Malawi looks grim. It is by far the poorest country I’ve visited. The situation might be slightly better now than fifteen years ago - when I was here for the first time - it is still indefinitely poorer than it’s neighboring countries.

Goods are incredibly cheap, a Coke costs about 10p, a night in a basic guesthouse 50p. Once you cross the border into Mozambique, everything is at least 3 to 4 times more expensive. Most people still walk around in European cast-offs. Cars and busses are in the worst state possible, as if those not making it through safety regulations elsewhere in Africa are collectively dumped onto this country.

The pickup truck to the Mozambican border is overloaded as I’ve never seen before, and I’m very doubtful we can make it over the mountains this way. We are just a few kilometers under way when the car brakes down. I don’t have a clue what’s wrong, but with some ends of sticky tape the driver can get the motor running again. The battery is for the scrapyard, we have to push to start the motor and worse, the headlights don’t work anymore. The Malawians don’t know any better than to continue driving with a hand torch showing the white line in the middle of the road.

Originally uploaded by gert.