Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe
Last weekend I left South Africa for a visit to Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbawe. :) My friend Emily and I spent the weekend in Chobe Safari Lodge, located on the Chobe river in Botswana. While there, we embarked on an amazing game drive where we came face to face with huge herds of elephants and a pride of lions!! We took 2 boat cruises where we saw hippos, crocodiles, exotic birds, and lizards... sometimes a little too close for comfort. :) I also developed an affinity for baskets... and I have the collection to prove it!
We visited a Namibian fishing village where we met a little girl who was making baskets with her mom. Our guide teased the little one because her baskets were smaller, and not exactly proportionate... while her mother's were intricate and beautiful. So, of course, I bought baskets from the little girl rather than her mom. I think I made her day :)
We went to Zimbabwe to visit the Victoria Falls, which were absolutely amazing. 3 girls from Finland were also on our tour, so we enjoyed spending time with them and exploring all the different look out points. Thereafter, we headed to a craft market to purchase curios... but instead of merely purchasing curios, we witnessed a people who are truly suffering.
When we entered the craft market, we were bombarded by merchants, each offering us, "a special price." Stone carvings: $2.00 USD, jewelry: $5.00 USD, Baskets: $2:00 USD, Embroidered table clothes: $5.00 USD. They would do virtually anything for US currency, Botswana Pula, RSA Rand, anything... When we ran out of money, they asked to trade with us: writing pens, shirts, hairpins, plastic bags... anything they thought we could offer them. It was so sad. There were young children there with their parents as well. I wonder what kind of life they will have. It is so tragic.
The people in Zim are really suffering. It is so unfair. I cried in that craft market ... and I became very angry with God. It's hard to understand how a good God could allow people to suffer that way. I still have nightmares about it sometimes. I really want to find a way to help them. No one should have to live like that. It's something that I could never have imagined... and now I can't seem to forget it. I sincerely hope I can find some way to help them. It's so tragic that in such a naturally beautiful place, people can suffer so much.
Emily and I agree that visiting Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe has put our South African experience in perspective. We noticed differences in the crafts people made, the languages they spoke, and how they responded to foreigners. We could witness how much more resourced South Africa is than Namibia and Zimbabwe (although interestingly Botswana has a higher GDP than South Africa). We also noticed how much safer we felt in Namibia, Botswana, and (surprisingly) Zimbabwe then we had ever felt in South Africa. Our visit to these other countries provided us with a brief glimpse of the diversity in Southern Africa... a glimpse that we will never forget.