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Published: November 28th 2006
Version Francaise un peu plus bas.
Hi everyone,
Here are some final pictures of the safari in Zambia and Botswana. The safari ended in Lusaka last Wednesday and while everyone flew back to Europe I flew back to Johannesburg for a few days of rest before heading out to Zanzibar - which is where I am updating my blog. Yes Zanzibar is as amazing as I had fantasized, but you'll have to wait until the next blog to hear more and see pictures.
As you can see on the pictures I took a micro light flight above Victoria Falls on our last day in Livingstone, it was very exhilarating and I felt incredibly light and vulnerable - but in a good way. It was at 7 in the morning, the light was beautiful, no wind and we even flew very low to take a closer look at some elephants and hippos. The landing was a bit bumpy and a few baboons ran across the runway a few hundred meters ahead of us - I thought again "only in Africa!". The last night in Livingstone our tent got flooded in the middle of the night. It's the frogs' fault.
Really. Let me explain: the sound of frogs at night was so incredibly loud that we had to sleep with earplugs and that's why neither Nicole nor me heard the deluge outside. Around midnight we both found ourselves checking into a tented bungalow and cursing those damn frogs.
From Livingstone we crossed the border into Botswana to go to the very well know game reserve called Chobe. It's renowned for its elephant population and we were not disappointed. The game drives there were fantastic and we saw lions as well as one leopard. Very exciting. So that completes my "big 5" but I still need to swim with whale sharks before I give myself permission to leave the African continent.
After Chobe our last destination was the lower Zambezi river, back through the border into Zambia again. There we spent two very relaxing days in a great lodge right on the river. We had a full day of canoeing on the Zambezi river, very calm, very peaceful. .
At night the elephants and hippos walked around the lodge and the chalets and it was the funniest mix of noises - splashing in the river, snorting, arguing, crashing
branches, etc...Needless to say that the earplugs were a must too. There is only so much a good eye cream can do - both Nicole and I needed our beauty sleep! The nights were very very hot, I sat outside one night, carefully anticipating roaming elephants, and tried to catch even a tiny little breeze...all I caught were shooting stars slicing through the most amazing night sky. One of our night game drives turned into a star gazing trip, there were no clouds and almost no moon, the driver stopped the land rover, turned off all lights and started to point at different stars and constellations in the sky. I could have stayed there forever. The hot and dark African nights completely mesmerize me and I never get tired of it
Our last night in Lusaka was uneventful, we were all pretty exhausted from the long, hot drive and from the abbreviated nights compliments of the animal sounds of the African nights! We had dinner at the place were all of Lusaka seemed to have convened and we said our goodbyes.
The next day I was back in Johannesburg at that lovely hotel were I had stayed a
1,500 ft above Victoria Falls · Livingstone, Zambia
This is the closest to being a bird! Awesome. You must try it!few weeks before. The staff there is so friendly and they were all inquiring about my safari and my next destination. I was only in Joburg for 3 days and was quite busy with what I am now calling "trip admin work"...bookings, emails, laundry, shopping and planning.
Hope you enjoy the pictures. I am uploading shots of Zanzibar, I think that the photography enthusiasts out there (Rob?) will be pleased. Zanzibar just begs to be photographed at every turn and corner explored. Stay tuned!
Tomorrow will be 60 days on the road. It does not feel that long and I can say that I am completely under the charm of the luminous (and not the dark) continent as Sir Bob Gedolf refers to Africa. I am reading his book "Geldof in Africa" and I think I must include some excerpts of his book in my blog at some point to help you get what I am experiencing and what the charm and fascination is all about.
In one week I will be in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, picking up my brother, whom I expect will not be his normal perky self after an 18 hr flight
from LA. I can't wait to see him. We are going to have a blast and it will be like being kids again - hopefully without the constant fighting which we were notorious for! Just kidding Laurent 😊
Hope all is well in your respective corners of the globe...USA, Africa, South Pacific, Europe...Hum...I wonder, who is the coldest right now? Gerry in NYC? Elisabet and Stefan in Berlin...or Jeroen in Amsterdam? Ok, I'll stop. You are right, I am being cruel!
Thanks for all your messages, it's also great to be able to speak on the phone so easily, I did not expect my phone to work in all these countries and it really helps to stay connected.
Stay tuned for the long awaited (well, by me anyway) Zanzibar pictures.
Love,
Isabelle
Bonjour a tous,
J;espere que ce blog va trouver tout le monde en forme. Je me trouve a Zanzibar depuis hier et j'ai enfin quelques bonnes heures et une connexion internet acceptable pour finir mon recit Zambie et Botswana. Il vous faudra un peu patienter pour recits et photos de Zanzibar mais je promet que vous ne serez pas decus!
Herd of elephants in Chobe National Park · Botswana
Yes, they are posing for me. I have a trick, but I can't tell you. Donc la semaine derniere mon deuxieme safari de groupe s'est acheve a Lusaka, la capitale de la Zambie. Comme vous voyez sur les photos, le dernier jour a Livingstone je me suis fait des sensations avec un vol en ULM au dessus des chutes Victoria. C'est le plus proche d'etre un oiseau que je n'ai jamais ete, extraordinaire et vraiment a faire si vous avez l'occasion. On a survole tres bas des elephants et des hippopotames, et en guise de comite d;acceuil a l'atterissage nous avons eu un groupe de babouins qui a traverse la piste! Au cas ou j'aurais oublie pour une minute que je suis en Afrique!
La derniere nuit a Livingstone, notre tente a ete innondee en pleine nuit, la galere, a 1h du matin Nicole et moi avons du se refugier dans un bungalow qui par chance etait disponible et tout pret de notre campement. Inutile de dire que nous n;etions pas fraiches le lendemain. Vers la fin du sejour tous nos sacs et vetements etaient humides et on ne revait que d'un lit sec et comfortable.
Nos quelques jours au Bostwana ont ete fabuleux. Nous etions a Chobe National Park qui est
tres repute pour ses larges populations d'elephants. On a pu voir de tres pres des lions ainsi qu'un leopard. On a tous retenu notre souffle a l'approche des 4 lions (une lionne et ses 3 petits) qui se reposaient sous un arbre...quel spectacle! Quant au leopard il etait seul et semblait indifferent aux 8 vehicules qui l'ont encercle et au bruits des appareils photos qui se declenchaient.
De Chobe nous sommes repartis en Zambie. De nouveau frontiere a franchir, camion sur une barge, trajet de 7 minutes...en attendant que les Chinois construisent un pont. Les Chinois sont de plus en plus presents en Afrique, ils lorgnent les resources naturelles du continent et les Africains y trouvent leur compte avec ponts, routes et infrastructure offertes a des couts imbattabes par les Chinois.
Noz derniers jours en Zambie nous etions le long du fleuve Zambezi, un cadre de reve, un beau lodge decore de bon gout, des baobabs geants (dont une avec des toilettes qui fonctionnent au milieu du tronc creux), des elephants et hippopotames qui se baignent sous nos yeux a 20 metres des bungalows et une lumiere doree magnifique.
On a passe 3 jours de reve, fait
du canoe, farniente, game drive de nuit en 4x4. Le matin je me levais tot (il fait jour a 5 h du matin en Afrique a cette periode de l’annee), je m;installait dans une chaise longue, sous les baobabs geants, et j’observait dans le silence absolu le troupeau d’elephants qui venaient se restaurer tous les matins en effeuillants les arbres et buissons. Moments magiques que je ne suis pas prete d’oublier.
Le safari s’est donc termine Mercredi dernier a Lusaka. Nous avons pris notre dernier repas dans une resto agreeable ou tout Lusaka semblait s’etre donne rendez vous. Le lendemain tout le monde est reparti sur Londres et Frankfurt, certains contents de rentrer chez eux et d’autres avec la hantise de retrouver froid et grisaille. Moi j;ai pris mon vol pour Johannesburg ou j’ai passé 3 jours a me preparer pour mon depart sur Zanzibar. J;avoue que le retour a la civilization, ne serais ce que pour 3 jours, fais un sacre bien: lit sec, vrai oreiller, douche avec pression convenable, et puis surtout une grande lessive qui permet a tous les vetements d’etre bien secs et prets pour la prochaine aventure!
J’espere que vous etes tous en
forme. Difficile a croire, mais demain cela fera 60 jours que je me ballade. Que les semaines passent vite et surtout elles passent et ne se ressemble pas! Quelle diversite sur ce continent et d’un pays a l’autre. Je continue a m;en mettre plein la vue comme on dit vulgairement. Je ne me lasse pas. Je ne trouve pas le temps long et quand je regarde la carte de l’Afrique la tentation de voir toujours plus est la.
Merci pour tous les gentils messages et pour les coups de fils. Ca fait plaisir de savoir tout le monde en forme.
A tres bientot.
Isa
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Sandy
non-member comment
simply stunning
these pics are simply stunning! I feel transported as I read your blog entries and look at the photos. maybe your next career chapter should be travel writing? oh, I win on the cold weather I think...it was 19 degrees F here in Seattle last night...ugh. I could have stayed in Chicago for this! take care my friend, xo