Zimbabwe: The perfect fruit tree that was destroyed now has to be restored.

I had a prophetic vision about Zimbabwe at church sometime last year, on the 29th of June 2008 and wrote about it on this blog in the article entitled, "When all hope is gone in the earthly realm." I am pasting it here today because this time of rebuilding Zimbabwe was part of that prophetic vision.

In that prophetic vision I saw Zimbabwe being depicted as a fruit tree which has been completely destroyed. The Bible verse, Joel 1V4 immediately came to my mind to describe the Zimbabwean fruit tree that has been destroyed, "That which the palmerworm hath left, hath the locust eaten and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpillar eaten." Zimbabwe used to be a healthy tree with perfect fruit. Every gift and fruit of the Holy Spirit was manifested in Zimbabwe, love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. The perfect tree that was Zimbabwe then was rooted and grounded in ethics, professionalism, efficiency, hard work and above all faith in God. Every limb, branch, leaf and fruit was in perfect state and strength. What glorious days of harmonious unity and love we enjoyed during that time as all institutions functioned efficiently and there was no inflation to talk about. Those were the days when the country flowed milk and honey and it was the bread basket of Africa. How we have often wished that we had stopped people from destroying the perfect tree of Zimbabwe.

The falling away and destruction of the perfect tree of Zimbabwe did not occur in one day. It was a gradual deterioration accomplished day by day and stage by stage. One day the palmerworm appeared in the form of greed and corruption by the government ministers and top officials, eating and destroying the tree as they designed and selected uneconomical projects that created opportunities for financial kickbacks and abused their office by fostering their own monopolistic access to markets and they misappropriated confidential information for their personal gain. So as the days went by the gifts and friuts of the Spirit on the Zimbabwean tree began to disappear from view as unselfish love, ethics, professionalism and peace were attacked by the palmerworms who then grew bolder and bolder day by day. The fruits of the Zimbabwean tree began to disappear from the staunch and upright tree. This state of less fruit was indeed a condition worthy of lamentation, but the pity of it all is that the devastation did not stop with the havoc started and wrought by the palmerworms. Other years and other worms joined in the work of destruction where the palmerworm had left off. Some Zimbabwean citizens saw the greed and corruption being inflicted on the Zimbabwean tree by the ministers and top officials who were supposed to be exemplary to the nation and lost all trust in them and this down-streamed lack of trust in the country's leadership infuenced some of them to also partake in corrupt illicit deals. Thus the locust started to destroy the leaves of the Zimbabwean tree as some Zimbabwean citizens started to make illicit payments of "speed money" to officials in the different institutions in the country to facilitate fast transactions or to prevent the application of rules and regulations especially with regard to law enforcement and revenue collection. It was a sad day when the locust had done its work and the leaves were stripped from the tree but that was not to be the last of the destruction, that which the locust had left the cankerworm ate. After the fruit and the leaves had been destroyed, the cankerworm immediately made his appearance and began his work upon the branches and tender shoots of the tree. This destructive insect is an allegory of all those who threw ethics, professionalism and efficiency out of the window because of the toll of hyperinflation which made them resort to unclean ways of making a quick buck. It also represents the businesses that resorted to charging exorbitant prices for their goods and services, prices that were unjustifiably high and gave them profits as high as 200% to 500% and overstretched the pockets of the ordinary Zimbabwean who then had to resort to illicit corrupt deals to make money so as to keep up with the high cost of living. The blackmarket flourished as business managers preferred to sell their goods outside the normal outlets so that they could make some individual gains from the sells. Most Zimbabweans were rubbed the wrong way by the toll of hyperinflation and no longer lived above the world and sin, they no longer walked the narrow path, so long enjoyed by the children of the Lord. As the sap, the life of the tree, was consumed and the branches rotted more and more, things that used to seem unethical or sinful appeared unethical or sinful no longer. The sinners that used to bar themselves outside the doors of the Church now leaned back in comfortable contentment in the cushioned pews and tithed handsomely with their unclean bucks. Christians lowered the high starndard of holiness unto the Lord which they had been holding aloft. Now it trailed bedraggled and unnoticed in the dust. The Holy Spirit as a gentle dove was squashed, grieved and stifled until he silently withdrew his wonder-working manifestations on the Zimbabwean tree. The result is in Joel 1V16 , food, joy and gladness were withheld from our nation. It was not long before the trunk and the roots of the Zimbabean tree began to decay and the caterpillar made his nest in the decayed and rotted hollows of the tree. That which the cankerworm had left became food for the caterpillars. The caterpillars were in the form of anyone who took advantage of the destroyed unhealthy Zimbabwean tree to meet his or her own selfish needs and in so doing further destroyed the nation. Corruption spread in the administrative domain which included among others, nepotism, cronyism, ghost workers on public payrolls, collection of unauthorised fees, falsification and destruction of records, arbitrary administrative action and circumventing established procedures and regulations. In the judiciary corruption appeared in the form of the Zanu PF executive branch pressurising judges to give verdicts not based on justice but on political expediency. We then saw the Zimbabwean tree at the most lamentable condition yet, its perfect fruits gone, eaten and stripped off by the palmerworm ministers and top government officials, leaves gone, denuded off its leaves by the locust corrupt officials in the country's institutions, its branches rotten and the bark peeled away by cankerworm blackmarketeers and business people who wanted to get rich quick with unrealistic profit margins as well as all those ordinary Zimbabweans who instead of coming up with ethical, professional, innovative ways of countering hyper-inflation resorted to corrupt ways of making money, a nest for the caterpillars who further destroyed the tree. In the spiritual realm, the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit gone, holiness gone, justification by faith gone. The angels looked down on Zimbabwe from Heaven and wept. The noble Zimbabwe, the perfect tree which had once stood clad with power and glory of the Holy Spirit, now had nothing left but a name, not even a remnamt of her former splendour. As if that was not enough, the Zimbabwean people's right to freedom of expression and voting for any candidate they wanted was suppressed with beatings, torture, maimings and killings. The graphic language in Isaih 1V6-8, accurately describes the Zimbabwean people with their fruit tree destroyed and themselves beaten up for political reasons. " From head to foot you are sick and weak and faint, covered with bruises and welts and infected wounds, unanointed and unbound. Your country lies in ruins, your cities are burned while you watch, they are destroying and plundering everything they see. You stand there helpless and abandoned like a watchman's shanty in the field when harvest-time is over or when the crop is stripped and robbed."

Oh yes that is where the Zimbabwean stood before the coalition government was formed but the prophetic message I conveyed to Zimbabweans during this time of complete humiliation was that the Lord gave us a marvelous promise of restoration. It's all mentioned in Joel 2V21-25, "Fear not, Oh land, be glad and rejoice, for the Lord will do great things. And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm and the caterpillar and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you." All that the Zimbabwean perfect tree lost will be restored, not in one day but in the same way it was lost, line by line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, till a completion of this restoration is reached. This restoration is only possible if we have a deeper realisation of what it means to live a life wholly given up and consecrated to the Lord so that the tender shoots and branches of the Zimbabwean tree can be thrust forth on the tree again. As we pray and yield ourselves to the Spirit, God will allocate gifts to everyone of us as the Spirit chooses, he will cause the gifts and fruits of the Spirit to be visible in our midst, in our nation. Yes, Zimbabwe's perfect fruit tree can be restored, it's all in our hands, every Zimbabwean's hands, to restore it or to further destroy it. Our working hard and harmoniously towards the restoration of our country and our prayers will do it, they will encourage all Zimbabweans to act responsibly and change their unethical, unprofessional inefficient and corrupt ways, they will enable an effective coalition government that is accountable through citizen feedback, democratic institutions, a competitive free press and an independent judiciary to be put in place, they will cause businesses to stop pursuing unrealistic profits relentlessly at the expense of the customers and make them realise that when it comes to maximising long-term owner value, honesty is not just the best policy, it is the only feasible policy. Through prayer we can make the relevant people aware that political and business decisions blessed by God and based on honesty and merit if added to good governance, responsive policies and good capacity building sustainable business goals will ultimately lead to the economic turnaround of our nation. Through prayer we can make the mobilised minds of those who agree to be sent to subject their fellow Zimbabweans to inhuman atrocities to always remain loyal to the truth and God, as loyalty to a person, regardless of his or her wrong intentions is not a path to be followed and only encouraged by leaders with a weak moral fibre.

Honestly speaking this is not a time to sit on our laurels looking at Tsvangirai, Biti and all those other 70 ministers to do the rebuilding for us while we sit, this is the time to roll up our sleeves and get busy contributing in the rebuilding in the way we know how. This is the time to pray whole-heartedly for the restoration of our nation Zimbabwe and to thank God for making us survive the cholera, the hunger the stress and the economic chaos. All Zimbabweans out there I will leave you pondering about the words of this song, "Kana vakomborerwa usazokanganwa kutenda Mwari." Thank you God for blessing us with life against all odds and would you please continue to bless us as we rebuild our Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe: Its time to quit the demolition crew and join the construction crew.

I remember writing an article entitled, "It's time to quit the demolition crew and join the construction crew," long back on this blog for the mere reason of inspiring some reader out there. I want to copy and paste it below right now as a message to some media, some bloggers and some people who are digging deeply and groping for issues to criticise the Zimbabwean coalition government with. Don't get me wrong, I am not against constructive criticism, I actually think it is good since it helps in building the nation. What I am against is destructive criticism that is done for the mere reason of destroying what is being built so as to discredit the builders and gain ground in one's own selfish interest, be they political interests, asylum cases interests or for the mere reason of being vindictive over the commercial farms taken from white farmers without compensation or to feed one's hatred for Mugabe. As much as we all know how Mugabe's one party dictatorship tendencies and the gross violence by his Zanu PF youth yesteryears ago are all very wrong, I am sure most Zimbabweans will agree with me that the rebuilding of the nation that the coalition government is trying to do is a worthy cause that is in the best interest of every Zimbabwean and the least we can do is support the coalition government and we don't support them with destructive criticism, we support them with constructive criticism.


I have seen people with noble visions having their visions crushed by critics. There are two modes of criticism. There is one which crushes to earth without mercy and another mode which believes that no vision is entirely in vain and so scrutinises circumstances, motive and objective before it criticises and then help with advice. The first kind of criticism demolishes and the other helps to construct. For most of us the first kind of criticism comes more easily. It takes little thought, less effort and even less wisdom to kill with criticism. The demolition critics are interested in making themselves look good by making others look bad, they talk much and do absolutely nothing to help. When we find ourselves encountering this demolition criticism from ourselves or others our best defense is to try to ignore it and take it as an article of faith that even though we make mistakes we are great because at least we dared to try. The second kind of criticism which is thoughtful and careful coming from ourselves and others is invaluable because it actually recognises and encourages the worth of the efforts we are making, even as it points out how we might grow differently.

Years ago Theodore Roosevelt said this about critics, "It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred with dust and sweat and blood, and who if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory no defeat."

Visionaries and all coalition government leaders, when you get pelted by unfair criticisms as you stand for your vision just remember what Theodore Roosevelt said back then. To all critics, I say it's time to quit the demolition team and join the construction crew.

Zimbabwe: My objective opinion concerning the current affairs in the country.

I have been asked by some international respectable person whom I promised not to name to give my objective opinion concerning the current happennings in Zimbabwe and I did so. He was interested in knowing why I wasn't giving the Ray Bennet case as much space on my blog as other Zimbabwean online media and bloggers are doing. Here is a summary of what I said.

While every other journalist and blogger was reporting about the arrest of Roy Bennet
on the day that he was supposed to be sworn as the deputy minister of agriculture I chose to be different and instead dwell on Zimbabwean development issues. It's not that I am not concerned about the plight of Roy Bennet, Jestina Mukoko and all those other MDC activists who are in jail but I refuse to be part to calls to free these people just because everyone is saying so when I have no proof that the charges being laid against them do not hold water in a court of law. I am not well-versed in matters of the law and so I prefer to leave such issues to policemen, lawyers and judges who are trained to deal with such issues. It's not for me to act the judge and the jury and come up with my own verdict and then splash it all over my blog as the truth of the matter. I prefer to write about the real truth not what I think is the truth or what I want to be the truth and I am no prophet so I will not write about any predictions I make up in my head. I am also against the obstruction of justice and if Mugabe or Tsvangirai or any politician intervene by giving a command that these activists be released without being tried for whatever charges laid against them I will interpret that as obstruction of justice which is the worst form of corruption which I condemn and besides it would set a bad precedent in the coalition government. I long to see a Zimbabwe where justice is applied to everyone irrespective of whether he/she is a member of MDC or ZANU PF echelons of power. I am however against the inhuman treatment these MDC activists are being subjected to whilst they are in jail, especially the fact that they are being denied the medical treatment that they crucially need and would want to see Tsvangirai, MDC supporters and all human rights activisits making a lot of noise about that issue. I hope Tsvangirai is going to speed up ensuring judicial independence in the country's justice system so that MDC activists can be tried fairly without any hidden political agendas swaying the course of justice.

I personally think it will be wrong for the MDC to pull out of the coalition government because of the cases of the MDC activists who are in jail because they are such a very small percentage of the population compared to the millions of ordinary Zimbabweans who are languishing in poverty caused by the political and economic instability in the country and are depending on this coalition government to save them from drowning in the poverty and dying. There are some who are of the opinion that the MDC should have totally refused to form a marriage with Zanu PF and waited out patiently for Zanu PF to concede to democracy. I love democracy and actually think it is a heaven sent political ideology whose goodness knows no bounds and I long to see it properly applied in Zimbabwe but the suffering in Zimbabwe had reached a critical point and it would have been inhuman for the MDC to continue running after democracy endlessly without coming up with an immediate solution to eliminate the suffering in the country. I applaud them for putting the pursuit of democracy on hold for now as they form a coalition government which gives them room to provide a solution for the suffering masses in Zimbabwe who were in danger of dying either from cholera, hunger or lack of hospital treatment. How can you tell a sick person who has death knocking on his door that he has to wait for an unspecified time period for democracy to come and heal him? How can you tell a child crying because of hunger that she has to wait for democracy to come and end her hunger? She will obviously ask you if democracy is something she can eat. This goes to explain why I think it was a good idea to put democracy aside for now and concentrate on solving the problems of the suffering Zimbabweans through the coalition government. I am sure you will all agree with me that humanity is more important than any political ideology.

There are many different groups of people who who are not happy with this coalition government and would want to see it fail not because it is bad as such but because its success will completely mess up their comfort zones. Yes, you read right, I wrote comfort zone there because there are many who were taking advantage of the chaos in Zimbabwe and using it for their own personal gain. Allow me to talk about these different groups of people.
1.) Some Zimbabweans who had applied for political or economic asylum in foreign lands and had become established in those lands and now run the risk of being send back home if the governments of those foreign lands get convinced that the coaltion government has brought political and economic stability into Zimbabwe.
2.) The corrupt, unethical and unprofessional people who were making money through the loopholes that the chaos in the country had created. Let me give examples.
i) Business people who had gone into the habit of exploting customers with unjustified and abnormally high prices of their goods and services.
ii) Bankers and foregn currency dealers who had gotten into the habit of conning people off their hard currency by luring them with abnormally high bank transfer foreign currency exchange rates of money that the conned would fail to access from their bank accounts once it's deposited there because of the very low bank maximum withdrawal per person per day.
iii) Fuel sellers who had gotten into the habit of raising the cost of fuel willy-nilly without regard of whether the price of petrol had fallen the world over or not.
3.) All those people the world over who hate Mugabe with a passion. The man created so many enemies through his dictatorship tendencies and his human rights abuses, his land grabbing exercise that saw farms being taken away from white farmers and being given to blacks. True the way the land was grabbed without any compensation was bad but Tony Blair is as much to blame for that as Mugabe is. The media the world over chose to ignore Tony Blair's part in the whole mess and set out on an intensive campaign to demonise Mugabe. So now there is a large group of people who don't understand how a democratic leader like Tsvangirai can decide to form a coalition government with such a demon.
4.)Members of Zimbabwean parties that are not part of the coalition government. MDC's agreement to form a coalition government with Zanu PF has increased his popularity among Zimbabweans because they interpret it as putting their needs above his own need for unshared power. It is this popularity that opposition parties are trying to counter by talking and wrting bad things about the coalition government.
I am not a supporter of any of the three parties in the coalition government but I choose to be objective and write about true facts as they happen and not what I think or wish would happen to the coalition government so that the party I support can then come into the lime light.
5.) The security service chiefs who head the army, airforce, police and the intelligence organisation have been reported to be against the coalition government. It has been reported that instead of doing their duty to the country without aligning themselves to any leader like what every civil servant should do they had long back come out in the open that they would not salute Tsvangirai and so now with Tsvangirai as the Prime Minister they are feeling very uncomfortable.

This is my objective opinion of what is happenning in Zimbabwe at the moment. I am irritated with the way Ray Bennet's arrest is hindering the start of working torwards the rebuilding of our country. By now the sworn ministers should have covered ground in analysing the situations in their different minstries, brainstorming and galvanising ideas so that they come up with strategies to cause paradigm shifts that result in sustainable development in this country.

Zimbabwe: What will ensure success of the coalition government?

As Zimbabweans stand at the threshold of a new era in political governance I want to bring to your attention that the success of the coalition government in putting Zimbabwe back on the international map as a country whose environment is inducive to business depends on the elimination of corruption in the country. The starting point in eliminating this corruption would be building trust between the people and the coalition government ministers especially the Zanu PF ministers who were in the previous government that let the country decay to pathetic magnitudes. This is no easy task considering the extend of the mistrust and so it needs drastic actions that can convince the people that a new chapter devoid of corruption has been opened.
1.)One such drastic action would be for all the coalition government ministers to publicly declare their assets now as they start the new government.
2.)The other drastic measure would be to reverse the capital flight done by the previous Zimbabwean government ministers as they moved their unclean money from Zimbabwe to secret bank accounts in Europe and elsewhere because this money should be used to develop the country and to reduce poverty.
3.)Thirdly the obstruction of justice by the judiciary who will be under direction from prominent political figures should stop with special reference being given to the cases of Jestina Mukoko, Ray Bennet, Gandi Mudzingwa and many other MDC activists who as we speak are in police custody or should I say who are in military intelligence custody. Mugabe and all politicians should stop pressuring judges to give verdicts not based on justice but on political expediency.
These three actions will go a long way in building trust in the country and when that trust is there corruption will be greatly reduced and sustainable development can be achieved.

As long as corruption in Zimbabwe remains as it is the chances of the coalition government making progress in the economic development of the country are minimum. The corruption of major concern which hinders the development of a whole nation is the abuse of entrusted public office power for private gain. Zimbabweans have reason to be fed up with government corruption because they have witnessed its effects in the last Zanu PF only government and so days when Zimbabweans shrugged off corruption as a harmless irritant are over. They witnessed first hand how corruption resulted in the loss of image, respect and prestige of the whole nation, how it resulted in the weakening of the moral fibre of the people and how it lowered the ethical standards in governance. It also resulted in insecurity due to widening rifts between the "haves" and "have nots," and put a particularly heavy economic burden on the poor and the weak. It was all in Zimbaweans' eyes as government ministers and government officials misappropriated confidential government information for personal gain and designed and selected uneconomical projects that created opportunities for financial kickbacks. Zimbabweans are also aware of how officials at governing bodies like POTRAZ would receive illicit payments to foster monopolistic access to markets and how officials in the various institutions would demand the illicit payment of "speed money" to facilitate transactions. Government officials were seen embezzling donor funds meant for some projects as well as public property and monies with Nyasha Chikwinya being rumoured to be the worst corrupt official among them all. Corruption in the administrative domain included nepotism, ghost workers on public payrolls, collection of unauthorised fees, falsification and destruction of records, arbitrary administrative action, cronyism and circumventing established procedures and regulations. Corrupt activities in the legislative branch included issues of campaign financing and conflict of interest. All these corrupt activities should be eliminated if there is to be any progress in the economic development of this country.

One of the effects of this corruption in the public sector is to generate economic distortions in the public sector by diverting public investment away from essential sectors such as education and public health into capital-intensive projects where bribes and kickbacks are more plentiful. It is not uncommon for officials to increase the technical complexity of public sector projects to conceal such dealings or to over-invoice for resources needed in projects, thereby further distorting investment. Nor is it unusual for corruption in the public sector to lower compliance with construction and environmental standards or other regulations. The private sector was also affected by this corruption. It increased the cost of business because of the price of illicit payments, the management cost of negotiating with officials, the risk of breached agreements or detection and transaction cost in time wasted. Far from reducing costs by cutting red tape, the emerging consensus is that bribery induces officials to contrive new rules and short cuts or by-pass mechanisms. Corruption in the private sector distorted the business playing field by shielding companies with political connections from competition, one outcome being sustaining inefficient firms. The intrusion of corruption in the proper running of business in Zimbabwe and its effect on Zimbabwean companies' bottom lines raised comment and resentment as never before and so Zimbabweans want the coalition government to implement a lot of anti-corruption initiatives and projects in direct or indirect support to the country's emerging economy.

To curb corruption in Zimbabwe it is imperative that the coalition government practice good governance with emphasis being given to effective policies, efficient bureaucracy and efficient public service delivery made possible by regulatory procedures that are not too strict as to be restrictive of efficiency. The coalition government should be prepared to be externally accountable through citizen feedback and democratic institutions as well as a competitive press. The rule of law should be upheld with an independent judiciary. All this will be possible only when there is political stability and absence of violence and crime as well as co-operation from every Zimbabwean. The coalition government has to implement policies and enforcement mechanisms to stamp out corruption in Zimbabwe. Some of the anti-corruption mechanisms they should put in place are the following:
1.)Judicial independence will instil trust in the country's justice system and once people know that justice is being administered in the country without fear or favour they will stop all their corrupt activities.
2.) Financial accountability of all institutions through an independent audit system that checks if financial books are in order as frequently as every three months. This will reduce corruption drastically as the fear of being found out increases.
3.) Raising employees' wages so that they are sufficient to satisfy the basic needs of their families will definately reduce corruption because most employees had become corrupt merely because they were failing to meet the basic needs of their families with their salaries.
4.) Media independence which promotes freedom of the press will decrease the level of corruption if the calibre of journalists is such that they unearth all corrupt, underhand and illegal deals and make public all skeletons in the cupboards irrespective of whose cupboard the skeleton is coming from.
5.) Bureaucracy that introduces a lot of red tape that hinders the fast and efficient progress of business should be eliminated.
6.) Citizen participation by reporting any corrupt activities they see happenning should be greatly encouraged and rewarded.
7.) Public opinion surveys should be carried out frequently so that they act as a useful tool in articulating more precisely citizen concerns that need to be addressed. This will help curb corruption in the sense that a citizen whose concerns are being addressed usually doesn't think of being corrupt.
8.) Effective anti-corruption agencies should be set up, the anti-corruption ministry that was there in the previous government was so useless that it seemed as if the ministry was non-existant.

Let me conclude this article by pointing out that political and business decisions based on honesty and merit will ultimately lead to the most efficient and effective progress in sustainble development in this nation. So in our endeavours to generate economic growth and end poverty in Zimbabwe, we must always remain loyal to the truth as loyalty to a person, regardless of his or her dishonest actions, is a path not to be followed and encouraged only by leaders with a weak moral fibre. Ten years ago Rwanda lay in ruins after the terrible genocide in that nation but because of the clean-cut image and moral backbone of President Paul Kagame that encouraged every Rwandan to act responsibly Rwanda was rebuilt in a very short time and is now well known for its orderliness, efficiency and negligible corruption. This rapid progress achieved in Rwanda soon after it became peaceful is proof of the critical role of good leadership that is ethical and professional and would never be tempted by power to do corrupt deals. The progress in Rwanda should be an inspiration to all of us in Zimbabwe to ensure integrity and competence are things we value in all political and business dealings. If we don't we are enemies of the progress towards ending extreme poverty in Zimbabwe and eliminating the suffering and hunger in the country for good through corrupt-free sustainable development.

THE BEAUTY OF NATURE (Part 3) GAME VIEWING IN ZIMBABWE

All photos are from www.flickr.com
MATUSADONHA NATIONAL PARK
Situated on the shores of Lake Kariba, Matusadona National Park
occupies a lakefront wilderness which is home to a multitude of
animals, among them elephant, black rhino, buffalo, eland, sable and
roan, impala, girraffe, and hyena. 
Waterbucks are at home on the floodplains where hippo graze
at night. Crocodiles lurk and lie in wait, and the air is alive with
expectancy.

It provides the adventurer with a scenic combination of wildlife
roaming grassy plains, and secluded bays and inlets which are
home to a plethora of animals and birds.

Matusadona is famous for the dramatic sight of viewing
a combination of wildlife & a sunset over the lake - one of
the most beautiful sights in Africa.
PEACE reigns at Matusadonha as nature takes its course
against a backdrop of wildlife.
The photographs below tried to capture the beauty of watching
animals over sunset or sunrise, over a bright full moon or on a
misty morning.





Game Viewing from a houseboat at Matusadona National Park .
This really captured the unique beauty of the experience at
Matusadonha.



Here yellow fades to orange and orange bursts to reds, crimson and
black, while the silent whisper of night creeps up from behind a lone
elephant. This is hauntingly beautiful.. nature in its full glory.


Impala on a misty morning, just look at how the animal blends
in with the surroundings. The bushes, the grass, the mist and
the impala, they just look perfect together.



A giraffe silhouetted against the sunset, a stunning rendition,
 showing off the powerful natures of Earth and creature
 when they merge. So beautiful that it almost looks surreal.



A beautiful sight  at Matusadonha as the glowing moon shines
across a cloud speckled sky when a hyena is sniffing around for
 a scent that can lead it to prey. Who said moonlight was not as
beautiful as sun light.



MANA POOLS
A trip to the lower Zambezi's great wildlife reserve at Mana Pools
is for travellers who wish to see Africa untamed and truly wild, to
live in nature and to be more than a mere observer. For this is
Africa at her best, a remote wilderness in an exquisite corner of
Zimbabwe - a place of solitude, a meeting place of man and the
great beasts, a place of water, big trees and big sky.

Mana Pools is ranked as one of Africa's outstanding wildlife
reserves. Set against a backdrop of hills and with magnificent
trees creating a park-like effect, it deserves its designation as
a World Heritage Site. The riverfront scenery is exceptionally
grand. Here, the wide Zambezi flows steady, but a series of
meandering waterways wind through grassy flats and low lying
islands. During the winter months it has the highest concentration
of game in the entire continent. Mighty herds of elephant and buffalo
are drawn to the sweet Zambezi waters, followed by lion, hyena, kudu,
nyala,impala and a multitude of game.

Paddling in a canoe down the Zambezi at Mana Pools is one of the most
unique safari experiences in Africa - coming close to great herds without
feeling like an intruder, warm African sun beating the brow, the beauty
of great raptors soaring and circling above, the stillness, serenity and awe.


What is so striking at Mana Pools is the LOVE the different couples
of animals and birds show to each other, which is what the photographs
below captured.

Witnessing the LOVE-in-action by animal couples at Mana Pools leaves
you agreeing with I-Jah-Man in his song, "Two sides of love," when he
says, "Love makes the world go round, how sweet is love, it blooms as it
pleases."




A sublime portrait of intimacy is shown by these buffalo dream
lovers. This is so sweet, lovers sleeping tight, holding on to each
other. This is a cosy kind of love.



"Honey please can you message  my back in that special way of
yours that makes me feel relaxed and peaceful. Yes, like that,
Ummmm!!!!" the lioness seems to be saying to the lion.
This is heart-warming love.



Love is in the air for these elephants seen here touching & feeling
each other in their own special way. This is beautiful love.


Zebras exploring each other's bodies. "Honey how does it feel if I
touch you here and like this." This is love in action.



The kiss on the beak that says, "I love you babe, and am happy
you are by my side at this moment in time." This is lovely love.



GONAREZHOU
THE glorious Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe sweep southwards
and slowly give way to the lowlands and the wildlife reserve of
Gona-re-Zhou - a wild, rugged "place of elephants". Among
Zimbabwean conservationists, Gonarezhou enjoys a long-standing
reputation as one of the most interesting wilderness havens in the
country.
The park is home to some of the most unusual species of game, such
as Lichtenstein's hartebeest, nyala and suni antelope, and its wooded
bushlands house a healthy population of elephant. Other animals include
giraffe, buffalo, zebra, waterbuck, roan, sable and impala, followed in
their paths by the predators, lion, leopard and hyena.

Gonarezhou has always been appreciated as much for its wilderness
atmosphere as its wildlife. There is a diversity of terrain, from mopani
tree savanna and acacia woodlands to riverine forests and fine old baobab
trees.

What is so interesting at Gonarezhou is the HAPPINESS exuded by the
animals as they play with each other in their natural habitat

The experience will leave you feeling so happy having caught on the
HAPPINESS from the animals, you know how HAPPINESS is contagious.




 
Happiness abounds as these elephants swim and bath each other
or is that making love in the river. What ever it is, the elephants
are showing that they feel at home in their habitat and are happy.




Side by side, through thick and thin forests, this is reason enough
for these zebras to be happy to be at Gonarezhou National Park.


 
The wild, untamed beauty of these two animals as they shared
some quality time together gripped me by my throat for a second,
(literally!) No wonder they look so happy.




Even the most powerful predator of them all gets time away from
the hustle and bustle of hunting for prey and gets down to the 
basics of relating to the finer issues of life, like love and happiness. 




Happiness is an attitude that makes even the most mundane things
in life like eating food together very enjoyable. Look at those
corkscrew antlers, God is the best artist ever.


 
HWANGE GAME RESERVE
A short flight from Victoria Falls is Hwange National Park., one of
the great nature reserves of Africa which boasts one of the largest
concentration of elephant in Africa, as well as kudu, sable, roan, eland,
antelope, zebra and waterbuck. Also present are large populations of
buffalo, giraffe, rhino and zebra. The abundance of prey attracts the
full spectrum of predators - some 25 species - including lion, leopard,
wild dog and hyena. Birders and twitters will delight at the 400 species
of feathered friends which grace the park.

The greater portion of the reserve is managed as a wilderness camp area
which is only accessible to visitors staying in small, exclusive lodges. It
is here in these camps, that the wildlife lover will have a true wilderness
experience and come face to face with the great diversity and quantity of
Hwange's wildlife.

An early game drive, to watch as the sun rises on another day in Zimbabwe
while the great creatures begin their daily quest for food and water will
enable you to observe the wonderful CO-EXISTENCE exihibitated by the
different animals and birds as they share life in Hwange Wildlife Reserve.

The CO-EXISTENCE experience at Hwange leaves you wondering if
humans are indeed more civilised than animals.






 
Coexistance in practice, as this girraffe tries to belong to the same
level of height as the wildbeast by bending its front legs so that it
doesn't tower too high above the wildbeast and make it feel inferior.


  
The birds are saying to the buffalo, "Hey fellow Hwange citizen
even though we have different political views concerning life
in our mutual habitat, it's nice to co-exist in harmony despite our
differences." Note that this is Hwange Game Reserve, not the 
Garden of Eden.


 
Elephants and egrets taking a leisurely walk together in the Hwange
wildlife reserve. The elephant could easily trample on and crush the
egrets if it so chooses but it doesn't because its small brain knows that
there is no point in doing that, so it opts for the joys of co-existance
instead. This is an amazingly beautiful shot. The elephant, the egrets,
and those beautiful mountains behind. Wonderful!!!





  
It sure is sweet, how one of the most dangerous mammals, the
crocodile, is posing no danger at all to the egyptian geese. Look
at how the geese don't look worried at all. Co-existance at its best.




    
An antelope having a leisurely trot within the environs of its home
in the Hwange National Park. Look at how beautiful it looks with
birds perched on its back. The kind of oneness and neighbourliness
between birds and animals potrayed by that photograph is a common
feature at Hwange , which shows how the animals have mastered the
harmony of co-existance

THE BEAUTY OF NATURE (Part 2) Nyanga

The beautiful pictures below were taken by Jerry H. and can be found on this link, http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimcontracts/sets/72157619386536108/

Nyanga is a natural lure for the nature-lovers.
Sublime relaxation await the nature-lover at Nyanga which is in
the beautiful Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe, what with its
majestic granite peaks, verdant valleys, prolific birdlife, trout fishing
and fine golf courses. It is also the birthplace of rivers and cascades.
Adding to the attractions are leisurely walks over hill and dale,
hikes along mountain paths with each bend opening up to another
magnificent vista, horse and pony trekking and of course, the deeply
satisfying enjoyment of trout fishing in the crystal clear streams and 
bubbling brooks.
This narrow sliver of high country at altitudes up to 6 000 feet which
sweeps along glorious mountain ranges on Zimbabwe's eastern border
with Mozambique, is ideal for those who want to relax and enjoy
crisp mountain air.
Its peace inducing capabilities are second to none.




This view at Troutbeck Inn in Nyanga is a paradise for nature-lovers,
 with its stunning combination of a lavishly green  mountain, lush 
forests with  exotic plants and a breathtaking water spot which has a 
carpet-like green lawn at its banks.  This you will  agree with me is 
nature at its best.





 Mutarazi Falls, the second tallest waterfall in Africa. It
plunges some 762 metres into deep-forested gorges, where rock
pools abound and beckon.
The top of the Falls is a camp site. If you love this photograph
then seeing the Falls in reality will make you gasp in awe.




The second drop of Mutarazi Falls which plunges gracefully into
the Honde Valley. The area around the falls is a small National
Park. Looking at it makes me sing the song, "What a wonderful
world ," by Rod Stewart.



This looks like heaven on earth to me, what more can I say, this
most beautiful place has made me speechless with its beauty.
You can view and experience it at the Blue Swallow Lodges at
Troutbeck Inn in Nyanga.


A magnificent  view of the Pungwe Falls which is 243metres high 
and which flows down into the Honde Valley.



Susurumba Mountain is not only a lovely scenic place to view, it
is yours to climb if you are into mountain climbing.



A spectacular view across the Udu Dam with flat topped, thorny,
Umbrella (Acacia) trees at the banks of the river and a beautiful
mountain in the background. Such is the beauty of nature in
Nyanga.



Sunset over the Udu Dam which is situated on the road to
Inyangombe Falls, close to the main Inyanga road.  
This is beautiful.


  
The upper end of the Mare Dam, which is a trout fishing spot with
Mount Inyangani the highest mountain in Zimbabwe in the
background.


 
This is a private cottage  in Nyanga which is far from the madding
crowd and surrounded by nature in the form of granite kopjes and
fir trees, with little dams on mountain streams on the other side.


 
Natural savanna trees can be viewed across the Mare dam and their
reflection in the water make a sight that seems to be out of this
world.




The Inyangombe swimming pool which has an unused low level
bridge above it and is situated in the Inyanga National Park, is a
popular picnic spot. The pool has a pleasant beach and picnic
area, with clean, invigoratingly cold mountain
stream water to swim in.




If you know beauty when you see it then you will agree with me
that this is it, in fact this is more than beautiful, it is splendid
beauty. Its all yours to view and experience if you book into
those lovely Blue Swallow lodges at Troutbeck Inn.




For those who do fishing, Nyanga Lake is waiting for your fish baits
hooked on your fishing rods.

THE BEAUTY OF NATURE (Part 1) The Victoria Falls

Nature is at its best at Victoria Falls, which is in Zimbabwe and is
one of the seven wonders of the world.
Known also by the African name Mosi-oa-Tunya which means
the Smoke that Thunders this great waterway was named by the
English explorer, David Livingstone, who declared that "angels in
flight most probably pause to marvel at this beautiful sight".
The Victoria Falls Bridge majestically straddles the Batoka Gorge
below the Falls. It is 111 metres above the water and that's how
far you'll drop if you decide to take on the world's highest
commercial bungee jump






  
You can wallow in the beauty of a rainbow as you fly past
the Victoria Falls in a helicopter on a sunny day.
At high flood, the wall of water is a mile wide, the ground shakes
and trembles and mist is thrown hundreds of feet into the air,
making this "thundering smoke" visible from 20 miles away.
The resulting spray of water causes giant rainbows and a
mini rainforest is sustained by the perpetual mist. It is the magnet
that draws many travelers to the banks of the mighty
Zambezi River, to stop and gaze in awe through rainbow mists at
this most beautiful sight.




  
A helicopter ride over the Victoria Falls enables you to view
the different cataracts of the Falls which are such an awesome
sight to see.
The beauty of nature curves and dances in the mists above
thundering cataracts, as the mighty Zambezi River plunges
over 300 feet in a cataclysm of cascading water. At night, 
by the light of a full moon, you can see moonbows in the spray.



  
You can get into a waterjet and view the Victoria Falls 
closely from there while enjoying the waterjet  ride on the 
Zambezi river.
Alternatively there are magnificent walks through the Rain Forest,
resplendent with Acacias, lianas, strangler figs, ferns and orchids,
while sunbirds, paradise flycatchers, bulbuls and finches are among
the many birds that can be seen. In the canopy above, vervet
monkeys play in their own glorious Eden.




 
Victoria falls tourist resorts are famous  for offering its 
adrenalin-seeking visitors Bunji jumping.
From the bridge, bungee-jumpers look like human puppets, their
bodies hanging limply from the strong elastic cord, their limbs flailing
in the air. You can hear the screams of exhilaration as they drop
towards the water with the Victoria Falls roaring behind them.



 
If you are not into Bunji jumping, you can get a thrill 
from whitewater rafting in the Zambezi waters.
The more intrepid (or more foolhardy) can white-water raft the
great river downstream from the falls as it divides Zambia and
Zimbabwe. This particular adventure is known to be one of the
most terrifying in the world.