After my frightening encounter with the “cops” in Bulawayo, we drove out to the Matopos to a place called Shumba Shaba for a leadership summit with some of the local leaders working with Forgotten Voices. For Adam and I, it was a bit of a break from “work” and a chance to relax in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. Check it out…

A woman walking through the bush on the drive through the Matopos.

Ryan walking up the ridge at Shumba Shaba. The landscape was created from massive volcanic activity like a billion years ago or something. The landscape is like nothing I’ve ever seen before.

Sunset on our first night at Shumba Shaba

Our first morning, Adam & I both woke up at dawn to catch the sunrise. Here’s Adam, filming me taking a picture of him with the sunrise behind

The early morning light on the valley

Sunrise from my balcony

This is my AMAZING cabin. The cabins were all built into the rock, and most of us had these amazing views (though mine was admittedly one of the best :) from walls made entirely of glass. Part of the floor in my cabin was the rock below, as was part of my wall. It was really lovely. Too bad I’m a scaredy-cat and couldn’t sleep in there by myself… It was just TOO many windows and one too many field mice popping up out of the rocks in my bathroom to steal a granola bar. I made a mad dash to the main cabin to bunk with the guys. They thought I was nuts, but were nice enough not to make too much fun of me :)

A fence in the early light

One of the rescued horses on the property. They wander freely all over the place and are just beautiful.

One of the cabins from below

A cool rock

The tree canopy

More of the crazy volcanic landscape. These giant boulders are scattered randomly all over the place – sometimes stacked one on top of the other like God was building a tower of blocks or something.

The valley on the other side of the peak

The leaders praying for the nation, and for rain on the side of Shumba Shaba

Obert, one of the leaders at the Mtshabezi AIDS Project

Gordin, another leader at Mtshabezi

Pastor James from The Rock Church

The BEAUTIFUL sunset that evening

The horses in the valley below as the sun set

And then there’s me – in the side mirror of our van :)