We spend the morning relaxing at the lodge. Everyone in the family has a book they are engrossed in - except me. How does one be a teacher and a reader? Unfortunately, I often find myself so tired at the end of the day, that I cannot read more than a paragraph before falling asleep. I sit by the empty pool and edit the manuscript of my book. I enjoy doing it so it is not work.
On the way home, we visit the Painted Dog sanctuary; it is closed, but they let us see the dogs. They have quite an amazing setup and get funding from all over the world. The dogs are very lucky indeed, although they are still endangered animals.
At Gwaai River, we do what you have to do when you get to Gwaai River - buy a flower pot. There are several hundred to choose from. These people must have really suffered during lockdown with so few people being able to travel.
Further down the road, people sit selling piles of firewood. This always rings alarm bells and one wonders what the rate of deforestation is. Who can blame these people for what they do. The area is not good for farming anything except a few goats and there is no help from the government. I would also cut down trees if I had to feed my family.
We pull over onto the side of the road for lunch. Every main road in Zimbabwe used to have lay-byes for people to stop at. There would be a concrete table and chairs and a rubbish bin. Generally, they are found in shady spots under a tree. Now, they are a little worse for wear: many of the tables and chairs are broken, if they still exist and the rubbish bins overflow onto the ground. You have to be aware of broken glass and bottle tops when you get out the car. We tend not to stop at them, choosing anywhere else as long as there is some shade.
It is good to get home. The dogs go crazy when they hear the car. There is no electricity, but it comes on in the evening. I go to bed thinking that we must try to get away more often.
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