Zimbabwe

Anna:

So apologies for the infequency of our updates. Internet in Zim was prohibitively expensive we are now in Botswana having spent three weeks in Zimbabwe. We had a very special time there. Writing about the awful situation there will take another post when I have more time.

We were hosted by a very kind family in Bulawayo. Sadly said goodbye to Rich and Sophie who flew back to the UK and Emmanuel who returned to Uganda. That left the four of us - Hattie, Amy, James and I we were joined for various trips within Zimbabwe. Oria came with us to Vic Falls which was simply stunning. We took thousands of photos and had an amazing sunset cruise on the Zambezi where we saw crocs, hippos and a herd of elephants with babies swimming across the channel. Hopefully we'll get a chance to put the photos up. It was great to be there some of us had been slightly sick before we left for the falls but we all have now made full recoveries :-) No more V and D! We then went up to Mana Pools in the very north of Zimbabwe this time we were joined or rather we joined Matt and two of his church friends Doug and Min. They took us camping in style! We spent four days there and had cooked breakfasts every morning snacks throughout the day and delicious bbqs and other amazing meals at night. It was about 40 degrees so days tended to be up at 5 for an early game drive. Then lazing in the shade by the Zambezi till 4 when we did another game drive, had drinks and snacks watching the sunset over some beautiful area of the huge national park and then dinner and bed. What made the whole time so special apart from the food and the company which were amazing was the place itself. It is the only place in Zim where you can do walking safaris without a guide - although Doug has just taken his exams to be a guide and had a massive knowledge and love of the place and the wildlife. Also, there are no fences around the campsite so the wildlife are free to wonder in - and do! We had elephants, buffalo, hippos, hyenas all inches away from our tents at times - going to the toilet was an adventure - literally every time and at night required massive torches to make sure we didn't walk into a sleeping buffalo on the way. So much happened there but I'm running out of time but the highlights were a massive bull elephant walking inches away from us as we sat crouched in awe under a tree at our campsite playing cards and praying it would continue walking and not crush us! Also, seeing a pride of lions witha kill that was then stolen from them by 20 + hyenas. Doug said he had seen it on tv but never in real life. Other highlights was the stunning park itself, the mountains of Zambia across the Zambezi, the huge herds of impala (deer) and warthogs and numerous other types of game. However, I have run out of time to elaborate. We then spent a few nighs in Harare, returned to Bulaway and are now in Botswana. As a group we have a week left before Hattie returns to Zim, Amy returns to the UK and we continue north to Uganda. Much love to you all.

Now we are only 7

Hattie: Well today Rachel left to go to Beira and the 7 of us remaining are on our way to Zimbabwe. We had an amazing time in Mozambique and met some truly beautiful people- we will post some photos from Zim. Time is always a pressure for us as we rush to make various deadlines. Today it is getting to the border before it closes.
We plan on spending the night in Mutare and then getting down to Bulawayo tomorrow. Looking forward to having some time to update the blog properly!!
Lots of love to you all.
xxx

Photos

Hattie: Finally we get to the internet and can put up photos and write the blog!
Everything has been going well, we are quite near Mozambique and are very excited. Sending love to you all!
xxx

Photos are of Rachel Christening the Car Ruach, Rachel Flying the Kite on Wilderness Beach, Rich & Sophie in the car, The Stone Cottage where we stayed early on and driving with people on the roof!

Hopefully more photos to follow!

A quick update:

Anna: So the first week - there have been many highs and fewer lows on this trip. That's actually a rhythm we've got into every evening we've been telling eachother the best and worst parts of the day Perhaps it might be interesting to here some. The highs have involved an amazing afternoon at the beach, where we raced on the beach, played tag with the waves, attempted to fly a kite and had a lot of laughs. We've also been sharing our life stories with eachother as we don't all know everyone and that has been really special We've spent some beautiful times with God and driven through some breathtaking landscapes. We've watched whales playing just beyond the breaking waves and stayed in places where deer roam freely and right up to our balconies, last night the hostel had it's very own pet Zebra! Oh yes and the offroading has been awesome especially when we road on the top in the middle of the mountains and horses surrounded the vehicle (very man from snowy river!)

The lows have included gigantic spiders, waking up in the night screaming possibly because of one of those spiders on my head. We've had two flats and an incessant beeping on the blackbox in Ruach ( we named the landrover Ruach - Rich dreamed it in the night - it's Hebrew for breath of God) which we have now learnt to shut off. Our communication with eachother has had some teething issues but we're getting past them.

We've begun to drive through more "African" towns where people stop, smile or reach into the car simply to shake our hands and I've begun to dream of a new way of relating to God and others. Much ove to you all :-)

Travel Update

Hi there,

Just thought we'd give you a quick update as to how far we've got! We are currently in Durban getting some stuff fixed on the car and watching some surfing. Hoping to move on tonight further north. It's been a good first leg - we have all learnt a lot about landrovers, off road driving, cooking for 7 and living in community! After a few days of preparation in Cape Town we finally set off last Wednesday. We spent 2 nights in the western cape on a farm near Riverdale where we stayed in a little stone cottage with no electricity. Really enjoyed cooking on a big fire and just living 'simply' in beautiful surroundings. Amazing bird calls and insects - had some rather close encounters with (very) big spiders! Had a chance to do some off roading with the landrover on the farm which was ace - definitely where the car feels most at home!

After Riverdale we headed east along the coast and the garden route. Very lush and beautiful. Found a gorgeous beach at the Wilderness national park where we had the place to ourselves and a great time to chill out. Stayed a night at the Tree House lodge near Knysna which was very peaceful - cabins in the woods with deer wandering around. Plus a jacuzzi bath - which Emmanuel enjoyed a lot! ;-)

Next day we drove through Plett and Storms river and had our first puncture! Infact a full blow out on the front tyre when we were going about 80kmh, but praise God the car did not veer at all and a guy stopped to help us change it so it didn't take too long. That night God brought us to a nature reserve by the beach just past Jeffrey's bay - a perfect place that was free. We deliberately didn't make any plan on where to stay and felt we should just pray about it and trust God ...and he totally came through for us. So learning about that has been good.

Similarly the next day, after driving past Port Elizabeth and stopping for lunch in Grahamstown (where Soph's Mum grew up) we ended up near Port Alfred. After carrying on a bit further we turned off to the little villiage of Klein Monde and went down to the beach. There were a few guys there and Rich felt we should get out and ask them about some where to stay. The only guest house was closed but one of the guys gave us his mum's number and said she rented out holiday cottages and may be able to help us out. After ringing her twice she didn't pick up and we were a bit stuck as we had no where else! Then we prayed about it as a group, tried again, and within 20 mins we were settling into a 3 bedroom house with a jacuzzi outside!!

Yesterday was the longest day of driving as we went all the way to durban. Amazing to see how the landscape changes so quickly. Went through some areas inland which were high up, very hot and dry and not a white person in sight. Felt more like Kenya or Uganda! Lots of small bustling towns full of school kids and people catching minibus taxis back to their villages heavily laden with a week's shopping. Also lots of people and livestock on the roads and crazy drivers which made the experience a bit nervewracking at times! Felt totally different to the wealthy, lush garden route. South Africa is certainly a country full of contrasts and almost a country full of different worlds that don't necessarily ever meet.

Glad to finally get to Durban and be united with Amy! Just some laundry and car stuff to sort out and we'll hit the road again. No idea where we will stay tonight, but that's kinda fun!

Soph Xxx

Ps. We're staying safe :-)

Catch up