Hello there. I do hope that you are marvelously well. Here in the rather toasty Luangwa, we are currently surrounded by elephants as they either drink from the pool or gather under the lovely thick shade of the newly leafed sausage trees as the temperatures start to rise. But we are not here this week to talk about the Luangwa, we have a lovely update from Will Menser who recently stayed at Mkulumadzi (Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi) with his family and has very kindly shared some stories with us. Will, over to you:
“My family had the amazing experience of visiting several game reserves in Malawi in 2009 when we lived there and now once more 13 years later as we came for a visit with some friends.
One of the trips highlights was Mkulumadzi Lodge in Majete. The transformation Majete has undergone is incredible. Upon our arrival, we were greeted with lions, zebras, elephants and much more. Most importantly, we got to see the incredible conservation effort and care that has been taken in restoring wildlife in Majete and the incredible efforts Robin Pope Safaris have taken in creating a gorgeous lodge and safari experience in the warm heart of Africa.
Mali was our safari guide and quickly sparked a wonderful friendship with us. Since we had previously lived in Malawi, we were able to speak some Chichewa with him which brought smiles to all our faces. He had so much knowledge of the wildlife we saw that he shared with us which enhanced our experience. He always stopped plenty long for me to snap some of the best photos I’ve been able to capture!
The staff across the board was so lovely and took amazing care of our group. The chef prepared some amazing meals for us that made our time out of the safari truck wonderful as well.
It was truly incredible to see lions in Malawi – something I never thought I would see. We also saw so many Nyala, which we had never seen before! The birds were also amazing, and I was lucky enough to get some pictures of them as well with help from Mali’s sharp eye.
I miss Majete so much already and feel like I could spend a lifetime navigating those roads and photographing the gorgeous wildlife and landscape. Hopefully someday we can return and catch a glimpse of the ever-elusive Cheetah! Thank you so much to Robin Pope Safaris and the wonderful team at Mkulumadzi for the unforgettable experience in our old home. We will cherish the memories we made there for a lifetime.”
Wonderful! Thank you so very much Will for sharing this with us, it certainly sounds like it was a wonderful trip and we hope that you are able to come and visit us again soon. Speaking of cheetah, Conrad (our country manager based at Mkulumadzi) sent the following shots of some cheetah who were lounging just in front of chalet 1 at Mkulumadzi Lodge! What a treat for the guests and we are only sad Will missed out on this.
Here in the Luangwa the wildlife has continued to be absolutely superb, and this last week John Mphasi had a lovely sighting on his way back into camp of 3 adult wild dogs with their 9 pups all resting in the shade. That afternoon heading out slightly early to see if they could find the dogs, they found them once more in the same place. As the heat of the day was wearing off and the pups had decided that they had quite frankly spent way too much time sitting still, they decided to get up to some mischief. Whilst the adults kept a rather sleepy eye on them, they played the fun game of stalk and chase the hooded vulture. The poor vultures were desperately trying to feed on titbits left behind but between the 9 pups they had very little opportunity. What a wonderful start to another game drive.
So, as you can see its nonstop here and whilst I could go on, I shall gracefully sign off for the week and bid you all a very fond farewell and will look forward to updating you next Monday with more news from the bush. Until then, have a fantastic week ahead with plenty of smiles and laughter and don’t forget to look after one-another.
