11th Dec pm: Further Insights

11th Dec pm  
There are no real motorways in Zimbabwe, so no quick 
routes and no driving in the fast lane .

Infrastructure:
Peak time is characterised by lots of horn beeping and curb driving. This is not a patch on some of the traffic in India, as seen on various tv documentaries  but definitely unsafe for bikes to weave in and out of. The grossly neglected roads are flanked by broken street lamps hence our  arrival on Monday along an extremely bumpy road with only pitch darkness to "welcome" us back home . The same traffic lights I left behind 18 years ago ( still barely standing) are covered in rust  and power cuts are almost a daily occurrence  . For this reason people keep their own diesel generators on standby at all times. Water is insufficiently treated. The government simply announced one day that it had run out of chlorine so people have to either boil their drinking water or fit chlorine filters to their taps (instructions which were only adhered to after a recent serious outbreak of cholera.)

I've already touched on the erosion of the public transport system.  I also found out that the  intercity train which regularly afforded me a relaxing overnight journey from Harare to Bulawayo,  is now only ever used by the severely desperate traveler and even then only  as a last resort.

My brother found out from his visit here about 2  years ago, that the only complete dual carriageway runs from Harare to Chitungwiza township, where Auntie J lives. There is another one that starts from the  city center and although intended to go all the way to Bulawayo, the opposite edge of Zimbabwe, it stops dead  just before Zvimba, 'coincidentally' the location of Bob's palace.

Economy:
In 2007 the trillion dollar note was introduced. It was worth 1 pound.
This well and truly sounded the death knell of the Zimbabwe dollar and the complete takeover of the US dollar. Immediately after that petrol became available at an affordable price and the economy began to stabilise.

However, before ordinary Zimbabweans could reap the benefits of US Dollarisation, the storage silos were yet again  found empty, when draught  struck in 2008. This robbed the nation of any respite from the the relentless struggle to survive in the face of  government  corruption and lack of investment. The rural poor died of malnutrition and the average  working classes were reduced to 1 meal per day. The mood was desperate but change was as elusive as ever if not short-lived.

Public services have all but disappeared, yet the present mood spanning Harare's social strata is one of resilience, driven by strong family ties and unrelenting optimism. In the absence of a social welfare state this could be viewed as a purely Darwinian survival instinct. However, even in these days of uncertainty, whatever the time of day, unexpected  visitors are as welcome as expected ones, as much for a hearty chin-wag as to share whatever there is in the cooking pot (usually sadza with savory vegetables, stew or both). I am thus reassured that the warmth of the Zimbabwean culture has not been diminished by a failed economy and  this inspires hope.

Back to the Homestead:

We visit cousin P in Braeside (formerly a predominantly mixed race neighborhood) to finalise memorial arrangements but it's like starting from scratch. We agree to drive around Harare with P and to later pick up Antie J (my mothers last remaining sister) from Chitungwiza township.

We start with Waterfalls (not Victoria Falls), the place where I spent my infancy with a brother and father (separated from my mother by the strains and restrictions of apartheid)  and later returned to as a university student. This once leafy middle class suburb is now occupied by the mechanical supplies and services  industry, hence the greasy, ram shackled and junkyardy appearance of our former garden. The original house still stands but each room is rented out by cousin P. He  faces a tough struggle every month to prize any rent money from tenants  and consequently has had their electricity supply cut off. But as a sure testament to the afore mentioned resilience  the mechanics on site are still in business using ramps, levers, pulleys and a selection of pre-industrial revolution methods to get the job done, albeit on Africa time like 'Come and collect your repaired van in 3 months time.’

I can still make out where the different rooms of my former home used to be and which parts of the yard once housed the goats, ducks  and chickens my father kept.  I am  pragmatic about the livelihood this place provides , despite the degradation.  My childhood here although filled with many happy memories, was far from idyllic so I'm happy to move on............except for 1 thing: Despite the fact that the mango, avocado and mulberry trees have  been preserved ,  I cannot hide my disappointment  that the tree I was most interested in, our rare guava tree which bore large, white, fleshy, juicy and sweet guavas has been replaced by a refreshment kiosk! (Heartbroken!)