ZIMBABWE
Bordered by South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Mozambique, Zimbabwe is home to 14 million people - 80% of which are Shona people, and 19% Ndebele - as well as a noticeably tempered weather. Green and luxuriant vegetation flourishes on its central highveld plateau, while lower altitudes make for dryer landscapes. The western part of the country hosts Lake Kariba and Victoria Falls, which attract a majority of the tourism industry outside the capital, Harare.
After 76 years of British colonial rule over then called "Rhodesia", the Republic of Zimbabwe claimed its independance on April 18th, 1980. As a leader of the independance efforts, Robert Mugabe has remained in power for 37 years until his resignation in 2017, handing in power to its longtime ally, Emmerson Mnangagwa (a.k.a "The Crocodile", in reference to the guerilla gang he had cofounded in 1964 in Zambia). Progressively, the ruling party, ZANU PF (Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front) has encountered increasing backlash as the country faced skyrocketing unemployment rates and deteriorating public services, due to endemic corruption. Zimbabwe is however recognized for its strong education system and high litteracy rate. >
Ice & Zaiko's sculpture workshop
A winding road leads to Ice and Zaiko's sculpture workshop located on a mountain pass overhanging Mutare (Christmas pass), close to the mozambican border. After exiting the asphalt and turning onto a short yet steep dirt road, our humble Honda was greeted by a brigade of birds, eagles, owls, lions and fishes, ceremoniously hung throughout the branches or mounted on circular wood stands. From behind a row of high cacti, rose Ice and Zaiko's wooden, rather sophisticated, hut. To build their art works, the two sculptors use a material readily available in the region, soapstone, which turns into a white and powdery matter while carved and filed, due to its high talc content. After being washed, the sculptures are heated around a fire lit on the ground level of the house, a necessary step before they can be polished. Zaiko prides himself in being the inventor of the mixed-media beetle sculptures, of which he made hundreds.
Pemereki Braai
After half an hour of driving in relative darkness in the outskirts of Harare, the car turned onto a small road, which only a regular could have noticed. Seconds later, from obscurity came alive bright firy colors and street vendors calling out incoming drivers. We passed a row of adjoining butcher’s shops. Each one had its own outdoor vendor, ready to catch newcomers to whom they would advertise their meats. In front of the shops, cars were parked aligned, followed by a row of grilling stands. Behind the row of stands, more cars were parked, music coming out of their open trunks. Plastic chairs and tables, lent by the Braai workers, were arranged behind each car.
The vendor who had called us out showed us the way to a parking spot at the back of the Braai area. Now settled, he took our order : grilled chicken and beef. About an hour later, the vendor came back with two silver trays loaded with freshly grilled meat, sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and small stacks of fine salt. My wanna-be vegetarian double cried of despair as I tasted the most melty and delectable meat ever before encountered.
