Mosi-oa Tunya (Smoke that Thunders)

Zimbabwe is wonderful in every unimaginable way. I realize we were on vacation and most of our encounters were with people in hospitality but I find it difficult to find the words to express how warm and beautiful the people are. The country is desperate but you wouldn't know it by the spirit of its people. When we got off the plane in Victoria Falls it was midday and already temperatures were soaring. December is the peak of the rainy season and the height of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. We patiently waited behind dozens of people to reach the immigration and passport control agents. We purchased our visas and waited for our names to be recorded in an official guest book accompanied by a stamp in our passports. While waiting for others in the group I saw a couple of men conversing. One of them saw a newspaper sticking out of my bag and asked if he could peruse it. I gladly gave it to him and took the opportunity to open conversation. His name is Wellington and he's 35 years old. He works at the airport and is the sole breadwinner for his family of seven including his small children and elderly parents. He told me earns about $5.00 US per month. Like many of the men I was fortunate enough to speak to he was educated in the capitol city of but returned to his hometown for work. Zimbabwe boasts a 94% literacy rate but is eclipsed by dim employment prospects as unemployment is roughly 75% according to Wellington and corroborated by others. I quizzed him about Mugabe and he concurred that he's crazy but was somewhat sympathetic and cynical at the same time citing that the opposition is no better. We discussed cholera, a problem he does blame on the government and resents that accurate death figures are not published. He ridiculed the UN's policy on sanctions reminding me that it's the masses who suffer, not the elite. I recall him using the phrase "hunger is on our doorstep daily". The thought gives me chills. What Wellington complimented and really struck me is his government's ability to make people feel like tomorrow will be better. Whether or not the government is responsible the sentiment is exactly one I witnessed time and again throughout this journey. I can only describe the people I interacted with as souls of shining light. They are happy, bright, funny, smart, thoughtful and simply glow. By our standards they don't have very much but are so rich in attributes that really matter. It was quite a life a lesson being in their presence.

Stepping away from the tarmac in Vic Falls there was a group of men in traditional garb, or lack thereof, dancing and chanting to rhythmic beats. This was a most charming segue to the sauntering livestock we stopped our vehicle for just as we pulled onto the road. The main road into town is paved but most outlying roads are a brilliant red clay. People, baboons, wort hogs, goats, cows, donkeys, elephants, leopards all share the soft shoulder alongside the asphalt. Incidentally, it would seem they are all vying for the same food resources as well. Zimbabwe once boasted being Africa's food basket and now half its population relies on international food aid. The other half rely solely on mother nature as they live in primitive agrarian villages and exchange no currency whatsoever - wealth being measured in livestock. I'll describe more on their traditions later. For now I want to get down to some of the fun stuff we did. Our schedule was jam-packed the whole time so after dumping our belongings at the hotel we headed to Devil's pool. Unbeknownst to us the pool is only accessible from the Zambian side of the gorge carved by the mighty Zambezi river.

Our vehicle slowed as we approached the Zimbabwe/Zambia border and the guide's voice over the mic warned that we should refrain from taking photos. Unfortunate because it was like watching a movie. Hoards of downtrodden were there to peddle their goods, including "souvenir" currency, as we disembarked. One US dollar would buy 2.2 million Zimbabwe dollars at the bank but these desperate souls were selling a one million dollar note for "just a buck". We filed past the masses along the dusty dirt road into a dilapidated building to have our one day visa issued and fee collected. Women waited patiently with boxes of bread while their rickshaw looking delivery cart and driver awaited on the other side of the border as tourists cut the line. And well-behaved shy and curious children pinned themselves to their mothers dresses. The guard, lifeless in the heat, limbs hanging over his desk inside an open shed with a newspaper over his face to keep the bugs off, was startled by our presence at the heavy iron arm marking the invisible boundary. The process was repeated just a 1/2 kilometer away to clear our passports. Minutes later we arrived at a beautiful manicured parkland. It was the Royal Livingston resort property. Walking through the breezy lobby of this hotel engulfed with natural light and British colonial island antiques felt like Humphrey Bogart was about to sache up to the poolside bar any minute. As we cleared the French doors a dazzle of zebras was in our path not 15 feet away. I was so overwhelmed by their stunning beauty and proximity that the orientation regarding Devil's Pool was a little fuzzy. We all jumped into little power fishing boats for transport to Livingston Island. In true hospitable African fashion a cool lychee drink was offered as we docked and commenced our short, picturesque hike to the falls. We passed the "loo with a view" which is a glamorous outhouse open to the Zambezi and the mist of the falls. The island is lush and riddled with all kinds of beautiful things from orchids and lilies to myriad species of butterflies and millipedes galore. As we approached the falls the cooling mist was welcome in the sticky air but the slippery algae covering our rocky footpath was a little hairy since we were right on the edge of the gorge. Alex, one of the guides, grabbed my hand so we could get pictures over the edge and I said "what do you say we jump...just like Thelma and Louise". And he nodded vigorously. And then I thought, OMG I don't know this man or anything about his life and mental state and quickly withdrew my hand. He was as witty as I thought I was - a trait common in all the the local people we met. I can see how people would be drawn into the beauty of a water fall if you have a death wish - it's pretty inviting. So we made our way along the precipice to the jumping off point for Devil's Pool.

Devil's pool is a natural "eddie" or pooling rock formation right on the edge of Main Falls where the water tumbles over at a height of 111 meters or over 300 feet. Evidently the river is only passable in December when the water is at it's lowest and you can walk out to it across the river on a normal day. But this December day was different. They had just had over 18 hours of rain and the river was significantly higher than usual for this time of year and the current was strong. The guides told us we needed to be strong swimmers in order to endure the current out to the pool. Since it was effectively my first day in Africa and I'm a lousy swimmer I decided to hang back. But some of my group braved it. The guides stripped down to their underwear and lead the swimmers over the slick and craggy rocks like a kindergarten class hand to hand. We watched as they swam with the current on a diagonal not 300 yards from the edge of the falls to a tiny bush in the middle of the river to catch their breath before the next leg of the relay. With great relief they all made it gingerly into the pool; only the guides doing any kind of tricks. Time spent at the bush on the return trip was longer as they heeded the hippos bathing in the water just behind them before floating back ashore. They said swimming in the current was a breeze compared to being in the pool with a toe so strong it wanted to suck them over the falls. They had to wedge between 2 rocks to keep from succumbing to the river's force.

Afternoon tea was served under a canopy on the island. We indulged in fruity Pimm's Cup cocktails, delicious chicken curry tartlets, and oodles of laughs before returning to the resort where more entertainment awaits. Is there anything more fun than a barrel of monkeys? Not in my opinion. Vervet monkeys are as much a part of the Zimbabwe landscape as the trees they swing from. You can't help noticing the most prominent feature - giant robin's egg blue balls in the male vervet. Overall the monkey is quite small in stature but sports disproportionately sized testes. I asked one of the guides why that is and he said it makes them more attractive to their mates. I thought I would try to get away with that argument in my household. :] We saw lots of babies and learned that monkeys mate all year long with a gestation period of 7 months. The babies weren't very old with barely any hair and very alien looking. While they like to exercise their playful independence they don't drift too far away from their mothers teats - disturbingly long and painful looking protuberances.

Our first day in such a heavenly place, full of Pimm and vigor, made us hail David Livingstone for stumbling into the "smoke that thunders" during his African expedition.