Paradise

Thursday, June 13^th

           

            Today Liz, Amy, and I woke up around 5:00am to see the sunrise and naturally it was an overcast day. So in reality, we just woke up early and watched the fog get lighter as the minutes passed but it was still wonderful. Our last breakfast at Annie’s was so great. They treated us and started breakfast an hour early so we could get on the road to Lake Malawi by 7:00am; also they had crepes, which made it perfect.

            The drive to Lake Malawi wasn’t very long; we arrived around 10:30am, which was perfect because we had the whole rest of the day to lie out by the water. We stayed at this beautiful spot called Makokola Resort. Beautiful is honestly an understatement; I couldn’t believe that I was still in Malawi because it was unlike the beautiful I have been seeing for the past month. The water was so clear that I could see straight into it but unfortunately we weren’t allowed to get in because of the parasites. The sand was a lot different than the sand I am used to. The sand was very hard and firm; it was kind of like walking on a firm mattress. The weather was absolutely perfect and the sun warmed every single fiber in my body. We all quickly dropped our things off in our rooms and changed into our suits. The rooms were a lot like the Chalets we stayed in at Mvuu for the safari. Makokola is a place where I could see myself spending my honeymoon or saving for a very special vacation because it was absolutely mind blowing how gorgeous it was. I was often wondering if it was all real because my eyes didn’t trust the sights before them.

            Once we were done drooling over our home for the night we all headed down to the water. About 9 feet from where I was sitting on the lake there was a large pool, chairs, restaurant area, and bar right behind me, paradise. The lake resembled a beach in so many ways so just picture your perfect beach scene and Lake Malawi was still probably better. I had such a relaxing day with everyone on the trip. It was so great for us to have the day all together to just bond and enjoy each other’s company. It’s sad that this trip is coming to an end because not only did I gain friends from Malawi but I have also become really close with a handful of the girls on this trip and I am so excited that they were apart of this wonderful adventure.

            We stayed on the lake until the sunset and this is by far one of my top 10 favorite moments. A sunset in Malawi is unlike any other sunset I have ever seen. I was sitting in the sand, 4 feet from the water, next to two of my very best friends, in Malawi, and I was watching the most beautiful sunset in my life; words cannot explain just how blessed I was feeling. After the sunset we all went back to our rooms to get ready for dinner. Dinner was going to be served around 7:00pm so we had about an hour and ½ to kill. Amy and Leigh came over to our room and we watched some TV and made coffee the rooms had for us, it was great. We then went to dinner and from the looks of the décor you would have thought one of us was getting married. The tables and chairs were lined with white linens and tied with these large purple bows; it was magical. The tables all had candlelight on them and we were about a soccer field’s length away from the water. We were served appetizers of French onion soup and bruschetta, a main course of fish and pork tenderloin, and a dessert of chocolate cake; it was such a fantastic meal. During dinner there were 2 separate performances of traditional African dancing! The dancing was absolutely amazing and shocking at moments because I wasn’t sure the human body could move like they did. The day was honestly such a series of relaxing and happy moments shared with such perfect people.

Until then,

xoxo