AFTER four years of planning and more importantly four years of fundraising, the day had actually arrived for what was to prove the trip of a lifetime!

Again, the whole squad, made up of Under 16's members of Crediton Rugby club, cannot thank sponsors and parents enough for making the 10,000 miles trip turn from a dream into reality!

For acknowledgement of all those who helped us to achieve this dream, please take a look at our sponsors page at http://www.creditonwasps.co.uk">www.creditonwasps.co.uk

Saturday, July 9 and the 20 travellers met at the club for our journey by coach to London Heathrow.

An uneventful trip saw the boys checking in with Kenya Airways for their flight to Harare via Nairobi. We arrived in Harare at lunchtime on the following day.

Certainly one of the highlights of the whole tour was our next visit to Mbare Primary school where the local teachers have set up a Rugby Academy for boys from the local high density township.

We conducted some training sessions and had a tag rugby game with these young lads' before handing over one of the strips donated by Crediton Rugby Club, together with rugby balls, water bottles and spare clothing.

In addition and quite spontaneously, we sponsored six of the more needy children for their coming year at school – for £135 for the year. We have paid for these lads school fees, uniform and books!

In appreciation they performed their version of the Zimbabwe Hakka.

Back to St John's in the afternoon for our first game of the tour. The first half saw the home team steam away to a 35 point lead, but the Kirton team stuck to the task and only conceded one try in the second half.

The second game saw us take on St George's – where the match was watched by 200 parents! The reverse of the first game – half time score 10-0 but the final whistle saw St George's triumphing by 41-0.

This was again followed by a superb Braai (barbecue) and drinks, courtesy of the school.

Our final game was played against Under 18's! The boys stuck to their guns again for the whole match and indeed in the second half, they were rewarded with their only try of the tour, scored by Sam Walters.

In the end, we only lost 41-7 and the final whistle brought down the curtain on the rugby end of the tour!

The following day, we headed off for Hwange Safari Lodge – the premier National Park in Zimbabwe. Here the boys were able to witness game in their natural environment.

Lunch was followed by a few hours rest before we all piled into game vehicles for the drive – the Park is home to The Presidential Herd of Elephants. This drive was repeated early the following morning!

Victoria Falls is one of the most famous Falls in the world is considered to be among the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

Here we checked into the five star timeshare units in the grounds of Victoria Falls' Safari Lodge – Lokuthula Lodges. Once unpacked, the boys had a chance to swim – the weather here was a lot warmer than Harare, a pleasant 25C most days in the middle of their winter!

That night we ate at the famous Boma Restaurant just across from our lodges. The Boma provides a unique cultural experience that bombards the senses with the tastes, sights, sounds and smells of Africa – together with the warmth and hospitality of Zimbabwe and its people. For many, this was the dining experience of the tour!

The following day, we all visited the Falls together before spending the afternoon around the pool relaxing and soaking up the sunshine.

Some of the party went off Walking with the Lions and a few did what is known as the Flight of Angels – a helicopter flip over the Falls.

More activities were to follow – Monday was White Water Rafting day, Tuesday was our day to visit a local primary school and Wednesday we all canoed the mighty Zambezi River amongst the crocodiles and hippos!!

On Thursday, our last day in the Falls - eight of the lads did the Gorge Swing and 14 did bunji!

The gorge swing was to many the highlight of the activities – jump off the platform into the Batoka Gorge free falling 75 metres and reaching speeds of up to 180km/h!

The bunji on the other hand is 111 metres of pure adrenaline rush dropping into the mighty Zambezi below!

The bunji jump operates off the famous Victoria Falls Bridge, which separates Zimbabwe from Zambia and has a 100 per cent safety record with over 50,000 people have committed themselves to the thrill of jumping off the bridge!

Despite its political problems, Zimbabwe has to be one of the best countries to experience in Africa – it has a perfect climate all year around, a National Park, Lake Kariba (which we did not see) and, of course, the Victoria Falls.

But above all of this, it is the happy, hospitable and friendly nature of its entire people that most struck the group.

From the moment we landed with the helpful immigration officials to the time we left, we were treated to the most safe and welcoming environment I have been in for many a long year.

Zimbabweans want those touring teams back and I can thoroughly recommend the experience!

David Dodgeon