April 23 2026 - Driving to Lilongwe: Waka Waka Hotel Stay

Location: Malawi Summary: Today on April 23rd, I drove 350 kilometers back to Lilongwe along the same road I had traveled before, just in the opposite direction. Much of the road was still under construction, requiring slow detours around bridges being built, but the hillsides and mountains remained fascinating even on a second viewing. I found a place to stay near the direction I need to head tomorrow toward Nakoma — the Waka Waka Hotel. It has a very interesting name, and I think in its heyday it was a fantastic place. There's a club with a clubhouse on the second floor, a fabulous swimming pool that I regrettably didn't use, and life-size animal sculptures including a gorilla and various birds. The main issue plaguing the hotel, and Malawi in general, is the intermittent electricity. I was told the country has five sources of electricity but only two are really working, so they do rolling blackouts with no predictable schedule. Dinner was essentially in the dark. The hotel mostly hosts Malawians with few foreigners, but it served its purpose well. Tomorrow marks another kind of end to my journey, so I spent the evening preparing for what's ahead.