Monday 20 October 2014

MALAWI - Tea & Coffee Plantation

As you can see, if you follow my post, I am continuing  to show you photographs from my time in Malawi albeit, I am still posting from the first week of my time there.  This week, I am taking you on a journey into Satemwa tea and coffee plantation which a friends family have owned for a few generations.  So my story starts when I met Hercules (below) a beautiful Great Dane although we did not take him with us.





However we took Paco, the very friendly Jack Russell with us and he, the 3 children and the picnic basket travelled in the back of this truck.


Off we go.  It was quite a bumpy ride however the children loved it.



This is a village where people who work on the estate live.


Firstly we stopped at these coffee plants so we all got out to taste a coffee bean.  In that state it did not taste like coffee at all to me however the flowers were very pretty.


Coffee berries above and flowers below.







This was one of the buildings used to sort the coffee.


We stopped at a small la lake and I think the children were looking out for a crocodile which of course was not there!




We made our way through the very green tea plantation, up and up to a very high plateau where we were had our picnic.  The Acasia trees, views and tranquillity of this place was amazing.  I hope, from the photographs below you can appreciate the beauty and peace that I experienced and at the end of this post, you will see a small video of the view beyond.


Only the top 3 leaves of the tea plants are picked by hand.






Even the girls enjoyed the wonderful views that went on for miles and miles.



I hope you enjoyed this post.  Tomorrow I will show you some birds at the tea/coffee plantation.

I have a a short video which you can access at

http://youtu.be/pzVCFCtGoZM

If there is a black space below, click it and the video will appear.



Thank you for visiting.

Many thanks for all your comments.

23 comments:

  1. It must have been wonderful to visit this place Margaret. The scenery is stunning. Lovely photos of the girls too and your video was delightful.

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  2. Wow, OMG, what a beautiful post from MALAWI; the girls must have had a wonderful time as well and their smile warmed my heart a lot♡♡♡ My coffee lover husband enjoyed (first time to see) to see the berries and flowers of them♪ Thank you very much for sharing the beautiful and peaceful scenery. Margaret
    Sending Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*

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  3. The view from the top of that plantation is wonderful, Margaret, and the trees are fabulous! It looks very oriental to me.

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  4. It is beautiful there! Enjoyed the video. Love those shots of the girls on the rock, but worried it was a high drop off sort of like the grand canyon. I am terribly afraid of heights. :)

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  5. Paco is adorable. Love those wide tree tops. What an amazing display of wildlife photography. I could stare at them for hours.

    Mersad
    Mersad Donko Photography

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  6. just beautiful trees! visiting a coffee plantation would be neat, too.

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  7. Enjoying your post and shots so much. I'd love to visit this plantation.
    Thanks for dropping by.
    www.homezweethome.info

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  8. Oh, Margaret. You are so kind to share the amazing beauty of your trip to Malawi. The acacia trees have such a fascinating shape. Your photos are stunning of the distant views. And what child does not love the back of a pickup. Love the video with the children running and the butterfly at the end. Blessing today, Margaret. Our son is in Ireland this week on business.

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  9. Wow! Gorgeous views, so much fresh lushness of greenery. Fab images and loved the video!

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  10. AH, so THIS is what a coffee plantation looks like!

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  11. The Dog is number 1, the Great Dane, wow. And the farm, pleasure.

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  12. Never knew that about the tea leaves. I guess that keeps the bushes small if the leaves are picked. What kind of tea was it?

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  13. Oh yes, the bumpier the ride the ride the better, what fun they must have had. A beautiful day and photos too.

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  14. I don't recall ever seeing the flower of a coffee plant before.What a pretty flower.

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  15. I love the beautiy of the African landscapes, great photos.

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  16. Oh how wonderful! To get to see tea and coffee growing on a plantation, and experience the two plants we all enjoy the beverages of so much! What a truly beautiful place! I bet it was quite an experience. And I loved Hercules because Great Danes are so awesome, but little Paco was very cute too.

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  17. Those are some interesting looking trees.

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  18. What are these very tall and flat tees? Are they the tea trees? I love that cute little coffee tree! And I have never seen the flowers or berries, which are both very pretty!

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  19. Very nice photos, Margaret.
    It looks like the kids and the adults had a great time.
    Very nice looking Great Dane and the little guy in the truck is cute too.

    Peace :)

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  20. this was an exciting visit, I had to reread for I rushed through it the first time. What adventures you have Margaret!

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  21. What a beautiful place to picnic. Those acacia trees are really distinctive and lovely. Add kids and dogs for fun!

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  22. for art pic the coffee berry is my favorite.. for sheer beauty and awe inspiring views, the valley pics. what a spectacular place to vist. and the Big and The Little Canine are so pretty

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  23. I can't imagine how exciting it would be to visit this place. It looks absolutely peaceful and so beautiful! Not wonder the kids enjoyed it!

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