I was in a bit of a funk last week - had some setbacks at work, wasn't feeling great, and I was itching to get out of Lilongwe. A weekend trip outside of the big city was exactly what I needed.
Dedza is a small city 90 minutes south of Lilongwe on the Mozambique border. Saturday morning, my roommates and I set off with a tentative plan of things we wanted to see and places where we could possibly stay. For 22 years I've been one to always plan out every detail, but I've been trying to embrace the "go with the flow" mentality lately. It's let me enjoy the uncertainty and the bumps along the road.
We managed to pack a lot into our 24 hours in Dedza. We bought pottery and ate some delicious food at the Dedza Pottery Lodge. After getting the car stuck in yet another ditch, we managed to get to Dedza Mountain and hike part-way up to get a view of Mozambique. We watched the sunset at the Pottery Lodge before setting up our tents overlooking a beautiful rock formation. After a lazy Sunday morning, we drove through the Chongoni Forest Reserve and, after getting some help from the locals, we finally found are way to the Mphunzi Rock Art site. A local guide took us on a 30 minute hike up the mountain to see some 10,000 year old rock paintings.
It's amazing what 24 hours of exploring new views can do for your mindset.
Dedza is a small city 90 minutes south of Lilongwe on the Mozambique border. Saturday morning, my roommates and I set off with a tentative plan of things we wanted to see and places where we could possibly stay. For 22 years I've been one to always plan out every detail, but I've been trying to embrace the "go with the flow" mentality lately. It's let me enjoy the uncertainty and the bumps along the road.
We managed to pack a lot into our 24 hours in Dedza. We bought pottery and ate some delicious food at the Dedza Pottery Lodge. After getting the car stuck in yet another ditch, we managed to get to Dedza Mountain and hike part-way up to get a view of Mozambique. We watched the sunset at the Pottery Lodge before setting up our tents overlooking a beautiful rock formation. After a lazy Sunday morning, we drove through the Chongoni Forest Reserve and, after getting some help from the locals, we finally found are way to the Mphunzi Rock Art site. A local guide took us on a 30 minute hike up the mountain to see some 10,000 year old rock paintings.
It's amazing what 24 hours of exploring new views can do for your mindset.