Two months in and trip to Nyanga

Things are coming together in Zim. We've got all of our belongings and put some pictures up on the wall. We're doing a fair amount of cooking and enjoying the opportunity to introduce Ryo to the water in our pool. We've got a car finally – the Toyota Funcargo – so have been doing some more exploring (our bigger car is still in South Africa, awaiting shipment to Harare). We've been enjoying our friends and getting out to the odd barbeque ("braai") and social event occasionally. We're even getting used to our limited teleconnectivity, with our internet at home functioning an average of three days at a time – good thing we brought a ton of books!

I've finally started work and am loving it. I get to cover a huge range of environmental and development issues – from wildlife poaching to corporate social responsibility to developing a technology hub in Harare – which perfectly matches my generalist tendencies and broad interests. Nikki and I have even been able to collaborate on a number of projects, merging the public diplomacy and economic perspectives. What a fantastic opportunity! Nikki is working hard and is generally very busy. Although her office building is not the best (i.e. sporadic elevator functionality, frequent blackouts, limited workspace, and a HVAC system literally based on a termite mound – no, seriously), she has enjoyed meeting some incredibly bright and motivated Zimbabweans.

Ryo is growing like a weed and is in the 90^th percentile for height (and 20^th percentile for head size – ahem, suppose that's my fault). She is babbling all the time (mamama, baba, and "wet razzes"), drooling a lot, and just starting to develop fine motor skills. She's sleeping 6 or 7 hours in a row, so we're able to get a decent night's sleep (although the 3AM feeding/diaper change can be quire painful). It's only a matter of time before she goes mobile, so it's a good thing that she and Hina are getting along!

Last weekend, we took our first overnight trip out of town. We visited the Nyanga area, in Zimbabwe's Eastern Highlands, which reminds me a lot of Yosemite. Our inn was nestled into a hillside, overlooking a huge granite mountain rising from the high plain in stunning form. We did an afternoon drive around a private game reserve, an early morning hike to the top of a local peak, and a visit to ancient cave paintings. We even got some local culture at a weekend fair/barbeque where we enjoyed Castle beer and boerewors. Mostly, we did a lot of relaxing. Our little, low-clearance car performed great, despite the prevalence of rutted, dirt roads in the area, and next time we'll be able to delve deeper into the countryside with the assistance of a 4x4. I'm sure this is just the first of many great weekend adventures!!