Travel

CONTENDER FOR THE “STRANGE ANIMAL” CATAGORY

Game parks all over Africa are full of the strangest creatures. God must certainly have a sense of humor, or why would He have created so many interesting and unusual animals. Take for instance the hippo. Big, fat, runs funny, tiny ears, strange communication sounds, spends most of its life almost completely submerged under water. […]

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BLANTYRE, MALAWI’S COMMERCIAL CENTER

The southern city of Blantyre is the oldest European settlement in Malawi and a bustling commercial activity center. The Blantyre Mission was founded in 1876 and named after the small, Scottish village where David Livingston was born. Climate, combined with rich fields drew the Europeans to the settlement and Blantyre grew in stature as a

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THE FEVER TREE

Its bark has a distinctive, greenish-yellow, smooth appearance. It produces a powdery substance that coats its bark and rubs off at the touch. Dangerous thorns grow to approximately 2 ½ to 3 inches and can easily puncture a shoe and reach the foot.This unique tree, known as xanthophloea, grows in low, marsh areas, along flood

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ODE TO THE ROLL

ODE TO THE ROLL Lilongwe, Malawi … In 1970 Joni Mitchell released the song, Big Yellow Taxi. In it was this refrain, “You don’t what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.” I know she was not talking about what I recently experienced, but every time I think about my encounters in Malawi, I recall that song. My

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THEY SURVIVED THE STORM, BUT NOW …

Southern Malawi … It has been six months since Cyclone Freddie washed away his entire village. Their home had been their security, and their good memories. Now it was gone, and six months later most of the aid groups who came immediately after the storm, were also gone.  John Chikwanthu, 62, and his family of

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PAIN OF THE PAST

Mozambique wraps around Malawi on three sides, and unlike the borders of most nations, this fact explains a nearly total encasement of the Southern portion of Malawi. Because of this fact, Mozambique has a powerful influence on the economic and political situation of its neighbor.   A major example of this took place between 1977 to

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THE NIGHT BROUGHT TERROR (Part 2)

Southern Malawi, … In our previous story the cyclonic winds and high water from Cyclone Freddy had just swept Justin Yasini, his wife, and their two sons down steam in the high waters. Justin was scared and feared his wife and sons were gone forever. It was at this point that Justin believes he was

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THE NIGHT BROUGHT TERROR (Part 1)

Southern Malawi, … The rain had been coming down in torrential waves for the past two days, and rivers and streams could not handle the load. They were beginning to overflow their banks, and unknown to thousands of village people the water was about to become their enemy. For many villagers, proximity to rivers means

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DRIVING IN THE FRENZY OF MARKET DAY

Lilongwe, Malawi … Market Day in Malawi’s trading centers is a day of fuss, fury, and frenzy. Malawians seem to know where they are going, but for an American it is an impossible maize to navigate. For those walking beside, on, or across the highway, and for the drivers who must dodge the foot traffic,

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SOUTH OF THE CITY IN EARLY MORNING

It is hard to imagine anything more beautiful than the distant mountains floating in the morning mist south of Lilongwe along M-1. This scene is common at this time of year and there is something that touches the visitor with the feeling they are wild, beautiful, and untamed.  In a way that is the feeling

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