Wednesday, 21 January 2015
Blog 16 – The Smithies and “Neighbour – Neighbour” Wazara
Blog 16 –
The Smithies and “Neighbour – Neighbour” Wazara
We found
our way to Arundel shops to do a bit of souvenier shopping, find a new battery
for Courtney’s phone and top up our cellphone data . Amazed to find you can get
a I phone 6 won 24 month contract for US$80. Much less than I am paying for my
contract in NZ.
We then
made our way to our very good friends Mike and Debbie smith who have a
wonderful home in Borrowdale.
Debbie made us most welcome and Russel, their
son, and Courtney just hit it off just like they had never been apart. They
were best friends (even a couple) at age 5-6 years before we left and have had occasional correspondence
over the years. Russel has just completed his B Com at University of Capetown ( an “IKEY” like me ). It was great
to see the quick repartee between the two.
Trevor the youngest and who is one
of the many kids I delivered in Chipinge arrived at lunch. Trevor was the third
“baby” we had seen in Zimbabwe. The first was Tyla Taylor in Harare, the second
Willem Nel in Mutare and now Trevor.
After lunch we went to the Mug and bean at
Borrowdale to meet with Mathew and Priscilla Wazara who we knew when working in
Chiredzi For Hippo Valley Estates. Matthew was a doctor colleague and initially
lived as a single man as our neighbour. He was often over visiting and
developed the nickname “neighbour –neoghbour”.
Mathew has
subsequently qualified as a general surgeon and works as a lecturer and
surgical team leader at the local Government Hospital and has a successful
private practice. He does outlying clinics for triangle sugar estate travelling
with a team of 6 to do specialist surgery for the estate. He also does twice a
year pro bono work at a district hospital in a similar fashion with his team of
6 in his old home area. It was really great to catch up with the two of them
.Priscilla runs a market garden business with 8 tunnels supplying tomatoes and
cucumber.etc to local businesses. After too short a catch up and some good
laughs about our escapades in the past ( some of which Matthew attributed to me
but I had little memory of ) we said a sad goodbye and returned to the Smithies
for a wonderful dinner .
Mike returned around 17h30 and we spent a wonderful
eveing. Debbie made a superb Beef Wellington and “milk tart”. Her boys
complained about the 7 year gap since they last were privileged to get milk
tart and how come it took the “Jelleys’visit” to bring it back on the table.
A great
evening all in all and it felt like we had never been apart. 14 years later!!!!
We woke for
an early breakfast so Mike could get off to work. We really need to see them
soon again as the fellowship, comfort and laughter were fantastic.
we had arranged to meet some further friends at the Smithies. Jeanette Norvall and her daughter Kristy-lee were our neighbours at 280 Aerodrome road in Chipinge. The two mums became great friends and the two daughters climbed back and forth through the fence to play at each others homes.
Unfortunately
we could not spend the second night we had hoped for as we needed to get off to
a fantastic last minute opportunity to stay overnight at Imire game park and
the kids were to get the chance to ride an elephant.
A sad
farewell again and off we go .
Blog 15 –Christan bank and Memorial for Uncle Brian
Blog 15 –Christan
bank and Memorial for Uncle Brian
We travel
today to Christan Bank where my parents Bill and Margaret spent many happy
years. Once again the police astounded
us at the roadblock . A truck towing another truck had broken down right at the
barrels and there were about 50 cars in a queue behind. The police officers
were quite happy to let them stand as they constantly waved through our traffic
never thinking to stop us and unbundle the huge backlog developing . As a
family we visited Christan bank often and the view from their veranda over the
Mazoe valley is a poignant one and special everytime we see it. Brendan assures
me his phobia about swimming was established in mum and dad’s pool when I kept
holding him on my hands and insisting he throw his arms around and swim.
Luckily he overcame such a poor start and he became a reasonable swimmer later
in his school career.
My folks
developed a close set of friendships with the neighbouring families in this
small rural community and so we went out to stay with Dave and Coral Baxter who
were the next door neighbours. Dave and Coral have been fantastic supporters of
my Uncle Brian , my dad’s remaining brother and who assisted us as proxy family
dealing with all Brian’s needs and care management on our behalf. This included
arranging his move to a resthome facility, management of the financial affairs
and his subsequent cremation and scattering of his ashes following his passing
in 2014.
The ashes
were scattered at the bottom of their garden where it met the bottom of my
parents old property.
It was so
good to sit on their patio and alongside their pool and chat with them as well
as other close friends of my family John and Debs Lafferty and Marcia Hill. Many
good memories were shared.
After
drinks and nibbles we had a wonderful meal provided by Coral and the bottle of
Champagne we had brought was suitably opened when Brendan was able to log on to
his School exam results website and obtain his results of Excellence at NCEA Level
3. He has made his family very proud and
it was great to celebrate with such close friends of the family in a home
alongside my parents old home where brendn had spent many of his early days
before the move to new Zealand. Brendan mentioned the great opportunity to
receive his results in the evening where it could be so nicely celebrated over
dinner rather than as it would be in New Zealand fighting to get onto the
webpage early morning when it often crashes
due to demand.
We probably
had our best sleep that night and Coral has a theory that the spare room is a
sedative because everyone reports a successful sleep when hosted in that room.
We had a
wonderful cooked breakfast and then were shown down to the bottom of the garden
by Dave and Coral and left there to pay our respects to Uncle Brian. We read
out the order of the day of his memorial and the various messages from our
family and friends that had been usent on the day. This was an emotional time
with the recognition that quite by chance this was also a day coinciding with
the 15th January in New Zealand and the anniversary of my father’s
passing.
A few tears were shed and I was well supported and loved by my family.
We left
Brian’s resting place with sad hearts but also with a feeling of completeness.
It is a wonderful place with a grand view of
the mazoe valley.
We were
lucky enough to then be able to walk down the driveway to my folks old house
which remains almost the same. It was great to stand on the lawn overlooking
the pool and down into the valley again. Brendan is definitely feeling the
scale of things as a grown up man as he struggles to associate the current views
with what appeared huge distances across the gardens that he remembers as a
smaller child.
We were
most grateful for the opportunity afforded us.
After a
brief chat with dave and Coral we packed up the car again and
Blog 14 Kariba –Harare
Blog 14
Kariba –Harare
We woke
early and took a very careful drive along the powerline road to Padenga
crocodile farm hoping we might be lucky enough to see an elephant which apart
from a distant view through the binoculars had evaded us. Not to be sadly!!
We visited
Gary Sharp and daughter Joanne at the croc farm passing by large specimens in
their pools and cages as we drove by. We heard all about the business which is
complex and exports its total crop of skins and most of the meat to Europe.
Direct to Hermes then onto smaller businesses like Gucci, Louis Vouitton. Quite an
intricate business with lots of quality control and as you can imagine bureaucracy
and complicated process to transport and export.
We missed
our chance to photograph FAF 2 for Prop Renene’s dad as we met the main road
once we left Padenga beyond the airport.
We were
again unlucky as we saw absolutely no wild animals all the way up the
escarpment . The heavy truck and bus
traffic we met once we hit the main Harare Chirundu road was scary to say the
least. The ridiculous behaviour of some of these drivers overtaking multiple
vehicles on a blindrise just was gobsmacking. We drove with caution and avoided
any mishaps.
We had been
recommended we stop at Lions Den for a “best in the country” borewors roll. It
was well worth it and we found some great droer wors and biltong at the
associated butchery. We found plastic
bags filled with water hanging around the take away a means of deterring flies –
it seemed to work as we ate our boerewors rolls.
We stopped
off along the way at the Chinoi Caves a beautiful cave with clear turquoise
water filling the bottom of the cave. The full depth and extent of the cave has
yet to be determined. An amazing feat of nature. The walls are covered with a
filigree of spider webs and monkeys came tumbling from small cave mouth in the
walls. Fish were seen swimming and were so easily visible in the clear water.
Blessed to have had the opportunity to visit again.
We drove
onto Harare turning onto Harare drive and travelled past a mix of old and new
large walled residences. The road is littered with potholes despite being one
of the major road conduits around the periphery of the city. It appears the
council believes the government should be responsible for its upkeep The government
has responsibility for state roads and the municipality for the city roads.
The contradictions of Zimbabwe are so clearly
seen travelling down this road with modern 2015 4 wheel drives and SUV mixing
with old decrepit vans on a road full of potholes wending its way past huge
mansions and gardens resplendent with trees and flowers. We travelled on back to Ruwa to Graham and
Elaines property for the night and ate the most tasty mutton stew.
Tuesday, 20 January 2015
Blog 13 –Kariba
Blog 13 –Kariba
We made our way via various dead end turning to
eventually find the observation point at Kariba looking down over the dam wall.
There were a number of NyamiNyami statues at the
information point which provided the opportunity to take some pictures together
with Courtney’s tattoo.
We then went to Kariba Heights to the original village
which was to say the least disappointing. Once a thriving hub and a really
pretty environ it is now neglected and scruffy. The Heights Hotel is abandoned
soon to maybe be the site of a new NGO . We had trouble finding the Chapel
dedicated to the Italians lost during the building of the dam. It used to have
pride of place but now is hidden behind scruffy buildings .
We also went in search of the house Prop,Rina, Renene
and Pey lived in but it was difficult to spot the exact house though we were in
the general correct area.
We drove back down to fill with petrol and find a
working ATM as we needed a top up. Bumped into some local folk who gave us
directions to a local accommodation at Lomagundi Cottages which tipped the decision
to remain a further night in Kariba. We paid a nostalgic visit to the Carribea
bay Hotel where renene and I had spent a few nights during our honeymoon. We
appeared to to be the only people on the premises and it was clearly run down.
We were told only 2 of the prior 6-7 hotels were still operational.
After a marginally “thick” shake at a local takeaway
we made our way to the Lomagundi cottages on the lakeshore passing some
prestigious lodges on the way.
We settled in
with a light lunch,beer and wine and spent a pleasant afternoon in the pool and
around its small harbour. Met some interesting locals who use the pub as their
local watering hole . One couple arrived from Kariba by boat.! We had to set
four or five mossie coils in our room to chase out swarms of mosquitoes that
had become resident in the rooms we were allocated. If you gave the curtains a
shake they just swarmed out. The presence of the coils and the use of fans and
the airconditioner seemed to persuade them there were better environments
elsewhere .
We had a great meal out on the patio overlooking the
lake having pent some time watching local fisherman plying their trade not 20
metres from a wallowing pod of hippos. . The bream factory business was just
alongside so there was some activity to see there as well.
We had a good nights sleep under the nets but Renene
was up early once again before the sunrise sitting out on the patio.
Blog 12 -Silver Fox
Blog 12 -Silver Fox
Day 1 –Silver fox
What an interesting start to our houseboat trip . A
single cab ute(bakkie) fully loaded tray with large icebox and all the Leaches
fishing gear including fishmeal, stock block and worms in large crate. Thrree
girls in cab and all four boys having to ride on open back of ute on top of the all the luggage added to the
existing load from Harare. We travelled 40 minutes like this back from Charara
to Andora Harbour in Kariba.
We off loaded some of our baggage into the boot of
our car and only took 2 suitcases on houseboat. Quaint monohull called the
Silver Fox with skipper Fred and cook and boathand Peter. Whole bunch of xtra
labour available at the waters edge where the boat is just moored to beach with
a ladder leading up to the bow and everything having to b loaded up the ladder.
The big ice box was transferred fro the beach to the pontoon tender so that it
could be loaded onto the back deck of the boat. We left at around 10h00 heading
for Gache Gache river. Wee motored for 30 minutes and cook discovered he had no
gas in his bottles so we had to wait around an hour near the large bream
farming nets to await a delivery of new full gas bottles by fast launch from
the harbour we just departed. Fascinating seeing these huge nets floating in
the lake with their permanent tenders. The nets are anchored to the bottom of
the lake and from all reports contain around 35000 fish each. They are
introduced into the pods as fingerlings and fed twice daily on fishmeal. Wee
saw three large units of multiple pods all around Antelope Island.
The fishing
has been particularly good at Antelope over the last month as two of the nets
broke free releasing 70000 new fish into the lake in that area. Friends of
Sonia Leach had been catching in excess of 50 - 60 bream of reasonable size per
day. Their best catch was 97 fish. They fish with a triple hook and a ball of
fishmeal made into a doughball. Sonia had been catching with worm as well.
Once the gas arrived we were able to proceed on to
Gache Gache where we moored in a small bay surroundded on 3 sides by the banks
of the river and a small island. Crocs were present in abundance and provided a
constant reminder that swimming was not an option.
We have heard a report of a
recent tragic accident where two large
catamarans came into the Gache gache and were mooring themselves on
beach with ropes to the trees. A gentleman was standing on the waters edge
between the two yachts and was snatched by a large croc and never seen again.
There were also pods of hippos floating around and blowing spray and snorting
in the bay. Also some terapins which the crew assurred us were "water
tortoise". We took the tender for a drive and fish without much success
but it was good to see the local lodge who have been instrumental in reversing
significant fish and game poaching .
We had a fantastic evening meal on the top deck after
some evening finger snacks and a few cold beers and wines. The mossies were
numerous but Graham Leach had a innovative light extension which he hung off
the back of the boat which attracted most of the insects. The moment one turned
on a torch you were inundated with mossies and midgies. Renene and I with the
two Brendan's slept in a small cabin with 4 bunks, Courtney slept in rear cabin
with Elaine and Graham Leach slept on
the deck. The forward cabin was hot and stuffy with only two small portholes
and with little wind there was no airflow. We did not sleep well in the forward
cabin as a result and the two Brendans elected to sleep on the top deck the
following two nights .
Renene and I tried to use a mossie net on our top and
bottom bunk the first night. I had about 20 cm space between the roof and my
nose so had to stretch the mossie net with my two feet and tuck it under the
pillow just to have sufficient space around my face and to breathe. The net just hung alongside
Renene's bunk so she was okay but had no ventilation.
Day 2
–Silver Fox
We woke early
and had a coffee and rusks before we went out for an early tiger fish
opportunity throwing out flying ants as an incentive. they started to rise to
feed and we cast across the trail we had left . Fred the skipper landed the
only Tiger of around 2.5 kg. We did get
a couple of other strikes but lost the fish before we could land them. Most
disappointed !
We returned to Silver Fox and had a full breakfast of
eggs, sausage ,bacon, tomato and beans
whilst the skipper took us from Gache gache to Antelope island where Elaine ,
the kids and I were dropped off in the tender where Sonia and her friends had
been feeding and catching their fish. Unfortunately the bay just nearby was
already hosting another houseboat so Renene and Graham Leach went off around the
island to another bay in "the Gap" between antelope and Zebra Island.
It was a disappointing trip and bay for Renene as she saw no animals ,hippo or
anything else really. It also turned out
to be a major boat and kapenta rig highway out to the lake from the coastline.
Noisy to say the least..
Grahame, Elaine , Courtney and the two Brendans spent
four hours in baking sun fishing off the tender rafted up to Sonia, Rod and Nic
plus a further fishing boat full of Afrikaans speaking South Africans.
The kids
managed to land only one fish each and Brendan taylor two. Elaine landed a few
and Grahame 2 .We were fishing with worm. In contrast the others in the boats
were fishing with fishmeal on 3 prong hooks and were landing about 5 to one
compared to us. This as you can imagine was frustrating to us all and in
particular Elaine. The skipper had made his way by foot from Silverfox to drive
the tender home as the Lake rules prohibit clients being in control of the
tender.We returned to the SilverFox hot,sweaty and disgruntled. After a further
great supper following fish finger and dip for snackwe hit the sack. The boys
elected to joing Graham leach on the deck ladling themselves with Dettol and
other mossie repellent. The mossies had a field day that night whether you
slept on deck or in cabin. The breeze initially kept them quiet but when the
rain arrived the breeze disappeared. The boys were up in the night dropping the
canvas protection around the deck. Graham Leach told amuzing stories about Brendan
jelley’s attempts to drop the canvases to keep himself dry before they all got
up and secured all the canvases. Brendan taylor was in trouble for dropping
elaines fishing rods onto the back deck so the canvas could be closed.
Suffice to say
we were unhappy with our choice of destination and were determined to do better
for our last night.
Day 3 Silver fox
Following some early fishing around the rocks
alongside the Silver Fox we upped anchor and moved around to the back of Zebra island in Charara bay where we found a much nicer anchorage with a view across
to Charara ,the croc farm and the plains surrounding. There was a flat plane of
grass alongside the anchorage and more animals to see. We tried to fish off the
back of the boat and Brendan was disappointed to catch a “water tortoise” by
its foot.
The afternoon was spent relaxing on the deck spotting
various Zebra , hippos and crocs across the bay followed by an impressive storm
that moved across the hills on the horizon. Various bets were laid to when the
rain would again hit the boat and the teenage boys called back onto duty to
secure the canvases. It passed us by and we elected to go for a game viewing
booze cruise on the tender to try and spot the two elephants we had seen from a
distance the day before.
We saw lots of Zebra
and some Eland or Kudu in the distance and as we approached the bay of
the croc farm the numbers and sizes of the crocs increased exponentially. Also
lots of Hippos and we even drove right over the top of one hippo only becoming
aware when her surfaced not 50 metres behind us with a hiss and a roar.
The whole environ was quite alarming and the situation
was not helped when the motor on the tender cut out shortly after passing the
hippo and in near proximity to another pod and some huge crocs on nearby
island.. I can assure you Renene was not impressed as the skipper and Graham
leach fiddled with the engine to get it started and on our way. Grahame Jelley
took to the one solitary paddle to at least begin the long journey home. The
motor proceeded to run in fits and starts driving us home towards the Silver
Fox always surrounded by crocs and hippos’ wherever you looked. It would run
for 2-3 minutes then conk out. After much cajoling it would eventually kick
back into life for a few more minutes. This cycle was repeated with periods of
paddling to try and maintain momentum.
At one stage the two Graham’s were alternating rowing
with the single paddle swopping sides to maintain some form of direction
towards the Silver Fox.
We did eventually make it and were rewarded with the
sight of Kudu herd and impala along the water edge of Zebra Island. Also a
couple of feisty hippo’s sparring with each other for supremacy or at least
practicing for the real event !!! Just as well there were a few drinks on board
the tender for the trip because they were certainly needed to calm down a few
nerves on board.
We had a great roast chicken dinner and a further
early night again all lathered up with Dettol. The crew provided some mossie
coils for our use and we wondered why these had not been offered before. We
also noted when walking past their quarters that they were snuggled comfortably
under new mossie nets . We spent a more comfortable night in the cabin and the
boys elected to sleep up on deck again.
Day 4 Silver Fox
There was much hilarity in the morning when Graham
leach showed us his hand that had been severely traumatised by the mossies. He
maintained that he was the “martyr” and had deliberately suspended his arm from
the roof of the boat to provide the bait and therefore protect the young
teenage boys from distress from the mossies.
We tidied up the luggae and all the fishing gear after
breakfast and made our way back to Andorra harbour refuelling before docking.
$65 in petrol for the tender and $180 odd for diesel for the generator and
boat.
All in all a great time though we probably wish we had
remained in the Gache Gache a further night. Our fishing can only be regarded a
partial success though Brendan Jelley did conquer the art of “putting worm on
hook.”
We loaded up the Leaches ute with a camp chair in the
back against the cab for Brendan Taylor to sit in for the long journey back to
Harare. Graham Leach had not been so lucky on the journey from Harare. Having
decided it was a bit cramped with three in the cab he elected to ride in the
back perched on the large ice box. No chair for him.
We bid them farewell and we went off to explore Kariba
village, the wall and the heights and to search for some overnight accommodation.
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