Farewell, Zimbabwe, farewell...

It is with sadness that I note my time in Zimbabwe has come to an end and this will be my last post on the beautiful country.  In honor of the wonderful experience I've had living in Harare, this post is a collection of my favorite photos from my time wandering Harare and beyond.

Curious what my favorite photographs from living in Senegal were? Go here!

Curious what my favorite animal photographs were? Go here!!

In no particular order, my favorite photographs of Zimbabwe, chosen from well over 10,000 photographs (wow!):

Hwange National Park in the rainy season - Adios, Hwange!

A hippopotamus yawns at sunset over the Zambezi River in Mana Pools National Park - A Mana Pools Smorgasbord

As dusk approaches over Lake Kariba, fishermen take to the water - Sunset over a drowned forest

Victoria Falls at Christmas time, the height of the rainy season - A Victoria Falls Christmas (Part Deux)

Sunset in Hwange National Park - The Return to Hwange

I originally captioned this photo: "After seeing this view in Chimanimani, I knew I had fallen in love with Zimbabwe." - Au Revoir, Chimanimani, I will return...

Harare's jacarandas in bloom at sunrise - Harare in the bloom of the jacarandas

An elephant at sunset, Lake Kariba - Take my breath away: Drowned forest sunset

Sunrise over the pan in Hwange National Park - The Hwange smorgasbord

Victoria Falls at sunrise. Beyond amazing. - Take my breath away: The Victoria Falls sunrise and lunar rainbow edition

Mosi-oa-Tunya: The Smoke That Thunders

After an exhilarating helicopter flight over Victoria Falls, we visited the Falls at sunrise.

Every trip to the Falls has been so unique for how it looks, how it feels, how it awes.

But sunrise, oh sunrise, by far is my favorite time to visit.  I fell in love with it at sunrise on this trip.

In all my visits, I'm surprised I've never showed you this in its both amazes and terrifies:
the fence that keeps you from going over the edge into the Falls at certain vantage points.

These thorns won't stop anything if you're really heading over.

This trip was blessed by so many rainbows. Stunning.

Be still my heart!

The sunrise.

Oh, Victoria Falls, you never disappoint.

Snapshots from the Air: Flying Over Victoria Falls

While visiting the wonderful Victoria Falls town in Zimbabwe, we soared over the Falls.

Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, is awesome.
Awesome as in the genuine definition: inspiring awe.

Taking a helicopter over the Falls runs away with your imagination and captures the beauty of this world.
It is easy to understand why David Livingstone wrote after seeing it that
"scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight."

I've visited the Falls many times; each time is different and leaves me so wonderfully content.
No painting, no photograph I've seen captures its majesty and its indescribable ability to make you feel both tiny and happy.

They also never capture just how ginormous Victoria Falls is. Because it is.  Even that's an understatement.
The other name for Victoria Falls, Mosi-oa-Tunya ("The Smoke That Thunders") is somehow also an understatement.

Here's a video from my flight, look how it dwarfs nearby roads, that building at the bottom corner?
That's a lodge to give you a sense of its immensity.

Oh! Be still my heart, how beautiful the world is.

This was at a drier point of the season and it can still be seen so far away!

Our sweet ride.  It went too fast.

Leisure at the Victoria Falls Hotel

While on a visit to Victoria Falls, I enjoyed the loveliness that is the Victoria Falls Hotel.

The hotel is a remnant of colonial times, now a lovely tucked away spot overlooking Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.

What a serene spot to escape the African heat!

Good friends, good tea, and the roar of the Falls = lovely.

The hotel is wonderful for its attention to detail, its historical artifacts, and its stunning view.

Isn't this Bird of Paradise just stunning?  Zimbabwe is full of such colorful, beautiful flowering trees and plants.

I may have started to dose here while listening to a pianist.  Just perfect.

Take My Breath Away: The Victoria Falls Sun Rise and Lunar Rainbow Edition

Recently I visited Victoria Falls to watch the sun rise.

Zimbabwe's Natural Wonder of the world did not disappoint.
It always leaves me in awe.

The sun rose slowly behind the water, changing the mist from a deep, dark black,

to a cloud of white mist

that began to light up the sky in shades of pink, white, orange, and black.

At 0600, there is no one in the park. It's amazing to have one of the world's most beautiful places to yourself.

The mist from the Falls.

The sun trying to emerge.

Then BAM! It's like a blast of colors that are stunning from the sun rising on the Zambian side,
enveloped in mist when viewed from Zimbabwe.

Amazing, just amazing.  No photo I've seen ever captures the wonder of the Falls.
See that? That's the sun.  That's right, a huge massive African sun and that's all you see through a wall of mist.

One of the few places in the world where lunar rainbows exist: Victoria Falls at full moon.
Here's a photo of the 'super moon'...all I have is my memory of the lunar rainbow (no photos!):
one of the most stunning experiences of my life, to see double rainbows at night, illuminated by the moon,
falling gracefully over the falls while the water seemed to glow.

Here's an idea of what the lunar rainbow looks like:

Photo credit.

Go, go, go, if you ever have the chance.  Go at dawn; go at a full moon. Just go.

Victoria Falls: The Rainy Season Natural Wonder of the World

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, during the rainy season.

There is sooo much water, it's amazing.

Look at how different this same spot looks in the dry season.

No painting or photo I have seen of Victoria Falls has ever captured (in my opinion) the jaw dropping awesomeness of seeing it in person.

It literally takes your breath away.

This spot looks so different in the dry season!

The Falls need to be added to your bucket list of places to visit. Right now.  Actually it should have been done yesterday.

The Falls from town.

How insane is that amount of water?!  It is so cool.

You won't be disappointed in a visit.