Hippos, Beware.

Today was another adventure, and we set off early (around 6:30am). We were in the village shopping the narrow corridors before half the shopkeepers were awake.  

African society is also a 9:00-5:00 society, but reversed. People wake up at 5:00am when the sun comes up and go to bed around 9:00pm after the sun has set and dinner is finished. With only 2% of the population powered by electricity you can see how being awake at night has little purpose. With no lights you would be surprised at how immobilized you are.

After picking up our usual snacks from the market, we set off on adventure number three, finding the hippo sanctuary. The only information we knew was that the hippos were on the other side of the beach from the crocodiles we saw yesterday. We started our walk down the road, and just like yesterday we would ask the villagers that passed by if we were headed in the right direction. They all pointed us ahead and we kept walking
When we reached a place called Safari lodge we knew we were close. We did get very sidetracked (for about an hour) watching hundreds of baboons playing in the camp. They were everywhere! Big baboons, baby baboons, mother baboons, and grandpa baboons… We decided that when we return to Senga Bay, we will definitely stay at Safari Lodge!  

One of my favorite things about Africa are all the animal encounters that would wouldn’t get anywhere else in the world! Eventually we left Safari Lodge for the Fishing Village nearby where all the men, women, and children greeted us with open arms…literally. At one point I had the hands of thee sticky little girls in my pockets, on my legs, and holding my hands.

After a few minutes greeting all the villagers we were pointed in the direction of the “Hippo Pools.” We continued our walk on one of the most beautiful trails I have ever been on. We climbed over boulders, through rice fields, and past small fishing villages. 

After an hour or so we reached “hippo gazebo”, the landmark that everyone has pointed out as the entrance to the pools. We walked away from the beach and towards the swampy areas. When we reached the edge of the “hippo pools” we searched and searched for hippos in the murky waters. I am sure all the locals who passed by thought we were crazy!
Come to find out (from the locals), hippos are nocturnal and the hibernate like bears. They are most commonly seen at night during the rainy season when the swamps are flooded. While there were hippos in the hippo pools at the edge of our feet, there was little hope that we were going to see them in the middle of the day in dry season.  

We left only seeing the hippo scarecrows, large pieces of metal tied together with clay to make noise in the wind and keep the hippos out of the rice farms. Hippos do not like human noise.

After the defeat of not sighting a hippo, we decided to head back to the Safari Lodge and spend some more time watching the playful baboons.
The remainder of the day we swam in lake Malawi, watched men make fishing nets out of mosquito nets, and eventually hitch hiked our way to Salima on the back of a Matola (truck) so that we could catch a minibus back to Lilongwe.

We had too many adventures for one weekend and it is time to relax and church and get back to work.

(Below: Andrew’s post)

I woke to the sound of our hostel door creaking open and Kylie’s silhouette exiting our room. She wanted to capture the morning sunrise and was leaving to get ah early start on the day. I laid in bed reading about incentives in Poor Economics.

A few minutes later Kylie returned and we decided to explore the other half of Singah bay and to try to find the hippo sanctuary. All the locals told us it would be difficult get there without a guide, but we were confident.

We walked for several kilometers before coming to Safari Beach View Lodge. We knew the hippo sanctuary was 1km from the lodge so we knew we were close. We spoke with a lady who told us we could go through the lodge and village to find the sanctuary. 

As we entered the lodge, we were shocked to see several blue baboons running around the lodge grounds. Apparently safari beach lodge has several baboon families that live in the lodge. They ran around the pool, fought around the parking area, and well… Were everywhere! 

We walked as two large baboons battled one another, and as mothers carried their young on the backs. It was pretty incredible. I quickly stuffed Kylie’s snacks into my bag to avoid attracting them. Glad I did that, since a moderately male sized baboon approached me curious, stopping almost 1 foot away. It was so close I was a little tense what would happen!

Fortunately with the food tucked away the baboon lost interest and wandered off to play. 

We made our way through the lodge and into the small fishing village before coming to a long stretch of beautiful beach. Walking on the edge of lake Malawi was a beautiful sight. It wasn’t long before we arrived at the hippo sanctuary, but no hippos were to be seen. They often only appear during the rainy season anyways. But hey, Kylie and I were just proud we made it there without s problem! Despite the skepticism from the locals. 

 After getting back to Cool Runnings, we swam for an hour before making our journey home. Kylie and I both loved this weekend and the beautiful cultural elements that we found unique to Senga bay.