July 16, 2022
Chipata to Mchenji (Grace Lodge)
Go to the border now!
So, I messaged my original contact just to give her an update on the visa situation. Next thing I know, she tells me to go to the border and call her when I get there. It's 1:00pm in the afternoon, I'm not packed nor really want to bike the 12 miles to the border which I thought was all uphill (but thankfully, just an uphill trend). Oh ya, in a headwind too. Surprise. I try to say it would be better to go first thing in the morning, but she basically says to go now. I quickly pack and head towards the border. It's slow going because of the wind. I make a quick trip to the store and pull out more money before heading back towards the border.
I'm accosted by money changers immediately at the border. I had told there were not ATM's on the way to my overnight so I'm going to need to use them, hence, pulling out more money before leaving. I make a deal with one guy and he also ended up guiding me to Malawi immigration so that was good.
Zambia immigrations asks if I have a Malawi visa. I say no, and briefly explain what's going on. Smartly, the lady says she will not stamp me out of Zambia until we make sure I get a visa for Malawi because if something goes wrong, they won't be able to let me back in.
When I get to Malawi immigration I ask to see the officer in charge, which is what the lady advised me to do. They take me around back to an office. The lady also said to call her when I get there so she can talk to them and explain so I won't have trouble getting my visa. When I go into the office there are two men. I explain I am going to make a phone call as this lady is helping me and she wants to speak to him. He gets quite angry right away. He's pissed because I haven't introduced myself and wants to know what the problem is. He tells me they know how to solve problems. It's been so stressful, I can't stop the tears from falling (part of this is my abuse history and I don't handle people raising their voices at me well.) I can't argue with the man or say much of anything because he's in control of whether I will be granted a visa or not. He leaves the room and tells me to talk to this other guy. The second man wants to know who my contact is. I show him the WhatsApp and her name and he says, "Oh, she works at the embassy." From that point on, everything went smoothly. They didn't ask me for my "letter of invitation" which is required online or any paperwork besides my passport. I find out later, she is the overall boss of all the employees. That's probably why everything went smoothly from that point on. It's also apparently a known problem that sometimes the payment screen won't accept bank cards, yet I am suppose to pre apply and have an approval ready before going to the border. Ummmmmmm
Part of the tears was probably because I was also very worried because I knew I was going to end up having to bike in the dark and I wouldn't call that the safest activity. Got everything worked out and one of the border agents I had been chatting with while waiting gave me a recommendation for a place to stay. I could barely see near the end so I just went with it as it's right on the highway. Maybe not my usual first choice, but I paid for the expensive room (at $13 US). It was worth the extra bit.
Security walked me to the store and another guy tracked down a SIM card and some data for me so my phone would work. They were so sweet and told me "welcome to Malawi." Perfect because I didn't see a sign upon entering the country, it made me very happy. Yes, welcome to Malawi to me! Whew!
| Heart | 0 | Comment | 0 | Link |
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 0 | Link |
| Heart | 0 | Comment | 0 | Link |
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Today's ride: 22 miles (35 km)
Total: 3,464 miles (5,575 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 4 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |