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Z is for Zimbabwe, Zaire, and

April 30, 2016 Claire Annette Noland 6 Comments

Welcome! We’ve come to the end of the alphabet on this year’s A to Z April Blog Challenge.

Z

 

The Zambezi River forms the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. This is where you can see the spectacular Victoria Falls. You might even find the Chitapo who are definitely not beautiful mermaids. Rather they are evil spirits that trick people into the water and then swallow them. They aren’t picky – they’ll take any man or woman.Not only that, they’ll take pots, pans, baskets and whatever else isn’t being used and float them on the water. When people try to retrieve the items, the Chitapo will grab them They don’t even need to touch the victim. They can capture people’s shadows and then their bodies will follow. But, they do have a redeeming quality – they will rescue children from the rapids.

Zimbabwe mermaid

 

If you are interested in learning more about the Chitapo, head over to the Global Table Adventure. You’ll even find a recipe for a traditional Zambian breakfast bowl made with pumpkin, peanuts, and oatmeal which looks quite yummy.

The Chitapo mermaids  continue to cast fear into the hearts of people in Zimbabwe in present times. Recently work on two reservoirs in Zimbabwe were halted because of mermaid sightings. Supposedly, the mermaids were terrorizing the workers.

Samuel Nkomo,the Zimbabwe Water Resource Minister, said that the only way to deal with the problem was to bring in healers to conduct traditional beer making rituals to rid the reservoirs of mermaids. It must have worked because work resumed.

And finally,

Z is for Zoolander. I’ll leave you with this zany quote from the merman played by Ben Stiller.

zoolander

 

Thanks for Living in a Mermaid World with me this month! Post a comment if you’d like a chance to win some mermaid goodies.

Also, I am a member of Pam’s Unconventional Alliance for the A to Z Blog. Stop by and say “hello” to the other members of the team:

You can find Pam at An Unconventional Librarian

Shalini blogs at Something’s Cooking  and Tale of Two Tomatoes. 

Rajlakshmi blogs at The Twinkle Eyed Traveler, The Poetry Wagon, and Destiny’s Child

Parul blogs at Happiness and Food.

Filed Under: Blogging A to Z, Mermaids, Places Tagged With: Chitapo Mermaids, Mermaids in Zambia, Mermaids in Zimbabwe, Zoolander

Previous Post: « Y is for Yawk Yawk and You!
Next Post: Field Notes – the Mermaid Edition »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Pam says

    April 30, 2016 at 9:36 am

    Wow. Beer to rid yourself of evil mermaids? I dunno but I sure don’t want to find out.
    GREAT CHALLENGE CLAIRE!! Thanks for all the mermaid knowledge!

    Reply
  2. Gail M Baugniet says

    April 30, 2016 at 9:52 am

    Wetness is the essense of beauty; I like that!
    Thanks for helping to make this AtoZChallenge an interesting journey!

    Gail’s 2016 April A to Z Challenge

    Reply
  3. evelyne holingue says

    May 1, 2016 at 1:45 am

    Bravo for completing the challenge, Claire. How many countries have you covered over this month with the legends of the mermaids?

    Reply
  4. Trine Grillo says

    May 1, 2016 at 11:11 pm

    Loved travelling along with you during this challenge.

    Reply
  5. JazzFeathers says

    May 2, 2016 at 7:42 am

    Loved to learn about the Zimbabwe mermaid. They sound like… intersting creatures.

    And congratulation on completing the challenge. I really enjoyed lerning about mermaid around the world. It’s so intersting how many similarities there are in stories abotu mermaids around the world even in parts very far away from each other.

    Thanks so much for sharing 🙂

    Reply
  6. Cynthia says

    May 12, 2016 at 8:05 am

    Mermaids that trick people into the water and then eat them sound scary. I wonder if that’s retaliation in some way for the way people use bait fish to trick fish into being caught and then eaten by people.

    Reply

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Hello. I’m Claire Annette - reader, writer, teacher, and field trip planner extraordinaire. Here at A Field Trip Life you will find ideas for adventures large and small and the kids’ books that inspire them. Sign your permission slip. Let's go!

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claireannettenolandbooks

Author | teacher | Field Trip Planner
books that take you places
Raven’s Gift
Nancy Bess Had a Dress
Evie’s Field Day
Out and About w George series

I'm excited to share that the Crystal Kite Award v I'm excited to share that the Crystal Kite Award voting continues until July 18th for members of SCBWI. Our book, Nancy Bess Had a Dress, is in the Southwest Division (where illustrator @angelac.hawkins lives)

Members, you can vote for books in all of the regions.
Cast your vote at this link: 

https://www.scbwi.org/crystal-kite/CK8

I will be sharing Nancy Bess July 11th online for the Summer of Stories https://summerofstories.substack.com/

and I'll be doing story time and craft at the Three River Public Library on July 11th at 10:30

@gnomeroadpublishing @pbspree @eringreneaux @tularecountylib 
@scbwicencal #crystalkiteaward
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We are enjoying a lovely summer’s day with CARL’S SLEEPY AFTERNOON thanks to our friends @laughingelephantbooks who sent us a copy signed by Alexandra Day and Carl!
Happy 40th Anniversary, Carl! You are such a good dog 🐾❤️
Carl has an opportunity to have a quiet and sleepy afternoon but does he rest? Not our Carl!
We’re on our 3rd generation loving this noble good dog and look forward to reading about his adventures for many more years!

#gooddogcarl #picturebookdogs #summerreading @mrernierecommends @christinabeeghly @laurennolandhajik @roxannenoland @gn705
Summer is the best time to beat the heat by taking Summer is the best time to beat the heat by taking your young ones to a museum. And I suggest, before you go, you share the delightful picture book, MousterWorks, written and illustrated by @angelac.hawkins
Young mice, Cosette and Pépin, join Grand-mère on a splendid adventure through a mouse hole into a museum. They gaze at brilliant interpretations of well-known painting by famous artists such as Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, and Edward Banister. Cosette excitedly engages with the art while her brother, Pépin, searches for cheese in the art and eventually realizes that he can be an artist and paint his favorite things.

The final photo is 2.5 year old Alice at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento. She was captivated by "Home Sweet Home" (after Seurat, Manet, and Pippin) painted by Wangari Mathenge

Art is for all ages.

To read my full review, visit my blog https://afieldtriplife.com/mousterworks-lets-go-to-a-museum/

@gnomeroadpublishing #mousterworks #artmuseumswithkids
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Looking forward to simple unscheduled days! #july Looking forward to simple unscheduled days!
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Look what we found featured at the library! #nancy Look what we found featured at the library! #nancybesshadadress 
Thank you @tularecountylib 
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Happy Summer! At the top of our summer "to do" lis Happy Summer! At the top of our summer "to do" list is visiting libraries where I love to see staff recommendations. SUMMER: A Solstice Story written by @kelseyegross and illustrated by @renataliwska is such a lovely picture book.
Owl, Squirrel, Raccoon, Bear, Sparrow, Rabbit, Woodpecker, and Deer gather to celebrate the arrival of summer with its gifts of light and new life. The friends share sprouts, fresh water, flowers, and fruit each accompanied by special wishes for the little ones to shine, glow, shimmer, gleam, and blaze bright with solstice light. They spend the day with festivities as they dance, splash, hop, and savor a forest feast.
I shared this with a group of children the night before the Solstice so that they understood how special this date is. Then, we read it again as the sun set on the longest day of the year after partaking of many of the same activities done by the woodland animals. They really enjoyed the center pages that fold out.
This is a soft, gentle, and breathtakingly beautiful picture book that should be enjoyed all summer long. @pbspree #summersolstice #summerasolsticestory
We have been Good Dog Carl fans for almost 4 decad We have been Good Dog Carl fans for almost 4 decades so we are excited to celebrate 40 years of our favorite picture book series! I love the book mom and Carl’s adventures are the best!
So let’s raise a toast to Carl, the very good dog, and to  @laughingelephantbooks Here’s to many more wonderful years of ❤️ filled stories.
#wewon #gooddogcarl #afieldtriplife #picturebookdogs @laurennolandhajik @christinabeeghly @roxannenoland
Military families are made up of heroes, those who Military families are made up of heroes, those who leave home to serve and those who stay behind. It isn’t easy to find books featuring military families, so I was excited to discover when AS MUCH as the STARS: A Story of Love Across the. Miles – A Child’s Goodbye/ AS MUCH AS THE STARS: A Story of love across The Miles: A Mother’s Farewell. I love flip books because they are clever and provide a fun way to read two stories told from different perspectives. AS MUCH AS THE STARS does an exceptional job of showing the love and emotions surrounding a deployment and then a joyous return. In this authentic, well-written story, one half follows a young girl and her relationship with her military father. The other half features the viewpoint of that girl, now grown, whose son leaves home to serve. warm and colorful illustrations add to the text showing the love that is shared even when they are separated by great distances.
This is a wonderful book for all families and will help everyone understand the sacrifices that our brave service members make. I just wish this book had been available when I was teaching children in military families.
Written by Forrest Zenone, Skyler Zenone, and Tricia Stone-Shumaker
Illustrations by Penny Weber
@poppysadventures1 @pennyweberart @laurennolandhajik #militaryfamilies #asmuchasthestars
#mrernierecommends
FYI… sweet peas are blooming on Old Creek Road a FYI… sweet peas are blooming on Old Creek Road around Whale Rock Reservoir
The story of how they got there reminds me of Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney “You must do something to make the world more beautiful.” 
Read how these delicate blossoms came to grace the highways in San Luis Obispo County: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/johnny-appleseed-sweet-peas-planted-120000196.html

Lupine, poppies, and wild mustard are also blooming.

#sweetpeas #jackcreekfarms #roadtrip #afieldtriplife #missrumphius
I love finding new-to-me bookstores. @verbatim.boo I love finding new-to-me bookstores. @verbatim.books is a treasure!
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