Hello all! You will (I hope) be pleased to hear that I am safely back in the land of WiFi, and able to blog at last. The bad news is I forgot to bring my laptop cable to the cafe, and have about 20 minutes before it dies ...
The delightful grandma cat here is one of the hundreds of glass lantern slides found at the Livingstonia Mission in the north of Malawi. The purpose of this particular example was presumably to induce maximum bafflement amongst early Christian converts.
Livingstonia, as I may have mentioned, is located on a beautiful plateau accessible only by dirt roads. The most direct route takes in 21 switchbacks winding up a precipitous hillside. Once at the top, the view is stunning, looking down over Lake Malawi on one side, and an expanse of hlls on the other. The village itself is somewhat sprawling across the plateau, and is very well served with a large hospital, university, technical college, primary and secondary schools. It is also home to many dubious-looking canines, chickens, monkeys, and an amazing array of butterflies. Too bad I spent most of my time cooped up in the museum!
I did manage a walk yesterday afternoon though, down to the spectacular Machewe waterfall, which cascades past a spacious cave that can be accessed on foot (I know - I made it!), and apparently used to be used as a hiding place for locals threatened by neighbouring tribes.
Next stop is Blantyre - Malawi, not Scotland - via the 10-hour overnight bus. Wish me luck!