I apologise in adance for all the mistakes in spelling, but Wellaz is dislexic and I cant always figure out how to spell things from his pronouncation
![:)](images/smilies/1.gif)
OK, here it goes, main tourist attractions in a beautiful country of Zimbabwe:
1. Hwange National Park - famous for its wild life - giraffes, rhinos, elephants and so on.
2. Just next to the Hwange National Park are magnificent Victoria Falls. The Victoria Falls are Zimbabwe's most celebrated spectacle. Measuring some 1.7 kilometres in width, with a drop of around 105 metres, an immense volume of water passes over the cataract at the height of the wet season, with a flow rate of about 550,000 cubic metres per minute. This massive rush of water sends a huge plume of spray into the sky, visible for miles and providing a stunning spectacle as you walk the paths which border the ravine.
3. The Ruins of Great Zimbabwe.
A little less than 30 kilometres beyond the south-eastern town of Masvingo are to be found some of the most extraordinary manmade remains in Africa.
Formed of regular, rectangular granite stones, carefully placed one upon the other, they are the ruins of an amazing complex. The structures were built by indigenous African people between AD 1250 and AD 1450 believed to be the ancestors of modern Zimbabweans.
The ruins at Great Zimbabwe are remarkable; lofty, majestic, awe-inspiring, timeless. The quality of the building in places is outstanding. It was built by craftsmen who took a pride in their work. There is nothing to compare with it in southern Africa.
The two main areas of stone wall enclosures are the Hill Complex, on the long, steep-sided granite hill and the land below this hill where the Valley Enclosures and the Great Enclosure are situated.
The stone walls, up to 6meter thick and 12 meter high, are built of granite blocks without the use of mortar. Two high walls form the narrow parallel passage, 60 meter long, that allows direct access to the Conical Tower.
The Great Enclosure is the largest single ancient structure south of the Sahara.
The legacy of Great Zimbabwe is widespread throughout the region. The art of building with stone persisted in following centuries so that dzimbabwe (a Shona word possibly derived from dzimba woye, literally 'venerated houses') are numerous.
There are at least 150 in Zimbabwe itself, probably as many as a hundered in Botswana, and an undetermined number, yet to be found in Mozambique.
Aspirant sculptors today use the same soapstone to carve copies of the same birds and this has helped launch a stone carving craft characteristically Zimbabwean.
4. Balancing rocks in Bulawayo (Matopus). There is also a grave of Cicil John Rhodes in the area - one of the first British settlers in Zimbabwe. Not to be missed - stone art:
5. Kariba dam and Kariba reservoir - It is one of the largest dams in the world at 128 m high and 579 m long. The Kariba supplies 1320 MW of electricity to parts of both Zambia (the Copperbelt) and Zimbabwe and generates 6400 GW·h (23 PJ) per annum (occurrence every year). Lake Kariba, the reservoir created by the dam, extends for 280 km with a storage capacity of 180 kmł.
6. Bumi Hills - The place where Tonga tibe still lives in their traditional ways (pretty much like the Indian Reserve in USA and Canada).
7. Heroes Acre - place of burrial of National Zimbabwean Heroes, who sacrificed their lifes in the struggle for independence (Second Chimurenga War) and since.
8. Mana Pools - possibly the wildest and most beautiful part of the country, Mana Pools is located on Zimbabwe's border with Zambia and is a wildlife paradise. Winding its way between the two countries, and forming an integral part of the park is the mighty Zambezi River. Third only in size to Gonarezhou and Hwange National Parks it covers some 220 000 hectares. This beautiful remote and rugged area is home to over 350 species of birds and most of the region's larger species of mammal, including the "big five".
9. Chinhoyi Caves - The main feature is the limestone cavern that was formed when the ground collapsed into a sinkhole. Now there is a hole that falls for twenty metres to the surface of a very deep cavern of water.
The deep blue pool beneath the sparkling cobalt surface is known as the Sleeping Pool. This is a euphemism – it was into this pool that Nguni threw their victims of battle. The Shona know it, slightly less euphemistically, as the Pool of the Fallen, in which many bones lie fathoms deep.
The cave is part of a larger underground waterway whose true extent is still unknown. The waterway leads from Bat Cave, a sub-chamber of Dark Cave, into which the sinkhole originally falls, to Blind Cave.
Daring (and qualified) divers can explore the Chinhoyi Caves from the other side of the water, but a peek into the enigmatic waters and lunch under the trees at the adjacent Caves Motel make for a pleasant pit-stop on the way to Kariba.
Thats all I know and all Welly would recommend. Now goodnight and see ya'all tomorrow
![;)](images/smilies/3.gif)