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5 Places to Visit when in Malawi

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Malawi is bordered by Zambia on the west, Mozambique on the east to south and Tanzania on the north. Fondly called as the Warm Heart of Africa because of the amiable nature of locals here. Although least discovered among the countries in southeastern Africa, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t boast the same natural beauty as its neighboring countries. Read through and discover these beautiful places in Malawi.

LAKE MALAWI

You can’t skip Lake Malawi from your list of must-sees because it is the largest freshwater lake in the country and in fact, it occupies 1/3 of the country’s area. The golden beaches are a hit especially the ones near the capital. You can also dive and snorkel here and be rewarded with an underwater beauty. Aside from the most famous tourist attraction of the country, the lake also serves as the locals’ source of sustenance.

LIKOMA ISLAND

This Malawian island in Mozambique waters is a lovely peaceful island with beautiful beaches where you can take a peaceful walk around since there is a limited number of cars in the island. A serene getaway can make you appreciate the simple ways of the locals. A cathedral was built in this island in the early 1900s and is another site to visit to. Hop in the MV Ilala on their schedule cruise if you want to explore Likoma Island.

LIWONDE NATIONAL PARK

When you say Africa, the first thing that comes in mind is, of course, the wildlife; and if you are in Malawi the grandest big game safari park is Liwonde National Park. You can take a boat or jeep safari to encounter the animals you just usually see in zoos like rhinos, elephants, crocodiles, hyenas, antelopes, hippos, leopards and many more. This time these animals are out roaming the land in their natural habitat instead of being locked in cages.

MULANJE MOUNTAIN

Scenic views await you if you decide to trek Mount Mulanje at over 3000 meters. Thyolo Road will lead you to a panoramic view of sprawling tea estates, and the highest peak is Sapitwa Peak. You can go overnight in any of the 12 camping huts fully equipped with camping and cooking equipment. Here you’ll see Mulanje Cypress that grows to a height of 45-meters and has dense leaves and cones.

CRAFT MARKETS

There are a lot of craft markets across this small country and you can shop for trinkets or wooden masks for souvenirs here. African arts and crafts are also very vivid and unique from wood carvings, paintings, and beadworks or clothing. Use your haggling skills here to shop for lovely things to bring back home.

Music Streaming Provides Repair for a Struggling Industry

Online Streaming

When Napster ravaged the music industry back in the late ‘90’s and early 2000’s, record companies tried desperately to fight back. Unfortunately, coming up with a viable sales alternative to counteract the illegal music circles growing larger and larger online proved to be more of a problem than expected.

Fortunately, a group of forward thinking individuals recognized that digital downloads and streaming, the very process that had created this problem, could be a way out of the current decrease in revenue from pirating. They realized that if people were given legal digital access to quality recordings of music, they would be willing to pay.

Founded in 2006, Spotify pioneered the concept of streaming plans, allowing people to have a monthly subscription and access to thousands of artists. It has successfully grown to more than $1.5 Billion in revenue, even with some dissension from artists, like Taylor Swift, who removed her work from the companies catalogues in 2014 because of royalty issues,

From L.A. to Calgary to New York and Beyond

Now, thanks to suppliers like Apple and Spotify, music streaming has millions of paying users providing revenue every year. According to experts, the U.S. music industry will be able to record back to back growth years in 2018. This is an event that has not happened since the decline that started in 1999 when Napster opened up shop. Bruno Mars’ label has generated its highest annual revenue in eight years.

First the IPod-Now the Smartphone

Increases in downloads are also thanks to the ability to listen on more devices than ever. Gone are the days when your handbag or backpack contained multiple bulky electronics. Does anyone even remember the Walk Man?

Now you can listen to music, take a call and send a pic, all from the palm of your hand. Smartphones, tablets and even desktop apps allow artists like Drake to send his music to fans worldwide without his label having to worry about distribution and shipping costs.

Last year the Canadian rapper’s work was streamed over 4.7 Billion times just on Spotify. Many businesses similar to dent repair Calgary that used to play the local radio station in their place of business have now turned to streaming music for their staff and visitors.

More Damage Repair to Come?

Whether or not streaming is the start of a new era for music labels and their parent companies to profit from, for the music lover and obsessed fan, these days of easy access to the artists they love are a dream come true. Especially with more companies launching their own subscription services to better compete with the established companies like Google, Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Although streaming appears to be the industry’s latest knight on a white horse riding up to save the damsel in distress, after decades of fighting against illegal downloading and technological piracy, plus keeping up with new technology and evaporating sales, music executives know not to get overly confident about the days ahead.

According to Duncan Orrell-Jone of Slacker Radio, sooner than later having the catalogue is not going to be enough, “Five years from now the space is going to look very different.”