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Jonathan Mbiriyamveka Entertainment Reporter
Organisers of the Mashonaland East Cultural Festival scheduled for October 29 to November 2 at Murewa Arts Centre have said the event is expected to boost local tourism as guests and visitors will have an opportunity to tour some of the scenic places in Murewa.
Murewa Caves is a natural scenic site complete with rock paintings and an amazing view of the Nazari Jamu village nestled on the edge of the rock feature.
“The Mashonaland East Cultural Festival is drawing closer and we are hoping that, much more than a music and cultural feast, the event will be able to boost local tourism because there are places of interest in Murewa,” National Training and Conference of the Arts in Zimbabwe programmes manager Cynthia Mungofa said.
Mungofa said festival goers were in a for treat and great value since the event will include other activities outside performances on stage.
She said tour guides will take visitors on a mystic journey of the ancient history of the Stone Age community (the San) that once made Murewa Caves their home.
The cave walls are a rich canvas of rock paintings depicting wild animals that the hunter gatherers used to hunt for food for instance, elephants, eland, guinea fowls, warthogs, sable among others.
There is also a marvellous painting of a python near the entrance of the caves suggesting that this was a sacred animal.
The natural dye that was used as paint comes from the Murima tree which is dotted within the vicinity. The bark of this tree yields the blood red colour that was mixed with other preservatives to make the red dye that was used in the rock paintings.
Some of the elephants were painted with yellow dyes. As one walks in the caves they can almost feel the presence of the mysterious people who once inhabited the caves.
For nature lovers, the tour of Murewa Caves is the perfect chance to savour the flora of the surrounding area which is rich with a variety of aloes; the resurrection plant or mufandichimuka in Shona, climbers, flowers, various grass species, trees, and fauna that is (insects; rock rabbits; rabbits etc).
The next stop on the tour of scenic sites is the Nature’s Food Haven Project owned by Dr Wisdom Gwatidzo, a renowned advocate for healthy living based on traditional diet of vegetables, fruits, small grains, culinary herbs, medicinal herbs among others.
According to Mungofa, such a diet promoted longevity and explains why older generations lived up to 100 years or more and were not prone to modern diseases like hypertension, heart disease, strokes, diabetes and obesity.
The Nature’s Food Haven Project is located near the St Claires turn off, along the Murewa-Nyamapanda Highway. Other key attractions on the tour are Hurungwe Hill and natural springs or zvisipiti/zvitubu in Shona found in the Nazari Jamu village, a hint of the rich water supply in the underground aquifers.
A traditional cocktail launch at Murewa Caves is one of the key attractions of the festival. Traditional leaders have played a very active role in mobilising resources and coordinating the programme of activities lined up for the festival launch.
Organised by the National Training and Conference of the Arts in Zimbabwe in conjunction with Murewa Culture Centre, MECUF gives befitting homage to the traditional leaders who are the custodians of culture, values and norms (vana Muchinda, maSabhuku, maDzishe).
Top Zimbabwean mbira players among them Mawungira eNharira led by Nyamasvisva, Albert Chimedza and Shingai Dance Group will showcase their talents against the backdrop of Murewa Caves, a true celebration of Zimbabwean cultural heritage.
The festival will also be a platform for exhibition of textiles, batik, tie and dye, screen printing produced by rural women and girls who have since established a Cottage Industry known as Pfumvudza. There will be a demonstration of various printing techniques.
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