Gin & Tonic from the President (almost)

AND ONE HUNDRED BILLION DOLLARS THAT ARE WORTH NOTHING

Peter Gava stops the Land Cruiser in the middle of a grand Savanna clearing. We lumber our way off the open 4×4 as Peter races around the vehicle to open a small rear baggage compartment and pulls out a carefully folded table and a neatly packed outdoor cocktail set. It’s six o’clock in the afternoon, 18 degrees south of the equator, and the sun is just about to set. The timing couldn’t have been better. As we absorb the beauty of the moment, he hands each one of us an ice-cold glass of perfectly made Gin and Tonic. “Very few things can get better than this,” says my inner voice as the last rays of Sun baths this particular clearing somewhere on the eastern edges of the Kalahari Desert.

Then Peter tells us something about the 2018 Zimbabwean presidential elections that makes our jaws drop.

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Heart of Dampness

TRAVERSING VICTORIA FALLAS – ABOVE & BELOW

The rain intensifies as I cross the narrow hanging bridge. And by “rain,” I don’t mean your ordinary everyday drizzle, nor heavy rain, or even torrential rain. I mean someone-just-emptied-an-Olympic-sized-pool-over-your-head type of rain. The waterproof cap I’m wrapped in is useless. I am thoroughly drenched. Looking to my right, bright blue skies host a beautiful full-circle rainbow just 10 meters away. On my left, peeking between the massive drops, a gigantic water curtain – 1.7km wide, drops into the abyss in a deep resounding crescendo. Welcome to Victoria Falls.

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