Victoria Falls, ZIMBABWE

27 - 29 MAY 2011

ZIMBABWE – Country number 12 – ZIMBABWE

VICTORIA FALLS and elephants

The thundering mist

The border between Zambia and Zimbabwe (Zam and Zim) here is the Zambezi River at Victoria Falls, so to cross this frontier you walk across a bridge that spans the river canyon with the falls to your right heading into Zimbabwe. Jasper from Belgium, and I take the free shuttle from Jollyboys to the Falls Park then ‘check out of Zambia’. The bridge is a No Mans Land and its here that the bungee jumping into the falls’ canyon takes place. Photos and sightseeing are all perfectly acceptable so Jasper and I watch a couple being set up for a tandem bungee swing. Their friends tell me that they are celebrating their one month wedding anniversary but I think I’d prefer a dinner out somewhere myself! And I have to tell you that her screams as they plummeted were quite spine chilling!
An easy entry into Zimbabwe and I buy a double entry for travel later, up country from South Africa. There are quite a few daytrippers here from the Zambian side who also have to purchase a visa even for a day visit. One bloke is trying to pay with Zambian Quetchas (why would you think one country would take another country’s currency?) but in aid of my karma I help him out by selling him US dollars and end up with a pocket full of Zambian Quetcha notes (again) for ron.  Jasper & I haggle for a taxi and as we are being driven into town, the taxi slows with the driver exclaiming “elephants”. OOOH my karma is good and I finally get to see elephants, wandering about by the side of the road mind you! Jasper gets off a few photos for us before they head back into the bush then into town where  we both check into Shoestrings Backpackers, but I stay in the dorm this time – way too cold without a sleeping bag in my tent here.

After checking out the map I start walking towards The Big Tree, a rather large and old baobab tree. Yes, I do pass signs recommending against unguided walking do I walk back to the road and double check with some workers across the road who assure me its safe and offer to ‘guide’ me. I knock them back and head off again for a few kms before rounding a curve in the road and coming face to face with a very big elephant standing at the side of the road. WHOA Karma overload, me thinks and I freeze to try and remember what I should do… His ears are waving back and forth, not a good sign so I slowly back away around the bend and wait and peer around – yep still there, so wait some more and check – Yep not going anywhere.  I estimate I’m fairly close to the Big Tree, but I know that I can’t go any further along this road cause I’d only be a metre or so away from this very, very big elephant. So back I go and head into town to visit the Tourist Information and our conversation goes something like this:

Me “Can I walk this way to the Big Tree”, showing him the map and the road I walked.

Him “Yes Madam.”

Me “Is it safe?”

Him “Yes, Madam.”

Me “Are there elephants?”

Him “Yes Madam, there are elephants everywhere here, sometimes right outside this office.”

Me “I went this way (showing the map) and saw an elephant.”

Him “Oh Madam, you mustn’t go near the elephant!”

Me “It was right on the road, I couldn’t walk past it.”

Him “Stay away from the elephants Madam”

Me “OK, I’ll try. Thank you.”

How helpful was that? Where was he when I was face to face with a very big elephant? lol I decide to give the Big Tree a miss today and try again tomorrow. Instead I decide to do a little more consumer research into afternoon teas so I visit the Victoria Falls Hotel to try their equally famous High Tea. The hotel itself is the oldest in Zimbabwe with its walls decorated with many animal heads and skins along with historic photos including the visit by the English Royal Family (obviously before Zimbabwe’s expulsion from the Commonwealth!)  A lovely afternoon tea is served on a tiered platter along with tea served in fine china marked with the hotel insignia, overlooking manicured lawns with the rising clouds of water mist from the falls just below. I chat with a three aussies who are watching someone on the canyon zip line who they think is the fourth from their group – a doctor who wants to do everything once before he dies! Fine sentiments but we all agree he is on his own with those thoughts!

Back at Shoestrings, I meet up with Damien Mander again (first in Livingstone) who has a a new recruit with him – a prison warder from Perth who saw Damien’s organisation, International Anti Poaching Foundation http://iapf.org on 60 Minutes tv show and felt impelled to contribute a few weeks of his time helping out. A couple of days later I meet up with other aussies also heading out to the reserve, again all motivated by the 60 minutes show and of course, the cause. IAPF is providing excellent and free training for anti poachers giving them the skills from tracking to prosecution evidence, hopefully making them employable at game reserves across Southern Africa. I did feel that the Perth bloke seemed a little over eager in his assessment that death was too good for pochers, when in fact they are the weakest link in the illicit trade of animal horns, tusks etc. I chat with Damien about a theory I first heard of in Namibia – dehorn all rhino across Southern Africa (yes, it does grow back) and flood the market with rhino horn, thus taking the value out of the trade. Damien agrees a difficulty is that all countries would have to cooperate and this is a major obstacle at any time for any cause. The AIDS epidemic is a prime example, with a lot of African countries taking contrary views as to the cause, effect and prevention programs needed to control and combat HIV infection.

Wandering about this purpose built tourist town I am assailed every few metres  by  over eager zambians and zimbabweans out to sell me either a  trillion dollar note (totally worthless after Zimbabwe ‘dollarised a few years ago to combat the collapsed economy) or a wooden elephant or a stone sculpture or admire my shoes and ask for them. These guys are relentless – you walk by them, you’re a target and all the tourists agree they are so annoying.  I understand that money is tight here in Zimbabwe and tourists are in short supply BUT STILL they make walking around really painful. Though I have to say that they take all rebuttals with good grace, it’s only the tourists who lose it occasionally with the constant barrage.

Again there are many ways to part a tourist from his dollar here and after much consideration I decide that the time has come to feel the beat and pass me the djembe – I take a couple of drumming lessons and have a lot of fun with my patient rasta teachers who are very kind. After two lessons I reckon I could take this up on my return to Oz – very therapeutic stuff!

To visit the Falls themselves, I take the road to the Big Tree again – and I walk very carefully this time listening for any hint of wandering elephants but luck is on my side and I make it to a huge baobab tree with a 20m circumference, then follow the river to the edge of the Falls’ park. Victoria Falls itself costs US$30 to enter this side. Zimbabwe has the lion’s physical share of the falls and they are even more spectacular with much more of the cascades to be seen from this side. By the end of the fenceless paths I meet up with some Japanese guys from Shoestrings and we picnic on my dry biscuits and their saki for a light lunch whilst watching the bungi jumpers off the bridge. On my way out, I meet Jasper who tells me the elephants are near a bridge on the way back into town – I head that way, find them but they are all agitated with waving ears so I pass along quietly leaving them in peace.

Later I wander around town in the vague hope of finding a sleeping bag – I ask at one store about camping shops and she directs me to the edge of town where I find a peculiar store with a varied range of goods but no sleeping bags. However the young man knows someone who has one for sale. What sort of sleeping bag, I ask? A grey one. OK, they are getting ready to close up and soon I am escorted by two lovely young men through the township of Chinotimba whose residents are heading home happy after attending a weekend ‘Prayer Rally’.  Eventually we arrive at a house and one of the guys heads in to return with the best thing I’ve seen in ages – a clean sleeping bag in great condition. Really an indoor one but in the absence of any bedding this is a godsend. They ask $25 but take $20 and we are all happy little vegemites. They won’t let me walk back on my own and escort me all the way back to the main highway before I nearly skip all the way back to Shoestrings., On the way back I pass two ladies who speak to me, remembering me from a store earlier in the day, to ask if there are any elephants the way I have come – I tell them I heard some rustling way back but didn’t stop to look very hard. I can well understand the problems with folk all living in such close proximity of the elephants, especially when they enter the townships and push over their small houses. No idea what the solution might be, except for circling the township in an electric fence? Meanwhile in town tourist police are employed especially to watch out for illegal souvenir sellers (failing) and elephants (very successful). One day I was sent three different ways when I was out walking - Madame, you cannot go this way, there are elephants. Madam, see those people running, there are elephants there! Madam be very careful, there are elephants on this path.


FACT: The Zambezi River is one of Africa’s greatest rivers, flowing from northwestern tip of Zambia. It descends 1500m, traversing six countries before ending its 2574 km journey at the Indian Ocean in Mozambique. The river’s basin of more than 1570000 square kms supports people, huge populations of animals and massive eco systems. But it’s the Falls themselves that are truly spectacular to see!!!!!!!!!!!!