my fourth Sunday was spent half in Zimbabwe and half in Zambia.

i awoke early (as usual) and took my laptop and book outside by the pool at Villa d’Afrique. it was freezing. i tried to sit in the sun, but beautiful expansive trees thwarted most of my efforts, so i ended up sort of half leaning into the sun trying to thaw out in my two sweaters and thick woolly socks. i ordered a pot of hot water and some tea bags and had the whole place to myself. even the staff didn’t seem to putter about until 830am or so.

as mentioned in a previous post, my laptop battery was severely depleted so i only had time to tap out the stories from Saturday. with 13 minutes to spare, i flipped the computer shut and turned to my book. by 10am, most of the other girls were up and a few of us headed into town. we had a nice (cheap! my waffle was $1.50US) breakfast at the River Cafe and i wandered in and out of some of the colourful tourist shops that lined one side of the street.

i haven’t really done any shopping or bought any presents for back home. and i can’t bring myself to face the intimidating bartering and hardass bargaining of the curio market. i found a bracelet and ring that i liked and a housewarming present for my lovely hosts that i will be seeing in London next week. i prefer the standard routine of paying what’s printed on a price tag, even if it’s a little more expensive than a deal you could wrangle at the market.

after we spent some money on trinkets, four of us headed up to the Safari Lodge to meet another two girls for lunch. what a beautiful view! the lodge has several tiers of patio decks and open restaurant floors that rise high above the Zimbabwe plains. there was a watering hole within our view and we watched impalas, kudus, warthogs, and herons wander in to refresh themselves and wander off again. the horizon was flat for miles and miles and miles in every direction. in the north, sunlight sparkled off buildings in Livingstone across the river. the Zambezi threaded a shining strip through the dry trees. just sitting and staring out at the expanse of African plains was one of my favourite memories so far. and the lunch menu at the restaurant was really inexpensive and delicious!

as soon as lunch was over, it was time to head back to Villa d’Afrique to pack up and return to Zambia.

our trip back across the border was much faster. the fact that we were the only people going through made the queue less chaotic. i guess that’s the difference between traveling on a Friday and a Sunday here.

back in Livingstone, i was surprised at how nice it felt to be “home”. how nice it felt to be in a place with familiar sights, sounds, and relatively stable currency. how nice it felt to be back with the familiar girls of my house. Wonderbake was closed as we drove by, but i was already craving a sugar twist donut.

going away for a break was a great idea and the extra cash spent was a worthy investment. the rest, relaxation, and recreation really did their job and then some. while i’m not exactly chomping at the bit in anticipation for this last week of work, i’m certainly not dreading it and know it will fly by all too quickly.

next Sunday will be my last Sunday in Zambia and the day before i fly out to Jo’burg, then Heathrow…

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.