Lions, islands, birthdays and moustaches...

MOvember has been and gone, so has our time in MOzambique, but thanks to those Odyssey MOverlanders on the Cape to Cairo 2011 who did support the cause and grew – or tried to grow – silly ‘mo’s for the past month. And especially for Adam’s effort – he added some mascara to show his up.

The Odyssey MOverlanders

Adam, getting a little bit of help...

MOving on, a couple of (very) wet days on the road in Mozambique as we headed for Tofo. But it cleared up enough for some snorkelling with whale-sharks, walks on the beach and nights out in the village. By the time we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn and reached Vilanculos further up the coast, the rain had cleared and we had a gorgeous day out - a dhow trip to an island in the Bazzaruto Archipelago with some snorkelling and a beach BBQ. A good send-off from the Indian Ocean as we’ve headed inland now and won’t see the sea again until we reach Dar es Salam next year!

Al & Rogan at the Tropic of Capricorn

Peter & Graham on the beach in Mozambique

Rain in Africa? Who knew...

Currently we are in Zimbabwe. There are some magical spots in the Eastern Highlands. We went back to the Bvumba Mountains, which was a find on the last expedition, really amazing views to start and end a day with, a good welcome to Zim. We also visited Chimanimani, further south in the Highlands. This was new for Odyssey this trip, and I think, a good discovery. We camped at the Outward Bound camp, where they run camps and adventure and survival courses for schools, corporate groups, church groups and the like. They are equipped with climbing gear and instructors and have various different obstacle courses set out. We were only there for a couple of nights so didn’t embark on too many of these adventures but did manage a swim in some icy pools below a waterfall and those who went on a guided walk were lucky enough to be shown some rock art. At the end of the day, one of the instructors casually suggested a go on the zip-line, so the last minutes of daylight saw 12 of us climbing a rope ladder up a gum tree, standing on a small platform, and screaming all the way down (well speaking for myself at least).

Al on the zipline

Athena

The Great Zimbabwe Ruins are an important stop on a trip through Zim. Amazing architecture, they tell a story of life and civilization in this area about 700-1000 years ago. We had a couple of guides to take us round, which definitely enhances it, hearing theories and stories from a local perspective. What was also great was camping right outside the Ruins, so we were able to watch the sun rise (for those who got up early enough) and set over them.

David at Great Zim

It was also a good spot for a ‘work party’ as we had a bit of time and Athena needed some cleaning. Basically, everyone gets stuck in to a bit of truck cleaning and you can have everything spotless and sterilized in about 45mins. Window cleaning, pot scrubbling, cutlery washing, and a bit of music, drinks and splashing thrown in, and Athena is now a happy camper :).

Unfortunately we left Harare lighter than we started, despite several purchases of stone sculptures, as a few people were relieved of some of their belongings, so our time in Harare left a bit of a bad taste in our mouths.

However, we have still seen some beautiful spots in Zim and had some very warm welcomes. Notably our welcome at Antelope Park, where we are now. It is a place where even campers are treated like royalty. Well maybe not quite, but there’s still free tea and juice, and hot showers – all the things that make a difference when you’re camping. It was here that we celebrated Graham’s 60^th birthday, with a 60’s party theme, drinks on Graham, and steak, mushroom sauce, homemade bread and banoffee pie. Definitely a memorable evening.

Graham, celebrating his 60th birthday with a few breakfast bubbles!

Graham's party had a 60's theme. Here he is dressed as what he was in the 60's - a cub scout!

Martin, Dianne & Jon

Abby, Caitriona & Elaine

Mike, Tom, Graham & Peter

60's chic

Peter on the shisha pipe

But apart from 60^th birthdays, Antelope Park is also home to the African Lion and Environmental Research Trust (ALERT) and a Lion Rehabilitation and Release into the Wild programme. As part of these projects, you can go on various different ‘lion encounter’ activities, such as watching lions feed, watching them trying to hunt, walking with them in the wild. Also things like horse-riding and canoeing, or just a bit of R an R by the pool.