A Lunch-Time Stroll

Living a 30-second walk from the office has certainly reduced my level of physical activity on weekdays, when I don't have time to do the trek into town by foot. Even though I am moving in less than a week and will no longer have this problem of living too close to work, I decided I should go walking during my lunch break. Today was my first walk, and it was lovely.

I turned right to go up the hill. I met some lovely people while walking up, and then we went our separate ways at the top. The road I took was quite narrow, but paved. It has gentle left and right bends, and hills and valleys. I admired the poinsettia bushes on one property, and the banana trees on another. And then there are the bougainvilleas. They are gigantic lush trees with dark green leaves, streams of purple flowers cascading down, and an underbelly of vines reminiscent of Tarzan.

Since it is the dry season, the sound of a grasshopper hopping in the tall grass can make you think you're being tracked by some sort of wild animal. I had a little jump at one point, but soon realized I was not be stalked by a rabid rodent or a snake.

I came around one particular bend, near Edrinnie and Dennis' house, and my eyes feasted upon a clear view of the Zomba plateau.

On the walk back, I took a wrong turn down what I thought was a road, but was actually the entrance to a long drive-way. Then I thought I could circumvent the walk back by following a footpath that I assumed went down to the road. I was finally forced to turn around when I saw the brick wall a few hundred yards in front of me blocking the way.

I spotted a foot path that led up to a giant rock formation. I climbed the rocks and then looked out into the valley where Zomba lies. It was breath-taking. A beautiful, clear sunny day - I could see for miles, all the way to Mount Mulanje, the highest peak in Malawi (3 miles high!). I came down the rock formation, and listened to the plethora of life around. There were so many different bird calls all at once. It reminded me of the jungle feature on "Planet Earth". I was lucky enough to spot a bird in a nearby bush. It was only 3 inches long and had a shining, turquoise head and a bright orange breast. Beautiful.


I think I'll go again tomorrow...this time with my camera.