Kupumula Malawi

Chincheche is the most widely spoken language in Malawi. It’s a beautifully lyrical language to listen to and I’m told, easy to learn. Kupumula means farewell, and we are sadly saying farewell to this beautiful country of contrasts.

We have had a big final day at Mvuu Camp with a 4am start! It was worth it as in the dark you get to see the nocturnal animals and birds and we had some lovely sightings, including a bush baby on foot which was a real treat. They are tiny members of the ape family with huge eyes. We also had a treat with buffalo, lion and elephants along with the usual antelope.

It’s a very hot day today so it was easy to just lie around, read and swim until our final boat trip on the Shiré in the late afternoon. I’ll never tire of African sunsets.

We had four young Dutch people in our boat today. They are working for NGO’s in Lilongwe on wildlife projects. This next generation is quite inspiring.

When I reflect on the last 12 days it feels like a month. So much experienced, quite a lot of emotion and a lot of country covered. What have I come away with? I think a lot of it is humility. There’s nothing like the generous grace of people with nothing, to make you appreciate that your wealth and status in the world is largely meaningless. It’s your character that counts. We have met so many Malawians who have inspired us and who are making the best of the often challenging situations they find themselves in.

This is a country of fine humans who have been grievously let down by successive governments but they soldier on. They are now being unfairly affected by Trump and Netanyahu’s war and it’s devastating. It’s a place of great beauty and enormous potential - as evidenced by Liwonde and the world class operation here.

On a personal note it’s been very powerful to visit the places that my grandparents and great grandparents lived and worked. I have been able to let go of any concern that their activities were somehow wrong in the context of ‘imperial imposition’ and now know that without their presence (and the other incredible missionaries) the people of this beautiful land would have been decimated. Their legacy continues 150 years later and the Malawian locals celebrate it.

Having visited where they lived I can now fully understand the astonishing hardships they endured and feel nothing but respect. It is exciting to continue this journey of learning more so my kids generation can understand part of their legacy.

Even more personally, as I watch another African sunset and listen to the roar of a hippo and the haunting call of a fish eagle I feel so absolutely a part of this land that my heart tightens and tears fall at the thought of it. Central Africa is my soul place.

Thank you for traveling with me. It’s so special having so many of you to chat to every evening . We fly to Cape Town tomorrow, hopefully! I won’t blog there, so it’s over and out from me xRead more