Last night it rained with some serious intensity. It wasn't like the storm in Albania but it was enough for some droplets to come in through my air vent which the wind kept blowing open. I was completely starkers due to the humidity in the tent being 100% so I actually welcomed the occasional cold spray on my bare skin. My sleeping bag was already soaked through due to sweat so when I woke up to check how dry the tent was, a damp sleeping bag was a given. The rest of my tent was dry and even the porch section kept all my bags dry so I couldn't complain really.
I went for a morning swim at 7am, I could really get used to that. It was the calm after the storm and the temperature of the lake was perfect. I took a bar of soap with me to kill two birds, (wash myself, not throw the bar of soap at two birds) and not for the first time on another beautiful beach of Lake Malawi, I was completely alone.
Breakfast was being served pretty much when I asked for it and I was treated to a decent one. A full English with cereal! The breakfast was better value than the main meals and they even had proper tea and decent peanut butter! I had a great start to the day for my rest day but it wasn't a total rest day as I needed to do a few odd jobs on Nigel.
Tiny things that have accumulated over the last few days/weeks that I haven't been bothered to change at the end of the long days I've been putting in. The rear rack needed tightening, rear brakes changing/adjusting, rear wheel adjusting, handlebar bag holder tightened and its make shift secondary strap (piece of string) changed to some parachord so it doesn't disintegrate in the rain! I don't know how I've done it but I've managed to bring everything that I've needed and also managed to use everything that I've packed.
When I was packing for my trip I didn't really know where to start and how can you possibly know what's going to happen? What does my first aid kit need? What tools will I need? What spares will I need? The list goes on. The truth is that you don't know because you've never done something like this before, but call it what you want, beginner's luck or good research, preparation and planning (I obviously prefer the latter) but there is nothing that I can get rid off because I've used everything quite regularly, actually tell a lie - bike lights. I haven't used them but they can double up as a torch so il'l let them off. Out of all the equipment in my odds and ends bag, parachord has played an exceptional role. It began its life as straps to turn my pannier into a rucksack when the front rack broke. Then it held my rear rack together in Sudan, which it continues to do and now it's keeping my Handlebar bag from falling off its holder when I go over bumps!
After all my little odd jobs were finished, I was feeling very satisfied with myself and on top of that, the weather was perfect. It was hot in the sun but there was a slight breeze to take the edge off the heat and the lake was calmly brushing against the sand. I didn't really want to continue with operation "even tan" so I just chilled on the sofas in the open planned, open aired communal room. They had fixed the signal issues with the TV for long enough for me to enjoy a few movies and at the same time feel so so relaxed from the sound of the lake.
All the staff were zonked out on the sofas aswell and we were just like a family on a Sunday evening. It felt like I had been off Nigel for ages. I guess that's what you call a quality rest day, I was lapping up the present but also looking forward to getting back on him now I had adjusted a few things. After all the adjustments I do to him, i still get that "new bike" feeling after. Even if I'm just doing something small like cleaning the chain, I still get a little buzz from it. I guess it must be love!
One of the members of staff helped me sort out the Internet, I needed to pay for "airtime." I messaged home quickly but annoyingly couldn't access my emails. I'm blocked from hotmail and blocked from my yahoo which hotmail emails with a code when they block me. I have a security question which i created and answered when i opened my account at the grand mature age of about 11. My security question is "who is gay?" Granted i haven't matured much since i was 11 but i can think of alot of people i might of called "gay" in 1997! I still haven't received my money from the insurance company either which is a tad annoying now my overdraft has come a knocking. I know its been worse for my dad as he's been calling them the whole time but its been nearly 2 months now, really? Specialty Group Insurance! Come on!
I had the rice and beef for the fourth time in 2 days. Lunch-dinner-lunch-dinner. Last night I ordered extra meat as I told them I needed the energy. Today, i think the "more volume" message was proactively taken as it seemed like they were trying to rice me to death. Just as the movie that I was really getting into was coming to its Hollywood climax, the signal went and I ended up missing the last 20 minutes and crucial ending of "White House Down." I can give an educated guess by the title of the film at what happened at the end but its always nice to know the nature in which it happened. (Plus I have a slight bromance for Channing Tatum)
After that the signal came back on but the staff family turned it onto a Malawian soap, that was my cue for bedtime! I've had two lakeside rest days in Malawi and they've been right out of the top draw. Tomorrow sees me putting in some more heavy mileage and heading more inland towards Lilongwe. I have only got 4 maybe 5 days left in Malawi but at least I've had some quality time off!
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