Zimbabwe

GEOGRAPHY
On its northern border with Zambia the country boasts one of the natural wonders of the world, the Victoria Falls. Further east, the Zambezi is bordered in the south by South Africa, by Mozambique on the east and north east, and by Botswana on the south west. It is part of the great plateau which is a major feature of geography of Southern Africa.

HISTORY
Around A.D 1000 Bantu speaking people - the Shona group - infiltrated Zimbabwe during a southward migration. The land was already populated with Bushman and Hottentots who had settled there 500 years prior. The Bantu easily overshadowed the indigenous subsistence farmers, introduced a stronger form of government, and are credited with building walled city states. Up until the 19th century they flourished and brought abundant wealth to the country through gold trade routes to Tanzania coast and offshore islands. Not long after this era began to crumble mainly due to raids by the Zulu people. One of these Zulu groups settled in Bulawayo and overshadowed the Shona in this area. It was not until the 19th century that European traders and missionaries made their way into the Zimbabwe interior. The British South African Company controlled the territory for many years, making a fortune from diamond and gold mining, until their charter was dissolved in 1923, and the country was named Southern Rhodesia and become a self-governing colony of England. For many decades to follow, the country was beset by internal racial conflict and disputes between white settlers who wanted their freedom, and England who was not willing to grant independence. In 1965, a coalition of white settlers declared a Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Britain, thus earning the status of an international "outlaw". But internal racial problems continued to intensify, and after many years of guerrilla warfare, the white population and British Government agreed to the formation on an independent nation in 1980, which the citizens soon renamed Zimbabwe. Robert Mugabe became the first president and remains in office today.

ECONOMY
The major potion of Zimbabwe's foreign exchange comes from its extensive mining industry. Two thirds of the world's reserves of chrome are found within its borders. Other major mineral deposits include coal, asbestos, copper, nickel, gold and iron ore.

CLIMATE
Summer is from October to April. Days are hot and generally sunny in the morning with possible afternoon thunder storms. Day temperatures reach about 30C and night temperatures drop to 14C - 16C. I can also be considerably warmer all year round in the low-lying areas such as Kariba, Victoria Falls, and Zambezi Valley. The rainy season from November to March, although the Eastern Highlands are damp for most of the year.
Winter is from May to September, days are dry, sunny and cool to warm (20C) while evening temperatures drop sharply (5C). Exceptionally cold spells can occur so it its recommended to bring appropriate clothing, just in case.

PLACES TO VISIT

HARARE
Formerly called Salisbury, Harare is the capital and largest city. Although a commercial and industrial centre, the flowering trees, colourful parks and contemporary architecture lend an air of spaciousness. Points of interest include the National Museum, National Art Gallery, Botanical Gardens, Houses of Parliament and the Tobacco Auction Floors. A short drive from Harare are the Lavon Bird Gardens, Ewanrig Botanical Gardens, Mazoe Citrus Estates and Lake McIlwane Game Park.

BULAWAYO
Bulawayo is Zimbabwe's second largest city and is a major commercial, industrial and tourist centre. The city is rich in historical associations and is home of the National museum. Nearby are the ancient Khami ruins, while to the south is the Matopos National Park with its huge granite boulders, dams with excellent fishing, caves with rock paintings, Rhodes grave and a well stocked game reserve.

LAKE KARIBA
Created by the damming of the Zambezi river, it consists of 2,000 square miles of water studded with islands and surrounded by mountains, providing a year round supply of water for abundant animal and bird life. Lake Kariba is a playground for watersports enthusiasts as well as provide excellent fresh water fishing.

MATUSADONA NATIONAL PARK
Situated on the southern shore of Lake Kariba and bounded on the east by the Sanyati Gorge and the west by the Umi river, this scenic 600 square mile park has an abundance of elephant, Kudu, impala and buffalo. Game viewing by boat near shore, fishing and walking safaris are available.

MANA POOLS NATIONAL PARK
During the dry season, Mana Pools National Park has one of the highest concentrations of wildlife on the continent. The park is situated on the south side of the Zambezi river downstream of Lake Kariba and is home to 12,000 elephant and 16,000 buffalo, and the country's largest population of black rhino.

HWANGE NATIONAL PARK
Situated in the north western part of the country, is Zimbabwe's largest national park. Hwange's greatest appeal is its unspoilt wildlife area that allows the visitor to view a great variety of animal species in splendid surroundings. Here is one of the last great elephant sanctuaries in Africa and herds of elephant can be seen. Other predominant species include buffalo, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, sable, white and black rhino, cheetah, wild dog and bat-eared fox.

VICTORIA FALLS
Vic Falls is approximately 5600 feet wide, twice the height of Niagra Falls and one and a half times as wide. It is divided into five separate waterfalls: Devils Cataract, Main Falls, Horseshoe Falls, Rainbow Falls and Eastern Cataract, ranging in height from 200 - 355 feet. Peak flood waters usually occur around mid April when 150 gallons of water per minute crash onto the rocks below spraying water up to 1650 feet in the air. Hence the african name for the falls "Mosi ao Tunya", the smoke that thunders. Victoria Falls and the Zambezi River form the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The banks of the 1675 mile long Zambezi river are lined with thick riverine forest. Daytime and sundowner cruises operate above the falls where hippo and croc's may be spotted, and elephant and other wildlife may be seen coming to shore to drink.

THE GREAT ZIMBABWE MONUMENT
Located 247 miles south of Harare stand the brooding stone ruins of the ancient city state names Great Zimbabwe. For years the ruins were know as "one of Africa's greatest mysteries", as their origin and purpose baffled scientists through out the world. Only recently have archaeologists proposed that Great Zimbabwe was built and inhabited by African people between 13th and 15th centuries. The complex once occupied several square miles and is thought to have contained a population of over 10,000 inhabitants. Fortified by a flourishing gold trade with Arab and Muslim merchants, it is believed to have begun its decline in the late 15th century due to agricultural overuse of the natural environment. When the gold trade trickled to a a halt by the end of the 18th century, the entire culture was dissolved. The ruins are dominated by the Acropolis, Valley of the Ruins, Temple and Conical tower - all examples of the incredible skill and tremendous labour put forth by these ancient builders. The ruins are easily explored by foot and the Great Zimbabwe Sun Hotel is located only a few minutes walk from the complex entrance.

BEST TIME TO GO
Zimbabwe is an all year round destination but for special interest group: High adventure enthusiasts, white water rafting is most exciting when the Zambezi waters are low which is generally from August to December. Best botanical months to visit the famous Vumba Botanical Gardens are Dec - May when the vegetation is lush and green, also when most plants are in flower.

BORDER POSTS
(These can change, please check)

ROAD: Zimbabwe / Botswana
Kazangula (Vic Falls / Kasane)
Plumtree (Bulawayo / Maun)
ROAD: Zimbabwe / South Africa
Beitbridge (Bulawayo, Harare / Jo'burg)

BANKS
Mon - Fri 08h00 - 15h00
Wed 08h00 - 13h00
Sat 08h00 - 11h30

WHAT TO PACK
With a few exceptions, dress in Africa is casual. Clothing should be lightweight, loose-fitting and of breathable fabrics such as cotton. While out in the bush you will find those neutral colours are best as they blend with natural surroundings. The dress code in some finer hotels and restaurants is semi-formal and men are required to wear jacket and tie to dinner on the Blue Train and Rovos Rail. Laundry services in available at most camps, lodges and hotels. Evenings in the winter can be cooler so some warm clothes would be advisable. It is also useful to bring warm clothes if you are going on safari as it gets quite cool on evening game drives. Other things to bring are comfortable walking shoes, swimming costume, hat, sunblock, anti-malaria prophylactics, insect repellent, binoculars, camera and sunglasses. Luggage should be soft-sided type as it is easier to stow on small aircraft as well as safari vehicles. Rather bring 1 or 2 small bags than 1 large one and try to keep luggage to a minimum. If you are travelling to Botswana, you will be strictly limited to a maximum of 15 kg plus reasonable camera equipment.

Please remember that there may be a restriction on luggage limits on your safari - please ensure that you have the details from your agent according to your itinerary and ask your agent ahead of time if you would like details on the feasibility and costs of taking excess luggage with you on any of these restricted luggage safaris.

PASSPORTS & VISAS
International visitors require a valid passport together with onward travel documents.

All passport holders should verify with their relevant consulate concerning visa entry requirements. If you are extending your journey to other countries, please establish entry requirements for those countries as well.

Please ensure that you have all the necessary visas prior to departure (unless available on entry) AS NONE OF WYDAH TOURS, THEIR STAFF, THEIR AGENTS NOR THEIR OPERATORS CAN BE HELD LIABLE FOR ANY ERRORS.

HEALTH REQUIREMENTS
Travellers arriving in Zimbabwe from infected areas are required to posses valid vaccination certificates against cholera and yellow fever. It is essential that you take malaria prophylactics before entering Zimbabwe. The best is to contact your pharmacist or doctor in this regard. It is not advisable to use the water in Zimbabwe for drinking or swimming. However water in the town and hotels (including swimming pools) is purified and therefore safe. With the exception of children younger than one year, all travellers arriving in Zimbabwe from infected areas are requested to possess valid vaccination certificates against cholera and yellow fever. While in Zimbabwe, visitors are advised not to use water in any river or dams for swimming and drinking as it may be infected with bilharzia. Needless to say, all water in towns, hotels and swimming pools originates from purified central water supplies or boreholes and is, therefore, safe. If you plan to visit low-lying areas such as Hwange, Victoria Falls, Kariba, Gonarezhou and the Zambezi Valley, it is advisable to take a course of anti-malaria tablets as a simple precaution. Remember to consult a doctor before entering Zimbabwe.

Malaria:
Visitors are reminded that malaria can still be contracted even when a prophylaxis has been taken. The safest option is to try and prevent mosquito bites by taking the following steps: -Apply insect repellent to any exposed skin, -wear protective clothing such as long-sleeved shirts, long trousers and socks at dusk and at night, - use mosquito coils, candles, mats and nets - Use soap that contains mosquito repellent - Avoid places close to water at night Each country has its own health requirements and potential tourists should therefore check the health requirements of their own country before entering Zimbabwe. They are also advised to obtain vaccination certificates, if required, for their return home. You can also look at the following website for more information. www.travelclinics.co.za

TIPPING / GRATUITIES
Tipping is not compulsory. If, however, you want to tip because you have received good service, we have enclosed a brief guideline to assist you:

a) Camp, Game Lodge and Specialist Guides
If the guide has done a good job, we recommend US$5 per guest per day for travel to Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe and R50 per guest per day for visitors to Namibia and South Africa.

b) The General Safari Camp / Lodge Staff
Here we recommend about US$3 per guest per day for safari camps in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe and R30 per guest per day for safari camps in Namibia and South Africa. This should be placed in the communal tipping box to be distributed equally amongst all the staff at a later stage

c) Hotel Staff
Please allow between R5 and R10 per guest per day for hotel staff ie housekeeping etc

d) Porterage
Here we recommend about US$1 per person per movement.

e) Transfer and Touring Driver/guides
Transfer R10 per person
Half day tour R25 per person
Full day tour R50 per person

f) Blue Train and Rovos Rail
Cabin attendant R100 per person per journey
Waiter, Dining Car R75 per person per journey

g) Restaurants / Hotels
10% is customary on meal accounts but only if you are satisfied with the service.

CURRENCY
You may take any amount of foreign currency in bank notes into the country, but you must declare the total to customs upon entry otherwise you will be unable to re-export your bank notes. Both Visa and American express credit cards are accepted at most tourist hotels, restaurants and shops. Please note that US$ 100.00 bills cannot be exchanged.

LANGUAGES
The official language of Zimbabwe is English and other indigenous languages spoken include Ndebele and Shona.

SHOPPING
Most stores are open from 08h00 Monday to Friday. Closed on Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday. Good buys are articles made from Zimbabwe Copper and jewellery made from semiprecious gemstones.

ELECTRICITY
220/240 Volts. Outlets are of the 3 pin, 13 amp type. Not all the lodges have electricity and they rely on generators. You will not find plug sockets in these rooms/tents.

PHOTOGRAPHY
The choice of the correct camera equipment and film will determine the quality of your photographs on the trip. For good photography of birds and animals, a good SLR camera and telephoto lens is necessary. A zoom lens can be extremely useful on safari and the minimum recommended size is 200mm. Consideration should be given before travelling with any lens bigger than 400 mm as most interesting shots are taken using hand held equipment. The new high-resolution digital cameras are outstanding and give great quality images, especially if you are using a digital camera body which takes normal camera lenses. Camera bodies like the Canon D60 and 1D are superb. The advantage of digital photography is that one can get instant feedback and adjustments can be made in the field to your techniques to ensure that your photographs are the quality that you would like.

Colour reversal film (slides) will give far better quality than prints. The guides have found that they are getting the best results using Fuji film. Fuji has brought out a good high-speed film that gives good colour with very little grain (less so than any of their competitors). This is especially useful when using a big lens in low light situations. The guides' personal preference is the slower film (either 50 or 100 ASA) as this gives almost perfect quality for normal light. However, you may consider going to 200 ASA for a larger lens in low lighting conditions. The new Fuji 400, we believe is giving great results too. The only disadvantage with the low ASA film is that you need a tripod for the early morning and evening shots.

IMPORTANT: BRING SPARE FILM (ALTHOUGH IT IS AVAILABLE IN MOST CAMPS/LODGES) AND A SPARE CAMERA BATTERY.