Friday 10th to Sunday 12th May 2024

Dave speaks Shona. He learnt it when he lived in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) in the late 70s/early 80s. Over the last few days, he has been refreshing his skills and I cannot tell you the number of times I have seen the look of surprise, followed by a large smile from local people here in Victoria Falls when he greets them, or asks a question in pretty fluent Shona.

Most people in the Victoria Falls area actually speak Ndebele, as they grew up as part of the Matabele people. But many locals here speak at least three languages, including English, which is taught in schools. So, when Dave said, ‘Mangwanani Shamwari,’ as he greeted someone in the morning (meaning ‘good morning, friend’), they definitely understood what he was saying and, assuming he spoke Shona proficiently, they often launched into a long discussion with him, speaking at full pace, to which he answered, ‘Ndino taura chiShona zvishoma,’ meaning ‘I speak Shona a little bit only’!

Dave has a couple of very good friends (shamwaris) from the time he lived here. When he and I met in 1988 I heard lots about his time living in Africa and especially a lot about his good friend Robbie who had been his best mate during his time here, with them both being part of the same Police recruit squad. Being mates while fighting for survival is a sure-fire way to end up mates for life, and that’s certainly what they are.

So having ‘heard’ about Robbie and his beautiful wife Liane, for over 35 years, I was pretty excited, and just a little bit nervous when it was time to meet them. Allan and Sharon Wilson, who Dave has also been friends with for 46 years, also came to Victoria Falls to see us.

The four of them flew in from Harare on Friday morning, with Brighton picking them up and dropping them to the Oasis lodge, which was only about 500m from where we were staying. He then came and collected us, and we all met in the lovely open-aired foyer of their lodge and, honestly, it was immediately as if I had known them as long as Dave had.

The next 48+ hours were fabulous, and something I will never forget. We ate every meal together, visited the Victoria Falls National Park together, rode on the Bamba tram together on an early morning sunrise trip and even went on another sunset cruise on the Zambezi with them – this time seeing even more animals than on our cruise earlier in the week.

OK, let’s start at the top.

FRIDAY

Will cooked breakfast for us (eggs, bacon, tomato on toast) and it was nice to have a slower start following our big day on safari the previous day. We had thought about walking to the lodge to meet the Merdjans and the Wilsons, but even by 10am the heat of the sun was getting quite intense. Each day we have had maximums around 32-33C, with overnight temps getting down to the mid-teens.

Dave has repeatedly told me to keep my food expectations low in Zimbabwe, but he could not have been more wrong. But low expectations, and high delivery is a good thing, and I particularly enjoyed my Carpaccio Caprice which was light seared beef with roasted cherry tomatoes and balsamic glaze. Dave loved his sadza, nyama (impala) and relish, which again he ate ‘traditionally’ with his hands. We shared some sweet potato wedges (white) and my ‘Devils Cataract Cocktail’ of whiskey, passionfruit, lime, mint and bitters helped wash my lunch down very nicely 🙂

The ‘oldies’ had a rest in the afternoon, while Will and Emma explored the town a little bit. Robbie had suggested sundowners at the lodge next to theirs, and when we met them and climbed the three flights of stairs to the top of the bar/deck that looked over the town, I was again being amazed by the sights!

Our sundowners arrived up the tower in a manual version of a ‘dumb waiter’ to save the bar staff having to walk up the many stairs. We stayed up on the deck until the sun set, and what a gorgeous sunset it was!

ALL CREDIT TO ROBBIE AND LIANE FOR MANY OF THESE PHOTOS 🙂

We then enjoyed another fabulous meal, this time at the Lodge where the others stayed. I had a super tasty pumpkin, spinach and feta lasagne which was served with a side-salad that had an amazing zesty coriander dressing. The cost was US$12, if you are interested.

SATURDAY

Sometimes early starts are worth it, other times (like going to work), not so much. I remember working the breakfast shift when we owned the restaurant, and that was never much fun!

When the alarm sounded at 4:45am, I was less than pleased, but did get myself up and organised in plenty of time for our 5:30am pickup. Today’s first adventure, booked for all eight of us a couple of months ago, was a sunrise trip on the Bamba tram.

We boarded the single carriage tram in the middle of town and then watched the sun rise as we travelled along the railway line until we stopped in the middle of the Victoria Falls Bridge, which actually sits in no-man’s land between Zimbabwe and Zambia. The bridge was built in 1904, crossing the Zambezi River just below the falls. It spans nearly 200m and sits around 130m above the river – making our mid-bridge end stop a perfect spot for us to take photos and enjoy the view!

After a short wander around on the Zambian side, and a delicious hot cup of coffee (including a tot of Amarula liqueur😋) we headed slowly back on the tram to our original boarding spot and then onto the others’ lodge for a great buffet breakfast along with eggs shakshuka and one of the best cappuccinos I have ever had! I know my expectations might have been low, but it was the perfect temperature, had thick dense froth, and not at all bitter, which is apparently the result of using excellent coffee beans grown right here in Zimbabwe.

There are a lot of adventure activities in Victoria Falls, including a giant swing, bungee jumping and a zip line across the river. I had no interest in any of them, but Robbie worked hard at convincing Will and Emma, and not long after breakfast we headed to town to buy tickets for them to zip line and then for all of us to spend some time in the Victoria Falls National Park. The park cost $50US for entry for foreign tourists and only US$7 for Zimbabweans. The park includes around 35 viewing points of the falls which were all very spectacular! As we moved along each viewing point (around 1km) the spray from the falls became heavier and we were all pretty damp by the time we finished. A little dampness was actually lovely under the warm sun, and we were dry again by the time we got to the Lookout Restaurant that sits looking over the deep gorge not far further downstream from the falls.

Turns out this was an ideal spot for my first cocktail of the day (Cosmo) which was nice and strong and helped ease my nerves as I watched Will and Emma get kitted up and loaded onto the zip line!

There was no queue, and it was extremely well organised which seems to be the norm here and again not what I was expecting. The kids both loved the fall and probably even more so the slow ride and view as they were pulled back up the line!

Unfortunately, I can’t seem to load the video, which I’m sure Emma’s mum Margo will be happy about 😉

A quick afternoon bath and nap, then we met the others mid-afternoon to go on another sunset cruise. This was the same company as the Wednesday cruise, but a different boat, and enjoying a few (!!!) cocktails while watching African wildlife and the sunset was thoroughly enjoyed by all eight of us, and included many laughs and story telling and we meandered along the beautiful Zambezi River.

A small restaurant right alongside the docking point was our dinner venue, and my soup, ostrich fillet with polenta and chocolate lava cake were all great.

We were back at our accommodation just after 8pm, and I was asleep before 9pm, exhausted but filled to the brim with memories that will last a lifetime.

What a day!

Sunday

Our flight to Cape Town via Johannesburg was due to leave at 2pm, allowing us enough time for a last meal and catch up with Robbie, Liane, Allan and Sharon at their lodge. This time we choose a continental buffet breakfast, and given I was feeling slightly yukky in the tummy, I stuck with simple fruit, yogurt and a croissant to start the day. Of course, I couldn’t pass up on another coffee which was every bit as good as yesterday’s! ☕️ When I complemented the young lady who made it, she beamed with pride… ‘I am very well trained and very good at it’ she exclaimed. Correct!

It was then time to say goodbye. I’m actually feeling emotional writing this down now, as even in a couple of days I had fallen in love with this amazing location and even more so with these beautiful individuals, now not just ‘forever’ shamwaris of Dave’s, but also of mine.

Even saying goodbye to Brighton was hard 🙂

We have just arrived in Cape Town to a very swish 2-bedroom Airbnb apartment near the centre of the city. Can’t wait to get exploring tomorrow!