Again it has been a long time since I last wrote a blog entry. Not surprisingly much has happened since I last wrote almost 2 weeks ago. I have crossed from Zimbabwe and the amazing Victoria Falls through Zambia, Malawi, and now into Tanzania. Currently I am sitting in the picture postcard island of Zanzibar (incidentally the birth place of Freddie Mercury the lead singer of Queen).
Before I get ahead of myself I just want to take this chance to say happy birthday to my mom, who’s birthday was on June 13th.
Also I want to take this chance to let everyone know that I have uploaded photos since Namibia (basically 4 weeks worth of photos just got uploaded on the world’s slowest Internet connection). The link is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/saurabhgombar/sets/72157600356978294/
So when I last left you I was in the country of Zimbabwe, in the town of Victoria Falls. First things first, Victoria falls deserves 100% its spot on the natural wonders of the world list. The falls are just spectacular and quite beyond the description of words. Even my photos don’t do it justice because the areas with the best views are forever in a constant downpour caused by the mist, and hence my camera.
The trip was lucky enough to arrive in Victoria Falls during a full moon…which in the area translates to phenomena known as the Lunar rainbow. Basically since the mist kicked up by the falls is so fine and the moonlight bright enough there is a full color rainbow that cuts through the night sky at the falls. I would suggest anyone who reads this to google some photos or better yet get yourself there during a full moon.
Other than that Zimbabwe was an interesting experience. The economic policies of the current leadership (Mugabe) have destroyed the financial success of the country, which was doing quite well until the year 2000. In that year Mugabe decided that he would play the race card and took away all lands belonging to white people and redistributed it. The land switch was extremely violent leaving deep racial scars on both sides. However, since this destroyed the agricultural back drop for the economy almost all the educated people left the country leaving it severely lacking in industry bringing the economy crashing. Last year inflation alone was around 1700%. To give you an idea of how bad it is, the prices of goods increased in the stores during the 3 nights we were there. The only plus side of it was cheap souvenirs which I purchased an ample amount…how I am going to get them home is completely a different story.
Victoria Falls also marked the half way point of my trip through Africa and was the departure point for a few friends I had made along the way. On the last night of the stay in Victoria Falls we decided to head to dinner and the Casino. Dinner was an emotional good-bye but the casino was good fun. After playing blackjack for an hour or so and slowly losing money we decided to pool our remaining 1.5 million zim and play some roulette. Here our luck changed and we went up to like 8 million…. lucky number 15. I am pretty sure that is the last time I will ever drop a million in a Casino and it was pretty fun I must say. However, there was no where to spend it so I am still carrying 2 million Zimbabwe dollars with me (which expire in July 31st so the country can reprint money).
The next morning the trip got up early (we get up before 6 AM most days) and made our way to Zambia. I loved Zambia but I hated the immigration because they charged US citizens a $100 US. Once into the county we made our way to a campsite to relax by lake Kariba for 2 night. This was a good opportunity for me to meet some of the new people joining the trip (4 Australians, 2 English people, 2 Americans, 1 Kiwi, and 1 Bermudan). All are great people and the trip is still void of any annoying personalities and will be void of them for the rest of my Journey at least.
While at the lake we did our first Village tour to see an African Village. The site was definitely and eye opener and the Continent continues to surprise me. Before coming I imagined an area where people were unhappy and starving with little resources and growth. What I have seen is completely contradictory. First, in Zambia the children were the happiest I have ever seen in my life. They were all bright eyed and happy to be in school and enjoyed interacting with each other and outsiders. The older people too seemed to be mostly employed and generally happy. It is true that the trip has not gone through too many conflict areas as west Africa and north east Africa but I think it is safe to say most of the continent is moving to meet the challenges of the 21st century. I believe that with some good political leadership and the reduction of corruption the continent definitely has the resources it needs to succeed.
However, there is the major problem of Aids in much of the continent. The worst affected areas are Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe with an HIV infection rate over 40%. The effects were clearly visible in the villages as there was a relative shortage of young adults compared to kids and elderly people. This has caused the number of orphans in areas affected to skyrocket.
After lake Kariba we made our way through Zambia and towards the Malawi border. I was pleased to hear that there was no visa fee for Malawi after the exorbitant fee in Zambia. Once in Malawi we went to the capital city to get some supplies and then made camp alongside lake Malawi. The lake was gigantic and it was entirely impossible to see the other side at the location we made camp. In addition, the water was amazingly clear and inhabited with brightly colored fish…making one of the worlds top fresh water scuba diving sites. I didn’t go diving but did get a chance to snorkel and saw a number of fish. Didn’t quite compare to large ocean fish like in Thailand but it was still an interesting experience. Most surprising was the fact that the lake had a beach that was just as wide and soft as an ocean beach.
We stayed beside the lake for 4 nights and everyone was happy to get of the truck and just hang out and relax. The nights passed quickly with bonfires and drinks on the beach and everyone was sad to pile into the truck again for a few days of long driving. Our next stop was Tanzania and Dar es Salam, a major city on the port that is not the capital (as I mis-stated earlier) but is the largest city in the country. We didn’t spend much time in the city just got supplies and then prepared for our 3 night trip over to Zanzibar…where I am right now.
Zanzibar has the look and feel of paradise with large beaches and turquoise blue water. There is a large town called stone town which has very identical looking white buildings (I haven’t been there yet but will tomorrow). It was once a large port for the trade of spices coming from India and the Indian influence is clear in all the restaurants and construction on the island. Here, I tried my hand at fishing and learned I am pretty terrible at it. I always assumed fishing was just about luck but when you use a hand line there is definitely skill involved.
My next stop after Zanzibar is the Serengeti. Currently the great migration (a huge migration of animals that follows the rains in Africa) is crossing so I should see millions upon millions of the world’s largest mammals. After that I start my climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro and then make my way back to the states. Hope everyone is well and I look forward to seeing people when I get home.
