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With sore heads we arrived back in Harare, after seeing some massive baobab trees along the way. I've got to say that these have to be my favourite type of tree on the planet!! It was to be a short stay back with Mike and Fiona, as we decided that it was time to move on to Zambia.
Mike was still keen to show us a good time back in Harare (bless him) and the next day after we'd done a bit of research at the bus station for buses to Lusaka (Zambia's capital), he took us out to a game park just on the outskirts of Harare. We were surprised at the huge area it encompassed, but struggled to see a lot of game. We struggled even further when we attempted to have our braai (bbq) lunch and discovered that we had no lighter or matches - oops, that was kind of important! I was looking forward to the boerewors (sausage) too.
In the park we spotted eland, wildebeest (with recent babies), zebra, baboons, and one lone giraffe. We hunted high and low for more giraffe, and hit many dead ends. Eventually, we called it quits and found out at the gate on our way out, that they only have ONE giraffe in the park. I suppose we should have asked more questions when we arrived! Must be pretty lonely out there for the giraffe! Poor thing.
We finally cooked up lunch when we got back home, chilling out with the Freelands for the rest of the day whilst packing up for our onward journey.
The Harare bus station turned out to be relatively organized, and we easily got ourselves on a coach at 7:30 in the morning which left by 8:30!! Not bad at all for Africa! It was a pleasantly uneventful journey, with the driver actually driving responsibly for the most part. And, the scenery was interesting coming down off the plateau and into the Zambezi Valley, although we saw plenty of burned out skeletons of trucks that hadn't quite made it down the steep hills! Even the border crossing was pleasant and uneventful! Why can't they all be this good??
In to the hills of Zambia and onto our business in Lusaka, a city that we found to be reasonably pleasant and not as dirty as we expected (remember, it's all relative!). Not much on the agenda apart from some banking and other chores whilst walking around seeing the town. We did have a bout of homesickness and frustration as we wandered and had a good heart to heart about what our travels would like form now on.
That night, we had arranged to see our American friends, Cecile and Ashley, who live in Lusaka, and who we had jumped into to Devil's Pool with at the top of Vic Falls. We had a super nice meal with them at Mint Cafe at a fancy mall in the suburbs of town. The ride there in the local minibus was pleasant, and as usual, we chatted with some of the locals who took care of us and showed us where to go. I find the Zambians to be really nice and friendly, and they pride themselves on that. That sort of thing is really important to us and we appreciate it thoroughly, and most of the time it's genuine and sincere. Although, we found out that Cecile had recently been attacked and robbed, with the bruises to prove it, so it means we still have to keep our heads up and be careful who we trust. Hope you feel better soon Cecile!
The dinner nicely topped off our day of difficulties with homesickness and general frustrations of being in Africa, and it was nice to see some familiar faces. *Stub
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| Massive Baobab Tree near Kariba |
Mike was still keen to show us a good time back in Harare (bless him) and the next day after we'd done a bit of research at the bus station for buses to Lusaka (Zambia's capital), he took us out to a game park just on the outskirts of Harare. We were surprised at the huge area it encompassed, but struggled to see a lot of game. We struggled even further when we attempted to have our braai (bbq) lunch and discovered that we had no lighter or matches - oops, that was kind of important! I was looking forward to the boerewors (sausage) too.
In the park we spotted eland, wildebeest (with recent babies), zebra, baboons, and one lone giraffe. We hunted high and low for more giraffe, and hit many dead ends. Eventually, we called it quits and found out at the gate on our way out, that they only have ONE giraffe in the park. I suppose we should have asked more questions when we arrived! Must be pretty lonely out there for the giraffe! Poor thing.
 |
| With Mike, Ashleigh and Fiona in Harare |
The Harare bus station turned out to be relatively organized, and we easily got ourselves on a coach at 7:30 in the morning which left by 8:30!! Not bad at all for Africa! It was a pleasantly uneventful journey, with the driver actually driving responsibly for the most part. And, the scenery was interesting coming down off the plateau and into the Zambezi Valley, although we saw plenty of burned out skeletons of trucks that hadn't quite made it down the steep hills! Even the border crossing was pleasant and uneventful! Why can't they all be this good??
In to the hills of Zambia and onto our business in Lusaka, a city that we found to be reasonably pleasant and not as dirty as we expected (remember, it's all relative!). Not much on the agenda apart from some banking and other chores whilst walking around seeing the town. We did have a bout of homesickness and frustration as we wandered and had a good heart to heart about what our travels would like form now on.
 |
| With Cecile and Ashley at Mint Cafe in Lusaka |
The dinner nicely topped off our day of difficulties with homesickness and general frustrations of being in Africa, and it was nice to see some familiar faces. *Stub
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