Rural Zambia has mud huts with straw roofs. The outskirts of Chirundu has two room houses, some even with oak panelled doors -- how bizarre. They still all stagger around with big yellow water barrels [on their heads] mind. The other bizarre thing about travelling through Africa is the the roadside towns all have tiny painted huts who claim to be "Samboka Number 1 Grocer." A hut, about the size of a garden shed in what must be a subsistence farming community (unless you sell roadside charcoal). Fancy being Samboka's number 2 grocer! There really was one, btw.
Stopped off at a very Westernised shopping mall in Lusaka -- Colgate 100g toothpaste about US$0.50. Beckham shirts and Irish pubs...
A steady drive along the T4, the Great East Road -- not particularly great but at least mostly east. Eastern Zambia has its flat moments but continues quite mountainous. It is a bit greener than what we've seen so far (well, the trees anyway) but when we stopped for lunch it was just as hot, dry, dusty and barren as anywhere else.
The day got a bit hotter (I think) and the number of houses increased quite a lot. At one point we passed through a large village (several hundred if not a thousand huts along the road) and I was wondering what they ate. We haven't seen many animals in Eastern Zambia. When the contents of a valley running parallel to the road appeared -- 12 foot maize plants.
Finally, we made it to Zulu's Kraal Camping and Laundry in Petauke. The local church group were just finishing off with a dance (a calypso beat arranged by Brother Moses)
Zulu's Kraal S14.29571 E31.33038 Elev. 987m.
Only 600m up [from this morning] and suddenly a clearish sky and a bit of wind and we're all (except Paul) freezing, clambouring into fleeces and in sleeping bags overnight.
Copyright 2002 Ian Fitchet. All rights reserved.