I took a bus from Malawi to Zimbabwe

After spending three amazing months in Malawi, which is fondly known as The Warm Heart of Africa, I made my way to the neighbouring Zimbabwe.

I have a number of Zim friends and have been looking forward to visiting that country for years. As someone, who follows Zimbabwean politics and have consumed quite a bit of their literature, I have always had a soft spot for Mzilikazi’s country.

So I booked with Trip Trans for MK38,000. The bus left Blantyre at 6:30am. We were scheduled to arrive in Harare around 6:30pm that evening. I was a bit sad to be living Malawi with some of the kindest people I’ve ever met, but I am always seeking new adventures!

The bus few minutes before leaving the station.

The bus which was in a good condition wasn’t full. I had chosen a window seat and luckily for me, the next seat was empty. So I had plenty of space.

By 9:30am, we were at the Zimbabwean border. I made my way to immigration feeling relaxed as I had triple checked the entry requirements before making the booking. I had fallen behind from the fellow passengers as I had to go back to the bus to fetch my Covid-19 vaccination certificate which I had forgotten in my backpack.

As I was getting close to the office, two guys approached me and asked for MK5000 in order for my Covid-19 vaccination certificate to be “scanned”.
“Scanned for what? And why should I have to pay for that?” I asked puzzled. They said that’s how it worked.

I had to pass through a Covid desk and that’s where the “scanning” happened. I could see the desk which was next to the building. I went over to ask about the pricey “scanning.”

A guy with a white coat behind the tiny desk answered me with irritation in his voice: “The two guys you were talking to over there will take your certificate to be scanned.”

I was still not convinced. I felt they were pulling a fast one on me. I caught up with some people from the bus. They told me they all had to pay.
I was the last one in line. I knew there was no “scanning” but I needed a signature from the Covid-19 desk before I could go any further.

I grudgingly went back to the two guys and told them I only had MK2000. One protested saying it was too little, but the other said: “Give it to me. But make sure no one sees you. Put it in the card.”

I obliged. Next thing the tall one took out the immigration questionnaire and started filling it in for me. I asked him to hand it over and did it myself. Instead of going to “scan” my certificate, he gave it to me and ushered me the Covid-19 desk while they disappeared. The guy behind the desk just ticked next to my name and asked me to sign. I was then allowed to get inside the office.

By now, all the other passengers were done. The conductor was hovering in the background as he was waiting for me to finish.

Inside the building, the immigration officer didn’t even look at my Covid-19 vaccination certificate which I was told needed to be scanned, but wasn’t. Instead I was questioned about the reason for my visit.

A second officer came over and asked, “How long will you be staying? Do you know anyone here? Are you aware that you are not allowed to work during your stay in Zimbabwe?”

I assured him that I had no intention of working in his country. “I just want to check it out for two weeks before going home,” I said.

I was taken aback by this interaction. I just wanted to get my passport stamped so we could get going. But I couldn’t appear impatient or annoyed as immigration officials hold all the power in that moment, and boy, do they know it!

Eventually, my passport was stamped. I didn’t check it. I dashed to the door. As I was about to reach the bus, I heard someone call my name. I turned around and it was an immigration officer. I started freaking out thinking they had changed their minds about letting me enter their country.

I approached him with my heart beating so fast and my head imagining the worst case scenario. He took my passport without saying anything. I saw him scrapping something before stamping it again. He then gave it back to me. This time I checked it. I saw initially I was given three days and he had changed it to three weeks.

I went to the bus. I got in and lo and behold the two “scanner” guys were on the bus selling Sim cards! “Sim cards for R50 each,” they chanted.

I was so angry at what they had done so I confront them. “I see you’re done with the imaginary scanner. You now are selling Sim cards!”
The tall one quickly made his exit. I blocked the short one. I demanded answers. I was so pissed at being taken advantage of just as I arrived in Zimbabwe. I hated that my first impression of Zim was their little criminality!

“My sister, please, you can go and speak to the doctor at the desk if you have any questions,” he said.
“Oh please, man isn’t a doctor. I just want you to admit that you are running a little scam here. There’s no MK5,000 scan. You are just making money from travellers!” I shouted at him.
“No sister, we are just following the rules,” he pleaded.
“Don’t lie. First of all, you too are not wearing any uniform so you are just running a little criminal activity with that guy at the Covid-19 desk,” I told him.
He was tired of the back and forth. He finally admitted, “Yes, you’re right.”
And he quickly dashed past me and I took my seat. I knew I was not going to get my money back, but it was about them admitting they were skelms!

The bus driver turned on the ignition and we were on our way. The road was in good condition. I was enjoying the ride while sipping on mango juice.

I started dozing off. I woke up as the bus was slowing down. It stopped. I saw people getting out. I followed thinking it was a quick stop so people could stretch their legs.

When I got outside, it turned out that there was a puncture. I had not heard anything. It looked serious so we had to wait as they tried to change it.

It was sunset. I walked around, snapping the beautiful sunset. I love sunset pictures. I was bummed about the puncture, but I was happy to be in Zimbabwe. Nothing was going to dampen my mood.

It took a couple of guys and two hours to get it out!

Two hours later, they had managed to change the tyre. We were ordered back into the bus and continued with the journey. We arrived in Harare after 8pm. I couldn’t see much as it was dark, but I was grateful for travel mercies as we disembarked after 13 hours of travel.

Mistakes to avoid when traveling

Travel essentials.

“Travel. As much as you can. As far as you can. As long as you can. Life is not meant to be lived in one place.”

This is my motto when it comes to travel. However, traveling is not without its challenges. It requires a lot of planning and paperwork. As an organized person I don’t mind this, but there are some little things that can negatively impact your travel experience.

I’m sharing what I’ve learned so you don’t make the same mistakes.

Money
Personally, I don’t like carrying cash especially when I’m traveling alone. I feel safer when I don’t have any money on me. Blame it on living in a country with a very high crime rate.

Thanks to the advances of technology, I’ve become accustomed to cashless living. In SA, I hardly carry cash. I use my card to pay for goods and services.

Sadly for me, this didn’t work during my solo travel adventure. I learned the hard way that some countries, especially on the continent, still prefer hard cash.

I remember wanting a toilet in Zambia after crossing the border and they charged a small fee which I didn’t have! Luckily, a fellow traveler paid for me as she could see that I really needed to pee!
So it’s important to have local currency before crossing into any country. If you didn’t make it to the bank, make use of the cash exchange people at the border. Just be prepared to negotiate as they will try to shortchange you.

One time in Mpika, Zambia, I went out for drinks. When it was time to pay, I produced a debit card only to be told they only accept cash! I had to leave behind my sunglasses and go look for an ATM which wasn’t always easy to find.

Another thing, as you get into a supermarket, ask whether you can use an international card. I remember having to put back groceries (I was already at the teller) at Food World in Zimbabwe because they didn’t accept international cards.

Connectivity
This one really hurt. I’m a cheapskate so paying to use the internet really suck! It’s also partly because I’m used to businesses that offer free WiFi so I was expecting the same during my travels. Imagine my horror when lodges/hotels didn’t have free WiFi!

Usually when I travel, I don’t buy a local Sim card as I’d use free WiFi to communicate with people back home. In Tanzania, it soon became clear that WiFi wasn’t easily accessible in most places. I spent a lot of time looking for places with free WiFi.

One hotel, told me they only allowed people who had booked rooms to use their WiFi! I as someone, who wanted to have lunch and use the WiFi while waiting for my food, wasn’t allowed any access! I couldn’t believe it, but that was their policy. So I had to get a local Sim card so that I could connect with the people back home and for a bit of social media now and again.

This was such a culture shock because in SA we take it for granted that you can simply ask the waitress for the WiFi password while ordering a drink!

Accommodation
This one was a tough lesson. As a planner, I always make sure that everything is in order before moving from point A to B. When it comes to accommodation I always book and pay well in advance. This worked out well until I went to Mombasa, Kenya.

I had booked for seven nights. The place was lovely and reasonably priced. The problem started in the evening. They played loud music throughout the night. I was sleep deprived for a week! I couldn’t move out as I’d paid upfront. And the pleas for peace and quiet fell on deaf ears as they were making money from the disco!
The unpleasant experience taught me to only prebook for a night or two before deciding on whether I want to extend my stay after I’ve experienced the place first hand.

I know this is difficult for planners, but it’s better to keep your options open just in case your initial accommodation doesn’t tick all your boxes.

Passport

Lastly, we all know this one but sometimes we take it for granted. In the beginning I used to carry a copy of my passport with me, but after months of traveling without ever having to produce it, I stopped. Then one day I was stopped by Tanzanian soldiers for unknowingly trespassing! I was interrogated for quite some time and I didn’t have my passport with me! They had to drive me to where I was staying so I could show it to them!

Books

I read a lot. I prefer hard copies. I want to smell a book and there is something about turning a page. So it was no surprise that I’d travel with books. However, I could not carry a lot. Books are heavy. Someone suggested Kindle but I wasn’t about to sellout so I declined. Needless to say, I ran out of books after six months of traveling. I was kicking myself for being stubborn about Kindle. For weeks I didn’t have anything to read. It was tough. Finally, when I arrived in Cape Maclear, Malawi there was a whole bookshelf with so many great books. I could read again! Lesson learned. I’m definitely getting a Kindle for travel!

Do you have anything to add to this list? Please do so in the comments section.

Eating at Linda’s

I was walking down the main road in Monkey Bay, Malawi, when Linda’s Pawn Shop & Food, written in bold black letters caught my eyes.

Outside the shop.

There was something inviting about the small white house with blue windows. Upon close proximity there was a black board advertising English breakfast for MK2000.

On the veranda were two small tables with chairs. The long white curtains on the left blew slightly as I entered the place.

I liked the simple decor.

I was welcome by delicious aroma wafting through from the kitchen. A woman with a small frame appeared and introduced herself as Linda.
She answered my questions about the menu. She told me that the place was new. She was in charge of the kitchen and the pawn shop which was inside the restaurant. It was mostly white bedding and few clothing items. People brought in their staff to be sold and they would collect the money afterwards. There was a beautiful pair of gumboot that I liked but I couldn’t buy it as I didn’t have space in my bag.

The stock in the pawn shop.

I promised Linda to return for breakfast the next day. True to my word I went back. I ordered the English breakfast and a cup of coffee. I was served by the owner as she had no staff as yet.

Since I didn’t eat meat, she replaced it with avocado. The breakfast was delicious. I cleaned out my plate.

I loved the quiet vibe of the place. The decor was minimal with a touch of meditarian. It’s a great place for a quiet dinner/lunch or a group of friends who want to enjoy good food before a night out.

I went back for dinner with a local who happened to be a regular customer. The place smelled like home. That alone was enough wet my appetite. I had nsima with veggies. It was a simple but tasty meal. Linda knew her way around the kitchen. She served a variety of meals at reasonable prices.

If you ever find yourself in Monkey Bay, you have to eat at Linda’s. You will be supporting a mother of three, who is passionate about cooking. Who knows, you might even find something special in the pawn shop!