Bulawayo (Zimbabwe)
According to babyinger, Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe. It is a commercial, industrial and tourist center. The surroundings of Bulawayo are more interesting, however, in the city itself there are several museums worth visiting. One of them is the National Museum of Zimbabwe History. The museum’s collections are presented by topic: entomology, geology, herpetology, ichthyology, mammology, ornithology and paleontology, galleries are also popular, where exhibits are exhibited that tell about the history of Zimbabwe. Bulawayo has a Railroad Museum with exhibits dating back to the earliest days of railroad history.
The main attraction of Bulawayo are the nearby ruins of Hami. They are located 22 km west of the city and are considered the second largest ruins in the country. This complex was built between the 15th and 17th centuries in honor of King Lobengul and was used as a ceremonial site. Now the ruins are a system of terraces and passages, which are surrounded by powerful walls. Matobo National Park (Matopos) is located 32 km from Bulawayo.. It includes stone formations and caves with cave paintings of ancient tribes. Matobo stone formations change their shape and seem to move. This happens as a result of wind erosion, which has been shaping the local landscape for more than 3 million years. The park is rich in diverse bird species and includes a large population of black eagles. Here you can meet baboons, monkeys, leopards, saber-horned antelope, beizu antelope, white rhino, wildebeest and zebra. The most popular spot in the park is Malindijimu Hill. Locals consider this hill sacred because good spirits live here. In the vicinity of the hill is the grave of Cecil John Rhodes (British imperialist), who wished to rest here.
Also around Bulawayo you can go to the Chipangali Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mzilikazi Art and Folk Art Center with a collection of ceramics, African folk art, sculptures and art galleries, and the Tshabalala Wildlife Sanctuary.
Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe)
Victoria Falls is a small settlement in the northwest of the country near the Victoria Falls on the border with Zambia. It is considered the capital of extreme sports in Africa. After all, here at Victoria Falls you can make a bungee jump from a 111 m high railway bridge, as well as go rafting on the Zambezi River.
Victoria Falls – the main attraction of Zimbabwe. It is divided into five separate streams with a total length of 1800 m, and the height of its ledges reaches 120 m. The waterfall was discovered by explorer David Livingston in November 1855 and was later included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. When the Zambezi River is full of water, every minute the waterfall overthrows about 500 thousand cubic meters. m of water, so March (the end of the rainy season) is considered the best time to travel to it. The spray rising up is visible 30 km from this place and resembles a haze, because of this, the indigenous people call the waterfall “smoke that thunders”. Often a rainbow appears over the waterfall. The most popular flights over the Victoria Falls are in small planes called “flight of the angels”. Not far from the waterfall there is a monument to David Livingston and a huge baobab, whose age is 2000 years.
Just a few kilometers away is the Zambezi National Park, home to elephants, hippos, crocodiles, zebras and exotic birds, as well as herds of the rarest saber-horned antelope.
South of Victoria Falls, you can go to the largest National Park in Zimbabwe – Hwange. Its area is 14651 sq. km. Hwang has one of the largest African elephant and buffalo populations. At the end of the dry season (September), you can see herds of 100 elephants on the banks of the local reservoirs. Among other animals living in the reserve, there are lion, eland, giraffe, rhinoceros, zebra, saber-horned antelope, where and beyza.
Harare (Zimbabwe)
Harare is the capital of Zimbabwe and the starting point for a trip to the National Parks. It is a quiet, peaceful city that is full of parks and vegetation. The Queen Victoria Modern Museum and the Art Gallery are located here. The Modern Museum has collections that tell about the history of the country, as well as rock art of the Shona people. In the Art Gallery, you should definitely look at the painting by Thomas Bynes depicting the Victoria Falls. Thomas Bynes was the first artist to depict the beauty of the falls. Recreational Park Robert McIlwain, Lions and Cheetahs Park are suitable for recreation in Harare, the Larvon Bird Gardens, the 68-hectare Botanical Gardens, where about 900 plant species can be seen, and the Mukivisi Gardens, with a wide variety of animals and 230 bird species. In the southwestern part of the city rises Spear Hill, which offers a beautiful view of Harare and its surroundings. Chinhoi is located 71 km north of Harare. In history, he is known for the battle between the indigenous population and the white colonists in 1966. Chinhoi Caves National Park is interesting here. This is an area of karst formations that have been formed as a result of erosion. In one place of the park, the soil fell to the bottom of the cave and formed a hole 20 m deep, at the bottom of which there is a lake.
