THINK of Africa and a few things will probably come to mind, be they dry, dusty plains, thorny acacia trees or elephants sloping towards a watering-hole in the westering sun. Huntingdon House was nothing like that, though, when we arrived one wet day a few summers ago, our vehicle climbing through the rolling hills of Thyolo and gathering an ever-thicker coating of red Malawian earth. My wife and I had spent the past few weeks in considerable discomfort by the shores of Lake Malawi; consequently, some luxury was required, and where better to find it than a magnificent lodge set against the verdant backdrop of a working tea estate?
Built in the mid-1930s by Maclean Kay, a pioneering Scotsman, Huntingdon House sits on Satemwa Tea Estate, the home of richly varied flora and fauna ranging from green-headed orioles to strap-leafed dragon trees. Low cloud wreathed the hills throughout our stay, and the mongooses slunk into the forest to escape the weather as we ventured out to tea tastings and to roam the grounds, complete with croquet lawn and rose garden. I unpacked my travel rod and had awith bottomless tea taken on the (verandah) as the rain pattered on the soil and dark green shrubs beyond.
