Harare Warnings Or Dangers

In quite a few hotels they will charge more money if they know you are a tourist. If you have a relative or friend in Zimbabwe try to let them book hotels and buy things. If they hear an accent they will often try to raise their prices or rip you off.

This beautiful and great country has been through turmoil in the past years. You will know what has been happening. An important word of advice: As a foreign traveller always remember you are a guest in a country which pays absolutely no attention to International Law. Dont come to the country and try and be a Che Guevarra or Nelson Mandela and try and fight the law. This is not a democratic country and as a foreigner always remember this Government will not tolerate any slight form of criticism, keep it to yourself. There is a big military and police presence so go along with them, share some humour with them and treat them as friends and you will see you get away with much more than just speeding tickets and parking fines! Don't be the good little citizen and resist a casual request for a Coke and a bun - show him a bit of sympathy for the heat. Have fun, be nice and use this kind of law enforcement to your advatntage

This beautiful and great country have been through turmoil in the past years. You will know what has been happening. An important word of advice: As a foreign traveller always remember you are a guest in a country which pays absolutely no attention to International Law. Dont come to the country and try and be a Che Guevarra or Nelson Mandela and try and fight the law. This is not a democratic country and as a foreigner always remember this Government will not tolerate any slight form of criticism, keep it to yourself. There is a big military and police presence so go along with them, share some humour with them and treat them as friends and you will see you get away with much more than just speeding tickets and parking fines! Don't be the good little citizen and resist a casual request for a Coke and a bun - show him a bit of sympathy for the heat. Have fun, be nice and use this kind of law enforcement to your advatntage

As a white local I can confidently say that Harare is among the safest cities in the world. It is a nation filled with the nicest people in Africa. Unfortunately, the people have been persuaded through propaganda that white people are bad news for them and are horrible and only keen to oppress. However, fortunately very few of the locals have taken to this ridiculous propaganda enforced by the government. So, in order to have a great stay in Harare treat the locals as friends and on an equal level. Dont be rude and you will be treated as friends otherwise you may find yourself being percieved as what they are forced to believe in the propaganda and this could land you in a very vulnerable position.

One warning about this and all hotels in Zim. Do not charge anything to your room, if you do you will be made to pay for it in US$ at the "official rate" on check out.

The official rate is currently US$1 = Zim$250 so if you you have a meal for Zim$2500 you will pay US$10 on check-out

The unofficial rate is US$1 = Zim$1100 so if you pay cash for a Zim$2500 meal you will have effectively paid US$2.30 for the meal.

This is similar, but separate, to what my previous post was. Never, ever, ever stop your vehicle around the President's palace. Intentionally or not! Even if your car breaks down in front of the palace...hurry up and push it as fast as you can out of there. Even if it is not your fault, the guards might come after you and harass you, or worse. The President's guards forced a group of schoolchildren (who I know through friends) on a broken down bus to climb a tree as punishment for their bus being broken down. They also beat another man I know whose car had broken down in front of the palace, until his vehicle was out of the vicinity.

If you are somewhere in your car and the police come through all of the sudden...for God's sake do not move. It is most likely the President's entourage coming through. With all the "turmoil" lately, all of the President's guards are pretty edgy and trigger happy. I heard of a report of a European student who, for some odd reason, did not stop when the President's entourage was passing through and she was shot and killed. No doubt that people who are driving around do have a certain degree of sense about them, but with how odd things have gotten in the country lately, you can't be too careful really.

It is exactly the same as Oliver Twist's Den of Theives. Some guy tried to trade his sister for me!!