Mzuzu Botanical Gardens

Looking at Google Maps satellite when preparing for this trip to Malawi, I noticed the city had some botanical gardens. Needless to say that that pin on the map immediately captured my attention - and my craving for green spaces, and trees, and flowers. The pin didn't include a website, had only a few, very old reviews and, to add to the confusion, it was duplicated to a different place a few km South, making me wonder where I actually had to head if I wanted to find them.

Scouring for more reliable information, I browsed the newly published Malawi Bradt guide. I was surprised not to find any mention of these gardens in the book. Dubious about their actual existence but still hopeful, this morning I decided to venture, mindful that my trip could be resulting in a pointless trip to the other side of town.

My taxi driver is hopeful. He has not been, but he knows where the entrance is. We transit along a very large road that looks new until the tarmac leaves space for the usual red mud. 'The government finished the money', my taxi driver says. Thanks god we are almost arrived as the car is making a weird noise. Here they are! There is an official banner and a proper entrance!!!

I meet my friend Pete here and pay 1000 kwacha (less than 40p) to Faith, the girl at the gate, for the entrance. We ask her if the trails are marked and if she has a map. She laughs. 'No, you can go. You won't get lost'. Great -.- Luckily we have internet and we manage to get a basic understanding of where we are. And so, we venture. There are, indeed, lots of paths. Some larger, some less visible, all leading into the forest. The forest doesn't look that old to be fair as it is not that thick and the trees are quite skinny. I wouldn't be able to name any of them, but it is a mixed vegetation, with lots of bushes, flower and mushrooms. The fallen leaves, laying dry on the ground, make a cracking noise as we walk on them.

It doesn't take long until we hear noises. There is a family of 4 monkeys looking at us about 20m from where we stand. They are so well camouflaged that I become a bit paranoid there may be other closer to me - I should have taken that rabies shot. Of course, they are not waiting for us to catch them, and they rush away jumping from tree to tree. 

We keep walking. More mushroom. And so many insects. Some managed to crawl up my trousers and up my legs. Everything hitches. As we keep walking, it starts to rain. Softly, lightly. Not enough to get our coats out. The forest provides shelter, as we roam with no aim. But at some point, the forest suddenly ends. What is in front of our eyes it's really quite sad: a whole hill coast has had the trees cut down. I can spot people in the distance, organising the branches in bulks to transport. Then a row of women appears on a trail, carrying branches on their head. We stop to ask them if we can take a picture, they agree, smile and continue through the woods.

I can't quite bear the naked hill view, so we go back inside the forest. The gardens are not fenced and any now and again we meet people transiting through it. There are some boys carrying bags on their head, a man walking and listening to music on his tablet, and some women who, judging from their clothes, have probably just come back from church. There are also some huts scattered through the woods, likely places to rest and cook as the presence of some three-stone fires indicate. 

We walk up and down through ferns and brambles, crossing many streams through precarious wooden bridges until we reach the opposite end of the park, bordering a school. As we want to stay in the gardens, we head North on a path at the edge of the city. We pass a football pitch where a game is taking place, meet more people on their way back from church, and get greated by a woman who insists to have a picture with me. Fair enough, I can't be the only one asking people if I can take pictures of them!

We head once again into the depth of the forest. Here the trees are more scant and leave space for grass and a river to unravel at the bottom of a valley. We see so many 'weird' things. A pair of smart shoes left behind on a path. Unfortunately, lots of garbage, most of which has been burnt. And some clothes laid out on the grass. That's when I see the figure of a young man bathing in the river we need to cross. Pete smartly suggests we change path, as the man is fully naked. We both laugh and exclaim the same thing 'he didnt look like he would have minded!". 

We are trying to get back to the entrance to retrieve Pete's bike. Once again, we approach a side of the garden which is more anthropocised. There are houses not too far from where we are walking. Kids running around and shouting at us. Until we hit the same road I came by taxi in the morning. We retrieve Pete's bike, then head to Macombo camp & Italian restaurant because I want to indulge in a pizza! On these 3 km we have to walk, we have many encounters, mostly with people moving things: cyclists carrying huge bags in their back, boys carrying wood across the road on their heads and children carrying themselves home after church asking me for a picture while proudly holding the Bible.

Diclaimer - Malawians are not aware of what that gesture means in the UK!

I really enjoyed my time at Mzuzu Botanical Gardens. Now home, I did a bit of research and found out that they are the third botanical garden established in the country. "Covering a surface of 575 hectares, it is dominated by riverine vegetation, including species like Brachystegia and Uapaca. The garden serves as a conservation area for various plant species and plays a crucial role in the hydrology of the surrounding region, recharging rivers such as Ching'ambo and Lunyangwa". Given its importance - and beauty - I wonder: why aren't they included in the Bradt guide? I am a bit disappointed for this miss, but I am going to email Bradt now and send them the link to this post. Do you think my description will be enough for them to add Mzuzu Botanical Garden to their next edition? 😅