It originated with the Danes and the Greeks and is a diminutive of the more formal Katherine.
Karen means “pure,” which points to the wonderful innocence of childhood and the loving, pure nature a baby embodies.
Karen has, in recent years, become a widespread meme referencing a specific type of middle-class white woman, who exhibits behaviours that stem from privilege.
She is often the first to speak up against any wrongs she perceives happening to her especially when people of colour are concerned.
If you were going to open up a shop, what would you sell?
Traditional foods and artefacts. I love finding out what our ancestors spent all their time doing to survive in a far more hostile climate. Would love to find out their herbs and spices and recipies for eating and treating. Find it fascinating.
Have you been to see this amazing work of art on the dam wall of Wellington dam. The second largest dam in Western Australia, fed by the Collie River. It was completed in 2021 by Guido van Helton and entitled Reflections.
Potters Gorge is a large campground in the Jarrah forest on the shore of Wellington Dam.
Bookings are essential and can be made up to 180 days (approximately six months) before arrival and for one campsite only.
Fifty-nine campsites of varying surfaces, sizes and layouts. Bookings are essential. Parking is a short walk from the camping area.
All campsites are unpowered.
Check campsite details and the campground map carefully when booking.
Facilities
Drinking water not provided. Rainwater may be seasonally available but supply is not guaranteed and treatment is required to make safe for consumption.
No-flush pit toilets.
Chemical toilet dump point.
Sheltered dining areas with gas barbecue, food preparation surfaces, dishwashing sinks with cold rainwater only (not guaranteed year-round), picnic tables.
All campsites have a picnic table and a fire ring.
Campground Rules
Campfires when conditions permit and in the provided fire rings only. Usual permitted season: April – November.
Chopped firewood may be available. Bring your own in case none is available. Collecting firewood and kindling is not permitted in national parks and other conservation reserves.
Dogs are not permitted.
Generator use is permitted at all campsites between 8am-6pm only.
Do not empty chemical toilet waste into campground toilets. Use the dump point or carry waste out of the park for disposal in an authorised dump point.
Fees
A per person camping fee applies. There is no vehicle entry fee for Wellington National Park.
Camping fee must be paid by Mastercard or VISA when booking.
Safety information
Drinking water is not provided. Rainwater may be seasonally available but supply is not guaranteed and should be treated to make safe for consumption.
No-flush pit toilets are the only personal hygiene facility.
December to April can be extremely hot and the risk of bushfire can be very high.
Nights can be cold from June to September.
Storms are common between May and October throughout WA.
Ensure you have sufficient supplies (including water, food, fuel, medication and first aid), and equipment and clothing appropriate for the conditions before travelling.
Be prepared for an emergency. For alerts, warnings and advice go to: Emergency WA
This is our way to let the World know of and show their support for our Golden Oldies still in Zimbabwe, whom we have been helping to support with food aid parcels and basic medical supplies for over 21 years.
Our Golden Oldies are part of an era that no longer exists. They stayed behind in the country they helped to develop, showing faith in a system, that not only let them down but totally ceased to exist.
They have lost everything. Farms, homes, life savings and in a lot of cases, hope.
The situation in Zimbabwe is dire with food either unaffordable or non-existent. Most of our Golden Oldies are not managing to afford their basic necessities including medication. The tales of sadness remain unheard and unattended.
This is where you can help, with your donations we show them that people all over the world still care about them. They may not necessarily be friends or family but there is a worldwide network of supporters who make what we do possible.
Please share this as far and wide as possible. Don’t forget to nominate/challenge your friends, co-workers, Church Groups, local Newspaper and so on. It truly is for a good and valid cause.
Our Various Banking Details:
Our new 2023 donate link to make things easier for donors around the world:
Please include name and ZPSF in the reference. Acknowledgement will be given in our quarterly newsletter. If a receipt is required, please let Doug know at admin@rhodesianassociation.com
UK ACCOUNT:
ZIMBABWE PENSIONER SUPPORT FUND
Barclays Bank, West Swindon
Sort code:20-68-15
Account No: 23398579
Swift Code is:BUKGB22
IBAN is: GB49 BUKB 20681523398579
Please can you email me at betiann1@sky.com so we can send you an acknowledgement of your kind Donation 🙏❤️
USA ACCOUNT
ZIMBABWE PENSIONERS SUPPORT FUND – USA
A Registered 501(c)3 organization. TAX-deductible receipts available for USA donors.
USA address to post cheques
PO Box 257,
Summerland
CA 93067
The USA now has Venmo for easier payments.
To request additional information, or receipts, from 1 April 2022 please email Caron atcaron.b@cox.net
SOUTH AFRICA ACCOUNT
ZIMBABWE PENSIONER SUPPORTER FUND
FIRST NATIONAL BANK
MALELANE BRANCH
BRANCH CODE 270952
ACCOUNT NUMBER 62239042906
SWIFT CODE FIRNZAJJ
Please can you email me at linda@zpsf.co.za so that I can send you an acknowledgement of your kind Donation. 🙏❤️
Thank you for your support towards our Golden Oldies, you make the Magic and we deliver it .
Doing what we say we do, real people helping real people.
As a Fund we rely solely on donations to do what we do. We receive no funding from any Government organization.
A huge THANK YOU to all our supporters out there who continue to enable us to keep doing what we are doing. Your support is invaluable to us and we at the ZPSF would never be able to sustain our regular supply of relief parcels if it were not for donations such as yours. You our Donors ensure our wheels keep turning, you are all truly amazing.
If you enjoy travelling around with us, perhaps you would like to stop at Zane Zimbabwe.
We lived in Lusaka for a short while, and on one of our trips along the Kafue River, sixty kilometers west of Chingola, we discovered the Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage, one of the largest chimpanzee sanctuaries in the world.
This orphanage is located 60 kilometers away from Chingola on the Solwezi road, and has cared for more than 145 chimpanzees since it was created by David and Sheila Siddle on their cattle ranch in 1983.
The start of the orphanage was not planned but rather developed out of necessity. One day, a game ranger brought a badly injured infant chimpanzee to the Siddles ranch. The Chimpanzee wasn’t expected to survive, but Sheila persisted and nursed the animal back to health.
This was the start of Chimfunshi, which very aptly means “place of water,” and today it is an internationally recognised sanctuary and rehabilitation centre. It is the only successful centre of its kind in the world, surviving on the tenacity and ingenuity of the Siddles, as well the financial support of well wishers.
Once, millions of chimpanzees roamed the forests of 25 countries in equatorial Africa. Today they are an endangered species.
Sheila recalls how the first chimp they called “Pal” immediately embraced her on arrival and quickly recovered. This news brought a flood of new chimp orphans to the farm.
Many were confiscated from poachers who tried to sell the infants as pets, but a large number were rescued from dilapidated zoos and circuses from all over Africa, Asia, Europe and South America.
The Siddles showed the chimpanzees love and care and gradually introduced them to the extended family at Chimfunshi, which is now home to over fifty chimpanzees housed in two enclosures, with cages for the new introductions.
During our visit we observed the chimpanzees closely and actually walked with them, held their hands, and carried the younger ones in the enclosure, closely watched by the guide. We couldn’t get over how similar we are and they were just like humans in every respect.
At one point, one of the cheeky chimps started to undo my buttons!!
Another grabbed my camera and was off into the forest. Luckily our excellent guide retrieved it for us some time later completely intact.
Many other animals have benefited from the Siddles’ care and attention. Antelopes, baboons, monkeys, tortoises, squirrels, bush babies, dogs and birds have all been found and nursed back to health at the orphanage.
A massive Hippopotamus called Billy (They didn’t know at the time that she was a girl), at about 10 days old, was rescued by game rangers who found her lying under her dead mother’s body and taken to the Siddles’ farm. The tiny calf had numerous wounds along her back and belly as a result of the hunters’ spears, and required constant attention to survive the trauma.
Now, weighing in at over 1,500 pounds she comes and goes but still graciously accepts two bottles of milk per day.
P.O. Box 3555, Kempton Park, 1620 South Africa. Fax: (011) 606-2492. Donations are urgently needed and can be sent to the same address.
And so I can safely say that in our short time in Zambia, we saw and experienced so much magnificent, pure and raw nature that it was truly an experience of a lifetime.
Zimbabwe is now a very sorry place to live. Where once professional people poured into Rhodesia/Zimbabwe and there was order and growth and development. Now it is totally run down with water and power cuts every week and costs soaring with inflation again reaching triple digits. Pensions are now worth nothing!
It is unbelievable how little the people left behind have, with very few commodities and a dire shortage of cash (no one has any!). The local currency (bond note) is recognized only in Zimbabwe and the exchange rate is astronomical for US1.
However, just back from a visit to my parents in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe in February 2023, and was delighted to see how Zane and Bulawayo Help Net were actually making a huge difference in the lives of many.
ZANE and Bulawayo Help Net, really do have the people at heart and often provide those who are left with absolutely nothing, some hope. They take time to support, visit and even have started a charity shop in Bulawayo, with the proceeds going to those most needy. A truly caring community.
If anyone would like to support these precious people.
Lying between Zambia and Zimbabwe,the Zambezi River, below the Victoria Falls, is one of the world’s most renowned stretches of white water in the world.
The rapids are mostly graded 4 and 5 (6 being impossible to run.) However, most of them don’t need much skill to handle and thus absolute beginners are allowed onto virtually all of the rafts.
You can find all types of accomodation here ranging from camping to 5 star hotels.
During high water there is a tremendous amount of spray and strong whirlpools and undercurrents. These are a sight to behold but can be very dangerous. However during low-water months (roughly from August to January) you can experience the play ground of the Zambezi.
You will have an ideal combination of unspoilt wilderness, some of the finest game and birdlife in the world, truly excellent river guides and a wide range of options to suit all tastes.
White Water Rafting
A typical rafting trip will start with a briefing, covering safety and health issues, giving the plan for the day and answering any questions. Once you reach the ‘put-in’ at the river, you will be given a short safety/practice session to familiarise yourself with the raft and techniques that will be used to run the rapids. Basically you just have to go with the flow 😆
A trained river guide pilots every raft, but you need to decide whether you want to go in an oar boat or in a paddle boat. In an oar boat expect to cling on for dear life, and throw your weight around the raft on demand – but nothing more. Oar boats are generally easier and safer because you rely on the skills of the oarsmen to negotiate the rapids, and you can hang on to the raft at all times.
Note that the climb up and out of the gorge at the end can be steep and tiring, especially in hot weather, Most companies offer a heli-raft combo, whereby you can opt to fly out instead at additional cost. Beyond the obvious advantage of ‘taking the easy way out’, the heli flight is an exhilarating end to an exciting day, zipping you out of the gorge with a bird’s eye view of the rapids you’ve just run and the Falls as well.
Rafting operators
There are a few white water rafting companies including Shearwater, Safpar Rafting and Shockeave adventures and they all offer different aspects of the river. Safety comes first and you have to have some level of fitness to attempt one of these unforgettable experiences.
The rapids are numbered from one to 23, starting from the Boiling Pot, so it’s easy to make a rough comparison of the trips on offer.
Canoe Safaris
For the Intrepid Traveler there are a number of Canoe safaris on offer.
All gear and provisions are carried in the canoes and overnight stops are made at specific camp spots on islands or on the mainland.
All meals are prepared by the guide and canoeists assist with camp chores (erecting tents, fetching water, cleaning up etc.).
Ablutions are rudimentary and sleep arrangements are two-man bow tents or under mosquito nets draped over a paddle. These safaris operate on both the Zimbabwean and Zambian shorelines.
Devils Pool
Swim to the edge of the largest sheet of falling water in the world on a tour that takes you to Devil’s Pool at the rim of Victoria Falls. A guided tour is the only way to reach this unique and thrilling natural infinity pool. Plus, a guide provides security and ensures you don’t take any unnecessary risks throughout the tour.
Hiking is an age old tradition and much has been discovered through this persuit. There are many walking tracks and guided tours around the Falls but be careful, as the animals might win in a confrontation 😮
Just as Rhodes and his crew did on first finding the Falls. Take the family for a ride around the Falls on horseback and experience history in its raw form, imagining what they must have felt like all those years ago, discovering ´the smoke that thunders’ and the great Victoria Falls. One of the seven wonders of this world.
Zanzibar is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, just off the coast of Tanzania and consists of many small islands and two large ones, Unguja and Pemba Island. The capital is Zanzibar City, located on the island of Unguja.
A beautiful tropical place to visit.
One of Zanzibar’s main industries are spices including cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and black pepper and Zanzibar is often called the “Spice Islands”.
There are also many fruits growing in this tropical monsoon climate and some of them we had never heard of before. Here are just a few.
Bungo Fruit · Durian · Baobab · Passion Fruit · Jackfruit · Bananas · Mangoes · Coconuts.
We found this little fella surprised to be photographed!!
The capital of Zanzibar is Zanzibar City, in which Stone Town is situated. It’s narrow streets, coral stone buildings and spice markets make it a wondrous place to explore and the city is a centre point of Zanzibari culture.
Fresh fish and meat! 😯
Stone Town is an UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is famous for the elaborate wooden carvings which can be found in the doors of most buildings in the city. The carvings are all subtly different in their designs, reflecting social status, ethnicity, and religion; some designs feature verses from the Quran.
The majority of the population are moslem with only a 1 % Christian minority.
Christ Church Cathedral and Former Slave Market Site
Stone Town was host to one of the world’s last open slave markets, presided over by Arab traders until it was shut down by the British in 1873. The slaves were shipped here in dhows from the mainland, crammed so tightly that many fell ill and died or were thrown overboard.
Flamingos are the most incredible wading birds. The name flamingo comes from Portuguese or Spanish flamengo which means “flame-coloured”.
Their bills are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from food and their diet is largely animal and plant plankton. The flamingos famous pink or reddish colour comes from carotenoids in their diet. It’s just like us feasting on hundreds of carrots!
Pink Flamingos at Sua Pans Botswana
While camping in Botswana, we managed to find the most beautiful and majestic playground for these birds and ourselves! The Makgadikgadi Salt Pans in Botswana are one of the most spectacular, ever changing, never changing places, gifted to us at no charge.
Boys at Sunset
At one time the enormous Lake Makgadikgadi covered over 30 000 square kilometers but now only the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans remain. A huge expanse of water, so surreal when the wind dies down creating the perfect picture.
The Makgadikgadi Salt Pan in Botswana is one of the largest salt flats in the world.
Beautiful Birds of Sua Pans
We often used to take the 230km trek from Francistown to the pans especially in Winter when the sun, which shone most days, warmed up those aching bones! It was actually surreal being in the middle of a huge dried-up lake with nothing but sand and salt and stark contrasts of pink, blue and green.
Sometimes, after the rains, the water level in the pans rose, but never too much!
Dancing with the sun
We found a double story wooden shack next to the pans from which we would escape the sun, on those hot days. Many happy memories!!
A Piece of Heaven
With nothing in the water to harm the little ones!
Riding free
And unlimited mud and salt to cleanse and purify the skin!
Campyourworld 