Full of Zim and vigour

Full of Zim and vigour

Phil Clisby continues his African odyssey. It’s June 1993, and he is making his way around Zimbabwe, from the Eastern Highlands to the Victoria Falls

We’re standing at the side of the road, thumbs in the air, seeking a ride out of Harare towards the Bvumba Mountains, which lie on the Zimbabwe-Mozambique border. Lorna and I plan to stay at the late author Doris Lessing’s place, now a guesthouse. We’d heard about it through some fellow travellers, Martin and Julia, who are going to manage the property for a couple of months for Lessing’s nephew, Trevor.

Our first ‘lift’ is on foot, when a kind-hearted lady informs us we are standing on the wrong road and leads us to the right one. We start again. Our luck is quickly in, as a truck takes us within 40km of Mutare, the main city in eastern Zim. A farmer then picks us up and drops us at the Bvumba turn-off. Unbelievably, he knows our hometown in the UK well, having been stationed just down the road when he was in the army. It’s a small world.

About an hour later, and who stops to pick us up? Trevor, along with Martin, Julia and our old mate Mike (from our time in Mozambique) – what are the chances? We squeeze into the already overladen vehicle, somehow finding space between several boxes of food and wine.

Read the full blog to discover the highs of mountain living, why bald is beautiful, the joy of getting soaked and the advantages of travelling with a millionaire.

The “green” season

Reflections on life on safari, from Safari for Real guide and author Lex Hes. “One of the first questions many people ask when thinking about visiting southern Africa on safari is: “when is the best time to visit?” The general answer to this question from most travel agents is that the best time to visit is towards the end of the dry season. But a visit to Africa in the wet season opens up a whole new world of beauty and diversity which you don’t get in the dry season…

Highlights for our next edition of Travel Africa magazine include:

• A practical guide to help you plan your trip to Zambia’s Luangwa Valley
• Bush skills and bushmen trackers in Botswana’s Central Kalahari GR
• All you need to know about self-drive in Namibia
• Ten secret parks for wildlife enthusiasts in South Africa
• Child-friendly spots along Kenya’s coast
• High adventures in Uganda’s Jinja
• The benefits of responsible tourism in Malawi
• Stunning photographs of Morocco’s saffron industry… plus so much more

Subscriber copies of the Spring edition (78) will be mailed out by the end of March, sosubscribe today if you’d like to receive the mag!

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Safari njema!
Sherry Rix, Customer Services