This morning enjoy a private tour of Bulawayo, the 'City of Kings' with its wide streets and many old colonial buildings. The second oldest city in Zimbabwe (after Great Zimbabwe), this was the capital of the Ndebele people and home to King Mzilikazi, who founded the Matabele Kingdom and later King Lobengula. It later became the headquarters of the British colonial pioneering column.
Bulawayo is still an important junction on the railway line from South Africa to Victoria Falls and the capital of Harare. The Railway Museum is one of the best in southern Africa and has some beautifully preserved Grande Old Dame steam locomotives, as well as the original carriages used by Cecil John Rhodes and his De Beers diamond partners.
The Natural History Museum in Centenary Park is the largest and best in Zimbabwe, with impressive taxidermy displays that include a huge elephant, one of the first Coelacanth fish ever caught, a Dodo egg and an impressive collection of gemstones. You can also see artefacts from the stone walls and terraces of the Khami Ruins, a 15th-century archaeological site west of the city.
You can view the statue to Joshua Nkomo, a famous liberation leader who came from Matabeleland, and there is an interesting Art Gallery that showcases the work of local artists.
In the afternoon we travel 4-hours to Masvingo (formerly know as Fort Victoria) - the gateway to the famous Great Zimbabwe Ruins, the remnants of a great African civilization.
Dating from around the 11th century, these iron-age ruins have been the source of much speculation over the years. Built entirely from stone, without any mortar, the site covers over 1,800 acres (7 square km). Some of the walls are up to 5 metres high and are still standing after so many centuries. Eight carved birds were also found here, an image of which can be seen on the Zimbabwean flag.