Let’s say you are done with everything you possibly can do or see in Vic Falls. What next?
Boma dinner and drum show, but of course!
In one sentence, Boma Dinner and Drum is a dining experience that’ll make you fall in love with Zimbabwean food, people and drums.
Okay, so I’ll thrown in few other baits as well – game meat (kudu and impala), Pumba (warthog) steak, crocodile tail and such like. But the winner is the MOPANE worm. And what’s even better is that you get a certificate to prove that you’ve crunched your way through one.
Let’s get a move on.
As soon as you arrive at Boma set within the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge grounds, you will be ceremoniously dressed in chitenge (a colourful shawl) before being allowed to pass in. Next, you will get your face painted (they start small here I tell you, so you’ll get three dots or one red line across your cheek).
Now you are ready to enter The Boma’s main enclosure. This is where the true sensory assault begins – it is like seeing all of Africa in one small place. The sights, sounds and of course taste that greets you will make you dizzy in anticipation. If you pay attention, you’ll hear the drums rolling in the background, but don’t start dancing yet.
The food
Seat yourself at your table, but not before enjoying the ceremonial “hand washing”. Next, drink up the fermented drink placed on the table (lights are dim and for one moment I thought the stuff in my cup was yogurt – but no). That is Chibuku, a sorghum beer that packs a punch (now you know why you get such a tiny portion) and sets you up for the delicious food cooking on the side.
From time to time fortune tellers, face painters and souvenir sellers will walk by encouragingly and that is just part of the fun, after all.
I can tell you where my thoughts were when the fortune teller promised me a “great future” – they were on the little pig roasting over the spit.
There is a lot to eat here – and my advice is to go slow. Real slow. You want to eat everything, don’t you? Okay, you can skip the vegetables, because hey, the chefs are wielding their spatulas in that corner where the aroma of meats are coming from. Shouldn’t you just cut the line and grab your plates? Did someone mention steaks and meat balls…
On a side note – vegetarians can find lots to eat here too. Like vegetarian sushi. And salads and many local greens. And the famous peanut butter rice (yes, here in Zimbabwe peanut butter is king)
Say, are mopane worms considered vegetarian food? Okay, I’ll get to that in a bit. (And yes, I have a certificate to prove it too)
As you slice through your warthog steaks, the music begins. But it gets raunchier (or so you feel after you have partaken some wine or beer or a combination of all that) when the dancers join the entertainment.
I digress. At this point, well up to my eyeballs in wine, I closely watched the Zimbabwean girls put on their best act. Boy! Can they move or what! Perfect rhythm. Perfect energy. I am not sure I could that even with the wine…
(Important note: Refill your glasses)
The highlight of the evening’s entertainment begins at some point when you cannot eat or drink anymore (drink maybe). You will be given a drum. The conductor of the evening will call out instructions. If you are sober enough, you’ll follow it through, but its okay to keep drumming away. It’s all fun anyway.
*Refill required*
Now, if you are shy and need more than verbal encouragement to get down on the dance floor, refill your glasses with something stronger. Because the evening is about to end and everyone jumps on the dance floor to show off their moves – mostly solo at first. It works like “spinning the bottle,” only here anyone can pull you in and you have to dance!
So you dance. To the beat of the drums. To a fine evening. To Zimbabwe!
And you fill your glass again before trundling out into fresh air…
