January 31

I leave for Harare on the bus at 7.30 am.  I feel I am going away for months when I will actually be back on Wednesday!  Over the last few years, I have become increasingly claustrophobic and dread going on buses and planes.  I try the techniques my yoga teacher has taught me and do actually feel better.  

At the risk of sounding smug, I notice that I am the only person, as far as I can see, reading a book.  Everyone is on their phones.  The lady next to me has two phones which she juggles with a toddler.  The little girl hardly makes a sound the whole way to Harare.  She is either asleep, eating or playing on one of the phones.  It really does make me very angry to see parents give their children phones to keep them quiet.  I don't think quiet is always a good thing either.  Children should be inquisitive, not semi-comatose.

Another thing that bothers me - I'm in that sort of mood - is the meal of greasy chicken and chips that is served half way to Harare.  I really feel that we are descending into some sort of technological, take away neanderthal state as human beings. I choose to have the vegetarian option which is a fried egg roll - with chutney!

In Harare, there are riot police chasing people down the road near where the bus stops.  According to a man I speak to, it is because the police are trying to stop kombi drivers from just stopping anywhere.  It sounds like they have good intentions, but why are they chasing pedestrians?

My brother-in-law is about an hour late to fetch me as a number of traffic lights are not working and the intersections are chaotic.  It's every man for himself without thinking about whether they are blocking the road or not.  As a result, we take the scenic route out of Harare which means we are in Marondera by half past four.  I cannot believe how Harare has spread so that Ruwa is no longer a separate town.  It seems like everyone is building a house and I fear the lovely countryside will have vanished in a few years. A lot of the land is owned by corrupt land barons who have bought the land with US$ loans from the reserve bank which they will pay back in bond notes at the bank rate.  

It is great to see my sister again after almost a year.  We spend the next few hours catching up and sharing news.