I just ate the best veggie burger of my life. And I'm now listening to what seems to be a gospel tune with the likes of maybe Waylon Jennings and Barbara Mandrel echoing from the bar of our hostel. Welcome back to the tourist trail.

After stumbling off the Namibia to Malawi trail in Zimbabwe, we've emerged onto the Mozambique to Malawi circuit here in Blantyre. All the types of tourists I think I described in South Africa and Namibia have returned. We've gotten the band back together.

The bar stereo is now playing yodeling. I kid you not.

"Every one stops at every town every two miles."
We woke at three in the morning in Lusaka to catch the five am bus to the border with Malawi. You get up at three because the five o'clock bus is the only one that's express to the border. Every one after that stops at every town every two miles. I'm not exaggerating.

We arrived at the bus station around four to find hundreds of people milling about in total chaos. I think some people just come to mill. It seemed the door to our bus had been maybe forced open to allow early boarding, as the lights weren't even turned on yet. It was nearly full and completely dark.

"The bus's efficiency alarm went off."
We zoomed out of Lusaka and made almost no stops for three hours. We were amazed... after weeks of making every cattle call stop through Zimbabwe. But then it would seem the bus's efficiency alarm went off and we immediately stopped in a dusty town for half an hour. From then on we stopped rather frequently, dropping off or picking up till we finally reached Chipata on the border with Malawi.

It's definitely country and western night here. Our next selection is the old standard "Don't Fence Me In." You may want to guess now what song will be next and read on. I'll let you know as soon as I hear it.

"He leaned in the window and asked for his money."
We stamped out of Lusaka and headed for a taxi that goes the several kilometers to the Malawi border post. There was a gang of people milling around the taxi. The guy who said he was the driver wanted payment before we got in the car. I kept telling him we'd pay when we were in the car. Then when we were in the car, he leaned in the window and asked for his money. I said when the driver sat down in the seat we'd pay. Then a totally different guy sat down in the driver's seat and sped off.

Our next song is a duet that includes Willie Nelson. I can't tell who the other guy is. The chorus goes something like "When I reach the end of rodeo road." Or something like that. That song is now over and yodeling has resumed here in Africa.

A minibus delivered us quickly and uneventfully to Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. We spent two uneventful days there changing money and getting various things done, since there are no ATM's in Malawi.

"The chaotic and very African bus station."
Another quick minibus brought us here to Blantyre and Doogles Backpackers, an amazingly western place fenced in just next to the chaotic and very African bus station... or bus dust lot. Tomorrow we're off for some hiking on the Mulanje Massif near the border with Mozambique. We'll do two or three nights there before returning here to Blantyre on our way to Lake Malawi.

And you're not gonna believe this. But as I wrap up this journal entry, strains of "Happy Trails" are wafting in from the bar.