Africa Journal
September 18, 1995
The Great Zimbabwe Ruins
Up at 5:00 AM for a day of touring the Great Zimbabwe ruins. The itinerary says Linda Law will meet us at 6:00, but she’s MIA. We leave more messages at the front desk to try and contact her and at 6:15 we take a cab to the airport for the flight to Masvingo. We are beginning to wonder if the intinerary will ever coincide with the trip we are taking.
Rooster
Air Zimbabwe flight 602 to Masvingo is a 5 passenger, twin engine, Beechcraft Baron 55. It is piloted by Annie Collins, also known as "Rooster". I don’t know why and I will not speculate. I am her co-pilot on this flight, but I am not paid for my services.
Prospah
Prospah, our guide from the United Touring Company, meets us at the Masvingo airport as the itinerary finally intersects with reality. Our luck continues to improve as two other couples scheduled for the tour are no-shows, so we now have a private guided tour. We climbed the ancient trail to the top and return by the (easier) modern trail. The ruins are extraordinary. Prospah immeasurably enhances our enjoyment of the experience. His knowledge and love of this place shines through everything he says. We are able to get a glimpse of the ruins as seen through his eyes and the experience of his life.
On the way back down, we encounter two red headed lizards fighting a battle for territory. We are fascinated and watch for about ten minutes as the fight moves from one rock to the next. One lizard has developed a technique of taking the high ground, then knocking the other lizard to the ground with a snap of its tail. Prospah says that he could sit and watch them for hours. I remind him that during the tour he said that for the people who built Great Zimbabwe, every event in nature had meaning. I asked if they would find meaning in watching the lizards fight. He said "Certainly, yes, but the old ways are being forgotten. For the Shona of my generation, the meaning is lost. In my generation, when we saw a lizard, we would kill it. "
We eat lunch at the Great Zimbabwe Hotel. I have sadza nyama, a maize dumpling with meat and vegetable stew that is a staple in the area. After lunch we video monkeys and pheasants on the property. Prospah then takes us to see 2000 year old cave paintings, and a beautiful chapel built by Italian POWs in WWII. Finally back to the airport, where Rooster swoops in to pick us up for the flight to Harare.
A great day. All is forgiven Andrea.
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