The start into this adventure was typically me. After missing leaving the train in Freising, running through the main train station in Munich and taking a taxi for 90 EUR towards the airport I arrived still 1.5 hours early at the gate 🙄
But rather that than missing this flight. Because what I have experienced this last week is absolutely stunning.
Susana and I arrived independently in Victory Falls Airport on Sunday. Well, only an hour apart.
First thing Monday morning we made our way to the Victoria Falls on the Zimbabwe side and we got there before 7am. Which at this time of the year meant enjoying them by ourselves.
It is just amazing seeing the rush of water coming down. I have been to the Niagara falls but this being such a narrow gap in the rock it is just something else. At one point I thought it is raining. How naive! It was the spray raining down on us 😀
Even more beautiful was to see them from the Zambian side. But not drier hahaha
Tuesday morning at 7am we got picked up from the hotel in order to be driven to the Botsuana border (Kazungula). Here, everybody gets screened for Corona Virus (like in any other African country we visited so far). Something that Europe can learn from them.
Just a short ride later we arrived in the office in Kasane, which is like the capital for safari tours into Chobe NP. However, our first gig (after breakfast) was a boat ride on the Chobe river.
Rain is our constant companion so far but I hope you find the pictures nearly as amazing as the real experience was:
Kalahari tours was our operator and I couldn’t have chosen better. With Leo as tour guide we have been so lucky in seeing animals several times that others go hunting for many days. For example, we saw lions every day. First with cubs, then mating and finally 2 brothers marking their territory. And we kept on seeing them again and again.
It amazes me how he could read from the footprints who, when and it what direction crossed the road. It assured us to see the animals we were longing for.
In general I find birdwatchers utterly boring. But we had the luck to have a Southern African lady on board that had a huge knowledge about them and also the “other” animals. It made us see not only the big ones but appreciate a lot everything and nature in general. In Europe you don’t see wildlife running around like that…it is too scared. But here they are roaming around freely…without a border to hold them.
We spent 2 nights in a camp within the park. Especially the 2nd night was a bit adventurous since there was a kill behind our camp and we could hear the lions feasting on it. You can imagine that I didn’t make it to the loo that night 😉
I am a bit sorry (only a tiny bit) for the amount of pictures but I couldn’t reduce them more. I already had a hard time choosing from the ones I had 😉
On Friday we took over the 4×4 van we will be using until the end of the month. It has a rooftop tent and full camping equipment. I would have loved to have the equipment a bit more organized in the trunk but whatever. I am very grateful for having the means to rent such a luxury. Actually, I am very grateful for Marianne. I have the feeling she supported/financed this trip. But that is another story…
We crossed the border to Namibia on Friday. If you kept counting you realized that this is the 4th country already. At the time I am writing this, I am overlooking the Kwando Chobe Delta in the Namushasha Lodge.
We still haven’t seen the famous African sunset as it hides behind clouds but it is amazing being out here.
However, due to the slow internet connection it took me until Monday to post this entry and we are in a campground called Ngepi 😉 In one of my next posts I want to include a map with the places been. Stay tuned.
And how am I doing? Actually, I am a bit worried that the last days were already the highlight of the complete trip. I mean, it was just stunning and I felt so happy for all I could see.
After taking the first step of this trip the whole adventure doesn’t seem so scary anymore. Alright, I am not thinking too much ahead when I will be traveling alone (or so I assume) but I think this is the right approach to get confidence.
I am happy to share this experience with Susana and the joy and gratitude I see in her eyes doubles my joy.
Love,
Matthias