Today was my last chance to go to Zimbabwe and so after breakfast I set off without delay. In my mind I had a definite plan of how the day would pan out; go to the border by Taxi, walk over the bridge and head for the famous Victoria Falls Hotel for coffee before going to see the falls on the Zim side. I would then head home and it would be a nice day out.
The Taxi to the border was fine and even getting through immigration was relatively hassle free. My first mistake though was not getting a taxi as soon as I got to the other side to take me straight to the hotel. Instead I decided to walk over the bridge where I would see where the bungee jumping takes place and I actually got to see one of the jumpers (I will never do this) up close. However, when I crossed the bridge into Zim you are first of all greeted by an armed soldier, locally known as one of the black boots, who I found to be quite intimidating and then you are also mercilessly hassled by loads of locals selling their wares. I found this whole experience extremely uncomfortable and even threatening which I am sure was in part because I was on my own. When I eventually saw a cab, if you could call it that, I took it straight away and instructed to proceed to the Victoria Falls hotel without delay where I hoped for sanctuary and peace.
The hotel itself is a throwback to a bygone era, which I personally like, and is situated in the most wonderful of settings with outstanding views of the falls and I was just pleased to be in the safety of the hotel and its grounds ad away from all the locals outside. After my usual nose around I took coffee on the patio and was enjoying the peace and tranquillity of the surroundings when my next surprise of the day arrived. A beautiful young lady bounded up to me and in very loud voice demanded to know why I had left her at the bridge. She even told me that I had changed my shirt from blue to red which I had but god knows how she knew. This was, as you can imagine, a big surprise for me and even for the elderly couple on the next table who I had previously been speaking to. In fact the way this situation was being played out it had the hall marks of me being caught up in a MI6 or Zim equivalent spy story which was al the more worrying as I was completely unaware to where all this was leading. It transpired however that the young lady was purely on the game so to speak and after a forceful rejection of her advances matters returned to normal although the episode did leave me feeling quite jangled, especially as I had just recovered from the onslaught of street vendors on the way to the hotel.
After a good while I ventured back out of the safety of the hotel and headed to the falls. This route, direct from the hotel, is again littered with local vendors who approach you 4/5 at a time and as they keep moving around you are very aware of how vulnerable you are. The only way to describe this is that it was another miserable experience lasting what seems an eternity until you reach the sanctity of the falls entrance.
Once inside the falls area I have to say though that the falls are as beautiful from this side, if not more so, than that experienced over the border. It made all the effort and discomfort of getting here worthwhile and although you are not as close you get a much better perspective of the magnitude of the falls as you can see much further along the valley and take in the sheer length and size of this natural wonder.
The weather was extremely hot and as I could not get a taxi back across the bridge I did a wonderful impersonation and scampering penguin, hunched down, arms by my side and walking as quickly as I could to get back over the border. I was completely soaked in sweat when I got passed the border and into the Zambezi Sun where a lot of the house mates were hanging out.
The rest of the day was a breeze.
I feel bad that I struggled with my trip to Zim, as I know that all these people are just trying to get by after all the troubles that they have had to endure, but unlike other African countries I have been to the hassle I received here was somehow more threatening. This may be because it was Zimbabwe and I was affected by all the bad press the place gets or maybe it was because I was travelling there on my own. Thinking about it, it is probably a combination of both.
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