Hi Todd and Christina,

Here's an alternative take....

I rode through Zim a couple of months ago and as far as I know the situation hasn't changed a lot since then.

I'm sure a lot of people there are going through real hardships but for the visitor things aren't too bad. The border with SA (Beitbridge) is fairly quiet and you should be through it quickly either way. I crossed out into Mozambique through the Mutare border and that was equally easy. I stayed in the countryside and think it might be better to avoid Bulawayo and Harare but overall I found people incredibly friendly and didn't get any hassle at all. I found petrol though it was fairly heavily cut with kerosene. Food is also available in a good few restaurants and it tends to be under the counter in shops. The trick to getting what you need with fuel and food is to hang around a bit, have a drink and chat to people and then ask them for what you need.

Only snag is that visiting Zim is altogether quite an expensive exercise - quite a few taxes at the border and an expensive visa plus you are supposed to pay for all accommodation in hard currency at a very punitive exchange rate.

Overall though it was a highlight of the trip and a great experience and I would advise anyone not to be put off visiting. People were genuinely happy to see a tourist.

Cheers

Richard

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