We arrived at the gate, paid our fee, and were delighted when the gate attendant asked us if we wanted a map. Little did we know, all this was was a map to find....the trailhead. NO map of the mountain or the trail. We set out anyway.

Now, this hike was said to have taken 9 hours, so we figured we would go about 4 and then turn around if we hadn't made it to the top. We reached a split in the road right around hour two, and since our peak was to the left, we took the path to the left. And walked and walked and walked. Around hour 3.7 we realized we were not getting anywhere, we were definitely not going up, and this was a hike to the peak of the mountain, so we turned around sadly. But then we started thinking, maybe we should have taken the split to the right. So when we got to it, we still had a little extra time and we decided to try it. It was the correct path. It went up a hill, along a ridge, then up another hill, which was almost as high as the peak. From there it went left (towards the peak) on a flat path. So basically we did all the climbing without the payoff.

I don't mind not making it to the top, but it is SOOO frustrating to not be able to get proper maps or information. As I was walking down the hill, I was so peeved at the hostel owner, who was so into making money that he didn't make it comfortable for his guests. He had a gorgeous hostel with a pool table, jacuzzi and chill out room, but he had the bar open to everyone and everyone was there. They all stayed up until 4 and 5 in the morning (the locals) shouting and screaming, playing loud music in their cars in the parking lot right near the camping area, and tooting their horn. And everyone who comes here comes to hike, and has to get up early to do so!

I had a great time hiking anyway. The Drakes are beautiful and I would recommend them to anyone, but it does bother me that they don't make it easy to take a hike on your own. There were no signs or markings and no information to be had. I would not recommend the Amphitheater hostel unless you are going to the Drakes for a party and don't plan on going to bed early. Then it is just the place for you.

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South Africa Rules (and Lists)

Some words you may hear that are a little weird:
1. Lekker - this means "cool"
2. Izzit (Is it?) - this doesn't really mean Is It, it kind of means "oh really?", so if you say, "today I am flying to India." they will say, "izzit?"
3. Howzit (how is it) - the same as above, this doesn't always mean "how is it". It means "hi" or "how you doing" or like we would say "whats up".
4. Bekkie - this is a pickup truck, like a toyota 4 runner.
5. Braii - this is a BBQ. They have a curly sausage they call Braiiwoerst.
6. "too much" - they use this in place of "too many" or just "too". For example, "its too much sunny" or "too much slow" or "too much elephants". 

Traffic rules and oddities:
1. Everyone gets over to the breakdown lane to let you pass. So essentially, all roads are two lane with a mini breakdown lane, so are used as if they are three or four lanes.
2. If someone let's you pass, you flash your hazards at them to say thanks. Sometimes you get a headlight flash as a "you're welcome".
3. Robot - this is what they call a traffic light.
4. If the coast is clear for passing, a big rig will signal with his blinker. I have seen this in the US once in a while, but it is so helpful when you cant see around them.
5. When you drive on the left, your windshield wipers and blinkers are opposite. You end  up wiping the windows a lot before turning.
6. The Car Guard - when you park your car a man "guards" it for you. You have to tip him for this service. If you don't pay him, it feels like he may just accidentally "not" guard your car. Kind of a catch 22.

...to be continued...

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On Top of The Table

We hiked Table Mountain yesterday. It was gorgeous. Luckily, we decided to do it yesterday instead of the day before, as it rained the day before, but was absolutely gorgeous yesterday. It took us about 2 hours to get to the top, which is about 3000 feet up. It was a hard slog, as it is all stone steps which are uneven, bumpy and slippery. Some are about 2 inches apart; others are a foot and a half. My legs were wobbly!

We got to the top, where you can see pretty much all of Cape Town. There is a walk around that you can take that takes about an hour and gives you pretty much a 365 view of the city. It is a very beautiful city; it is surrounded by water on three sides and has Table Mountain as well as a few other mountains right in the middle of the peninsula, so it is quite pleasing to the eye. Not only that, but it is winter here right now and it must have been about 65 degrees yesterday. Not too shabby.

Here are a couple of photos from the hike.  I found that weird looking bearded guy on the side of the road and befriended him. You can find more here.

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Free at Last. Hallelujah!

So, we have been camping for the last...um...2 or 3 weeks. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind camping. In fact, I don't mind it at all. However, after camping for 3 weeks, sleeping on the ground, freezing, waking up at 445 am because the neighbors are going fishing, cooking top ramen every day for dinner and getting into stupid arguments with big K because there is no space for us to be away from each other, let me just say, I am GLAD we decided to stay in the Westin in Cape Town for a couple of days.

We have our OWN bathroom. Score. WITH a HOT shower. Bonus.

We also have....a bed. Oh man is it nice. I totally took it for granted before but beleive me, it is the best thing in the world these days.

We have food. Okay, well we have free breakfast and free happy hour snacks and drinks...but its free. And it's food. And its NOT top ramen.

Anyway, I got pretty spoiled when I was working in New Olreans, staying in a nice hotel or apartment, getting a stipend for food every day. Now I pinch pennies because every extra dollar I save means I can stay one more day on the road. But sometimes it is hard. Big K and I get into the STUPIDEST arguments because I want to save two dollars and he wants to just have hot food for a change, or I want to camp and he wants to splurge on a hotel, or I want to take the bus and he wants to rent a car..... Yup, I am the cheap one and he is the extravagant one.

But, we are having fun. Right now we are in Cape Town, and let me tell you, it is absolutely freaking BEAUTIFUL! I mean...BEAUTIFUL. On a bay with mountains...what more can you ask for? It's great. AND for the first time in a little while, we have the chance to go to the post office, buy replacement camping items, camera items etc and just relax in our awesome hotel.

The other day we went to Simon's town and saw the African Penguins (ps I love penguins!!) We also went to Cape Point (see photo above) which is the end of the Cape Town peninsula. It was gorgeous.

Tomorrow we plan to hike Table Mountain, which is one of the peaks in the middle of the city. It is about 3000 feet tall. After that, it is off on a hell bent for leather trip up the east coast, as we have to be back in Mozambique for our flight to India on the 8th of September, which is getting nearer and nearer!!!

So, where to next, you ask. Well, let me enlighten you. Our plans today include India, Nepal, China, most of South East Asia, including Vietnam and Indonesia and then a tiny trip to Australia before heading home for good. How long will this last, you ask. I do not know. Our flight right now is scheduled to be home on Dec 22, but we are seriously considering an extension. So plans may change. I will update you all as I know what is going on. And I usually don't know.

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Safari

We went on a safari to Etosha National Park in Namibia and we saw so many animals! It is cool there because you can drive yourself and there are tons of watering holes so you can drive around and see animals then sit at the watering holes and see more animals. We even stayed the night in the park and you can sit at the watering hole, which they have flood lights on, and see the animals at night. The coolest thing was the lions. We got right up next to them and they are so big!

Now we are in South Africa, after about 2 whole days of driving, and we are staying in the mountains in a place called Cedarberg. We went hiking yesterday; the terrain is totally different from what I am used to. There are mountains, but they are soapstone so they are worn away in strange patters instead of being granite or serpentine, which is more jagged, which is what I am used to. There are barely any trees; there are lots of scrubby bushes, which make the mountain look green from far away, but are really kind of bristly from up close. Nothing compared to the pines and cedars at home. For a place called Cedarberg, I have seen few cedars!

Next we will travel to the west coast of S Africa, which is called the "Western Cape" where it is said that the cliffs go right to the sea. I am imagining Big Sur type cliffs, but we shall see what we run into. South Africa is very civilized; there are real grocery stores with stocked shelves!! It is almost like home, except there is still a large black/white separation.

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Comb The Desert!

We ain't found shit!! Sorry, I had to put a Spaceballs reference in this. We rented a car and our first stop was the Namib-Naukluft National Park, which is a dune park near Sossusvlei, Namibia. It was awesome. Supposedly, as you can read on the link above, these are the world's oldest dunes, and sometimes some of the tallest (they change with the wind).  We left Windhoek and thought we would take the "shortcut", which turned out to be a dirt road...the entire way, which was about 300 km (about 200 miles). We thought we would be there around 7 pm; we ended up getting in around 10 pm. It was dark and there were many animals on the road. (see previous post re list of animals)

We went to the dunes, hiked up them and down them and all around them. We got up at 4 o'clock to sit in a line at the gate of the park in order to watch the sun rise over the dunes, which is cool, as they have the shade on one side and the sun on the other and they have such a high spine and a windy one. However, once you've seen one dune, the others all look very similar.

It was very fun, but very hot, so we retired to our campsite to find that...our tent was gone!! And somebody was in our space!! As it turns out, there had been heavy wind and our tent had blown away. The resort had found it and secured it with rocks (ooops, I guess we will use tent spikes from now on!) and they gave us another spot so all was well.

The next day we drove north to Swakopmund, which is a German inspired town near the beach with the dunes in the distance. You can do many things here such as sand boarding and dune buggies but we are using the time to use the (fast!) internet, do laundry, run errands, grocery shop (we are self catering!) and get things like that done before hitting the road again tomorrow.

Things have been a lot more expensive in Namibia than in any of the other countries. We sure are not getting the 1 dollar rice and chicken plate anymore! But, you get other things, such as cleanliness and fast internet for the price. I am not sure if it is worth it, as I was hoping to save money in Africa. I have also heard that South Africa is expensive and that is our next stop. So, PB&Js to the rescue!

I have a feeling we will have better access to the internet so hopefully can avoid these long stretches of time where I am silent.

I did put some phtos online. Please check them out at your leisure HERE.

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Hell Week

So what has happened to us, you ask?! Well.....

You last left us in Malawi. Big K was doing his diving certification and I was chillin with S and R who were good fun, reading and relaxing at the lakeshore. From there, we had hell day. Wait, it was hell week!

From there, which was Nkata Bay, we had to go to Lilongwe, which is also Malawi, but is about 8 hours from Nkata Bay. So we took a morning bus at 5 am, it rained, no wait, POURED on us the whole walk to the bus WITH all of our stuff. We arrived at Lilongwe, kind of dryish and tiredish and got the closest hotel to the station because the NEXT day we had to get up again and catch a bus at 6 (which did not leave until 8) which lasted all day again. We arrived in Lusaka at 9ish (PM), had to pitch our tent (yes, we ARE camping!)

So...the NEXT day, we did the same thing... a 8 hour bus ride from Lusaka to Livingstone, where Victoria Falls is (Zambia). We stayed there one day, went to look at the falls, relaxed (in our tent) and then the NEXT day...yup you guessed it -- anohter travel day! This one was actually interesting. I think I said before that I hitchhiked for the first time. This was that day. We wanted to take a bus from Livingstone to Windhoek, Namibia. This is about an 18 hour bus ride. However, the bus only goes on Wednesday and Sunday. Today was Thursday. So, we tried to get a bus but they said we had to go to another town to get it. So we took a taxi 60 km to the next town where they dropped us off....at the side of the road. Mind you, at this time it was about 630 am. So...we hitched. The guy who picked us up was super nice and was actually traveling in a caravan, two trucks long. They always travel together.

The guy, Franco, was from...Namibia! Yay! Since that was where we were trying to go, we asked him if we could go all the way with him. He said yes, although he was going to a different town, but we could go with him as far as we needed. Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!!! His partners were great too, we actually switched trucks in the middle. We saw elephants and warthogs!! We learned A LOT about Namibia. We did not go over 100 km/hr (they have a sensor that sends a signal to the home office if they go over 100). We did not make it to the end. We had to get off in the middle because it was 10 pm. Namibia is a HUGE country!

The next day, we hitched again, met a nice guy named Bob and his dog, Poppy (named for "the item you get from Poppies". I didnt ask him to elaborate), tried to rent a car but were told we DID need to go to Windhoek (pronounced VindHoke) after all. So, we got another ride with a great guy named Sam (who had AC -- wonder of wonders!!) He was a wealth of information. He told us all about the human trafficking from Nigeria and China. He told us all about the gun laws. He knew so much. I asked him if the cops were corrupt here. He said no and he knew all about the programs they have within the government where they watch the cops to make sure that they stay legal. I was thinking "this guy knows his stuff!!" Then we asked him what he did. He says, "I work for the police". Hahaah. Oops. He was super nice. We finally got to Windhoek around 8 pm.

This was the end of hell week. 6 days of travel. No rest. Camping on the ground, riding in uncomfortable buses for 6 days in a row. We got a car to continue our journey and I am sooooo glad. We are traveling every day, but it is no big deal anymore. We can stop when we want! You dont know how good this is! Anyway, more about that later. Hell week is over.

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The Gods (and Lists) Must Be Crazy

I thought of more things that I have found out about while in Africa:

- Rats. Fried. On a skewer. : YUM

-It is okay to throw rocks at your neighbor's goat.

-It is also okay to throw trash/food/etc out the window of your bus/on the ground/in a hole in the ground. There is trash EVERYWHERE. (except Namibia... it is cleaner)

-There is a lot of skirt on skirt action. The women wear a skirt and then wrap another one around it. My mom would love it.

-Things you can buy from the window of your bus:
     Fanta
     Bread
     Fried Pastries
     Tomatoes
     Cabbage
     Spoons
     Wallets
     Shoes
     Oranges
Okay the list goes on forever, but if you ever want anything, just ride the bus! (ps the rats I mentioned before = CAN be bought from the bus)


Well, thats it for now. I am sure I will have more things to say about Africa later. I am in Namibia now, having hitched a ride (dont tell my mom!) for the first time in my life. From Zambia to Namibia, in a 18 wheeler (also my first ride in one of those!). I am alive now, so I can talk about it freely.

A quick list of animals I have seen! From the car! At night! Be careful on the road, that's what I have learned.

Zebra --- we thought it was a donkey, but then....STRIPES! Fun!
Oryx -- a large deer with huge straight horns and a horsey tail
Ostrich
Warthog -- cute, but ugly!
Porcupine -- I didnt know they had them in Africa
Wild dog -- looks like a dog with bigger ears
Unknown birds -- to be announced later
Rabbits -- or hares? about 50 of them!

I love it here! It is what I expected and it is not what I expected. I thought plains and grasses and animals and tribes like in National Geographic. It IS a little like that and so much more.

A couple of things you may or may not know:

Most of the countries in Southern Africa speak English: Mozambique speaks Portuguese. Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Malawi and Botswana speak English, Africaans and about a dozen (or so) tribal Languages. You thought I had to learn those clicking sounds to get around over here, but...as unglamorous as it is, I can mostly get along with English.

Namibia just gained their independence 17 years ago. Mozambique I think gained theirs in 1975 (from Portugal) but has been in Civil wars with themselves until about 1994. Wounds are still fresh.

A beer in each of the countries I have been so far in Africa costs about 1 dollar. This is very important information.

There is still a lot of racial strife here. In Zimbabwe the whites came and staked their claim on land and began to farm it. Not long ago, the government decided to give the land back to the natives. People are angry. Still.

Enough for today! Waka Waka Hey Hey!

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This is Africa (T.I.A.)

10 things that you see and you have to say, "THIS is Africa":

1. Boobs. Yes, boobs. Many of them. Apparently it is okay to nurse your child, then leave your one boob hanging around afterwards. Literally "hanging", swinging loose in the breeze.

2. Obamas - Not the POTUS, but a little cake like donut made of bread and fried and sold on the streets of most Malawian towns. When your bus stops, the kids all run up to the bus with Obamas on a stick, putting it in your face and shouting, "Obama, Obama!!"

3. Minibuses - Normally a 12 seater van, minibuses have become 23 people capable, whether you like it or not. Like I said in my last post, you have 4 people abreast plus 2 kids on laps, usually a lady nursing a baby with her boob in your face and a chicken or two. And maybe a pot or a bag of maize.

4. Welcome - when you meet people, and you meet a lot, they shake your hand, ask your name and proclaim that you are "most welcome" to Malawi. The people are very friendly.

5. Supplies - we were going to go camping/hiking for a few days, so we went to find supplies, things to eat. Usually we can exist on tuna or a canned item and bread for a few days. However, there was none to be found. The only thing we could find were canned sardines in tomato sauce, which were pretty darn gross. But we ate them anyway. We also tried canned corned beef (gross but a little better with rice) and canned chicken (tastes like a hot dog...NOT like chicken!)

6. Nsima - this is a staple of the Malawian diet. I have had Cameroonian food, and they have the same thing, but it is called Foo Foo. In Kenya it is called Ugali (I think...or Ungali). In Malawi, it is called Nsima. What it is: crushed/ground up maize which is then boiled, like rice, to make a kind of lumpy rice type meal. They then pick this up with their fingers, make it into a kind of ball and use that to scoop up meat or vegetables.

7. Kids in Sacks - I guess a picture would be better, but instead of spending hundreds of dollars on baby carriers and misc products, they take a length of fabric, put the baby on their back, and wrap the fabric around the baby and their back like a sling and off they go. To top it off...see number 8.

8. Things on Heads - after strapping a baby to their back, they put their items on their heads, be it wood, luggage, water or the like and off they go again. They must have necks of steel.

9. Aging - The average age of people in Malawi is about 38. 52 percent of the people here are under 20. These figures may not be spot on, but I have heard this a few times. The main reason for this is AIDS.

10. TIA - This is Africa. This phrase was given to me by a fellow traveler. It basically means, chill out man, this is just the way it is. When your bus is 3 hours late, you cant complain, you can only say...TIA. When you go to a restaurant that has pizza thinking you are going to get a Naples pizza and you get a piece of bread with kale and chicken and some strange sauce on it, you say...TIA. When you get a cab and have to then go to 4 gas stations to find gas because they are all out, you say...TIA. When you finally get to your destination and the place you were going to stay the night has been closed for 3 years you say...TIA.

So, carpe diem! TIA!!!

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The Walmart of Africa

I was talking to a guy the other day about traveling in Africa. He talked about Malawi, which he said was "the walmart of Africa". I made a comment about why this was, maybe because they greet everyone in a friendly manner at the door? I later learned he had said, "the Warm Heart of Africa".

We are now in Malawi, and the people ARE very friendly. However, it is interesting finally being in Africa. It is kind of what I expected, a little hard to get around and a little bit of a wait for things, similar to Island time. But you get used to that after a while. The buses are overflowing with people. It is not uncommon to ride 6 abreast in a seat meant for 3. And maybe with a child on your lap. Or a chicken. You never know.

We are currently in a place called Nkata Bay, which is in the middle of Malawi and is situated right on the shores of Lake Malawi which is a HUGE lake, and covers basically a third of the country. It is just like an ocean, it has waves and everything, but it is nice to swim in FRESH water! Our hut is situated just on the shore, overlooking the lake. It is great.

We next plan to go to Zambia and camp next to Hippos in a game reserve! Then we will go to Victoria Falls and then on to Namibia, where there are tons of sand dunes and more animals.

I have to keep this short; I am so glad to finally have internet. It has been few and far between! However it is a shared computer and there are always people waiting in line. I hope to get some pictures uploaded, but that has been a total bust lately. I am deathly afraid of losing my camera or memory card, as I have not gotten a chance to upload in a while! More later!

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