Peking to Paris 2016

Day 11. Mapungubwe to Matapos. 12th May. 309 kms On the road at 6.30am with a packed breakfast of Egg & Bacon pie, yogurt, fruit and juice. We were heading for our South African border crossing which all went very smoothly. The Zimbabwe crossing was much slower and Udo in car 5 was fleeced by the locals of 450 rands however the local police caught them and returned all monies. This was a much slower process with many forms and counters to go to. A very busy place and another new experience, as we were heading to our coffee stop a 1 km away the road conditions, litter, people and housing conditions we new we were in a different country. The boom gate man welcomed us with “Refreshing morning” and so did all staff coffee and tea was welcoming plus good to catch up with the crew. It was lovely to see this new hotel however the way this was built it would be unlikely it will be around in 5 years. We headed of again hoping to find a lunch stop at the different shopping areas but this was not going to happen a lot of empty building gone to ruins so Muslei bars, pop corn and fruit were on the menu. Police were a major stop in this country where today we had encountered 9 stops plus 2 of our rally members had received speeding fines. Toll gates at $1.00 American dollars will also be encountered as we travel through Zimbabwe. Arrived at Matapos National Park to find a huge marquee with a lot of small tents situated around the area, this was a sleeping quarters for the night with wild dogs and leopards. A lot of disgruntled people however for me camping has always been a lot of fun. We headed off to Cecile Rhodes Grave stone by bus and had afternoon tea and nibbles watching the sunset upon the rocks. Awesome sight and a very spiritual feel about the place. Back at camp Bruce and I decided to have an early night and miss tea.