November 16, 2025
To Bulawayo
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Jabulani Lodge nestles amongst 1400 hectares of Msasa tree woodland. Surtounding Jabulani is a cattle farm, run by same family that run the safari lodge. Anyone familiar with Zimbabwean politics will know that farm ownership has been controversial in recent decades. After independence in 1980, Robert Mugabe's ruling party seized all white-owned farms and leased them back to their "owners" who Mugabe claimed had stolen this land from Africans at the start of colonisation. I was conscious that I had just spent a night on one such farm. As the rain fell just after 7:30 am, farm worker Len drove me, my bike and panniers to Insiza where I would restart my ride. I took the opportunity to quiz Len about the farm. He was more than happy to discuss it. He confirmed that farmers had to lease the farms from the government as part of Mugabe's land reforms. So farmers could use the land, profit off the land, live on the land, but they had to pay rent for the privileges granted, and crucially, they would never own the land. A part of me agreed with the government's leasing scheme.
I was back on the road, my mind buzzing with thoughts about farms and leases and what's fair and what's not. As always, my thoughts made the kilometres pass quickly as I pedalled my way South. Dark clouds loomed in the distance and the wind direction changed against me. With 7km left to Bulawayo, the heavens opened and I gott soaked to the bone. It was warm rain though, and it was done in 10 minutes. The sun came out, and I was warm and dry(ish) by the time I got to Bulawayo city centre.
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe and the largest in the Southern region of Matabeleland. It has wide streets, shopping malls, street vendors, much like Harare, but lacks economic opportunity and vigour. In the centre of town stands a statue of Joshua Nkomo, the leader of the Ndebele people and main opponent to Robert Mugabe back in the day. This statue replaced that of Cecil John Rhodes, the coloniser after whom Rhodesia was named in the 1800s. I did a short bike tour of the city centre just to take a few photos. The wide streets were surprisingly sparsely populated in what was once the industrial hub of the country. There are many old colonial buildings still proudly standing, now being used for more Zimbabwean functions such as the Supreme Court, the Reserve Bank and Bulawayo railway station. I decided to stay in one such colonial building: The Bulawayo Club. This was a members only club housed in a magnificent white building with wooden floors and wide staircases linking its three floors. Established in 1895, and once a gathering venue for the elite, it is now a hotel, but has maintained its character from the early 1900s. Its walls are covered with photographs taken in the early days of Rhodesia, when King Lobengula ruled these lands. I was fascinated to look at each photo and ponder the story behind each one. I was staying the night in a museum!
Today's ride: 82 km (51 miles)
Total: 483 km (300 miles)
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