There and back again...

If you enjoy the writings of Bilbo Baggins (as I do), then you'll know that journeys can contain many adventures...and such was the case this past weekend.

My niece Keren needed to leave and re-enter Mozambique for visa puposes...much too long of a tale to go into right now. But Laura and I elected to accompany her on a road trip north to Malawai for two nights, and that's when the fun began. Pack three wazungus (i.e. white folk) into a Toyoto mini-van and let them loose on Afrian roads and border crossings, and just about anything can happen.

Rule #1: Leave early in the morning. You never know what will come up, and it will always take longer than you think. For the initial trip out, it was sections of road under repair and suspension bridges crumbling apart under our tires (or so it seemed).

Rule #2: Bring lots of money. You'll need it to pay the visa fees, customs fees, import duties (for your car), extra insurance fees, to pay the kid to watch your vehicle while you go in and pay all these fees...

 

...and finally, the bribes to the well-fed policeman at the roadside check point (sorry, didn't want to chance taking his picture...).

Rule #3: Have a good destination in mind. For us, it was the Fisherman's Rest Guesthouse near Blantyre. Wonderful accomodation overlooking the great Rift Valley, fantastic food, amazing hosts, and the cutest lap dog named Tippy.