We are so far behind!  Now that I’ve written about our amazing trip to Mozambique (back in April) I can talk about our amazing time with Mary Katherine and Gardner in May!

It was one of the most stress-free trips we’ve had and loved every minute of it.  We were able to hit all of our favorite places and still discover new ones.

Here are the top twenty things I learned during their time here:

20)          Mary Katherine and Gardner look great even after traveling for 28 hours strait.

19)          Mk and G adjusted really quickly and really well – here is their photo of a roadside market on the way from LLW to Blantyre

18)          It’s easy to make friends at the Mulanje Mission Hospital

17)          MK and G share my view that Mulanje pizza is the best – and that you don’t have to have climbed Mt. Mulanje to appreciate it.

16)          Gardner hates it when I slurp my coffee, tea, or soup.  And he’s quite right.

15)          We could easily get used to Huntington House style living… tea on the khonde anyone?

14)          Croquet is the best game ever.  I’m thinking of starting a national team.  We could drink gin and tonics and play croquet all over the world.

13)          We think Chalet #5 at Mvuu Lodge might be the best one.  But it’s tough to say…

12)          MK and G are good luck – with them we saw: elephants, elephant babies, buffalo, buffalo babies, roan antelope, sable antelope, hartebeest, hippos, hippo babies, a two-week old hippo baby out of water, a crocodile eating something, porcupines, water bucks, monitor lizards, a duiker, bush bucks, about 40 different kinds of birds, and of course, plenty of impala and warthogs.  Even our fabulous guide Duncan was impressed.

11)          Our surprise breakfast, sneakily organized and prepared by the incredible Mvuu staff, at a hide deep in the bush, along the bank of the Shire river, alongside amazing wildlife, with eggs cooked to order, coffee, tea, muffins, sausage, bacon, and fruit, was definitely the best breakfast I’ve ever had.

10)          The idea of enjoying your sundowner drink while floating along in Lake Malawi sounds wonderful.  The execution of this idea is surprisingly difficult.  But laughing so hard at watching   the others try and stay balanced on pool noodles, sip their drinks, and not let any water from the waves dilute their gin and tonics, burns off a lot of calories.

9)            We look dazzling in snorkel masks and flippers.

8)            With these little kayaks, we think we could even keep up with Alex, Ginny, and Ginger… at least for a little while

7)            If Robinson Crusoe lived life like you do on Mumbo Island, he had it pretty good…

6)            Eco-loos and bucket baths on Mumbo Island are pure luxury.

5)            Back in Blantyre, Mary Katherine has a new fan at Open Arms.  And so does Gardner…

4)            Gardner can cook anything, from anywhere, from any ingredients, and it’s always incredible.

3)            Gardner eats sugar cane like a real man.

2)            We will miss them so much, but…

1)            We think Mary Katherine and Gardner have been bitten by the ‘Africa bug’, so we’re sure we’ll see them back soon!