A Moonlit dinner at The Lookout Cafe 

Moon rise at The Lookout Cafe (Image by Gary Archer)

After visiting The Lookout Cafe to experience a Full Moon dinner I was left in awe of the meal as well as the scenery. The cafe, usually closed in the evenings, offers this full moon dining experience due to it’s prime position on the edge of the Zambezi Gorge allowing for diners to view the moonrise over a truly special scene.

The lookout clings to the edge of the Zambezi Gorge just downstream of the Victoria Falls. Below lies the Zambezi, a force you are aware of before you glimpse it as its low rumble emanates upward from the river below. The dining area faces the iconic Victoria Falls Bridge but it is the natural elements of the scene that strike me. The Lookout Cafe is cantilevered over the gorge so that you stand, insignificant in size when compared to the mighty chasm of the canyon dropping steeply away. A 120 metres below, the serpentine Zambezi - churns with incredible force and mellows into great, glasslike swathes that bely it’s power. The sun is setting and the moon has risen; a giant, yellow orb hung low over the mesmerising scene. 

I soak in the scene for a few minutes before becoming aware of the cafe behind me. The  warm glow of the lighting, the chatter of diners and the smell of  food cooking (don’t say steak, veggies will get cross!)reminds me of my hunger. A friendly waiter helps us to a table for two, warm and prompt in his service. I order the fish, local bream, caught in the Zambezi. It arrives quickly and doesn’t disappoint- flaky and succulent encased in crisp, beer batter and my partners’ steak is equally good, perfectly cooked to order and tender to the bite. We end the meal with fruit skewers and a cheese platter  Before departing, I return to the edge to soak in the scene one more time.

The light has changed; the myriad of ochres and rusts are gone and the bath of cool moonlight has turned the river into a band of silver. In the background the Victoria Falls Bridge  illuminated, beyond that the spray from the Falls reaches up to a sky now twinkling with stars. The view brings a sense of tranquility and it is this calm feeling I depart with. I go to sleep thinking of the onward rumble of the Zambezi, ever stretching forward, and how it was here before me and still will be long after.

Tips for a moonrise visit:

•       Look up the time of the moonrise and if not too late I suggest coming before sunset so you can experience the changing colours of the canyon walls and see the moon rising over the scene. Your best views will be whilst the moon is low to the Horizon.

•       Plan to dress warmly in the winter months as it is open air dining.

Full Moon Dinner Dates for 2015:

3rd July & 31st July

29th August

28th September 

27th October

26th November

25th December

Special Opening Hours: From 10:00 to 22:00 (last meal orders at 20:30)

Wi-Fi: Free

Cuisine: A’la Carte menu 

Free Shuttle transfers: Please call 013-42013 to arrange

Vic Falls Carnival!

  

Wild Horizons is pleased to report that the Jameson Vic Falls Carnival, with Wild Horizons as the official activity partner, brought in 2015 with a bang, attracting thousands of tourists to the town for the 3 day festival. The festivities commenced on December 29^th 2014, with the departure of the long-sold-out party-train journey to a secret bush location, where Capetonian ‘Toby2Shoes’, rocked the stage for the 500+ lucky ticket holders. 

The second day of the festival was themed around the world-famous ‘Holi One Colour Festival’. Festival-goers sport bags of multi-coloured powder paint to throw up into the air above the crowds at regular timed countdowns, creating a stunning eruption of multi-coloured haze above the jubilant crowd, which is a sight to behold! Local and International DJ’s, including Harare’s Rob Macson, kept the crowds bouncing throughout the afternoon and into the early evening, which led on to a host of various official after-parties at renowned locations in Victoria Falls town.

The final day of the festival was held on New Year’s Eve. The 5000+ crowd was undeterred by showers of warm rain as it glittered above the crowd in the foreground of an impressive lighting setup, which created a sublime electric atmosphere on a scale never before seen in Victoria Falls! 

 

 

Long-time Zimbabwean folk legend, Oliver 'Tuku' Mtukudzi, attracted thousands of followers to the Carnival to witness his truly original Zimbabwean sound. Oliver, at 62 years of age, had the entire crowd in the palm of his hand as fans sang along to every word of his set of well-known local hits. The festival headliners ‘Goldfish’, the vibrant band-come-DJ duo from Cape Town, brought in the New Year with their unique and classic sound of vintage fusion with modern electro beats. All had a fantastically unforgettable time, and we look forward to watching this Festival continue to grow from strength to strength in the years to come!

Wild Horizons - giving back to the community.

The Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, a trust of which Wild Horizons is one of the founders and main sponsors, endeavours to educate the local community about wildlife conservation. One of the ways VFWT do this, is by having at least two, week-long, courses annually for children who are interested in wildlife and natural resource conservation. During the school holidays VFWT holds each course, which takes up to 20 participants. One course is for primary school children and the other is aimed for high school/senior school students. The participants are selected based on their interest and performance during the weekly interaction and awareness activity VFWT holds every Friday. 

The courses are provided through generous donor funding and are full scholarship to every participant, including room and board. Throughout the courses, experts in their respective fields are brought in to discuss and present some of their findings and the impact on conservation given their field of experience.

I was privileged to attend a VFWT awareness activity that takes place on a Friday, with a presentation about general wildlife conservation, and interaction with the Wild Horizons elephant and Sylvester cheetah ambassador. Here, kids from a local school, could safely interact with the animals and learn more about them and nature conservation. It was truly heart-warming to see the kids interact with the animals.

The children were also enthusiastically participating in presentations about the animals and wildlife conservation in the Vic Falls area. The kids also shared and discussed how they interact with wild animals on a daily basis, and how they deal with human-wildlife conflict, after which, they are taught how to safely deal with human-wildlife conflict (avoid the animal, and don’t antagonise it). They also learn more about the specific animals that they interacted with, like the cheetah, and for instance how to tell the difference between a cheetah and a leopard.

This is definitely a great initiative from the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, to include local school children in the surrounding wildlife conservation efforts and to introduce them to great career opportunities within wildlife and nature conservation. What an unforgettable morning! Fun was had by all!

Wilderness Safaris Team Build @ The Lookout

On Friday 15th August, Wilderness Safaris staff members attended a team building session at The Wild Horizons  Lookout. The afternoon proved to be high entertaining, whilst at the same time further enhancing the bond of this dynamic team.
 
The first challenge required an elected team member to embark on a Zip Line across the gorge, with his task being to “bomb” an inflatable canoe on the river below with a water filled balloon. This was highly entertaining as in most cases, the inaccuracies were something to behold! Those brave enough then had the opportunity to earn their team an extra 5 bonus points if they endured a 70m free fall on the Gorge Swing (only 3 brave souls!). 

The next activity that followed entailed team members hoisting a harnessed teammate up a tree using ropes and pulleys, in order for them to find and retrieve a hidden toy Guinea Fowl. 

After the Guinea Fowl retrieval, the three teams then moved to the new Lookout car park, for a game of “sausage soccer”. This entailed each team lining up in a relay fashion, and then using a sausage tree fruit, tied around their waist, to hit a soccer ball across the playing field to their next waiting teammate. No touching of the sausage fruit was allowed, and many, many laughs were had!

After the sausage soccer, came the tent-erecting race – whereby each team had to work together to quickly and efficiently setup a safari tent, complete with a bed and bedding on the interior. After a suspicious amount of scalduggerous pole-snatching and rope-pinching, the ‘orange’ team emerged victorious in this round! (Their attention to detail clinched it for them in the end, as their bed was made complete with hospital corners, and a flower on the pillow!). 

After the tents, the teams then found respite in the shade of the Lookout platform, and undertook a fun quiz which covered all essential aspects of Zimbabwean life, including the colours of the Zimbabwean Flag, and of course some essential wildlife facts! 

Finally, a Zimbabwean culinary tasting competition saw the end of the day’s activities – team members had to consume an array of traditional Zimbabwean delicacies such as Mopani worms, dried vegetables, a whole chilli, and of course, a coca-cola! 

Once the results were tallied, and the quiz sheets had been marked, it was seen that 2 teams, the orange and the green, needed to compete in a tie breaker. This came in the form of performing a verse of the Zimbabwean National Anthem – some bringing music to the ears of those who listened, and others, well – they got ½ points for smiling ‘n miming!

All had a wonderful afternoon, and the Wilderness team is now undoubtedly stronger than ever before, for having been through a Wild Horizons team build!

You can find out more about Wild Horizons’ team building packages by emailing clive@wildhorizons.co.zw

15 Useful Websites for Travel Agents that sell to Zimbabwe

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1) Zimbabwetourism.net

The Zimbabwe Tourism website is a great overall resource when it comes to the delivery of useful information on Zimbabwe Tourism. It has a nicely laid out interface, some great photos, and it also has a very handy "Research" section that provides all kind of statistics pertaining to Zimbabwe Tourism in general, as well as a link to the Zimbabwe Tourism Act.

2) Zimparks.org

The Zim Parks website, whilst a little archaic in terms of design, does provide some useful information when it comes to Zimbabwe's National Parks themselves. Their Google Map with overlays of all the National Parks on the "Maps & Weather Data" tab could come in handy for overseas agents who aren't familiar with the geography of the country, as well as their "Useful tips before you travel" tab.

3) Wild Horizons Agent's Manual

The Wild Horizons Agent's Manual is a one-stop-shop for all agents who sell Wild Horizon's activites and accomodation. It contains useful information not only for activites in Zimbabwe, but also Botswana and Zambia, as well as relevant Visa information for Zimbabwe and Zambia.

4) Wikitravel Zimbabwe

Wikitravel.org's section on Zimbabwe contains a nice overview of useful information, such as visa requirements, health requirements, climate overview - but of particular note is the bottom section on culture, under the heading of "Respect" - which describes some of the local customs when it comes to interacting with local Zimbabweans.

5) Automobile Association

The AA's section on crossing the border into Zimbabwe offers some useful information on health and documentation requirements for self driving South Africans, As well as some useful phone numbers.

6) My Destination Zimbabwe

My Destination offers an interactive and engaging experience on all things Zim related - of note is the upbeat Youtube video introducing Zimbabwe as a destination, which is great for sending out to potential clients who are still assessing their options. They also have a very useful "what's on" section which agent's can use to propose times to visit.

7) Victoria Falls Guide

The Victoria Falls Guide is a locally run website in Victoria Falls and is a leading provider of advice, tips, and general information when it comes to anything regarding travel in Victoria Falls. Of note is the "maps" section, where tourist's and agents can get their hands on a comprehensive tourist map of Victoria Falls town. They also have a great FAQ's section, and contributions from readers on past stories and experiences.

8) Tel One Directory

The Tel One Drectory is probably the closest thing to a functioning online phone & business directory that Zimbabwe has to offer, and often comes in handy when trying to track down a contact number for a particular person or business in Zimbabwe.

9) TechZim

TechZim is a leading technology blog that focuses on the reality of technology and IT in the country - it's challenges and achievements. Very useful for tourists and visitors who need to stay connected on the ground but are worried about the availability of accurate and up-to-date information when it comes to staying connected online and on the ground.

10) Zambezi Traveller

Zambezi Traveller is a great online resource for news and articles regarding wildlife and conservation, tourism news and information, and covers not only Zimbabwe but all major centers along the Zambezi River including Chobe, Okavango, Kafue, Victoria Falls, Hwange, Harare, Kariba and the Middle Zambezi, Lusaka, Luangwa, Livingstone, Cabora Bassa & Tete. They release a free of charge printed newspaper 4 times a year which is distributed to all centers along the Zambezi, as well as subscribers around the world. This platform offers lucrative advertising opportunities.

11) Seat 61 - A Beginner's Guide to Train Travel in Zimbabwe

This section of the Seat 61 website offers valuable information for anyone seeking information on how to travel by train in Zimbabwe. Just bear in mind that times may differ from published timetables, and best practice is always to go to the train station yourself beforehand to confirm what services are running and their costs.

12) Zimbabwetravel.info

Zimbabwetravel.info is another rousrce rich in information on the National Parks, as well as the main cities. They also have a section on how to travel by train or bus around Zimbabwe.

13) Wild Zambezi

This section of the Wild Zambezi website is also jam packed with useful information on getting around in Zimbabwe, as well as the usual high quality wealth of information on tours and safari's that one has come to expect from Wild Zambezi. Of note are articles such as the 4x4 code of conduct, their Tour Operators' Code of Ethics, and the Electricty, Phones & Internet, Time, Public Holidays and Dress section. A very valuable resource indeed!

14) Trip Advisor Zimbabwe

Trip Advisor is the world's leading online reputation website when it comes to choosing accomodation, restaurants, and activities in just about every country in the world. It makes for reliable reading as you can see past guests' comments, reviews and recommendations and is an essential tool for finding, and deciding upon the plethora of options when it comes to travelling, as well as selling travel, in Zimbabwe.

15) Zimbo Jam's Events Calendar

Zimbo Jam is one of Zimbabwe's most popular arts, culture and lifestyle blogs and seem to constantly have their finger on the pulse when it comes to anything regarding music, festivals, carnivals or any other culturally significant event happening in the country. Of note are their comprehensive articles on HIFA - Harare International Festival of the Arts - Africa's largest international arts festival.

Home Hosted Dinner

Last night - the 4th of June - I had the pleasure of experiencing the Home Hosted Dinners that are available in Victoria Falls for tourists and locals alike. There is a small handful of families and hosts/hostesses that open their homes up to visitors who are looking for an authentic and personal traditional dining experience in one of the two high-density suburbs in Victoria Falls - Chinotimba or Mkhosana.

These families then prepare a traditional spread and treat their visitors to a warm welcoming home cooked meal of sadza (a traditional maize meal similar to polenta), chicken or beef stew, kail (a variety of spinach), carrots, green beans, kapenta (whitebait fish), and last but not least, a traditional favourite dried mopani worms - known as macimbi in the local Ndebele language. 

There are a handful of these dinners that occur every Wednesday evening across the two townships, and what I found most interesting is the conversation that was shared between the visitors (who are just absolutely fascinated by the traditional cuisine) and the hosts/hostesses - who gladly share, teach and explain the traditional township customs to the visitors - who on this occasion all happened to be from the USA. 

One of the comments which I could not help but to giggle at was one that went along the lines of "Goodness! - I can't beleive how well behaved your kids are!" 

Some of the families hosting the dinners have up to around 8 children and grandchildren living with them and indeed their behavior was something to behold when compared to Western-world standards! It was an evening full of questions, answers, laughter and chit-chat, all of the guests seemed to thoroughly enjoy their traditional meals, and some of them were even brave enough to try out a dried mopani worm or two!

Some may express concern about the safety aspect of having Westerners wonder through these parts of town - to them I simply say "try it and see!". All of the visitors who I spoke to were taken hugely by surprise at how relaxed, welcoming and happy the vibe is, unlike other parts of the world. Crime is very minimal in Victoria Falls, probably because of the nature of the people, who seem to have a really laid-back, loving, humorous and friendly approach to life.

A Home Hosted Dinner (or lunch, they also do lunches) is truly a must-do activity if you are keen to really immerse yourself into local customs, cuisine and culture. The vibe of these suburbs in the early evening really is a unique experience - the sights, sounds and smells of fires, evening church bands, urban chatter and of course the beautiful night-views over Livingstone which can be glimpsed at certain high points in the townships really do make for a fulfilling cultural experience. A huge thanks go out to the welcoming host families for opening up their homes in the name of cross-cultural education, experience, fun and food!