Malawi/Zambia - 16 March, 2001

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Travel Distance

Total:

29,453 km

8,533 km

Today we head to Zambia, but first we make a stop in Lilongwe to do some shopping.  We also drop off Arian and Marjo.  Marjo has been very ill and they get off the truck here to go to a doctor.  We find out later on that it is very good that they got off here - she was very ill (sleeping sickness) and needed to be flown to Johannesburg that day.

Lilongwe is a quiet town and there is not too much to do.  We end up leaving late as we need to wait for Bruce to finish his shopping.  We are on our way just before 11 AM.  We get to the Malawi side of the border around 12:30 PM and are through in about 20 minutes.  The Zambia side is almost as quick.

We head towards Chipata, where we stop at the Yellow Chicken Campsite for lunch.  It is a very nice place for lunch, with tables, chairs, flush toilets and a view over a small pond.  The rest of the afternoon is spent driving.

We arrive at South Luangwa after dark and it is a dirt road, so Gilly investigates what the road is like.  The decision is made that we should not proceed in the dark on the dirt road as it is very muddy and we may get bogged.  So we stay in the Crocodile Campsite for the night.  As we shall see tomorrow, it was a very wise decision.  We skip dinner and go straight to bed.