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Published: January 7th 2009
Its just stopped raining and Oats and I are playing cards. I'm teaching him spit- its not an easy game but he's learning quickly. "I am not fast enough!" he says. Of course, it is only after we have decided to turn back that the sun comes out. And of course, it is only on the one day that we planned to travel into the Delta- the main attraction of our visit to Botswana that it rains at all. Perhaps Amanda and I had been singing too much Toto. Oats keeps forgeting that the picture cards go Jack, Queen, King then Ace, or maybe he is just cheating when he piles them all down on top of eachother.
The Okavango Delta is the worlds biggest inland delta. Its 800,000 Square Kms of more than a swamp and less than a rainforest. Today we have booked the standard Delta travel experience- a ride on a Mokoro. Mokoros are gondola type things that carry two people and are poled along by a driver. Oats is ours. as our guidebook says that 'the importance of finding a competant poler cannot be overstated', we were somewhat nervous to find that this gangly looking twenty-something
year old would be taking us. Later on however, we found that he had been in the business (of his hometown) for over a decade, 'very far ago' he says. As he pushes us through the marshlands, he is on constant lookout for the animals he knows we want to see. Every now and then he tells us to stand up and look at the heard of Zebras or Ampalas on either side of the Mokoro.
His 'very far' decade of experience is most welcomed however as we wander within about 10 metres of two Hippos in a lagoon. I knew that Hippos kill more people in Africa than any other animal (other than the dreaded mosquito), but I didn't realise just how scary they were upclose. The male in front of us would bob down and pop up on the other side like I'd imagine Nessy would in the lock, releasing a mamouth 'yaaaww' noise every time.
"Have you ever come to close to a hippo Oats"
"Yes, once, but that was accident, I am better now, and tourists did not die"
His accident was to push the boat and its two luckless passengers on
top of the animal, although it did not notice.
My Africa trip started three days ago. My flights took me through perth and Johannesburgh, where I spent the night in the plane viewing deck- twelve hours. After this 'sleep', I met Amanda who had come on a different flight via Singapore. Together we breezed through a very short customs queue and found our flight to Maun on Air Botswana. Despite my Mums fears, the plane seemed to be in working condition, although it's thirty seats were mostly empty. i was thrilled to hear that Amanda had picked up a tent in Melbourne before she left, a late edition that we left to the last minute. The idea was that we could save money by pitcing our tent at hostels rather than pay for dorms and double rooms. After the landing that seemed to simulate the feeling of a rollercoaster ride, we stepped off the runway in Maun and into an international airport smaller than my living room.
So there we were, in Botswana, looking for a nice spot to pitch our tent.
My first impression was a three worded sentence; f**k its hot. Sometimes a hot day
can be either just sunny weather or warm temperature, but this was different. The sun hit our skin like fire. I always used to wonder why people on safari would wear those log suits (besides their fashionability), but then and there i realised it was to sheild the skin from the intense rays of the sun. Moreover, the sun hit the sandy ground, asphaltd roads and clear blue sky in a way that blinded the eye. Yet somehow we had to find somewhere to get some local currency- preferably an atm, but somewhere that exchanged US notes would be ok. We walkd passed the Bureau de change at the airport because our friend Mr L. Planet had informed us on the plane that the Barclays branch a couple of Kms down the road gave a better rate. So after making the lifesaving decision to put suncream on, we put our packs on and started walking to town from the airport.
The walk gave my my first impression of Africa. Or, perhaps it would be better to say that I searched for a first impression but could not find one. There was so much inconsistency in the standard and condition
of our environment. By tht I mean we walked on a perfectly paved road between seemingly burned out and abandoned looking brick buildings and collapsed fences. There were square meter tin shacks with 'haircut' written on them (and occupants requesting to give me a trim) next to brand new Nissan dealerships and a Nandos. The clothes people wore was a similar story. Some wore raggy things with bare feet and others had brand new Dolce and Gabana belts and designer sunglasses. Like I said, I searched for an impression -something that I could claim was a norm of my environment - but couldn't find one.
Anyway, after walking down to the banks in town we found them all closed and three atms out of order. Our problems were confounded by the fact that it was the New years day holiday and there were few people around to help. So we walked all the way back to the airport, hoping that the bureau de change would still be open, but to our surprise (and embarrassment) found a working atm right next door. We retreaved 400 pula, which seemed like a lot at the time, and started towards the main road
to find a taxi to take us the 5km north of town to where Mr. Planet had told us there was a camp site. Before we could get going though, were were stopped by a couple of British tourists with cars who offered us a lift to the site, which was next to theirs.
So that was our first day in Africa. Our site - croc camp - had more that enough adequate spots as well as a pool and bar. The staff were a bit boring but that probably had more to do with it being new years day. Later we found out that the easiest way to get to town was in the back of a Matutu. Matutus are big white vans that pack with people and go down single routes, dropping them off and picking them up along the way. Its somewhere between hitchiking and taking a shared taxi. Our first time in one was perhaps the time when I realised that I was really enjoying it here. The driver was playing some blend of reggae and hip hop with insane amounts of bass, the passengers were all talking with eachother and laughing, there were school
teachers escorting their tudents to primary school, and Amanda and I were squished in the back. All for 2.70Pula each- what a bargain.
Leaving Mun was a little bit more of a headache. This was our first internal travel attempt of our African trip and we had been warned about the unreliability of services here. Nonetheless, we attempted to go from Maun to Kasane - the border town with Zambia - in one day and make it to Victoria falls by night. There were no direct Maun-Kasane service, so we had to get off at Nata further south and change buses. The first part of this plan went smoothly, and we made good time in arriving in Nata by noon. As noon became 1pm, and 2pm, and 3.30, we began to get worried. Its a 5 hour drive to Kasane and staying in Nata was not an option. An old man sitting at the petro station (the makshift terminus) with us however proved to be very helpful, explaining that we must ask cars and Matutus for a ride if we were to make it there by night. So, Amanda and I took turns asking pretty much every half empty
car whether they were going to Kasane and if so whether they could fit two more in.
We had no luck until quarter to four, when an already almost full Matutu finally said yes. The driver greeted my with a huge smile and an outstretched hand to shake. "Do you have luggage to? Oh OK, We'll fit it!" For slightly less than the bus fare we were expecting to pay, we spent those five hours packed into this rusty van, talking to the other passengers, who were all thrilled to have the opportunity to talk to us.
If there is one thing I have learned about trave it is that the real memories are not the things that you go there to see, but rather the stuff that happens in the middle. There we were, chatting with the seven other people about Zimbabwe and Australia, laughing at this and that, spotting elephants out the side of the road and whatching the sunset over the scrub. Awesome. It is truly striking just how friendly people are here. They are willing to talk about anything, and their universal firm grasp of English helps this. A conversation is only a smile
away. First they are looking at you, then you give them a big smile or a 'hello', and then, as if they have been waiting for the que, laugh and ask somthing like 'where are you from?', 'How long in Botswana?', and you've made a friend. Mogutu told us that he is thankful for the Swedes who instaled a water tank in his town, then introduced us to the man who is marying his daughter. Araam says that it's a shame what has happened to Zimbabwe, and it will take a new generation of Africans to change the political situation here. George immediately says 'Hillsong' when we say our nationality, and mentions that our current destination is too far to reach on foot, we will need a matutu.
It's everything I though it would be and more. You cant tell what's coming and you woudn't want it any other way. I
love it here
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Kpop
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Sounds Amazing
Your experience sounds amazing, keep up the stories