I remember the ice bowl! Though I was only in Rhodesia a relatively short amount of time. What great fun it was! Someone had brought back some Benson & Hedges Gold from down south. We smoked those all the way down! (This was shortly after we no longer had international cigarettes and only domestic made ones!) Seems funny to think we could buy smokes in packs of 10s, 20s, or 30s. The memories of a derelict school boy....remember bunking and hoping not to get caught by the headmaster?!
Chuck

and the phenomenal dark skies and build-up to a REAL thunder storm? Who remembers waking up for midnight feasts while having sleepovers with friends or spending Sunday afternoons at Chipingali
Debbie

who remembers the Troopie canteens? thanks to all I used to look forward to a hot meal that cost $1.00 and the packed lunch
Kev

--- Does anyone remember the lucky beans we used to buy at Shingadia's in Umtali. Each lucky bean was hollowed out and plugged with a minute ivory plug. Inside were several TEENY elephants carved from slivers of ivory. These lucky beans were 2/6 each in the fifties - about a week's pocket money. Difficult to imagine such fine and delicate work today.
Barbara

Rajah's for drycleaning, Nathoos for material, Tip Top for the latest trendy bellbottoms and cheesecloth shirts, .....Meikles for Saturday peach melbas ..... shoes came from Cuthberts, and school uniforms from Kiddy Corner. I remember the old post office in Umtali, with the big post box and TWO public phone booths ....scandalous! I recall Devonshire farms phone no was 2442 ..... it is indelibly carved into my memory!.....Yes it is good to be up to date and current, but man oh man its good to reminisce too!
Marilyn

Lusaka Tower, this is Green Leader. This is a message for the station commander at Mumbwa from the Rhodesian Air Force. We are attacking the terrorist base at Westlands farm at this time. This attack is against Rhodesian dissidents and not against Zambia. Rhodesia has no quarrel - repeat, no quarrel - with Zambia or her security forces. We therefore ask you not to intervene or oppose our attack. However, we are orbiting your airfield at this time, and are under orders to shoot down any Zambian Air Force aircraft which does not comply with this request and attempts to take off. Did you copy all that?
Anon

- ------ P.K. reminiscences. Casting my mind back to Lusaka circa 1947, I can clearly remember when the P.K. buckets were emptied in the wee hours of the night by a man and an ox-drawn waggon. Dad was relaxing in the P.K. one night reading a newspaper by candle light, when there was a rattling beneath him and the bucket disappeared. A shiny black face beamed up at him: "Good evening bwana!" The silent padding of the ox, the clatter of the steel flap, and the noises and smells of the African night are are as fresh in my mind today as they were half a century ago...
James

I remember Rhodesia in October - those lazy days of summer - and the air was heavy and still waiting for the rains. Remember when you put a tikkie on the parking meter and the traffic cop was call a tikkie thief. When you could buy a whole bag of sweets for a tikkie and a choc ice for 5 cents. Nannies. Sadza and gravy.
Jane

- the bread boy who used to ride his 'bike' down the back lanes, ringing his bell. We would stand on the one wheel, look into the cart & choose those long doughnuts with the sweet cream on the inside & caster sugar on the outside. What about buy FAB ice-cream for 3c! New Years at the Centenary Fountain in Byo. Green Mambas, Crunchy Choc Dip, Pink Panther ice-cream at Eskimo Hut. The smell of the soil after a thunder & rain storm.
Cathie

Some of the more foolish things we did as kids was crawl through the storm drains around Hallingbury school etc. especially the ones that had semi collapsed. And climb to the top of the drive in screen and walk along the top of it,,,,,,,, Mad mad mad!!! Until we got caught by the black guy who looked after the drive in during the day, hey Kenny Green? He gave one of us a good smack across the ear, man did we hate him after that. But we didn't go again after that. Getting a bit older we used to hitch lifts into the drive in for free viewing. What about the clay lekky fights we had at that stream. What a weapon those were, a big round ball of clay on the end of a springy twig. Man did they fly. And boy did they hurt when they hit.
Kevin

I remember queuing up for the movies at the old Palace Cinema on the corner of Union Avenue and First Street in Salisbury, swopping comics with everyone. Those were the days when Superman was Superman, Spookie and Casper my favourite guosts and Archie my hero.
Savage

---- Thanks for the memory of Pockets Tea Room, Barbours Tea Room, and the Bird Cage at Sanders - such gracious places to partake of gracious food. The individual ceramic "pots" of curry & rice, steak & kidney pie at Sanders, while you watched the tall, graceful,(and gracious!) red-haired Pauline Jenner model the latest fashions.
Margaret

Who remembers the little gem stones you used to get in the tins of Daybreak coffee?
Sean

To all old Gweloites: who remembers "knickabokaglories" the Marche Cafe's famous icecream; Development House, all five storeys of it, where we used to go to the top floor to look at the view; dancing around Bogies clock on New Years Eve; the Emporium Cafe to listen to the juke box; and does anyone remember old Mr. Soriano, who patrolled the theatre to made sure that no one got up to any mischief in the "bioscope" during the flicks???
Mary P

This item brought back memories of the Movies and dear old Mr Soriano. Does anybody out there remember Mr Lieros who had the little shop next to the Movie House.

On Development House. I used to live across the road from Development House in 7th Street. The highlight of our Christmas Day was to get onto the roof and drop water filled Balloons onto the ever so smartly dressed dudes on their way back from Church..nasty little beggers weren't we.
Audrey M

Anyone remember the Dunstan quarry across the road from the RLI barracks and Arcadia Club? Kids from Braeside, Arcadia, Cranborne, Chadcombe, Queensdale, would bunk school to enjoy countless hours of "boating" in half 45 gallon drums. Our fare would be Lobels current bread, pink cream covered skondomoyos, cheap wine (Don Juan) Colcom liver sausage sandwiches, and a couple of packs of Peter Stuyvesant fags. Those who couldn't afford it would show up with a pack of 10 Star, about the legal equivelant of a spliff. Same thing applied at the Makabusi river (Canal) Coming from Arcadia, we would look forward to Fridays 1:00pm to have a gas at all the neat spots. Saturdays were a real treat, walking to Les Brown swimming pool, starving after the swim, buying all kinds of sweets from the tuck shop, sherbets, apricots, everlasting toffees, licquorice, peppermints etc. Mmmmmm, I can actually taste them.
Audrey

Some of the other poignant memories would be the smell of wattle and bracken at Inyanga and the bloody awful slippery bunks on Rhodesia Railways and how we used to pick the lock (with a bent beer bottle top) on the cupboards where the bedding was stored after the conductor had done his last round, careful to refold and return said items in the morning.
Hugh

Pie, gravy and chips and on Friday's a huge piece of chocolate cake: Gordon's Bulawayo
Sangria, toasted chicken and mayonnaise sandwiches: Selbourne Hotel Bulawayo
Roast beef and onions loaded on a bun Mono's Salisbury
Chips dipped in tomato sauce Gremlin Salisbury
Pack of Willard's Crisps and a coke from a garage - anywhere, anytime, but maybe on the way to Mermaid's Pool?
Don

I share the sentiments with several people, yes; we were so privileged to have grown up in Rhodesia.  As I read them the nostalgia and flash backs were so imminent. All my' senses' came into play as I read and read.

As I read, I could smell the grass, the rain, the North West bakery doughnuts!  (Remember Dunking Doughnuts)I could smell the fish, the dam waters and the rubber tubes we sailed down on at mermaids Pool. I could smell the Brut of the guys at the PE and Alan Wilson dances! I could smell the food at 5am coming from the kitchen at the hostel, (Forsyth House, GHS) I could smell the dairy maid ice-cream in my 'brown-cow'. I could smell the ouzo and coke at Club Tomorrow and the chlorine from the swimming pool at Oasis Hotel, (Which I was thrown into once and never stood near the pool again!) I could smell that all too familiar army uniform and camouflage. ( Not forgetting the stench of their 'sausage bags' full of laundry!) 

As I read I could taste the Bengal juice.  I could taste that doughnut and brown-cow. and the dairy maid ice cream on a cone.  The tea and scones at Saunders. (My all time favourite!) I could taste the rhubarb and custard dessert at hostel.  I could taste the maltebella porridge (Yuck!), I could taste the brown bread jam sandwiches the hostel sent to the school at break time.  I could taste the ouzo and coke, (which was like liquorice). I can still taste the sudza our 'cook boy' made and their stew (Always very salty with the vegetable called rape in it).  I ate it with my hands at the kya with my nanny's pickinins! (Picinin isn't on spell check.how shocking!) I could taste vegex and daybreak coffee.  Pascal sweets and nigger balls!

As I read I could hear the forces requests with Sally Donaldson.  The top of the pops every Saturday morning while washing our hair at hostel. John Edmond's songs and still hear them over and over in my head. I could hear Martin lock and Geoffry Atkins on their breakfast show and they were so funny.  Martin Lock and his horse racing commentaries! The theme to Bonanza. I will never forget Ray Mordt doing a commercial for Dairy Board Fruit Yoghurt! The Rixi Taxi 60 666 advert in their stripes and bashers!  I still remember their TV advert off by heart! On a more solemn note, I could hear the casavacs of the choppers  over head, as our hostel was situated very near to Andrew Flemming Hospital.

As I read I saw the purple carpet along the route we walked from the falling Jacarandas. I could see our disgusting green school uniform and today I never wear green! I remember watching the Flintstones, The Adams family, Batman, Bonanza and Big Valley. I could also visualise, Kariba and Carribea Bay.  Mermaids pool and Lake Mac.  I could see Barnies, Squires, le Coq Dor,Time & Place and Club tomorrow.  The Golden Arch in First Street where we all used to meet before going off to the Oasis.I remember seeing the 'Meat Pies' (MP's) coming into places to fetch the 'naughty boys' who were marched off to DB.  I remember seeing the list of names of all the dear folk that were 'killed in action'.. The names that scrolled on the screen after the news.  (I hated it.)  I remember the tears filling in my eyes, even though I never knew any of them! 

Us ex- Rhodies shared so many unique and special things, that nobody the World over could ever understand. (Besides they don't know that a PK was a toilet!)  We were together through thick and thin.  We were a 'happy nation'.  We had a life of fun, love, sunshine and happiness, didn't we?  We were sporty, adventurous, determined and hugely social!  We shared pain, joy, love and death with everyone.  We understood.  We felt it.

Those days were the best days of my life!
Irene