Drifters: The Last Resort

 

 The sign at the entrance to Drifters, 

on the Harare to Mutare road.

We said goodbye to Harare and drove to Rusape to meet up with Terry, Sue, Daniel, Margy and Bernard on our way to Mutare and Leopard Rock. Terry planned that we should stop off at Drifters on the way. For the uninitiated, Drifters is featured in the book, "The Last Resort: A Zimbabwe Memoir", by Douglas Rogers. It is an account of ordinary life for blacks and whites under Mugabe's dictatorship. Sometimes funny, and sometimes poignant, it documents the struggles of his parents to hold on to some of their land in the face of the, often violent, so-called 'land reform' programme in Zimbabwe.

Sue and Bernard arriving at the Poacher's Pub on Drifters.

 The rickety ramp, leading up to the Poacher's Pub

All our family has read the book, mainly because David's sister Sheelagh, brother Terry, and brother-in-law Brian James are mentioned in the book. So we were very excited to be visiting the place we had read about. Unfortunately, I was suffering from an extreme bout of travel sickness as a result of travelling along the bumpy, windy roads in the back of the Merc; but I still managed to get some photos.

The happy barman standing under the sign that says,

"Welcome to the Poacher's Pub"

 Enjoying a drink at Drifters

 We were amused by the lampshades made out of straw hats.

Leaving Drifters, we headed in convoy for Leopard Rock Hotel, where Brian and Lynne's wedding takes place on Saturday December 18th. I was only half surprised when we were cheerfully waived through all the road blocks and never made to stop once - even when entering Mutare, where the ZANUPF conference was being held! Obviously, white people are seen as no threat these days!

First Stop Harare, Zimbabwe

Our flight from Istanbul to Jo'burg went to plan, and David and I were able to meet up with Margy and Bernard in time for our flight to Zimbabwe. On arrival in Harare, there was a slight hiccough when the electricity failed, causing the baggage carousel to stop before we had secured our cases. But as no one else seemed too perturbed, we all just hung about until power was restored and we were able to leave the airport - welcome to Zimbabwe!!! Outside, we were met by Candiss, waiting to take us home to Tim and Flo's, and Terry, Lauren and Brian William, waiting to take Margy and Bernard back to Chitora.

Flo's garden was looking beautiful

There have been good rains in Zimbabwe this year and Flo's garden was looking very lush and green. This is such a tranquil spot that, if it wasn't for the far distant hum of city traffic, you could be deep in the countryside. We slept really well while staying with Tim and Flo, lulled by the sound of crickets, and the occasional tree-frog.

During our forays to Borrowdale Village we were really impressed by the vast range of goods for sale, even more than last year. It seemed that there is nothing you can't buy in Zimbabwe now, although at a premium. The American Dollar is still the main currency, although I have never seen such filthy notes anywhere else in the world - especially the one dollar notes - they were so disgusting that we didn't even want to put them in our wallets, and we were forever washing our hands.

I was intrigued to see this old post box in Borrowdale Village, 

dating from Southern Rhodesian days

We also visited Goliath Safaris' new premises. Last year, Flo showed us the building she was renovating to house their Harare offices. It has been transformed, as you can see from last year's and this year's photos!

 Flo's Offices 2009

 Same premises transformed, 2010

On Thursday night, Paddy and Irene came to dinner with Vic and Gwen,with whom they were staying. We had such an entertaining evening, everyone was in such good spirits. On Friday we began our journey to Leopard Rock in the Vumba, stopping off at Drifters, but that's another post.

Lunch at Angela's

While the fire was blazing at Haydarpaşa Railway Station, we were having lunch with Angela on Büyükada. We had such a happy and relaxing day meeting some of Angela's friends, and enjoying her hospitality.

Angela's welcoming front door on Büyükada

 Selin and Ciğdem show Kaya one of their published books.

Selin and  Ciğdem are researchers of historic buildings in Istanbul. When they have completed a project, they publish their findings in book form for the owner of the property. Their books are beautifully illustrated, and a wonderful record of their work.

Here we are enjoying a coffee after a wonderful meal.

Thank you Angela for a great day, we had a wonderful time.

 

On the way to Angela's house, we came across these two men mending a leak in a roof. They were three stories high, with no visible means of support, and certainly no safety equipment if they had inadvertently set fire to the roof! 'Elf and Safety? What's that?

Haydarpaşa Station Fire, Istanbul, Turkey

Having recently written about Haydarpaşa Station, I was shocked to hear that it caught fire last Sunday. The damage was quite extensive, although generally confined to the top floor and the roof. Here are before and after photos showing the damage.

Haydarpaşa Railway Station taken just days before the fire.

Haydarpaşa Station after the fire. You can clearly see 

where the roof has burned out. The interior of the top floor 

is also badly damaged.

To see dramatics pictures of the actual fire, follow this link.