The night was really warm - had all the windows open and it was too warm for a blanket, even just a sheet was almost an overkill. Apparently 4 hrs closer to the equator makes a difference, probably the fact that we are closer to the sea level plays a role as well. The hostel we are staying at is quite small, it has only 5 rooms :) But it is quite modern and has lots of space, there is a swimming pool in the garden and there are many huge balconies. Have found few problems though - something is wrong with the water pump so occasionally there is no cold water, need to go downstairs and ask the guy to turn it back on. First time this happened to me was just when I was covered in soap from head to toe :) Happened to my friend twice this morning while she was taking a shower :D Fun huh :D Anther thing is that the rooms don't lock too well :( They gave us 2 rooms for some reason but only one of them can be locked :(
Anyways - breakfast was served on a deck by the pool, it was super nice. Right after breakfast we headed to town to take care of gazillion things like getting bus ticket to Bulawayo on Monday and booking our sunset cruise and whitewater rafting for the weekend and stopping by at the Internet spot and so on. 1.5 hours later all was done and we headed over to Victoria Falls National Park. The falls measure 1.7km across the precipice and the peak flow takes place in April. Victoria Falls is the largest curtain of flowing water in the world, twice the size of Niagara Falls. The amount of water depends on the rains in Zambia and Angola. Credit for discovering the waterfall in 1855 goes to Dr. David Livingstone, during one of the expeditions he followed Zambezi tribal reports of 'Mosi oa Tunya' - 'the smoke that thunders', he employed local Makololo tribesmen to take him by dugout canoe to the waterfall. It was not until 1960s that cheap air travel allowed Victoria Falls to grow into one of the premier tourist draws on the continent.
There is no point in describing of how beautiful and magnificent it was. Once I get the photos up you can see yourself. The way it is set up here is that you can walk alongside of the falls, basically on the same level as the top of the falls are - quite perfect setting. It is about 1 km walk down and then back through a rain forest. It is beautiful setting. At the moment it is a dry season and there is not as much water as at the peak time, but as we heard now is the best visibility as when there is lots of water all you see is mist. I took probably more than a hundred photos of the falls and the mist and the nature - it is amazing.
Our sunset tour starts at 4 so we walked over to Victoria Falls Hotel for a snack. It has been suggested by many to visit the hotel cafeteria and get an afternoon tea served. This ritual started at 3 so we had almost 2 hours to kill, which was not a problem at all in this gorgeous place. This hotel is huge, it has 180 rooms, as far as I could tell the rooms were only on 2 levels so one can imagine how much of the area the hotel would cover. It is a very luxurious hotel - dress code applies at the restaurant, only suits and dresses. Cafeteria side was quite a bit more relaxed, it was located on a terrace with a wonderful view to the Victoria Falls historic bridge. Whole hotel is like an open history book with the paintings and furniture and all little fancy details and courtyards - truly beautiful place. Had a light lunch - for me that was a Caesar salad with crocodile meat :)
Suggested afternoon tea was a very nice little ritual. Basically one would buy the tea and all the little sandwiches, scones and muffins are complimentary. Serving was beautiful, there was a whole pot of tea for one person and the butter for scones was whipped like it should be! A wonderful afternoon in a picturesque location with fabulous food.
Can't remember how much I have told about the temperatures here? Anyways, the nights and mornings were quite cool in Harare and Bulawayo, but up here in Vic Falls the nights are warm, I'd say at least +17C. During the night it does get a bit cooler, but not a whole lot. I'm guessing the days are about +27C in the shade and well above 30 in the sun. I've seen clouds only once during the last 8 days and then it was only partly cloudy for few hours. Weather is nice here and it is supposed to get warmer and warmer every day with October being the worst - it is called a 'suicide month' here as it gets very hot. Summer or the rainy period starts from November which will make it all humid as well.
We were picked up in front of the hotel at 4 to attend a sunset cruise on the upper part of river Zambezi. About 20 minute drive up the river and about 30 to 40 people were greeted by local dance session and guided to a two level open ferry. Sun sets about 6pm here, so we had about 1.5 hours to go up and down the river looking around and enjoying a much advertised open bar. Everything is a safari in this land :) We saw some crocodiles, a lonely and hungry elephant very close up, lots of hippos in the water, birds and monkeys. Cruise was beautiful and relaxing, sunset was even better. Sun gets really dark red here right before it hits the horizon, apparently that is how it goes here.
Had another activity planned for the evening - dinner at Boma restaurant. This whole setting was a bit too touristy, but then again the food was good and it was quite well organized. Entertainment program was thorough - dance sessions were set up every now and then, for the last performance there was an African drum session where the crowd was invited to join in as well. I must admit I quite enjoyed it even though there were a bit too many people and too much noise. Did I say the food was good :)? I ate more crocodile meat, namely tales this time :) I also tasted warthog and buffalo meat - both were very tasty, first being nice and tender and second a bit chewier. Also lots of different snacks like bananas in cinnamon cream sauce, avocados, crepes, pumpkin, mushrooms, peet and so on. All was good and I must have ate at least 4 plates of different courses all mixed together :)
Tourism is set up quite nicely here in Victoria Falls, it is run professionally and is running like clockwork - buses pick you up from the hostel in time and all goes by the plan, customers are cared for and well informed. There are many many activities one can do, basically anything one can wish for and see in Australia for an example - bunji, whitewater rafting, horseback riding, helicopter rides, elephant rides (probably not available in Australia even ;) ) and so on and so on. Instructors are very competent and equipment is up to date as far as I have seen. I'm impressed to be honest :)
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Painted Dog Conservation & Dete village - 10.sept
Breakfast at 8, transfer to Painted Dog Conservation after breakfast at 9. Painted Dog's are a bit smaller than wolves, they have big round ears like mice and they have many colorful spots all around their body - hence the name, they really do look like they are painted. This conservation camp has a very good overview of their life, exhibition was truly impressive. There are about 200-300 wild animals in Hwange National Park area and around it. Oh, did I mention that Hwange National Park is roughly the size of Belgium :), so just a bit smaller than Estonia :).
Back to the Painted Dogs, so this conservation serves many purposes. Mainly it is a hospital for them - injured animals are brought here where they are cared for and then there is a whole program on how they are released back to the wild. Basically they can't be released alone since the only way to survive is in a proper pack that needs 7 to 15 dogs. At the moment they have 6 dogs ready to be released so they are training them in for being a pack. Dogs need to know their roles in pack and to appreciate the other members. For this the conservation has 35 hectares of fenced area so that the dogs can truly feel like they are in the wild. Human contact is kept minimal so that no domestication happens. There is an elevated track built crossing the fenced area taking visitors to the hospital area. Tried to spot some dogs from there but we were warned that this probably won't happen.
Another grateful deed they do here is that they educate children. They would bring 6 graders from all over the region into the conservation, kids would spend a whole 4 days here (there is a special accommodation even built for that purpose). 4 days would include many educational programs, including computer introductory course, kids would also be taken to the national park and educated on Painted Dog's life.
Then there is the research done on the dogs. At least 1 or 2 dogs from each pack is wearing a special belt that protects them and also has a radio transmitter on it. Protection is against the traps that locals set to catch wild animals, those belts are also reflecting so that in the dark drivers spot them on the road.
On the way back the car broke down :) All the cars here are in pretty bad shape, the doors don't open, there are no windows, none of the speedometers work, seats are falling apart and the noise they make is quite loud. Our driver did not have mobile either so cars who were passing by stopped and took our message to next place (which was the Painted Dog Conservation) so a call could be made and another car would come for us. So we sat there in the middle of the road passing time :) Took perhaps 30 minutes or so when we were rescued.
Quick stop at the lodge and on to Dete village we went. Last night the lady from US was telling us how there is a orphans feeding happening today at the Red Cross building and if would be interested we could go to the village as well. So we did. It is about time that I see the real life as well, not only hostels and safari cars. Ride to the village was not long as the village is only 3 km from our lodge - so I took the 'back seat' of a truck (was sitting in the open trunk :)
Village itself was quite different - a typical Zimbabwean village as far as we would know. There were houses with glass windows and all and then there were clay huts as well, houses would obviously be for better off families. Each house or a hut would have a small yard to grow vegetables. Some yards and houses seemed to have even water pipes, but mostly the water had to be carried by hand from across the village. Yards were very neat and orderly, yards and streets were all wiped and quite clean. Occasionally we would see laundry drying outside and all would be bright white and clean. Even the clothes the people wear are quite clean, they would be worn out, but clean.
Families are big here, the more kids the parents have the brighter future they would have. Many kids don't make it, so if one would have 5 to 6 kids they would hope that at least 2 to 3 of them would make it and care for them in old age. Also, kids are the ones to help grow food and to clean and so on. Basically kids are social security and the hope for better future. Took a stroll around the village, peeked into the yards, talked to the locals a bit and wondered around for about half an hour. Zimbabwe is a former UK colony so most locals speak English in addition to their own language - this makes it easier to communicate with them.
Orphans feeding started around noon. The ideal plan is to provide basic warm meal for orphans 3 times a week. But the reality is that there has not been a feeding since March :( There hasn't been enough food to carry it through. Situation here is quite complicated. It is not even only money that is the problem, it is also the politics and natural causes. For an example to fight starvation one could expand the land to grow more food, but to do that there needs to be a special permit to allow this and then there is the water issue - there is no water for the land. Just complicated all around. Sat at the Red Cross for a while and saw all the kids coming in. Food they made should feed about 150 kids, apparently there is a need to feed 300 of them. There are many orphans as AIDS is a huge problem. Often you see an 8 year old taking care of his/her brothers and sisters who are between 2 and 6 years of age. it is quite sad. I asked about their health checks, apparently there is a Red Cross person going through all the homes 3 times a week checking on the kids and elderly and providing basic health care.
As our bus to Victoria Falls leaves at 4 we had to head back to the lodge, ate our lunch, packed our bags and got on the transfer to be taken to Halfway. Bus was supposed to be there at 4, but just as expected it was an hour late. This time the bus is a bit bigger and more comfortable, they even have a TV and they are playing a movie :) Refreshments are offered and there is an attendant as well. While driving through the countryside we see many cars and buses (!!) in the ditch by the road - so scary. Some cars have been there for years it seems like as they are rusting an all doors and other moving parts have been carried off. Bus arrived at Victoria Falls just a bit before 8 in the evening. Taxi drivers ran us over as soon as we exited the bus, so we got a cab to our hostel, picked out a restaurant offering local food and had a nice dinner in town.
Or accommodation is located in the residential area so basically we need a taxi each time we want to get to town. Our wonderful taxi driver even promised to give us special deal if we keep him for the whole duration of our trip - so be it we said. After dinner we asked him to take us to a bar where we could have a drink or two, it is Friday night afterall :) He took us to a lively backpackers lodge :) Well, the crowd there was definitely lively and it did not take long until locals surrounded us. It was fun though :) A bit before midnight when we left the whole crowd moved on to some other hip bar since this one closed down, but for us it was sleep time.
I just gotta mention that the beds are nice and firm here. I was a bit afraid of what the beds are like, if they would be too soft I would not be able to cope with the back pain, but all is good :) Tonight I opened my mosquito net as well :) Hung it up over my bed - what a wonderful invention, why don't people use it at home? I think I will start to use it during summertime, it is quite perfect actually!
For the closing note - bit more about the names :) So the story is about Previous, Obvious and Innocent :) Previous we met on the bus from Bulawayo to Halfway. Obvious was our tour guide at Painted Dog Conservation center. Innocent took us from the lodge to Halfway. With him it was funny as once we entered the car he goes "I'm innocent", my first reaction was that I didn't say anything or accuse you or anything. I guess he read it out of my face as he just looks at me and says "That's my name" - RIIIIGHT :)
Back to the Painted Dogs, so this conservation serves many purposes. Mainly it is a hospital for them - injured animals are brought here where they are cared for and then there is a whole program on how they are released back to the wild. Basically they can't be released alone since the only way to survive is in a proper pack that needs 7 to 15 dogs. At the moment they have 6 dogs ready to be released so they are training them in for being a pack. Dogs need to know their roles in pack and to appreciate the other members. For this the conservation has 35 hectares of fenced area so that the dogs can truly feel like they are in the wild. Human contact is kept minimal so that no domestication happens. There is an elevated track built crossing the fenced area taking visitors to the hospital area. Tried to spot some dogs from there but we were warned that this probably won't happen.
Another grateful deed they do here is that they educate children. They would bring 6 graders from all over the region into the conservation, kids would spend a whole 4 days here (there is a special accommodation even built for that purpose). 4 days would include many educational programs, including computer introductory course, kids would also be taken to the national park and educated on Painted Dog's life.
Then there is the research done on the dogs. At least 1 or 2 dogs from each pack is wearing a special belt that protects them and also has a radio transmitter on it. Protection is against the traps that locals set to catch wild animals, those belts are also reflecting so that in the dark drivers spot them on the road.
On the way back the car broke down :) All the cars here are in pretty bad shape, the doors don't open, there are no windows, none of the speedometers work, seats are falling apart and the noise they make is quite loud. Our driver did not have mobile either so cars who were passing by stopped and took our message to next place (which was the Painted Dog Conservation) so a call could be made and another car would come for us. So we sat there in the middle of the road passing time :) Took perhaps 30 minutes or so when we were rescued.
Quick stop at the lodge and on to Dete village we went. Last night the lady from US was telling us how there is a orphans feeding happening today at the Red Cross building and if would be interested we could go to the village as well. So we did. It is about time that I see the real life as well, not only hostels and safari cars. Ride to the village was not long as the village is only 3 km from our lodge - so I took the 'back seat' of a truck (was sitting in the open trunk :)
Village itself was quite different - a typical Zimbabwean village as far as we would know. There were houses with glass windows and all and then there were clay huts as well, houses would obviously be for better off families. Each house or a hut would have a small yard to grow vegetables. Some yards and houses seemed to have even water pipes, but mostly the water had to be carried by hand from across the village. Yards were very neat and orderly, yards and streets were all wiped and quite clean. Occasionally we would see laundry drying outside and all would be bright white and clean. Even the clothes the people wear are quite clean, they would be worn out, but clean.
Families are big here, the more kids the parents have the brighter future they would have. Many kids don't make it, so if one would have 5 to 6 kids they would hope that at least 2 to 3 of them would make it and care for them in old age. Also, kids are the ones to help grow food and to clean and so on. Basically kids are social security and the hope for better future. Took a stroll around the village, peeked into the yards, talked to the locals a bit and wondered around for about half an hour. Zimbabwe is a former UK colony so most locals speak English in addition to their own language - this makes it easier to communicate with them.
Orphans feeding started around noon. The ideal plan is to provide basic warm meal for orphans 3 times a week. But the reality is that there has not been a feeding since March :( There hasn't been enough food to carry it through. Situation here is quite complicated. It is not even only money that is the problem, it is also the politics and natural causes. For an example to fight starvation one could expand the land to grow more food, but to do that there needs to be a special permit to allow this and then there is the water issue - there is no water for the land. Just complicated all around. Sat at the Red Cross for a while and saw all the kids coming in. Food they made should feed about 150 kids, apparently there is a need to feed 300 of them. There are many orphans as AIDS is a huge problem. Often you see an 8 year old taking care of his/her brothers and sisters who are between 2 and 6 years of age. it is quite sad. I asked about their health checks, apparently there is a Red Cross person going through all the homes 3 times a week checking on the kids and elderly and providing basic health care.
As our bus to Victoria Falls leaves at 4 we had to head back to the lodge, ate our lunch, packed our bags and got on the transfer to be taken to Halfway. Bus was supposed to be there at 4, but just as expected it was an hour late. This time the bus is a bit bigger and more comfortable, they even have a TV and they are playing a movie :) Refreshments are offered and there is an attendant as well. While driving through the countryside we see many cars and buses (!!) in the ditch by the road - so scary. Some cars have been there for years it seems like as they are rusting an all doors and other moving parts have been carried off. Bus arrived at Victoria Falls just a bit before 8 in the evening. Taxi drivers ran us over as soon as we exited the bus, so we got a cab to our hostel, picked out a restaurant offering local food and had a nice dinner in town.
Or accommodation is located in the residential area so basically we need a taxi each time we want to get to town. Our wonderful taxi driver even promised to give us special deal if we keep him for the whole duration of our trip - so be it we said. After dinner we asked him to take us to a bar where we could have a drink or two, it is Friday night afterall :) He took us to a lively backpackers lodge :) Well, the crowd there was definitely lively and it did not take long until locals surrounded us. It was fun though :) A bit before midnight when we left the whole crowd moved on to some other hip bar since this one closed down, but for us it was sleep time.
I just gotta mention that the beds are nice and firm here. I was a bit afraid of what the beds are like, if they would be too soft I would not be able to cope with the back pain, but all is good :) Tonight I opened my mosquito net as well :) Hung it up over my bed - what a wonderful invention, why don't people use it at home? I think I will start to use it during summertime, it is quite perfect actually!
For the closing note - bit more about the names :) So the story is about Previous, Obvious and Innocent :) Previous we met on the bus from Bulawayo to Halfway. Obvious was our tour guide at Painted Dog Conservation center. Innocent took us from the lodge to Halfway. With him it was funny as once we entered the car he goes "I'm innocent", my first reaction was that I didn't say anything or accuse you or anything. I guess he read it out of my face as he just looks at me and says "That's my name" - RIIIIGHT :)
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
I have made it to Tanzania!!!
I have arrived in Dar Es Salaam :) !!! All went very smoothly - entering the country and getting the visa, even our luggage arrived without any delay and damage. All is good so far. Except for the fact that Estonian VISA cards didn't work at the currency exchange place in Johannesburg airport so I'm slightly moneyless at the moment, but I'll fix it tomorrow - banks should be able to help :)
As you have noticed there are no photos up yet - as the internet access is so difficult here and also very slow I won't even try to upload the photos. Photos have to wait till I get back :)
So tomorrow morning we are heading over to Zanzibar for 2 days.
I have seen all your comments in my blog, but have not managed to reply, sorry about that :) I hope I will be forgiven!
Take care!
As you have noticed there are no photos up yet - as the internet access is so difficult here and also very slow I won't even try to upload the photos. Photos have to wait till I get back :)
So tomorrow morning we are heading over to Zanzibar for 2 days.
I have seen all your comments in my blog, but have not managed to reply, sorry about that :) I hope I will be forgiven!
Take care!
Saturday, September 11, 2010
In Victoria Falls
Just wanted to update you all that I have made it to Victoria Falls :) We are just about to walk over to see the wall of water!
As you have noticed, the updates are coming quite rarely. It probably won't get any better either. Once a week internet access is probably the best it will be :)
Take care! ... and lots of hugs to all of you!
As you have noticed, the updates are coming quite rarely. It probably won't get any better either. Once a week internet access is probably the best it will be :)
Take care! ... and lots of hugs to all of you!
Safari at Hwange National Park - 9.sept
The goal of the day is to spend a whole long day looking at wild animals on a safari. There are few options, either to go from 6am to 9am or from 3pm to 6pm since during the lunch time it is too hot and all the animals are hiding. Well but we wanted to take a long day to get the most out of it and to avoid driving back and fourth and to avoid paying entrance twice. So, we started at 9, our guide was waiting for us with safari car, our lunch was packed, planning to get back no sooner than 6 in the evening. The plan was to spot some wild life before noon, have a picnic at the park and then do more game drive in the afternoon. Plan was good :)
The day ended up being long and not very productive as far as game spotting goes. We did see giraffes on quite many occasions. Somehow they always go around in threes :) Saw them far and close and in the bushes and on the roads. Then we saw a big herd of blue waterbeests or also called gnu. Then 2 ostriches, whole lot of baboons, we saw zebras, then steenbock, impala, kudu, sable, jackal, crocodiles, one lonely elephant, warthog. There was one hippo hiding in the water, but they don't come out of the water during the day. Now, the most exciting of all, there were lions - but they were too far away to spot them properly, all we saw was a yellow spot under a bush far away. Supposedly there were 4 lions around the bush, 2 male and 2 female, people at the viewing point had been following them since this morning. We were hoping they would get thirsty at some point and come closer to where the water is, but that did not happen :( And again we did not see any rhino :( nor buffalo :( All this has to wait till Serengeti park in Tanzania then!
This long day ended with a beautiful sunset on our way home. Quick shower in our treehouse and another 3 course dinner followed. At dinner time an older lady from Alaska joined us. She is working here as a volunteer for couple of weeks and she filled us in on the local volunteer work around here. Oh it all sounds so interesting. Tomorrow we will try to go to the village and visit the Red Cross volunteer camp there.
After dinner we went to help the volunteer lady who is laying salt out for the animals at the water pond behind our treehouse. She first lays the salt on the ground and then sweeps all the traces so in the morning they can check who has visited the site during the night. Apparently the animals need salt because this is hard to get naturally and they need it due to such warm weather. Lady knew to say that last night there were 4 buffaloes and hyenas there. Just last week they had some lions visiting and elephants are quite common as well.
Just as I'm writing this there is an elephant walking around in our back-yard :) It is dark so I can just hear it, tried to spot it as well under the light but no luck. It must be about 20 meters away, but it is too dark here to see it. And yes there was one local guy with me, my heart rate jumped to the skies when I heard the noise and I would not have dared to go out checking all by myself.
But now off to bed as tomorrow will be another productive and challenging day ahead :D
The day ended up being long and not very productive as far as game spotting goes. We did see giraffes on quite many occasions. Somehow they always go around in threes :) Saw them far and close and in the bushes and on the roads. Then we saw a big herd of blue waterbeests or also called gnu. Then 2 ostriches, whole lot of baboons, we saw zebras, then steenbock, impala, kudu, sable, jackal, crocodiles, one lonely elephant, warthog. There was one hippo hiding in the water, but they don't come out of the water during the day. Now, the most exciting of all, there were lions - but they were too far away to spot them properly, all we saw was a yellow spot under a bush far away. Supposedly there were 4 lions around the bush, 2 male and 2 female, people at the viewing point had been following them since this morning. We were hoping they would get thirsty at some point and come closer to where the water is, but that did not happen :( And again we did not see any rhino :( nor buffalo :( All this has to wait till Serengeti park in Tanzania then!
This long day ended with a beautiful sunset on our way home. Quick shower in our treehouse and another 3 course dinner followed. At dinner time an older lady from Alaska joined us. She is working here as a volunteer for couple of weeks and she filled us in on the local volunteer work around here. Oh it all sounds so interesting. Tomorrow we will try to go to the village and visit the Red Cross volunteer camp there.
After dinner we went to help the volunteer lady who is laying salt out for the animals at the water pond behind our treehouse. She first lays the salt on the ground and then sweeps all the traces so in the morning they can check who has visited the site during the night. Apparently the animals need salt because this is hard to get naturally and they need it due to such warm weather. Lady knew to say that last night there were 4 buffaloes and hyenas there. Just last week they had some lions visiting and elephants are quite common as well.
Just as I'm writing this there is an elephant walking around in our back-yard :) It is dark so I can just hear it, tried to spot it as well under the light but no luck. It must be about 20 meters away, but it is too dark here to see it. And yes there was one local guy with me, my heart rate jumped to the skies when I heard the noise and I would not have dared to go out checking all by myself.
But now off to bed as tomorrow will be another productive and challenging day ahead :D
Bulawayo and getting to Hwange National Park- 8.sept
Had the whole morning to look around in Bulawayo, our bus leaves at 2pm so we would have plenty of time to walk around in this beautiful town. Up at 7, breakfast at 8, tour of Bulawayo club right after and then headed to town. Bulawayo seems very friendly, buildings are old and big, streets are wide, people seem polite and all seems safe. We wondered around for few hours - National Art Gallery and Natural History Museum. Both definitely worth visiting. Looked around at the park, tried to grasp all the beautiful architecture and lively streets.
Bulawayo is Zimbabwes second largest city and the capital of Matabeleland, home of Ndebele people. Town is located 1350m above sea level giving it a bit cooler climate than in the rest of the country. There are 2 important names to mention that are connected to this region:
King Lobengula - the son of Zulu king Mzilikazi, leader of a breakaway faction from South Africa's Natal that was to become the Ndebele nation, based in this area.
Cecil John Rhodes - an influential colonialist with ambitions to bring the whole of Africa under British control, while increasing his already phenomenal personal wealth.
Those two figures were the leaders of two sides fighting over the land (late 1800's - around 1894), finally peace negotiations took place. 1920's saw the introduction of municipal electricity even before it was in London. In 1931 the first aerodrome opened to service the Imperial Airways London-Cape Town route, and in 1941 Bulawayo was granted city status.
Right before heading back to the hotel I managed to offend a statue :( Full story is that I took a picture of a building and in front of the building there was a statue that was all covered up and two policeman were guarding it (with guns!). And so they were on the photo as well. One police (a lady) walked over to me and asked what did I just do. I explained that I took a photo of the building. Well, the whole conversation took at least 5 minutes me explaining that I did not mean any harm and it is just a photo and I can delete it if that would help at all. But no, the harm had already been done, photo was taken and deleting it would not help at all. They would take me to the central police station where they would then see what to do with me as this is a very very big offence and I could go to jail (yea, they were serious about it). All was sorted out and I was not taken anywhere, but this was quite tense. So lesson learned - not only is it forbidden to take photos of government buildings, but also of police.
Quickly got back to the hotel, packed our things, checked out and took a taxi to the bus "station". There was no station really, the bus was parked just in the middle of the street and that was it :) One bus was facing one way, going to Harare, the other the other way, going to Victoria Falls. Had to get on the last one (we are getting off earlier though, at Halfway, going to Hwange National park for 2 days). For the longest time we were just standing there waiting for our bus from a different company, only to find out that existing bus is actually the one we need - some confusion right there, but I'm glad we caught on early enough otherwise we would have just missed the bus and would be still standing there probably :-P
Bus was packed, it was a minibus with about 17 passenger seats and additional 4 pull-down seats at the isle. I think they put 20 people on the bus :) No air conditioning (did I mention it is about 27C here during the day?) but it was possible to open the windows. They handed out water and also fast food dinner. There was an attendant from the bus company who said a prayer with everybody once the bus started moving :D We were about 40 minutes late getting out of Bulawayo, but we got to our destination 1.5 hours later that originally planned :) One of the reasons were quite numerous road blocks where police would pull the bus over and ask all kinds of questions from the driver.
Bus drive was pretty good though. Even though my chair turned into a rocking chair at some point and the sun was burning hot and the windows had no curtains - it was all good. The crowd was fun :) There were two local guys at the bus sitting close to us and we managed to get ourselves laughing so hard at some point that I got tears running down my cheeks :) Bus ride was about 3 hours. Once at Halfway the others continued on and about 5 of us stepped off. Our accommodation organized a pick-up for us, another 40 minutes in the bus and there we were - in a small quiet camp where housing is arranged at elevated tree-houses :) There are no walls really, just some shades. It all looks very comfortable though: there is a big bathroom with a shower and water toilet, there are 2 comfortable beds with mosquito nets hanging over them. This place is really in a deep deep bush, closest people are in a village 3km away.
They have a habit to serving cereal and a full English breakfast here in the morning and a 3 course dinner in the evening :) Dinner was super nice also in this accommodation. Right next to the open dinner area there was a bonfire lit. Rest of the evening went in the name of Zimbabwe wine, talking, staring at the fire and gazing at the bright stars up above. The stars are amazing here since it is so dark - just beautiful, clear and bright stars.
Bulawayo is Zimbabwes second largest city and the capital of Matabeleland, home of Ndebele people. Town is located 1350m above sea level giving it a bit cooler climate than in the rest of the country. There are 2 important names to mention that are connected to this region:
King Lobengula - the son of Zulu king Mzilikazi, leader of a breakaway faction from South Africa's Natal that was to become the Ndebele nation, based in this area.
Cecil John Rhodes - an influential colonialist with ambitions to bring the whole of Africa under British control, while increasing his already phenomenal personal wealth.
Those two figures were the leaders of two sides fighting over the land (late 1800's - around 1894), finally peace negotiations took place. 1920's saw the introduction of municipal electricity even before it was in London. In 1931 the first aerodrome opened to service the Imperial Airways London-Cape Town route, and in 1941 Bulawayo was granted city status.
Right before heading back to the hotel I managed to offend a statue :( Full story is that I took a picture of a building and in front of the building there was a statue that was all covered up and two policeman were guarding it (with guns!). And so they were on the photo as well. One police (a lady) walked over to me and asked what did I just do. I explained that I took a photo of the building. Well, the whole conversation took at least 5 minutes me explaining that I did not mean any harm and it is just a photo and I can delete it if that would help at all. But no, the harm had already been done, photo was taken and deleting it would not help at all. They would take me to the central police station where they would then see what to do with me as this is a very very big offence and I could go to jail (yea, they were serious about it). All was sorted out and I was not taken anywhere, but this was quite tense. So lesson learned - not only is it forbidden to take photos of government buildings, but also of police.
Quickly got back to the hotel, packed our things, checked out and took a taxi to the bus "station". There was no station really, the bus was parked just in the middle of the street and that was it :) One bus was facing one way, going to Harare, the other the other way, going to Victoria Falls. Had to get on the last one (we are getting off earlier though, at Halfway, going to Hwange National park for 2 days). For the longest time we were just standing there waiting for our bus from a different company, only to find out that existing bus is actually the one we need - some confusion right there, but I'm glad we caught on early enough otherwise we would have just missed the bus and would be still standing there probably :-P
Bus was packed, it was a minibus with about 17 passenger seats and additional 4 pull-down seats at the isle. I think they put 20 people on the bus :) No air conditioning (did I mention it is about 27C here during the day?) but it was possible to open the windows. They handed out water and also fast food dinner. There was an attendant from the bus company who said a prayer with everybody once the bus started moving :D We were about 40 minutes late getting out of Bulawayo, but we got to our destination 1.5 hours later that originally planned :) One of the reasons were quite numerous road blocks where police would pull the bus over and ask all kinds of questions from the driver.
Bus drive was pretty good though. Even though my chair turned into a rocking chair at some point and the sun was burning hot and the windows had no curtains - it was all good. The crowd was fun :) There were two local guys at the bus sitting close to us and we managed to get ourselves laughing so hard at some point that I got tears running down my cheeks :) Bus ride was about 3 hours. Once at Halfway the others continued on and about 5 of us stepped off. Our accommodation organized a pick-up for us, another 40 minutes in the bus and there we were - in a small quiet camp where housing is arranged at elevated tree-houses :) There are no walls really, just some shades. It all looks very comfortable though: there is a big bathroom with a shower and water toilet, there are 2 comfortable beds with mosquito nets hanging over them. This place is really in a deep deep bush, closest people are in a village 3km away.
They have a habit to serving cereal and a full English breakfast here in the morning and a 3 course dinner in the evening :) Dinner was super nice also in this accommodation. Right next to the open dinner area there was a bonfire lit. Rest of the evening went in the name of Zimbabwe wine, talking, staring at the fire and gazing at the bright stars up above. The stars are amazing here since it is so dark - just beautiful, clear and bright stars.
Bulawayo club hotel - deserves its own chapter!
This place is a colonial era hotel - most wonderful and truly posh. Check the photos as well to see all the different rooms and settings. Club itself is from 1895, it was founded as gentleman's club where they would socialize and do lots of business networking. This club has some very strict rules, quite many of them still being enforced. About some of them you can read down below. But this particular building was built 1935, at the time it would strongly show their capability and resources, to be able to build such a big and fancy building. It was turned into a hotel just a year ago - there are 16 very nicely decorated rooms on the third floor, rest of the house would be club member rooms, restaurant, coffee rooms, dining area, bar areas, conference room, balcony and so on.
Now a bit more about our evening. Got back from Matopos at 7:30. One of the nicest things here is that you are always approached and asked how are you doing and how the day has been :) It is all very sincere and nice. Once few sentences are exchanged they sometimes also get to the point, this time to ask what time could they expect us downstairs for dinner so they know to set the table :) How wonderful is that? Now the dinner - menu is just for a week. There is a complimentary soup served for all guests dining. There are 3 main meals in the menu (pork,chicken and fish) plus a desert. Food was first of all very pretty - the way it was presented was fancy. And of course it was very delicious as well. Sitting at this table one would forget that he/she is in Africa. It could easily be a restaurant located in London or in New York. At this beautiful setting we had the most interesting discussion about social and economical problems in the world, developing countries and the history of Africa. Those are the kinds of conversations I would like to have more often, those are the talks that get my thoughts running in different directions and afterwards I feel like I have just read 10 books in the last hour :D
Now about the bar :) We were warned previously (already in Harare) that the bar in this hotel is only for men and women are not allowed in there. We just could not believe it and we wanted to see how and if they actually would make us leave, we figured we play innocent tourists who know nothing about the rule. So here is the story of two white females in Bulawayo, the year is 2010:
We walk into the bar area, there are 2 white guys sitting at one of the round tables talking. All the staff is black. We approach the barman asking if there is a separate drinks menu and if we could have a look at it as we would like to have a drink. We make ourselves comfortable on the stools behind the bar. He finds the menu for us and steps a bit back. Nothing else, he does not say anything or make funny expressions or anything - so we figure all is fine. We order our drinks and he disappears to the back room/kitchen area. Few moments goes by and another black young guy comes towards us, leans over the bar and says quite quietly that unfortunately we can't have a drink here tonight. Now the conversation goes something like this:
him- ladies, unfortunately you can't have drinks here tonight
me- tonight? what is so special about tonight?
him- it is gentleman's night tonight
me- so if we come here tomorrow evening we could have a drink here?
him- no not tomorrow, but on Fridays and Saturdays you could
my friend- oh so no women allowed today is that it?
him- correct, no women allowed except on Friday's and Saturday's
my friend- so where do women have their drinks then?
him- there is another bar upstairs, but at the moment it is closed
us just looking confused- where should we go then?
him looking around- well, since it is past 10 already and the bar is closed you can just have your drinks here no problem (but don't tell anyone!)
my friend- but you know there are civil rights and gender equality nowadays!
him- but in this place are different rules and those will never change, never :)
Then the next 10 to 15 minutes we heard about the other rules of the club and what is done here and how it all works and where he is from and all sorts of interesting things :) It was a good talk - I learned a lot about the traditions and about the history. Ah the wonders of traveling and talking to locals - me loves it!
Now a bit more about our evening. Got back from Matopos at 7:30. One of the nicest things here is that you are always approached and asked how are you doing and how the day has been :) It is all very sincere and nice. Once few sentences are exchanged they sometimes also get to the point, this time to ask what time could they expect us downstairs for dinner so they know to set the table :) How wonderful is that? Now the dinner - menu is just for a week. There is a complimentary soup served for all guests dining. There are 3 main meals in the menu (pork,chicken and fish) plus a desert. Food was first of all very pretty - the way it was presented was fancy. And of course it was very delicious as well. Sitting at this table one would forget that he/she is in Africa. It could easily be a restaurant located in London or in New York. At this beautiful setting we had the most interesting discussion about social and economical problems in the world, developing countries and the history of Africa. Those are the kinds of conversations I would like to have more often, those are the talks that get my thoughts running in different directions and afterwards I feel like I have just read 10 books in the last hour :D
Now about the bar :) We were warned previously (already in Harare) that the bar in this hotel is only for men and women are not allowed in there. We just could not believe it and we wanted to see how and if they actually would make us leave, we figured we play innocent tourists who know nothing about the rule. So here is the story of two white females in Bulawayo, the year is 2010:
We walk into the bar area, there are 2 white guys sitting at one of the round tables talking. All the staff is black. We approach the barman asking if there is a separate drinks menu and if we could have a look at it as we would like to have a drink. We make ourselves comfortable on the stools behind the bar. He finds the menu for us and steps a bit back. Nothing else, he does not say anything or make funny expressions or anything - so we figure all is fine. We order our drinks and he disappears to the back room/kitchen area. Few moments goes by and another black young guy comes towards us, leans over the bar and says quite quietly that unfortunately we can't have a drink here tonight. Now the conversation goes something like this:
him- ladies, unfortunately you can't have drinks here tonight
me- tonight? what is so special about tonight?
him- it is gentleman's night tonight
me- so if we come here tomorrow evening we could have a drink here?
him- no not tomorrow, but on Fridays and Saturdays you could
my friend- oh so no women allowed today is that it?
him- correct, no women allowed except on Friday's and Saturday's
my friend- so where do women have their drinks then?
him- there is another bar upstairs, but at the moment it is closed
us just looking confused- where should we go then?
him looking around- well, since it is past 10 already and the bar is closed you can just have your drinks here no problem (but don't tell anyone!)
my friend- but you know there are civil rights and gender equality nowadays!
him- but in this place are different rules and those will never change, never :)
Then the next 10 to 15 minutes we heard about the other rules of the club and what is done here and how it all works and where he is from and all sorts of interesting things :) It was a good talk - I learned a lot about the traditions and about the history. Ah the wonders of traveling and talking to locals - me loves it!
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