Sundays in My City--Lumangwe Falls

Before I get started, I want to answer some of your questions about our pool and the post I wrote here.

1. The giant rubber band is actually strips of inner tube tied together. These rubber strips are the go-to material for all the junior Macgyvers here in Zambia.

2. We haven't had too much trouble with gawkers but we try to swim at off hours--lunch time when everyone is home eating or napping or evening when people have left their fields and gone home for dinner. It helps that the pool is above ground because no one can see into the pool by just looking through the fence. There is the tricky moment when you have to drop your wrap before climbing and then descending the ladder but we are getting good at timing it just right.

Now, on to the main part of the post!

 

 Like I mentioned before, we had visitors last week. It was wonderful! and even better was getting the chance to take them to all our special places. On Monday we drove to Lumangwe and Kabwelume Falls. In my opinion these are some of the most breathtaking waterfalls in Zambia. We adore them!

The only reason we don't go to them every week is because they are a little bit far from our house. They are  80 miles (130 km) from our home. In a developed area this wouldn't be a problem but when half the trip is over a deeply rutted dirt road you rethink the drive. 

We piled 9 people into our Landcruiser and hit the road. The first half (while crowded) was nice. Then we got onto the dirt road. Everytime we hit a pothole we who were sitting in the back bounced all over--bumping into each other and nearly coming off our seats. We giggled a lot but by the end we were sore, sore, sore. 

The other issue was the dust. It is the dry season right now and all the fields are dried up and to add insult to injury they've been burned as well so the air is full of dust and ash. Landcruisers are not known for their good seals and it showed. 

 

These Bibles were brand new at the start of the trip. It's a good thing they were wrapped in plastic.

A shot of my leg--the 'bad tan' line is actually what was not covered up by my yoga pants. My face and chest looked just as bad.

It was wonderful to get to the end of our journey and see the water. The first waterfall has parking and picnic area at the top of the waterfall. The pleasant little river you see here tumbles along and empties over the edge of this:

 

Tom was standing right on the edge--just a few yards from where we were eating lunch. There are no guard rails or precautions. It's slightly scary but also nice to see the waterfalls in their natural, pure state.

 

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After lunch we walked down the ravine. Slipped and slid is probably more accurate. While not as difficult to do as when I came in rainy season and the ground was covered with mud and there were millipedes everywhere, it was still hard work. 

 

This is what greeted us at the bottom. Tom may or may not have tried to scale this rock face. Since his mom reads this blog I'll leave it open.

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Lumangwe Falls! Absolutely stunning!

We jumped right in to swim. It was wonderful to wash off all the dust.

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Our friend, Tommy, is not drowning. Have no fear. The current was strong and real swimming wasn't possible but it was refreshing and safe. The only problem was the dead monkey floating next to the rocks at the shore. Aren't you glad I didn't show you that picture? You're welcome.

 

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There were large rocks all throughout the area we were swimming in, so Tom asked me to sit on one for a while so he could practice camera angles and settings. The sun was behind me and I'm sure this could be fixed up in Photoshop or some such program but I'm not there yet.

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After swimming for awhile and then climbing (or crawling) out of the ravine, we drove for about 10 minutes to another waterfall called Kabwelume. We parked in the parking area and then took a pretty walk through the woods to get to this beautiful sight. 

 

 This is to the right of the waterfall shown above. With everyone walking around on the bluff you can see the magnitude of the waterfall.

 

 I leave you now with my favorite shot of the day.

Tom took all the photos in this post except the first two. 

He's a whiz with the camera and I love him for it.

Now, go check out other wonderful sights from around the world: