Faces: People, Places, and Cultures articles from December 2003

Faces: People, Places, and Cultures archives from December 2003

Editor's message.(politics in Zimbabwe)
December 1, 2003... Dear Reader, Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in south-central Africa. Much of Zimbabwe's land is fertile and ideal for farming. Other natural resources, such as coal and gold, are also abundant in Zimbabwe. But despite its...

At a glance.(Zimbabwe)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... ZIMBABWE Official Name: Republic of Zimbabwe Location: Zimbabwe is located in southern Africa, landlocked between South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, and Mozambique. Most of Zimbabwe lies entirely 1,000 feet (300 meters) above sea level....

Only in ... Zimbabwe.(explorer David Livingstone)
December 1, 2003... Searching for a route to the east coast of Africa in 1855, an explorer named David Livingstone was working his way along the Zambezi River. He struggled through the hot humid air, passing hippos and crocodiles in still water near upper regions...

Welcome to Zimbabwe.
December 1, 2003... Once considered one of modern Africa's great success stories, the nation of Zimbabwe today faces an enormous political and economic crisis. While the misguided policies of President Robert Mugabe and his government bear much of the...

Through time: Zimbabwe.
December 1, 2003... c. 8000 B.C. The area's first inhabitants, members of a group called the Khoisan, hunt, gather food, and make pottery. The Khoisan are the only people in the region until roughly A.D. 200. c. A.D. 300 Other peoples move into the area from...

Vanished!(ruined city of Great Zimbabwe)
December 1, 2003... The ruined city of Great Zimbabwe is a breathtaking site. With stone walls more than three stories high and between 4 and 17 feet thick, the ruins cover an area of two and one-half miles. A center of trade from about 1100 to 1500, the site once...

The music of Zimbabwe: a joyful blend of old and new.
December 1, 2003... When it comes to music, Africa is best known for the rhythm of its drums. But in Zimbabwe, a much smaller and melodic instrument is king--the mbira, or thumb piano. The mbira (also known as the kalimba) is more than 1,000 years old. Songs that...

The Kariba Dam.
December 1, 2003... When the Kariba Dam was completed in 1960, it was the largest man-made dam ever built. Lake Kariba, created by damming the Zambezi River and flooding the land behind the dam, was 180 mile long and up to 24 miles long. Before the project...

The curse of Nyaminyami.(Kariba Dam and Batonga's religious beliefs)
December 1, 2003... Almost anytime a dam is built, something must be sacrificed. Whether it be villages, historic sites or wildlife habitats, the builders of the dam must decide whether the benefits of the dam outweigh the loss of local heritage or animal habitat....

Fighting the AIDS epidemic.(Zimbabwe)
December 1, 2003... At just seven years old, Sidney had to take care of his little sister Wendy. Their parents had died of AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). It's caused by HIV, or Human Immuno-deficiency Virus. By 2002, about 780,000 children in...

Great art knows no borders.(Shona sculpture)
December 1, 2003... Stone statues dot the grounds of the Shona Sol Sculpture Park at the end of a road leading off the Turquoise Trail near Santa Fe. They are the work of Shona artists of Zibabwe, a world away from New Mexico. Continuing a thousand-year-old...

Hope renewed.(Zimbabwean student narrative)
December 1, 2003... There will always be hope, hope never dries up." Five years ago, in June 1998, I delivered the above words with the innocence of the child I was. I was being interviewed by David Moricca and Eric Farmer, who were shooting video footage for a...

Love Struck.(Letters)(Poem)
December 1, 2003... Love Struck The day love struck me, Right in the heart, My feeling of flying Went right off the charts. Like trading cards Or a new fad, Love spread through my body And it went mad. And that was the...

The Queen.(Letters)(Poem)
December 1, 2003... The Queen The queen of the light The queen helps people who are in need. She never makes people bleed. When she does something, she uses all her might. The queen comes from the sky. She always has to fly....

Life's River.(Letters)(Poem)
December 1, 2003... Life's River As you go along in life You flow. You push, pull, help, destroy. You affect something. As each second passes, You can never return to it. Your past is left behind. You have flowed beyond...

Can You?(Letters)(Poem)
December 1, 2003... Can You? Can you relate to my life and what I've been going through? Can you continue to fall and tell yourself all you can hold on to? Can you be brave enough to step up to the plate? Can you live in joy instead...

Music as message.(Think About It ...)
December 1, 2003... When you listen to a song on the radio, how closely do you pay attention to the words? What are most songs that you listen to about? Many are probably love songs. They might celebrate everlasting love or lament a love gone wrong. Other songs...

Face facts.(sadza is diet staple in Zimbabwe)
December 1, 2003... The staple of many Zimbabwean's diet is a porridge-like dish called sadza, which is served with vegetable or beef stew. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Untombinde and the haunted pool: a play based on a tale from Southern Africa.(Play)
December 1, 2003... Cast of Characters: Narrator, Untombinde, King, Queen, Maiden 1, Maiden 2, Maiden 3, Monster Narrator: Long ago, near the boundaries of the great kingdom, a monster lived in the depths of a haunted pool. Though everyone avoided the area,...

Do You Know Me.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)(Book Review)
December 1, 2003... by Nancy Farmer Tapiwa doesn't want to get into trouble. It's just that her Uncle Zeka's plans always sound like a good idea. When he comes to stay with her family in the city, she finds herself in all sorts of adventures that involve...

Great Zimbabwe.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)(Book Review)
December 1, 2003... by Mark Bessire The ruins of Great Zimbabwe are silent, but if you know how to read their clues, they'll whisper stories about the greatness and wealth of this ancient capital. The focus is on the ruins and archeology. Though some parts of...

Gugu's House.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)(Book Review)
December 1, 2003... by Catherine Stock You have never seen anything like Gugu's house! Though her village near the Limpopo River is dry and dust-filled, Kukamba's grandmother lives with colorful paintings and clay animals big enough to ride. Before the rains...

Various Titles.(Zimbabwean children's author Margaret Tredgold)
December 1, 2003... by Margaret Tredgold This popular Zimbabwean children's author provides an endless supply of stories that bring to life historical figures, myths, nature, folklore, and the day-today life of Zimbabwe. Her titles include the Tales of Africa...

Zimbabwe.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)(Book Review)
December 1, 2003... by Barbara Radcliffe Rogers and Stillman D. Rogers Part of the Enchantment of the World series, this is one of the most up-to-date books on Zimbabwe available. That's helpful when it comes to learning current facts about the economy, labor,...

Let Your Voice Be Heard! Songs from Ghana and Zimbabwe.(Brief Article)(Children's Review)(Book Review)
December 1, 2003... by Abraham Kobena Adzenyah, Dumisani Maraire, Judith Cook Tucker This book and CD set features call-and-response, multipart, and game songs for grades K-12. Many were written down here for the first time. Along with the songs come stories...

African Studies Center Outreach Program at Boston University.(Resource Center)
December 1, 2003... Opened in 1979, the Outreach Program to increase awareness and knowledge of Africa by providing information, materials, and services to schools, libraries, museums, and the media. Many resources and activities are available on-line. The program...

One last face.
December 1, 2003... A Zimbabwean park ranger will help us say good-bye from this African country.