July 25 - Farewell to Zimbabwe - Hello Cape Town & Wine Country

Today we bade farewell to the wonderful staff at Zambezi Sands.  The entire crew spoiled us and made us feel like family from the professional guides Rob (walking expert), Clint (canoe expert), to the warm hearted staff headed by the lodge managers John & Nadia,  to the chefs who pampered us with delicious meals like fresh fish from the river, Zimbabwe beef filets, and pork tenderloins. 

We owe a very special thanks and debt of gratitude to Mark Butcher (Butch) who owns Imvelo Lodges and is our partner in Zimbabwe.  Butch was kind enough to personally guide our group through the Hwange and Zambezi portions and was absolutely fabulous with the kids - his energy and enthusiasm was boundless and we were so very privileged to travel with one of the pioneers of sustainable tourism in Zimbabwe.  

Butch’s efforts to build schools, support local communities, provide water holes and vet services for the animals, are phenomenal and we are proud to work with him and support his efforts in Zimbabwe.  In just the last 3 years Imvelo has sourced and provided over 5 million dollars in aid to the local community.  Good on you, Butch!  We will be back for more adventures!  If you would like to learn more about the good work that Imvelo is doing or would like to contribute please check out these links below.  The best thing you can do is actually come on a safari in Zimbabwe with us so you get to meet the community and personally experience the warm hospitality we enjoyed while supporting all these great projects.

 http://www.hwange-schools.com/how-you-can-help.html.  
To help the local schools...

http://www.d3foundation-africa.org 
To help with dentists and infrastructure (US tax deductible)

Imvelo safaris Community & Conservation link
To learn more about community and conservation efforts that Imvelo is contributing towards...