Ethiopia:

The land of people with extreme egos and who refused to be colonized

              If you ever decide to come to Ethiopia, you will most likely spend a few days in the Capital city of Addis Ababa. It is the only place where you can fly into or out of on an international flight and it is a typical yet very interesting African city to say the least. Addis Ababa is a sprawling high altitude settlement resembling a vast rusty roofed village scattered over many hills. It is over 100 years old but has a look of timeless decay. Good from far but far from good, Addis is unsuspecting from a distance, but up close it is dirty, dusty and falling apart in more ways than one. Stinking horribly of unwashed homeless people, sick animals, creepy people everywhere, walls reeking of urine, and every alley blocked with garbage.  Overwhelming to say the least, we found it hard to find any reason to recommend this city to others as it lacks any serious charm. Loud music, car horns, diesel fumes, and pestering urchins yelling “farangi” (white man) with sad stories and insinuating fingers and dire warnings such as “Be careful where you go as there are bad people here”. 

       

         One of the things that you will most likely encounter on your journey to Ethiopia is a run in with their national food.  For the typical Ethiopian, Injera is a staple food that is consumed everyday from childbirth till the day they die. Most of the people in this country are very religious and have great pride. They believe that they are the soul of religion in Africa and the originators of African existence. During certain times of the year, most Ethiopians take part in a month long fast to show their devotion to their religion. During this time, Ethiopians drink no milk, consume no meat or fish and they eat only “fasting food”. In short, this consists of mashed vegetables mounded on injera, which is a layer of grey spongy bread made from fermented grain and spread over a large platter. “Like a crepe or a pancake”, people say but no: it is a cool, moist, and rubbery, less like a crepe than an old damp bathmat. Spicy sauces called wot are placed on the injera at intervals, with pulped beans, lentils, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, or, in non fasting months, fish or meat.  Every traveler who comes here must experience the wonder of such local food as injera, but will be reassured that pasta and sauce or other western foods are also usually available in most restaurants in the country.

            Another unique aspect of Ethiopian culture is their music and their juice and coffee. The music is a high-pitched shriek like squeal of clapping, dancing, and accordion like sounds. The dancing has to be some of the most bizarre moves on our planet and the most common movements you will see is the man spastically vibrating their shoulders while dancing on one leg as if they are having a seizure, and the women dancers are often seen wearing a garment like a bath rob and jumping up and down while thrusting their chest in the air and twitching their necks. We thought it would be a nice souvenir to bring back a music video DVD just to show others back home just how wild and wooly an African dance can get. On the other hand, Ethiopian coffee is the heart or focal point of this country. Renouned as having the worlds best coffee, once you drink a cup, it will leave you begging for more. Part of the reason it is so good is that coffee production originated right here in Ethiopia. They are the master minds behind the ever so delicious roasted coffee beans that people all over the world take time to enjoy. To add to the specialty, during the late 19^th century the country was run over by Italians and they left a legacy with their own twist.  Whither its Traditional coffee made fresh for you in a coffee ceremony, or a macchiato brewed fresh from an espresso machine, you might quickly find your taste buds craving for more with each passing day.  To come to Ethiopia and not get to experience “the juice” would be a shameful disappointment. The juice is often available at cafes and comes mostly in the flavors of orange, mango, guava, avocado, or pineapple. What you will find is most locals or people in these cafes are ordering a “mix” of all the flavors available and it is a total mouth watering spectacle that is an absolute must.

So there you have it! The bare bones of Ethiopia in a nutshell. I would never discourage anyone from coming here but I would only recommend it to experienced travelers who want to get a taste of the real, the raw, and the gritty side of the struggle within the African way of life and their culture. The harshness and overbearing characteristic of many of the local people here in this country will most likely leave the inexperienced travelers pleading to jump back on a plane back to their home country. For the majority of travelers that want to experience Africa I’d probably recommend the other 12 countries I’ve spent time in before recommending this one, as they are a lot less overbearing and more rewarding.

Kilimanjaro: Piece of Cake

TREKKING TO THE ROOF OF AFRICA

WITH KELVIN FRANCIS AND TELLA TEMPLETON

            Most seasoned trekkers would agree that Kilimanjaro is one of the most famous mountain hikes you could do on our planet. Standing tall at an impressive 5,895 m Kilimanjaro earns the title as being the official Roof of Africa. It is the highest peak in Africa, and one of the highest volcanoes in the world. It is also one of the few summits in the world, which can be reached without ropes, or any kind of technical assistance. To make it to the summit requires you to be in the best physical shape possible, even then there is no guarantee that you will have what it takes to make it to the top. In the past, even some extremely fit individuals have succumbed to the effects of altitude, and were unable to achieve their goal, and were forced to turn back. For us, we did very little preparation and were not nearly as fit as we would have liked to have been. With that being said, we realized that making it to Uhuru Peak (the summit) doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be in the best physical shape. For us, it became more of a test of willpower and we were rewarded tenfold!

             We arranged our hike thru a local guide named Joseph who called Moshi, Tanzania his home. The arrangement was for a 6-day trek that would begin on July 8^th 2011, which is one of the busiest times of the year to trek. There are advantages and disadvantages to hiking during this time of the year:

Advantages:

•     This time of the season allows for the best visibility,
• ·      It’s the dry season which means the trails are in the best condition,
• ·      Because of dry season the chance of encountering bad weather is highly unlikely

Disadvantages:

•             It is winter in Tanzania so temperatures drop below 0 in the evenings,
•             July and August are peak season, which means the trails, and camping areas are jam packed full of muzungus (foreigners).

         
         We left Dar es Salaam, the capital city of Tanzania, on route to Moshi on a early bus that took approximately 8 hours. Once we arrived in Moshi we checked into the Backpackers Hostel, which was located near the city centre. After settling in we contacted our guide Joseph and arranged to meet at our place that evening. We spent the next hour or so talking about the trek, planning our route, and negotiating a fair price with Joseph. If you’re planning to trek up to the summit anytime in the future, you will quickly realize that there are hundreds of guides eager to take you up the mountain as well as dozens of different trekking companies to choose from. The reason we picked our guide is primarily because he was a referral from another traveler and because the price was the cheapest we had come across or had ever heard of. Because Kilimanjaro has such a competitive market, prices range from $850 - $3,000 USD depending on which company or guide you pick from and what your budget is.

            After everything was negotiated and agreed upon, we arranged for Joseph to meet us in town to show us where we could hire gear. The following morning he took us to one of the few rental shops in town where we were able to pick out everything required. We were amazed to see the shop had virtually everything and anything you could ever dream of renting for a trek. From used water bottles, long underwear, second hand socks, to -30C sleeping bags, snow pants, and North Face down jackets. Each item was priced out per trip and we ended up spending approximately $115 on equip for both of us. After the hire and everything was confirmed for the trek, we prepared our bags to leave the next morning.

            Day 1 began on a Friday morning and after a brief stop at the market to buy snacks, we headed towards the park headquarters to finalize park fees and begin the day’s hike. If you have not heard Kilimanjaro National Park has hefty park fees and you are required to pay approximately $131 USD/ per person / day. Most trekkers either choose a 6 or 7-day trek so if you choose the latter it means you will be forced to pay another days fees.

           

       Arriving at the gate of the Machame route, we picked up 6 porters, and started the ascent. Before we officially began walking the trail, our guide Joseph said he had some paperwork to take care of and that he would catch up with us on trail. It was a bit of a surprise that our guide abandoned us before the trek even began and little did we know this would not be the first or last time this happened to us. One of the porters who were part of our team said he would guide us up the trail and we ended up walking the entire first day solely with him and no guide.

  

            Day one was straightforward and proved to be a fairly gradual 18 km walk up to Machame camp. The trail was a gravel path and surprisingly wide enough that any vehicle could drive on. 4 hours later up a fairly steady incline the whole way, we arrived at our first campsite drenched in sweat and relieved to have made it through the first day unharmed. Upon arrival, we helped two of the porters set up our tent, and got ourselves settled. A small snack of popcorn, and tea were brought to us, which curbed our hunger until supper. Dinner was surprisingly tasty, and portions were huge, in fact that we could barely finish everything on our plates. We went to sleep early as our wake-up call, at 7am, the next morning was quickly approaching.

            On day two, we continued our climb, which brought us through 4 to 5 quite visibly different microclimates. What started as a very lush and tropical montane rainforest on day one, changed to more of a drier sub tropical forest where numerous shrubs replaced the massive trees. The second day was 9 km, and 6 hours of endless hills that you gradually went up followed by a quick descent before the next hill. As we approached the top of one of the hills, we broke through the cloud line, and had to stop to take some much-needed photos, as the view was absolutely breathtaking. There were several times during the day when Joseph told us that we were close to camp, yet we soon realized that was far from the truth. At the top of each peak we would ask how far it was to camp, and he would say “Just over there”… That turned out to be 5 huge hills, and 3 hours, later. We camped this night at Shira Camp, which was at an altitude of 3837 m, which is well above the height where altitude sickness begins.

            One of the most important factors to a successful climb is to stay well hydrated.  Dehydration is a concept misunderstood by most. If you allow yourself to become dehydrated, your body will become weak, and will be more susceptible to high altitude sickness. Once dehydrated it is already too late to make up for the loss of water. Most guides will tell you to drink at least 4-5 liters per day to maintain a healthy level of hydration. Keeping yourself hydrated before this hike is essential!

            Day three was the real acclimatization day, as we hiked up to approximately 4637 m to Lava Tower Camp, then back down to 3976 m at Barranco camp where we spent the night. As we began walking on trail, we realized that we were out of water. We asked if there was water further up the trail (to fill our bottles), and the reply from Joseph was “Why didn’t you tell the porters to get you water”. We were a little taken aback as we didn’t know that we had to inform the porters of this. Joseph was upset, took our bottles, and went back towards camp to get water for us. This ended up being yet another day that we hiked completely solo, and didn’t meet up with Joseph until we stopped for lunch at Lava Tower. The view of the peak from Lava Tower was amazing, and we were able to take some amazing photos as we were well above the cloud line. From there, we were able to see the Western Breach, which is a very technical climb and not recommended unless you are a very experienced. Currently, this route is even more technical since part of the mountain gave way, and a rockslide buried one of the camps. It is now viewed as “High Risk” to the summit. We noticed the landscape transformed from a very dry area with lots of shrubs, to an alpine desert with fairytale-like setting. Closer to camp, we came across huge trees that resembled giant pineapples. This area is known for its intense radiation, and huge temperature fluctuations. Daytime temperatures can rise above 35 degrees, and drop to below freezing at night. Due to the lack of water, and the thinning soil it becomes an unfavorable condition to plant life.

            Most people are aware that there are pills you can take to avoid getting Altitude Sickness. This ended up being an overly debated subject, and everyone had his or her own opinions on it. Some of the effects of altitude sickness include prolonged headaches, nausea, insomnia, dizziness, and loss of appetite.  If the symptoms worsen it can result in pulmonary, or cerebral oedema, which can often result in a fatal outcome. We were well stocked with Diamox, which was to prevent getting the sickness, but Joseph strongly discouraged us taking it. He told us that it works as a diuretic, and puts more pressure on the kidneys, which makes you urinate more. By urinating more frequently, it puts you at a higher risk of dehydration. His argument against Diamox was that if we kept ourselves properly hydrated, it would be enough of a defense against altitude sickness that we would not need to take the pills. Oddly enough, we met another team who all were on Diamox and only 2 of the 4 girls reached the summit. If you do decide to take Diamox, you have to start taking it before you begin the trek because if you don’t, they are useless. They are no help to you if you wait to take them, and are already experiencing the effects of high altitude.

            Day four arrived very early and it proved to be the biggest test yet. As we were getting geared up and eating breakfast, we noticed some trekkers that had already began shimmying along the rock face. They looked to be moving very slowly and the trail looked extremely steep. We knew that it was going to be a tough morning and a long day of 6-8 hours depending on our pace. The first few hours was a very slow go and a few points along the trail required some technical bouldering. We passed a couple that had the look of fear in their eyes and were just watching the others continue on. We never saw them from that point on and it is not known if they made it to the next camp or perhaps turned back. Once we got about halfway up the wall there was a risky transition called the ‘kissing rock’. It was a cliffhanger and you literally had to clench both your arms around a massive boulder and shuffle your feet over the ledge to continue on. Before we set off this day, our guide warned us that the ascent was challenging and to expect the worst. After we made it to the top of the wall, we were treated to another spectacular view of the surrounding area as well as the summit. We took a well-deserved rest, along with some photos, and then proceeded for another 2-hour hike down into a gorge and back up to our next stop where we were treated to a hot lunch.

            After lunch we still had another 3-4 hours to go before reaching our final resting point at Barafu Hut 4,673 m. Once we got to the camp, it was our final night before attempting the summit, which was a steep climb of almost 1,300 m.

5:00 pm: We arrived at our campsite after another grueling 8-hour day. At this point, we met some Americans who stayed at Barranco Camp, and we started to wish that we had chosen the 7-day hike rather than the 6 (to give our tired bodies a good days rest before summiting).

6:30 pm: Served another delicious dinner and feeling no problems with the altitude.Before we settled in for a few hours sleep, I dissembled our water bladders and drained out the water as we were told the temperatures at this altitude would surely drop below freezing. Starting the hike with a frozen bag of water was not anything we wanted to experience and were very grateful we did so come morning.

7:30 pm: Went to bed with 5 layers of pants, 7 layers of tops, toque, mittens and 2 pairs of socks (Tara, not Kevin), and was still freezing cold all night.

12:15 pm: “Woke up” (15 minutes late, in despair as our guide didn’t wake us up…. We had to go and shake their tent to get everyone moving) to begin the 8-hour hike of steady incline, in the dark, over large rocks and loose gravel, to the summit. Despite all of the layers worn, and high altitude, we didn’t manage to sleep at all. We woke up feeling exhausted, and realizing that this is what it must feel like to be 90 years old.

12:30 am: “Breakfast of Champions” was served, consisting of one cup of tea, and 3 baby biscuits each. Obviously, this would prove to not nearly enough food and our  energy stores were depleted within a few hours of starting the hike.

12:45 am: We left Barafu Hut on our way up to the summit.

           

2:30 am: The water in the tubes had in fact began to freeze and I spent the next 20 minutes de-thawing the tubes just enough to get a few sips of water to quench our thirst.Tara’s tubing was frozen solid so I decided to tuck my tube in my shirt to keep it from freezing for the rest of the hike.

           

3:00 am: Start to lose feeling in my toes and fingers.

3:30 am: Onset of frostbite, and fingers and toes in terrible pain!

3:31 am: Am forced to remove my 2^nd pair of socks, and have my hands warmed by one of the porters.

6:00 am: We began to see the sky lighting up, and our pace has decreased to no more than a crawl.

6:15 am: The sensation of hunger had now become excruciatingly painful.

6:45 am: Feeling relieved after witnessing one of the most incredible sunrises our planet could offer. Watching the sunrise at this elevation is something that made this hike extra special. What is usually a 10-minute process; this sunrise lasted close to 30 minutes due to how high we were!  Our pace had now become so slow at this point that we had to take a rest every 10 steps ahead.

           

6:50 am: Joseph, our guide, informed us that we were about 200 m from the summit, and for the rest of the way to the summit we kept being told that this hike was merely a “Piece of Cake”, by the lead porter. Classifying this hike as a piece of cake would be considered insanity to most.

 6:51 am: Were too cold and exhausted to care; the onset of pounding headaches began to set in.

7:01 am: Could feel our hearts in a race to catch up with the lack of oxygen. At this point we were nearing Stella Point which is a sign informing you that you’ve reached the top of the mountain…. Little did we know that this was in fact NOT the top. From this point, there is still 150 meters to go to reach Uhuru Peak, and it literally takes every last bit of energy you have to drag yourself there, and if you are lucky you will reach the sign that congratulates you for making it to the Roof Of Africa.

8:30 am: Arrive at summit, literally on Cloud 9!! Took some pictures, and started to descend about 10 minutes later due to increased intensity of head pain along with a severe case of lightheadedness.

            We spent 8 hours hiking up, and three hours back down to the campsite. Thankfully enough, we took a different route down and literally skied on loose gravel back to camp. It was a cross between monkey walking, and snow shoeing in powder. For those who are not into skiing, you could find this part quite challenging and little did I know this gravel-skiing would leave my feet very uncomfortable, coated in blisters, and barely able to finish the hike the following day.

            Once we got back to camp, we were greeted and congratulated by the other groups who were waiting for their turn to summit, and they were eager to know if we had made it to the top. We gave them a few tips of advice, and ducked out for a quick nap before heading down to the next camp for the final leg of the days hike. 4 hours later and on basically no sleep for almost 2 days, we arrived at the final campsite. Dinner was quick and quiet, and bedtime shortly followed. We slept like babies.

            One the last day, it took us 4 hours to reach the finish line, and just like that we had finished our Kilimanjaro experience. What should have taken 2-3 hours to reach the bottom, took us 4 as I (Tara) could barely walk. My feet were so badly blistered, knees aching, and were literally being hounded and drug to the end by Kev and our guide Joseph who had also developed a bit of a limp.

            So if you think you have what it takes to summit Kilimanjaro, here are a few of the things that you will have to look forward to that we both experienced along our 6 days on the adventure:

• Pounding headaches
• Shortness of breath
• Feet covered in blisters
• Aching knees
• Dry cracked noses
• Nausea
• Burnt bleeding lips
• Sore muscles
• Complete exhaustion
• Racing heart rate
• Restless sleeps
•  Freezing cold

            One thing you will indeed realize once you start your hike is that mountains are big, they all range in size but most take a while to get to the top. Kilimanjaro in particular is massive. A mountain that takes you 5 days just to get the top is no easy challenge especially when you’re dealing with high altitude and its potentially fatal effects. Many lives have been lost on this mountain mainly because of altitude and not taking proper care or understanding prevention. In the earlier days of trekking many porters would never make it back to the bottom nor get the chance to say goodbye to their family. This was mainly because of a lack of understanding or education of what altitude sickness is and not knowing how harmful and potentially fatal it can be if you start to experience the symptoms and continue climbing elevation. There will be many times along the trek that you may feel tired or a bit fatigued from the power of Kilimanjaro but the best advice we can give you is if you are to fall down, pretend you need a second to recover, and consider it a bonus rest. And best of all Goodluck! As even the fittest athletes have failed to make it to the top and instead rushed back down to safety.

© Copyright August 2011 Kilimanjaro Publications 

GREAT ZIMBABWE: Land Of Friendly & Gentle People

The Border Crossing: Johannesburg to Zimbabwe

March 3, 2010

We set out from Johannesburg en route to Bulawayo, which is the second largest city and situated in the Southern part of Zimbabwe approximately 300 km north of the border. The journey we were about to embark on would begin in Johannesburg, South Africa all the way to Zimbabwe and was approximately 1000 km. I was relieved because it was going to provide me with the opportunity to let go of the ever-present lingering tension of South Africa and welcome a new country with open arms.  I had spent the past 5 weeks in South Africa and was ready for something new.

I stayed at a cozy hostel in Johannesburg called Diamond Diggers in the not as popular eastside of the city. This is where I first met the owner of the hostel whose name was Harry. He was a friendly and pleasant man, who was born is South Africa, and upon graduation moved with his family to Florida in the USA. I could tell from the moment I met him that he had a very unique charm to him but his motive was strictly business. Once I arrived at the hostel and he lead me into the reception area/office, he asked how I made it to the hostel and when I explained that I had been to the MTN taxi rand in the city center and wandered the streets of Johannesburg with all my gear on until I eventually caught a local mini bus to get there, my explanation shocked him. His reply was: “Wow, you’re a real Maverick!” He then went on to tell me that the MTN taxi rand is a dangerous area of the city that most locals don’t even venture to because so many people have been robbed. I had no real idea that I had just potentially put my life in danger by using local transport, which is the typical way I usually get around countries. Right then and there Harry realized my ‘Maverick’ style of travel and I remember him telling me that he was disappointed, as he knew selling me any kind of tour was purely out of the question. We had a good chat until I was interrupted by a phone call from my mother. She was calling from Canada and had worked herself up into a frantic worry and just wanted to make sure I was okay. If you are familiar with Apartheid or any of the 20^th century history of South Africa, you will know that Johannesburg was the heart of the government and the birthplace of Apartheid. It was also the most concentrated of anti-apartheid protests that went on during those times. The Apartheid left a huge scar on South Africa during those decades that took thousands of lives. Because of all of the above, Johannesburg has a reputation for being one of the most, if not the most dangerous, city in all of Africa. After I got off the phone and reassured my mother that everything was ok, I explained to Harry that my next destination was Zimbabwe, Botswana, or Namibia and I was looking for a unique travel experience preferably with a local. Just then, Harry’s eyes lit up and he went on to tell me that he understood my type of travel and had just the man to ensure I could experience a few of these countries in the most unique way possible. Harry contacted his friend Keith, who was Zimbabwean, and before I knew it he arrived at the hostel in rather high and jolly spirits. After we introduced ourselves, we began to talk travel and eventually negotiated a price and budget costs for the trip. The plan was to head off towards Zimbabwe the following morning. It was around 330pm when Keith picked me up in his small 4-door fiat Uno Italian made car and we headed out of Jozi. The plan was to leave a lot earlier but he had a few minor complications to take care of first. Leaving a city of 11 million people around this time was not the best idea as rush hour traffic was now something we would have to contend with. In Jozi, the local transport union was on strike and so if you don’t have your own car, it can be very challenging or expensive to get around. In times like these, everyone and anyone who has a license to drive a car does so and you can imagine how busy the road systems were. I was lucky Keith knew Jozi pretty well and we managed to take some back routes out of the city so that we didn’t have to wait in bumper-to-bumper traffic all afternoon.

Along the journey we were treated to a spectacular sunset and no delays. It was approximately 600 kms to the border and it took us around 10 hrs to get there, which included a few short stops to refuel along the way. The border crossing we were set to pass is a 24-hour crossing and one of the busiest in all of South Africa. I was fortunate that I was going through such a crossing with a local African like Keith because if I were on my own it would have been a big headache. Things on the South African side went quite smoothly and everything seemed to be rather organized. The only dodgy part was that the tents where the immigration officials looked over passports and gave exit stamps was outdoors. Luckily enough, the lineup was quite small and the line moved at a steady rate so before we knew it, our passports were handed back to us and we were on our way. I have read that Zimbabwe is a very unique country and doesn’t have the most stable political or economic conditions at the moment. Not too long ago, Zims was booming and one of the fastest growing economies in Africa. Now, it has been rated as one of the slowest growing economies and has actually gone backwards in stability in comparison to earlier years. Even with this shocking economic situation, I found the Zim people to be some of the friendliest and most welcoming people I’d met so far in Africa. Once we parked our car at the border control on the Zim side, I immediately could tell things weren’t all that organized and the idea of queuing in a lineup was not that easy of a concept for some people to grasp. 3 hrs later, we finally passed all the stages to enter into Zimbabwe and were relieved that we had no hookups or major delays with any of the necessary documents we had to provide or fill out. Passing a border between 2-5 am is probably not the best time to be doing this, as it seems all the bad people and criminals in this world usually come out to show themselves once darkness arrives. I was approached by a few people during the border crossing and Keith said if it wasn’t for him, I would have been hassled a lot more and might have ended up being robbed or having things stolen so I am very grateful he was there to show me the way and make sure nothing major happened. Throughout South Africa, I could not believe the amount of police out on the highways pulling people over and doing speed checks. Even in Zimbabwe, it seemed like we passed security/police checkpoints every 20 kms or so. We must have had luck on our side as we never got searched, fined or any tickets throughout the entire 17-hour journey so I was very relieved at this and quickly realized I was travelling with a man who had the necessary experience to ensure everything went smoothly.

We finally arrived at our intended destination at around 9am the following day. Once we arrived in the city, we stopped at a friend of Keith’s (that he grew up with) named Solomon. He was a short, stocky, and gentle looking man who welcomed me with a smile and told me he was happy to find out Keith and I had made it to Bulawayo unharmed. He took me on a brief tour of his well-lived in home and as he pushed open the drapes of the back door, he looked at me with a big grin on his face and said “this is our pool”. I was impressed; it was a big pool and did not expect that in a country with such a staggering economic situation, that people would be well off enough to afford to have a pool in their backyard. I guess my understanding of Zims was way off and I knew this was just the beginning of an eye opening experience that I was about to encounter in this country. Solomon’s wife generously cooked up some eggs and we had egg sandwiches before we headed off to our final destination: Keith’s bachelor pad. In South Africa, most homes are guarded with a large wall, barbed wire fencing and home security as home invasions have become all too common, especially during the devastating times of the apartheid. I was surprised to see that even in Zimbabwe, most homes have similar high security as in South Africa. Most of the houses throughout South Africa and Zimbabwe had 2 m gated fences, lined with barb wire or broken glass along the top of the wall to ensure nobody could climb over the wall to get into the property. There seemed to be a large police presence in Zimbabwe and it was difficult to drive more than 50 km without being stopped at a checkpoint by the police. Luckily enough Keith showed them the required permits and driver’s license and we were free to pass through. The high presence of police checkpoints somewhat frightened me and led me to wonder why all the extra security was necessary but what Keith explained to me is the crime rate in Zimbabwe is very low and the checkpoints are put in place to maintain the low occurrence and keep the country as safe as possible. I guess when you work hard for something in this world you don’t want to give anyone the opportunity to take it away from you so the heightened level of security is a necessary thing. 

I was very relieved to finally reach the first leg of our journey and spent the remainder of the afternoon catching up on some well-deserved sleep. From the moment we crossed the South African border into Zimbabwe, I could tell that I was in a different country. I felt as though there was still a lingering tension present in South Africa and the way the black african people looked at me was far from inviting. I couldn’t help but be on guard most the time I went anywhere in South Africa and always had to be certain I was ready for the next move. The way the local people in Zimbabwe looked at me was quite different. I didn’t feel threatened or any tension when their curious gaze was set upon me. Their stare brought me back to my time in India but the ‘stare’ was far from confrontational and came across with more of a gentle, warm and welcoming manner. That evening, Keith took me to one of his favorite restaurants called “Dickie’s” and we filled our bellies full of isitshwala (almost known as pap in south Africa), chicken stew and this spinach like vegetable. If you’ve never tried isitshwala, it is a white maize meal porridge that most locals are raised on and the best way to describe its texture is halfway between rice and mashed potatoes. Its consistency is very thick and it is one of the staple diets for most Africans as it is quite cheap and extremely filling.

That evening, Keith took me to his favorite parking lot drinking spot where there is a bar called the “Watering Hole”.  This was not your typical bar and was more like an alcohol mini-mart. In the bar there was loud music blaring and behind the bar, there was about a dozen refrigerators full of varying kinds of alcoholic beverages. To order something you had to catch the attention of one of the many men behind the counter by shouting and telling him what it was that you wanted. To ensure people couldn’t just jump over the counter and help them selves, steel bars like in a prison were in place that separated you from the men behind the bar. Keith explained to me that he has spent many evenings in this parking lot growing up and has had a lot of good memories here with friends. Most Africans really enjoy ending the day watching the sun set over the horizon and it is usually celebrated by having a few drinks. This parking lot was a popular spot for sundowners for the local people here in Bulawayo. Having a little party in the parking lot seemed like a bit of a joke to me but I soon came to realize this is a big part of the culture in Africa. The ‘Watering Hole’ is a cheap place to have a few drinks before going out to a bar or another more expensive venue.

After we downed a few drinks, we headed to one of the local favorite spots called “Mojo’s”. The bar was packed full of local Zims people and I was officially the whitest person in the club. We were treated to some lovely live music and drank and danced the night away. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and didn’t end up making it back home till about 4:30 in the morning. Once we got back, I was so relieved to crawl into bed and sleep off a rather extensive consumption of alcohol we endured throughout the evening.

 

After a weekend of meeting some of Keith’s friendly and welcoming friends and getting to experience some of the nightlife in Bulawayo, we set off to Matobo National Park which is the oldest National Park in Zimbabwe. It is said to be home to black and white rhino’s, giraffes, zebras, hippos, crocodiles, and leopards. Before Zimbabwe’s Independence, this land was known as Rhodesia and was first explored by a European known as John Cecil Rhodes. He and his team of explorers came to Rhodesia and he built a home and fell in love with the area called Matobo. Before his time was up, he arranged to have his body buried on a lookout point in the park that was referred to him as ‘the top of the world’. We spent the afternoon driving through the park and managed to find an area called Rhino Cave. Ancient bushman that used to reside in these areas left a legacy of rock art/paintings and this was one of the areas where they were discovered. It was a short 5-minute walk, down a barely recognizable trail, that eventually led us to this cave. On the rocks were paintings of running men with shields and spears that seemed to have an entourage of wildebeests with them. The paintings depicted several men running towards the silhouette of a white rhino. The atmosphere was spiritual and I let my mind wander into the past and I envisioned what it would have been like to be standing there watching these paintings being created and wondered how long ago it was. Although we didn’t get to see much wildlife, one of the most impressive parts of the park were the rock formations. Randomly scattered throughout the park, the massive boulders stood on top of each other and has become one of the most intriguing and unknown understandings of how they came to be. During my travels through Zimbabwe, I asked a young guy who had just graduated how these are explained and he went on to tell me a story of how they used to be large rocks, that slowly became separated through erosion and earthquakes. The composition of the rocks have been worn away with the wind and rain and have formed individual boulders of thousands of years.

Even though this park didn’t seem to have an abundance of wildlife, I was there during the end of the rainy season, which means animals are often harder to spot because of the dense growth of bush and grasses. Also, if there is plenty of water in the area the animals will be more dispersed throughout the park, which means you have to drive longer distances to see any of the animals. My experience going to this park wouldn’t fit into the top 10 of the things I’ve seen during my travels, but I would still recommend spending a few days here driving the park to see these impressive rock formations and maybe you will encounter more luck with the wildlife than I did.

One of the most unexpected things I could have imagined seeing in Zimbabwe was that there were loads of donkeys in every corner of the country. When never drove more than a few kilometers out of the city before we’d see them grazing the fields or just lazing the day away on the sides of the highways. I didn’t manage to find out their main purpose but they seemed to belong to farmers. From my knowledge I know donkeys are bred to carry heavy loads but oddly enough every single donkey I saw was not carrying anything at all. Another interesting thing about Zimbabwe and most of the other African countries I’ve been in is that hitchhiking is commonplace. Young kids from all the way up to elders can be seen standing on the side of highways attempting to flag passing cars by in hopes they can get a ride to their intended destination. The more time I spent in Africa, the more I realized it was the acceptable thing to do and not frowned upon like it is in the west. I saw loads of people getting picked up along the way and put into jam-packed pick up trucks or work trucks. Even private cars would pick up hitchhikers, if they had the room. When I saw so many locals doing it I thought it would be a shame not to. The quote: “When in Rome…” started playing over and over in my head and so I too can say I hitched a few times in Zimbabwe and it wasn’t long before I got picked up and dropped off safely at my point of destination unharmed.

A surprising fact about Zimbabwe that you may or may not know is that their currency no longer has any market value. Zimbabwe’s’ economy used to be seen as one of the fastest growing countries in Africa but after a new government came into place and changed everything, their booming economy quickly came to a halt and instead of improving, it went backwards and foreign investments withdrew which caused their currency to lose it’s value. Any money that was in the banks could no longer be taken out and all that the banks could do is issue bearer cheques of the value that you had in your account at that time. The bearers’ cheques from the banks were just monetary value that served no real purpose until the Zimbabwe dollar would eventually gain value again. Even at this current time of writing, the situation has not improved and they are using USD or South African Rand as the only acceptable currency. To make matters even more interesting, Local Zimbabwean people have begun selling their old bills to foreigners as ‘souvenirs’ in places such as Victoria Falls or other highly populated areas with tourists. Not only has the economy pretty much collapsed in a backward direction. The unemployment rate in Zimbabwe is amongst the highest in Africa at a whopping 90% rate. This statistic is incredibly high for a country but it is for official jobs, but that doesn’t cover most of the local people who are doing business and making their earning unofficially.

Despite the problems in the country, the education provided in Zimbabwe remains one of the best in Africa and has some of the highest academic scores throughout the continent. While travelling around Zimbabwe and realizing this statistic alone, it became quite obvious that there is a lot of potential in Zimbabwe. The locals there seemed to portray an enormous amount of hope for the future and were brainstorming ways in which they could one day achieve a secure financial future. It was wonderful to see most children provided with education but unfortunate that transportation for them seemed to be non-existent. It was not uncommon at all to see young children, all the way up to teenagers, walking along the highways sporting their school uniforms on their way to school. Keith told me that the majority of children in Zimbabwe have to walk 5-10 kms to school everyday.

Along with all the school kids using the highway as their main route to school, hundreds of adults and even elders are also walking along the roads. Most of the people that I saw, that weren’t students, were either carrying buckets on their heads or had babies wrapped on their backs with a sarong.

As I’ve been travelling around Africa, I’ve realized that each country is different and has its own unique appeal or iconic symbols but the way of life for the local people remains relatively the same, regardless of what country you may find yourself in. As in most countries in the world, urban life is usually bustling with people, traffic, touts, and are highly polluted. Most people living in the cities reside in big concrete buildings or office towers, work office jobs, and live a fairly busy lifestyle. In Africa, it’s much different in the rural areas where life is a lot more relaxed, easy going, quiet, and most live in small huts.  These huts are often circular and made from a mixture of cow dung, soil, and wood or bricks. In Zimbabwe these huts are called Dagas and are seen all over the country. The roofs have a cone shape and are made with a strong straw that even protects the inside from leaks during rainstorms. The Dagas are quite small in comparison to western style homes and the cooking is done inside the home usually using coal and once the food is prepared, the coals are removed and cow hide sheets or blankets are laid down on the hard soil to sleep on. The hide does not give any real cushioning like a bed would but it helps give a bit of warmth and keep their bodies off the cold hard soil.

My understanding of Zimbabwe has been greatly enhanced by travelling around the country for a few weeks and I would encourage others to go there. I felt as safe there as any other African country I’ve been to and the only thing to make sure of if you do venture here is to resist the urge of speaking about the government. It is forbidden to do so and it could get you in a lot of trouble if you spark up a conversation about it with the wrong person. So, if you ever get the chance to come to Zimbabwe you will immediately feel welcomed by the locals and I can assure you it will be a worthwhile trip and it is eye opening to meet such happy and hopeful people that are living in a country during a time of such uncertainty and poor economic stability.