"Mike Resnick - Between the Sunlight and Thunder (2)" - читать интересную книгу автора (Resnick Mike)

followed by another dozen pages of ads thanking God for President Banda. The country is physically
the most beautiful of all the African nations we've visited, and the people are the sweetest and
friendliest. Most of them literally worship Banda -- but that stands to reason: 80% of them are
under
25 years of age, which means they've been subjected to his propoganda every day of their lives.
After touring the city, we drove through the tea country (most of it owned by Banda) to Mount
Mulanje, the tallest mountain in Malawi, and drove almost to the top, stopping along the way to
look
at a couple of waterfalls. In the afternoon we stopped by the city's zoo (which seemed to


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specialize in
American turtles), and the Museum of Malawi, which had some interesting relics from the nation's
recent and distant history. The museum's guide believes devoutly in witchcraft, but that little
idiosyncracy aside, gave us a thorough and fascinating private tour. We returned to the Mount
Soche
Hotel for dinner in their upscale penthouse restaurant, then returned to our room. The bathroom
was
unique: most toilets in the world operate by levers; this one required you to push a button with
about
400 foot-pounds of force. (Carol's comment: "Flushing that damned toilet is the most exercise I've
had all week.")

September 25: We drove to the city of Zomba, the former colonial capital (Lilongwe is a brand-new
city, with huge, impressive buildings erected with foreign aid that was thrown at Banda for
opposing
communism -- an easy thing to do, since there isn't a communist in the entire country), then drove
up
a long, winding road to the top of the Zomba Plateau, from which one could see practically the
entire
country. Then it was off to the Shire River (pronounced "Shirry") and a pontoon ride through the
Liwonde National Park. Finally we drove to Club Makakola, a beach resort on Lake Malawi where
we would be spending the next two nights...and where we were informed that our voucher from
Soche Tours was for the nearby (and much lower-rated) Nkopola Lodge. I saw a bunch of keys on
the wall, and asked if they had any empty rondovals. Lots, they said. Do you want our money, I
asked. Sure, they said. Then get those bastards at Soche Tours on the phone and let me yell at
them
for 30 seconds, I said. They did so, and 30 seconds later Soche Tours transferred our money from
Nkopola to Club Makakola. (Everyone in the African travel industry is friendly and polite, but
efficiency is not their long and strong suit -- especially in seldom-visited Malawi.)

September 26: Club Makakola was very much like a Caribbean beach resort, but with different (and
more) bird life. In the morning, Carol and I rented a catamaran and its crew, and spent the next
three
hours on Lake Malawi. We visited the aptly-named Bird Island, stopped by some fishing villages,
and cruised by the American embassy's super-luxury beach house, then spent the rest of the day
loafing on the beach.