Mukuni Village and Victoria Falls

Trip Start Jul 09, 2008
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Trip End Jul 30, 2008


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Saturday, July 19, 2008

In the morning we left the boys to chill out at the lodge and we took a trip to Mukuni Village. John was our guide and he told us about the fact that there had been a village here since the eleventh century. In fact, Livingstone had met a chief of the village under a large mango tree that still survives today. About 8,000 people live in Mukuni, many in the 100 or so satellite villages. It is home to the Leya or Tokaleya people as they are now called. There are two palaces the Lumpasa for the male ruler and Nanjina for the female co-ruler Bedyango. The female ruler has much more managerial power whereas the male ruler is more of a judge settling disputes. She can decide who he marries as it is his heirs that inherit the throne not hers. Their spouses have no authority at all. There are 12 men on the village ruling council and a Prime Minister is chosen from one of them by the Queen. They have different seniority and interestingly a better chair in the King's throne room depending on this. Surrounding the King's Palace is a thatched fence with three lines woven into to it to signify the King, Queen and Prime Minister Neighbourhood watch
Neighbourhood watch
 . The King and Queen no longer live in the traditional palace's and have since upgraded to more modern concrete housing complete with satellite dish.

In the village there is a neighbourhood watch building that doubles as a small prison to lock up anyone who is drunk. The beer here is made from millet and is more like porridge in consistency, but quite potent and those women who make it well are considered quite a catch. Most people live in round thatched mud huts with a small garden often containing a vegetable area and a chicken coup. 

In the first year of marriage a couple live with the wife's parents then the husband's parents so that they are granted approval to set up their own place to live. If for some reason your in-laws don't like you it may be the end of the relationship. The type of house you build reflects your status. Those with corrugated roofs have a high status although it must make the houses hot in summer, cold in winter and noisy when it rains. Many have made money from making crafts and selling to the tourists. Numbers of pigs, goats and cattle also denote status. 99% of the village is Christian and we noticed quotes from the bible chalked about. Few crops grow here as the soil is poor and the rainfall is slight so things like millet are grown which are suitable for this climate. Other provisions that cannot be grown are bought in from Livingstone and we noticed a small stall selling things like sugar. Many of the food was divided into smaller amounts to sell.

When the King dies a small piece of his genitals is cooked and eaten by the new King and this is known as the stone of power!

In the afternoon we drove the short distance to the falls Mukuni King's Palace
Mukuni King's Palace
 . They were everything we thought they would be. Mosi-oa-Tunya is the name used by the local people and stands for the smoke that thunders. The falls form the largest sheet of falling water in the world and are an amazing sight stretching 1,688m wide and just over 100m in height. An incredible 750 million gallons cascades over its lip every minute during its peak. The paths within the park take you very close to the falls and to the different areas as the falls are split into smaller waterfalls by small islands - Horseshoe Falls, Rainbow Falls, Devil's Cataract. During the day the sun creates rainbows over the falls as the sunlight is reflected in the mist. You cannot avoid getting wet here as the mist blows up all around so make sure you keep camera equipment protected. Sam and George walked across the swaying bridge but it looked rather frightening and slippery, so Andy and I stayed back taking photos of them with the excuse that it would wreck the cameras if we were to follow. They came back absolutely soaked.

The falls are very close to the Zimbabwian border and we noticed the long queues of lorries and passengers waiting to go across. There was no hint of any trouble though. The craft market just outside the falls is full of carvings and paintings. Personally I am absolutely awful at haggling finding the whole experience embarassing and left it to the boys to buy a few souvenirs. The clever ploy by the stall holders is to get the next stall to wrap up your purchase so that you are then invited to buy something from them. Copper bracelets are handed out freely and make you feel beholden, but if you set a price in your mind and don't exceed it then you can get some bargains. Beware the ebony carvings though, as these are mainly blackened with boot polish.! My lovely 'ebony' carved necklace was almost white by the time I returned home.
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