Journey to Kufunda Village

It’s been nearly 6 weeks since our family completed an eight-day journey from our home in Cape Town to our new (temporary) home at Kufunda Learning Village just outside Harare, Zimbabwe. So, this story is a little overdue, especially since there is so much to say about our experience here since we arrived.





But let’s begin with the journey itself, which started most perfectly on New Year’s Day 2022 at 5:00 am in the morning. With the long road ahead, we were slightly worried about crossing paths with drunken New Year’s Eve revelers so early in the morning, but the roads into the Northern Cape were quiet. We left Cape Town being well-aware of the many uncertainties around travelling and crossing land borders in the Covid era. There was very little information available about which land borders to Zimbabwe were open, and what sort of conditions (PCR tests, vaccinations, quarantine periods and other paperwork) were in place on the ground at the borders. After some lengthy investigations and seeking out some people with local knowledge, we discovered that the only Zim border open to tourists was the Kazungula border, up in the northwest corner of Zimbabwe, which meant we had to also cross into Botswana. It also meant that we had the opportunity to visit Victoria Falls (if we made it across the border and didn’t have to return to Cape Town and follow Plan B). Without being totally sure how it would pan out, we took our chances, and the gamble paid off – it turns out the official regulations can differ substantially from what one finds at the border – the borders to Botswana and Zimbabwe were efficient, hassle free, and the officials were incredibly friendly!

The 3500 km trip was long, but fun. We made use of some good sightseeing opportunities along the way. Firstly, Mokala National Park (the highlight was seeing a tortoise and a hare hanging out together – not joking!), and a night in a rowdy motel in Kimberley. We had to time our Covid PCR test just right so that we could make it to Zimbabwe within the 48-hour window from testing to crossing the border into Zimbabwe, so we had half a day to explore the Big Hole at Kimberley.




Straight after our tests were done, we drove through to Mahikeng. The SMS with negative results arrived at 3 am, so we piled the sleeping kids into the car, woke a very gracious guest house manager to ask if he could print our results, and gapped it to Botswana. A quiet, early morning border crossing at Ramatlabama was a pleasure and we headed north towards Gaborone and then Francistown along the A1 highway.



Long days of driving through Botswana to avoid getting more Covid tests done!


It was Stephen’s birthday, and we felt like we were in a déjà vu situation, as his birthday in 2021, January 3rd also involved a large amount of driving across vast distances in Namibia! Beyond Francistown and on mostly good roads, we were delayed slightly by a potholed and truck-filled section to Nata, so we treated ourselves to a night in a safari tent and an incredible dinner at Nata Lodge. Jacqueline and Stephen had visited Nata about 12 years before and our most vivid memory was seeing a 1.5-meter Puff Adder slithering past our tent in the campsite. Unfortunately, we didn’t see any snakes this time, but there were some incredible birds. 

Toilet stop in a thunder shower. We had to share this baobab tree with some soaked goats!

Driving north, the cows that one is accustomed to seeing along Botswana’s highways were replaced by elephants. We arrived at the Zimbabwe border with a couple of hours to spare, crossed our fingers and hoped for the best. After completing the necessary paperwork and border checks we let out a few celebratory shouts and high-fives and followed the elephant-lined road through Zambezi National Park to Victoria Falls.

The two nights we spent camping in Victoria Falls were well worth it, what an incredible place. Highlights were the Falls (of course), a leopard we spotted on a road just out of town, and the huge swimming pool at the Vic Falls Rest Camp campsite – the kids basically swam the entire time that we weren’t at the falls. Victoria Falls is 1,7km long and has a constant mist rising up which sustains a small rainforest on its opposite edge of the cleft formed by the falls. We got soaked from the rain that falls upwards!





It was sad to see this vibrant tourist town so quiet and the local economy struggling in the wake of the travel restrictions. Contrary to what one would read in any recent travel advisory, Zimbabwe was proving to be a safe and welcoming place with friendly, warm and resourceful people doing everything they can to survive in a decimated economy.



Behind Stephen you can see the 'Smoke that Thunders' - the mist rising up from the Victoria Falls




Gabriel loved watching the bungy jumpers swing from the bridge crossing from Zimbabwe to Zambia


Next stop was the famed Hwange National Park. Another victim of a battered economy and senseless travel restrictions, the park was in slight disarray with most of the state-run camps closed due to a lack of functioning infrastructure, including no water at the main camp. There were clearly no funds available for basic maintenance. We had to quickly explore other options that weren’t the high-end luxury (and very pricey) safari lodges in and around the Park. After some generous assistance and advice from one of the lodge owners, we found our way to a private bush camp called Tuskers. What an incredible place. A proper wild camp just outside the unfenced border of the Park where elephants, hyenas, lions, buffalo all roam freely.



Close encounters with some big mammals




Christmas tree lights came along with us to add some sparkle to our nights in the tent :)


We did a day visit to Hwange, grossly underestimating the time it would take to complete the loop, but it was beautiful. Carmine Bee-eaters in their hundreds, a lone male Lion right next to the road, and plenty of Kudu, Elephant, and Buffalo, and other animals.


Don't disturb the king....


Next stop was Kufunda, which is about 25km south of Harare. We were quite fed up with driving by now, but this would be our last day of car time before we didn’t have to drive anywhere for a while. We packed up our tent and ourselves in the middle of an all-day rain storm and left early on the 8th of January. Our early start from Tuskers was delayed by 3 elephants that weren’t keen at all on letting us through the only road out. We eventually got through, but they still gave us a mock charge to remind us who’s in charge around these parts. The rest of the day we traversed the country, traveling in thunderstorms and rainy conditions most of the day, driving via Bulawayo to Harare, and after navigating the last stretch along some pretty dicey roads, we arrived just after sunset on at our new home. We received a warm welcome from the folk at Kufunda, some friendly dogs and a somewhat less warm welcome from the 2 former racehorses grazing in the large woodland paddock next to our cottage. But there will be more about woodlands and horses in the next instalment :)




After 3500 km, we finally arrived at our new home!