A road trip, the hotels in between and the weather!
Happiness Zengeni
Long distance road trips can actually be quite stressful, hard, tiring and not forgetting the unexpected but anticipated car trouble.
For most, a road trip is generally not worth the hassle. If the route has an option to fly, then there are few takers for the road trip.
Road trips, however, still provide the best classical traveling experience; from the long stretches of highway, the constantly changing scenery to the untidiness of the car; candy wrappers and takeaway boxes. My most favoured reason is that a road trip allows you to notice things; development occurring in a particular area, historical sites and even population density. To an extent, a road trip also allows you to put life into perspective, which at times can either depress or inspire you.
It is with this in mind, this writer made a road trip to Victoria Falls. Of course, this is not a new experience. At some point everyone took a drive to Victoria Falls when Air Zimbabwe was temporarily grounded and no other player was licenced to fly the local route. But now with two airlines – Air Zimbabwe and fastjet – servicing the Harare – Vic Falls leg, flying becomes the most obvious choice.
The driving distance to Vic Falls from Harare is around 880km. Not an easy journey considering the state of the road between Bulawayo and Vic Falls. A decision had, however, been made. A road trip it would be. The last time such a trip had occurred was in 2015, where upon missing a flight, a decision was taken to leave Harare at 3am with the hope of catching a conference by 9am. Yes, just 6 hours! Backed of course by our most reliable BMW 320D. We missed our time by just 30 minutes, getting to Vic Falls at 9.30am. But that was only because of the numerous roadblocks encountered on the Bulawayo-Vic Falls stretch from daylight. Strangely enough only one of those stops was for speeding; the rest were for radio licences, reflectors and all the other irritating offences that police back then would come up with.
In this new dispensation – can’t believe I have just used this cliché – there are subtle roadblocks. And if one is stopped, the police manning the point are usually quite friendly and don’t have a list of road rules and requirements. Road trips are once more quite enjoyable and the best precursor to any romantic getaway.
The trip, which makes up the essence of this article, was however not a romantic getaway. If one must know, it was only but a reboot trip in the company of one’s sisters; June and Honor. They are the most enjoyable characters, these two. Characters that embrace fully the freedoms of speech and expression more than any other beings I know. It is, however, a different story for another day.
We left chilly Harare slightly late. At 3.45pm to be precise. This was just before the traffic began to set in. There are common things to note about a road trip. Firstly, it takes the right people combined with the right attitude who have made the right preparations. Now, my family is not strong on preparations. We thrive on disorder and haphazardness! The only preparation that had been made was to go to Vic Falls. Everything else would fall in place on its own. It could be we base our entire existence on faith! Of things unseen (unplanned for). Our late start (lack of adequate planning, in other words) meant we had to sleep in Bulawayo; at the Rainbow Hotel.
This is the most convenient place to put up when it’s just for a stopover. We got into Bulawayo at 9.30pm. This was after stopovers in Kadoma, where we met the most vibrant Zanu PF supporters and in Gweru. Gone are the days when the playlist would change once you get to Ntabazinduna. It was almost a tradition that as you are about to enter Bulawayo, you would switch to a Lovemore Majaivana CD. Maybe there are people who still do that, I don’t know. And I doubt it had anything to do with connection to the city. It was just something that would give us great satisfaction; a sort of I-have-arrived kind of vibe. This time around, as has been the case for the past two years, the entry playlist is almost always on any Lingala Rumba song.
The comfort and convenience at Rainbow Bulawayo
If you have such a late check-in, the only thoughts that should be on your mind are bath and sleep. A decision to have dinner in Gweru was not to be regretted. As is the trend, the hotel had complimentary fruits; an apple, orange and a pear.
The beds at Rainbow, having been subject to a recent renovation, are comfortable. The bath experience was however not. From the way the bathroom is laid out, the lack of proper cleaning to a natural odour that stems from the old piping (maybe); this was not the best way to end the day. However, the shower had hot water and made for a soothing finish.
The room had two extra blankets, which would be the preferred choice over the air conditioner. Sleep happened fast. In the morning, packed breakfasts were ready by 5am. The only disappointing feature were the pastries, which were not fresh.
The grandeur at the Victoria Falls Hotel
The road to Vic Falls needs rehabilitation, though there has been an attempt to re-tar around the Lupane area. Because of that the journey was extremely slow. We only arrived to a warm welcome at the Victoria Falls Hotel past midday. The warm temperatures at this resort town made us look very odd. Pullovers, boots and beanies made us uncomfortable and our only wish was for a quick check-in process. Wish was granted through the use of the exclusive check-in area.
The (black and white) bathrooms are divine. Spacious too, combining old fashioned finishes with the new modern touches. The rooms were overall comfortable and everything seemed perfectly fine except the walking distance to the breakfast area. It could be they would like people to enjoy the walk along the gardens and get a view of the bridge but in the morning, especially when one wakes up hungover, the distance is not helpful.
A relaxed, clean finish at the Holiday Inn
The actual purpose of the visit to this resort now will remain a story for another day. The trip back highlighted by a brief stop-over in Hwange, only to check out if Baobab Hotel is still open. Well, it’s still open and provided convenience to this particular group of travelers, who could not use fuel station bathrooms. More stop overs were to be made to empower locals through the purchase of their wares and wild fruits.
After getting to Bulawayo late, we decided to put up at Holiday Inn after interference from good friends. Holiday Inn has the modern touch, which makes it more enjoyable and though the experience was only for the night, the bed linen remains the highlight of the stay. It has overall, a clean finish. Their packed breakfast was heavier and featured a variety of fresh pastries, which made our journey back to Harare quite comfortable.
Feedback email – happyzengeni@gmail.com
