Just before we went to Zimbabwe, we took a game drive and a boat cruise in Chobe National Park, our final stop in Botswana. We saw a plethora of animals; hippos, crocs and even a few lions snoozing in the mid-day sun. There were hundreds of elephants playing in the river; they looked so majestic. We thought we'd seen all the ungulates we could but we saw three new ones in Chobe: the sable antelope, the puku and the red lewche. We finally saw herds of African buffalo, so now we've seen "The Big 5"; Buffalo, Elephant, Lion, Leopard, Black Rhino.
From Chobe we crossed over the border into Zimbabwe. We weren't sure whether we'd visit Zim, but talking to the few travellers we met who'd been there it sounded pretty safe, especially around the country's premier tourist attraction, Victoria Falls. From our campsite we could hear the thunder of the falls. We spent a very wet morning viewing the falls from all angles; the spray was tremendous and totally soaked us. The power and amount of water cascading over the falls is amazing! In the afternoon we indulged in a little bit of nostalgia, by taking Afternoon Tea at the very plush, colonial-era Victoria Falls Hotel. Then it was back to reality and our $8/night campsite!
To cross into Zambia we walked over the 100-year-old Vic Falls Bridge. We were transported back in time as there happened to be a test run of the Vic Falls safari steam train going over the bridge the same time we did. This afternoon we're going to visit the falls from the Zambian side.
That's all for now. Our next posting should be from Tanzania. We've got a long journey ahead of us to get to Mt. Kilimanjaro for our climb there. If things go as planned we should be on the summit of Kili on Canada Day.
Grrrrr - Lions in Chobe Park, Botswana.
Mum & 1yr old baby elephant crossing the Chobe River
Hippos cooling off in the Chobe River.
A "Small" (according to our guide anyway) crocodile on the banks of the Chobe River. But more than large enough for us!
Just a tiny part of Victoria Falls, taken from the Zimbabwe side but all I could fit on the camera!
What Ho - High Tea at Victoria Falls Hotel.
A bit of nostalgia pith helmeted stewards on the steam train
Rainbows galore from the Zambian side of Vic. Falls
4 comments:
Fabulous updates you two! hopefully our paths will still cross in Kenya and you can tell me stories in person. Current schedule has me in Nairobi July 29 - August 26 and on safari the 10-20. I'll post my contact info for you when I get it. ENJOY!
FYI: Canada gets burned by the linesman in extra time, and the USA wins 2-1 Doh!
So you've caught up on us & seen the big 5. We hope to add the lemurs in Madagascar to our list in Sept.
Good to see your photos
M&D
Hi guys: Great blog with great pictures and narrative. Really miss you guys, but I know you are having the time of your lives. Good luck on Mount Killamangaro, that is going to be fantastic!!! Safe travels. Barry
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