the "Dive Deck" - our breakfast and beer spot

Carlsberg - the only beer allowed to be produced locally in Malawi

the evening view, across the bay, to our favourite dinner spot Mayoka Village

local coffee from Mzuzu to start our first day diving

swarms of lake flies - millions of minute flies that emerge from the lake to mate and die during rainy season

the Edmund Rhodes - a gift to the local municipality, many years ago, to be used as a mobile clinic. unfortunately it is mainly used as a diving spot for the local kids.

Rufus and our dive instructor Rob, on the last day of the PADI Open Water 1 course

Rufus off to do his final qualifying dive

an old canon camera discovered at the bottom of the bay

an interestingly shaped weaver's nest outside our window

a pied kingfisher perched on the tip of the kayak, waiting for his next meal

birthday boy - he turned 30 the next day

we spent the first week of our Malawi roadtrip at Aqua Africa, in Nkhata Bay. they are a PADI certified facility and employ brilliant instructors from around the world. ours was Rob, a Canadian guy who has been diving for over 15yrs, since he was 12.

unfortunately i got an ear infection half way through our course so i had issues with equalising and reverse blocks. this meant i had to sit out the last two qualifying dives for the Open Water certification. i finished the theory and exam so i have a year to do the remaining dives to complete my OW. Rufus finished all his dives and went on do an additional night dive with the local dolphin fish, on his 30th birthday.

Aqua Africa and their employees are super chilled and it was a great place to relax and unwind after the insane year we had just been through. the accommodation is comfortable, with an en suite bathroom & balcony, and probably the most reasonably priced in the area. if you do a dive course they give you a discounted rate of $25 per room, per night, instead of $35.

as mentioned in the last post, the water is insanely warm & clear and it is hard to keep yourself on dry land. the diving and visibility is great and we also swam out to and explored the old abandoned boat, the Edmund Rhoades (see pic above).

we highly recommend this spot if you have never dived before and would like to learn. it's a lot easier (and cheaper than most places) to learn here as there is obviously no salt water & sea currents to tire you out and you can stay under for longer because of the warmer water. if you don't want to dive its still a great place to visit as their beach is private & peaceful but they're still walking distance from the local market, restaurants and bars.