Mazungu Matola

I'm a mazungu. Lenny Henry is not, if you get my drift. A matola is a lift, especially one on the back of a pick-up. My Mazungu Matola experience was extremely exciting, if not a little daunting. After another late night warbling session around the log fire I was sent my second shopping trip to Mzuzu. This time I was in charge, and for only my second trip to the 'big' city, I did bloody well. So, two hours sleep, a four hour journey in the pick-up and a whole days hectic Malawian shopping later we had to drive home. Now Harry had to drive so he got to sit in the front. And we were picking up Abassi's respectable wife so she had to sit in the front. And Wendy had been to hospital so she squeezed into the cab too. Where would me and Olly sit? I was pretty worried at first, but clambered onto the fully loaded pick-up. Mazungus do not travel matola-style as a rule and the locals are too poor to buy a bicycle, never mind a car so the locals found the sight of a matola with two white people on the back and three black people in the front hilarious. I found it lumpy and worrying. Olly however had done this before and assured me it was safe(r than I thought). Actually it turned out to be pretty safe for me as I'm ashamed to admit I played on his chivalry and blagged the snug little dip between the tyres we had bought. I didn't even have to hold on. The view and perspective on the countryside was reward enough for the rough jolting and freezing wind at the back of the neck. Driving back to the Nyika I watched the hot bustling Mzuzu slip backwards and the mountains gather as the sun set from an amazing vantage point. We sped through towns lit only by fires and hurricane lamps yet electrified by loud music and hustle that I had not noticed on my previous trip. Looking backwards from the truck we watched as a following car illuminated our dust-cloud with it's headlights, highlighting an ethereal plume mapping our path. As we climbed the plateau and the stars came out we lay back and watched the milky way twist in the sparkling sky.