Sunrise, sunset, hippos and stranded boats.

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Sad after leaving the Okavango Delta behind we continued east to a small town called Gweta. This was just a stop to break up the 600km drive to Chobe National Park. After 3 nights back in the tent and being so encased in dirt we made the extremely difficult decision to upgrade again to a lodge room for a minimal amount-- I know, I know being uncomfortable is all part of the experience blah blah blah!! After a few water related issues we were upgraded to a family room which thrilled us even more. It was at this lodge where the expression T.I.A (This Is Africa) truly began to take on its meaning. The hot water was run off a gas bottle so therefore it would scorch you, then freeze you until you had had enough and switched the tap off. The petrol station had no petrol because the owners were going through a marital dispute and many of the workers had big smiles on their faces as you asked a question but no response came your way. We once again made friends with the manager and had a great chat while getting mauled by mosquitos before skulking off to your mozzie net covered amazing beds.

Yet another early start had us headed for Chobe National Park. Chobe is the third largest park in Botswana and has one of the largest concentration of game in Africa spreading over around 11,700km². With this in mind and after being so lucky in Etosha it was exciting to reach our destination. We stayed in the town Kasane which is 8km away from the national park on the Chobe river. On this day we were not ill, grumpy or dirty but we thought hey! why not?! when we were asked if we wanted upgrades so once again we snuck off to hide in our air conditioned room while the other girls pitched their tent. We did pull our weight though and cook a meal for everyone to give Robert a break finally before having to get up bright and early for a game drive through the national park. At the very beginning of the game drive we were lucky enough to see 10 lions down by the water as the sun rose over the Chobe river. We were not alone in this sighting however, as there were about 13 other safari vehicles out for a morning drive. This actually became quite a stressful viewing as the cars maneuvered around one another trying to give their clients the best view of the pack. I seemed to always get a tree in the way which my camera liked to focus on so missed any great photos of them but that’s ok as I have month to take photos of lions! At one stage the cars all sped up as a lion crossed the road, which immediately put megan and I off the drive as these are wild animals and we were invading their space. ANYWAY, i digress! After the great lion sighting we continued along the riverbank and apart from seeing a man relieving himself behind a tree there were no more wild viewings for a while. The antelope, kudu and impala didn’t get too much attention sadly, as after the first viewing you sort of get the idea how they work!

For years I have been told by mum not get too excited over things or I’ll be disappointed. This has never deterred me from stirring excitement and this is why this trip has been so fantastic because there was too much going on before for me to even process the adventure ahead of me. I did however get extremely excited about Chobe and sadly it didn’t quite live up to expectations. We seemed to have more luck in Etosha and the overall experience of the game drive was a lot more enjoyable.

After a little nanna nap we joined a boat cruise to see the national park from the river. Armed with a bottle of wine from Stellenbosch, snacks and fully charged camera we strolled onto an open air boat manned by two lovely captains called Oscar and Cherry. As we slowly made our way down the river we pleasantly came across a few buffalo and african monitor lizards which were being watched very carefully by a baby crocodile. During this photo opportunity some intelligent aussie said ‘where’s Steve Irwin when you need him’ you can imagine that a comment like that did not put this person in my new friend list. After seeing a few elephants drinking and swimming with hippos we found a pod of hippos. We stayed here photographing these guys for quite a while, not because it was part of the cruise but because we had managed to get stuck in the shallow waters! Consequently we had to choose between yawning hippos and a spectacular red sunset to photo while Cherry jumped onto another safari boat to try and pull and Oscar jumped into the hippo infested water to push. T.I.A right?! Just as the last of the sun hit the horizon and an hour later than scheduled we arrived back at the jetty. All in all it was a good day and a visit to this part of the world but a return journey will have to be on the cards in the future.

Once again photos show this destination better than words!

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Photos

First clear lion picture
May or may not be having a private moment, relieving herself!!

Attention up the tree
My camera focussed on the foliage in the front for this pic but it was a good in action shot!

Cold Canadians
All canadians hiding from the wind on the drive home -- pathetic!