Zambia & Victoria Falls

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We left Jo-burg early on Monday following an extremely early exit from Rustenburg. We made the trip without any flat tires and returned the car without issue with plenty of time to catch our flight. We caught our flight on 1time Airlines to Livingstone, Zambia and met some good people along the way. First off, I know what you're thinking. Yes, I am serious that the airline was called 1time Airlines. Secondly, the flight was awesome. Third, although I wasn't looking, as with many of low budget airlines I have flown in the past, the flight attendants look like they are models (and they were named Nikita, Kristi, and Natasha - I literally felt like I was in a movie. Finally, the service - including the best in-flight airline magazine I have ever seen (eat your heart out United) - was awesome. Lesson learned - great service, bad marketing. May I suggest Round-trip Airlines or even NOT 1time Airlines? Seriously, you can do better...

We seemed to be the only plane at the entire Livingstone airport (literally) and checked through customs (one guy with one line) and into the 10 x 10 foot terminal. Ironically, there is a visa fee to get into the nation, and it NEEDS to be paid in US dollars. They don't even accept their own currency. Their money, the Kwacha, is almost worthless. The exchange rate is 5050 to 1. So when we got to our hostel (our only hostel of the trip), we were a little shocked to learn that it cost us 628,000 kwacha. What I meant to say... Was $25 USD per night.

We quickly remembered our past trips at hostels and decided we were very happy to be in budget hotels. Not that the hostel isn't safe (which is not - we don't have windows and there are mosquito nets to sleep in), but there is no privacy or piece of mind when keeping your stuff. We walked around downtown Livingstone, and not in a bad way, but we were the only white people in the entire town. Livingstone is supposedly a tourist town, but realistically, it looks third world. If you walk around town with a shopping bag from ShopRite, you are considered rich and people rush to ask you for money. With the exception of the amount of taxis, there were thousands of people walking around and although it isn't the case, it felt as though they were all starring at us. You do get over that feeling quickly as it becomes apparent that Zambians are some of the nicest people yet, and although they are all poor, they would give you the shirt off their back if they had to. Except of course, for the merchants who ruthlessly stalk you the second you step outside the gates of the hostel. I have NEVER, been so aggressively pursued, and from all I know about robberies and scams - this is it. One guy tried to trade me my Livestrong bracelet, Pitt hat, and Hartford Whalers shirt for 3 copper bracelets. Why did he want them you ask? I have no idea. But let's all be honest with ourselves, that Whalers shirt alone could prob buy me a car here. And truthfully... Its priceless...

Once we were settled, we met Ryan and Matt, the two Americans from DC that were on our flight. We signed up to whitewater raft on Tuesday and got a free booze cruise thrown in. Little did we know, or maybe we just didn't accept it, but the booze cruise would dominate us for that day and much of the next. Sadly, the cruise was mostly comprised of a school group (kids between 14-16) and their parents. But as with any combination of people and alcohol, things quickly got rowdy. The beers of choice here are Castle (the SA beer we drink all the time), and Mosi, the official beer of Zambia. The drinks were free, the liquor was free, and the food was limited - and after 4 hours floating the river, watching the sunset at the falls and seeing wild animals (giraffes, hippos, crocs and others), we headed back to our hostel to watch the final soccer match of the night (as we always do). So far, out of the 14 matches so far, we have probably watched 12 of those from beginning to end. I met some nice Norwegians and hung around the bar with them, and Heather and another group went 'downtown' - which is like 100 ft from the hostel to get the real Zambian experience. We met the mayor, and while I didn't go to the bar, it sounded like the locals loved the visitors and there was hours of dancing. I opted for the low-key route and got to bed around 1 AM to prepare for a long day of whitewater rafting we had in store for Tuesday.

Tuesday morning - 730 AM, the struggle begins. A bunch of us from multiple hostels and hotels saddle up for a day of whitewater rafting - the third continent which I have gone - but not without a fight. Rule number one about rafting is that it is dangerous, and preparation and having the right mindset is important. And as with every trip I go on, drinking always lasts until the wee morning hours, and the morning of rafting trips... Is always a disaster. I always try, and always fail - but in this instance... I seemed 100% compared to the other 17 people on the trip. This group of ragtag kids, look like a train rolled over us while we were in the rafting center. Even the guides made notice of the look, and seemed concerned. Worst of the entire group, was Matt (an American from DC), expect to hear that name a lot. There were 3 Mexicans, 3 kids from UVA (which apparently all of UVA came to SA as I see them all the time, or maybe they just LOVE wearing UVA stuff), 3 other kids from DC, and a few randoms. As we got the safety briefing, struggled to consume food, and headed to the river - even I felt a bit wary. One thing that did make me feel better, there was another Hartford Whalers shirt in the bunch. A good hockey t-shirt of a defunct hockey team always eases the mind - but what are the chances?

Matt puked before we even left for the bus ride to the gorge, so I made it a priority not the be in his raft. The river we were rafted was the Zambezi, one of the top ten in the world. The wet season here is now just ending, in fact this was only the fifth day they were able to raft the river, so the river is class 3 rapids as opposed to class 5+. While I wouldve loved to be here in the dry season to experience the river in all its glory, a quick look at the group made me realize that it was probably best this way.

The first task, was to walk, 2500 ft down (pretty much vertically) the side of the gorge so we could put the rafts in the water and go... Little did we know, but that would be the most physically straining part of the trip. It took nearly 20-30 minutes to walk down. It was NOT a path, but looked like a ditch. And there was the constant worry about people behind you causing rock slides. All in all, an awesome start to a trip that seemed doomed before we even reached water.

We headed out in three rafts and while the pictures show that everyone was struggling, we had a good time on some strong, but not monstrous waters.

We jumped out of our raft and illegally crossed into Zimbabwe, my first ever illegal border crossing. And technically, when you add it all up, that illegal crossing saved me $100 USD in legal entry and exit fees. We snapped a picture and got out of there before we were arrested. We took a break at the mid-point, where Matt puked again, and even I, who felt OK, began to feel almost sea-sick, and was struggling. After 20 minutes in the 80 degree sun, we all started to feel better.

Aside from a bruise on my ankle which is swelling like crazy, the trip went off without issue, and I can check off another continent and another top ten river.

As we rode the chairlift (and signed our lives away for the 3rd time in the day), Matt puked again... Surprise! There is one sad, but hilarious detail that Ill end on. Matt lost his luggage on his way to Africa, over 9 days ago, and has been borrowing and buying clothes since. He was wearing a belt, khaki shirts, and sleeveless shirt on the raft, and when we reached the top, he felt a lump in his pocket. He had his passport in his pocket the entire time and it was drenched. He is lucky it didn't fall out when his raft flipped, but while we all felt bad... You couldn't help but laugh.

We met up with the rafting group for some dinner and drinks that night, and for the first time perhaps in the entire trip... I got 8+ hours of sleep. One other funny note was our cab ride back. Every cab in Zambia has a crack in the windshield. In ours, it was obvious that our driver had hit a person, because one of the two huge cracks was an imprint the size of a human face. Its time like that when you just need to shake it off and go.

Between hitting on 15 year old SA girls and puking, our old friend Matt (see earlier stories) decided to give a local the equivalent of $115 USD, in SA money, and told him to convert it to Zambia money. He failed to actually go with the kid, and when he returned, he gave Matt $1000 kwatcha (equaling 20 cents USD) as well as $12 USD dollars, in the form of six CRISP two dollar bills. I would personally consider that an unfair trade (getting $12.20 for $120 USD originally), but Matt seemed suspicious, but accepting, and moved on with the night. Some of the group headed to local clubs again, and without naming names, some almost ended up on "Locked Up Abroad" on NatGeo.

Unlike the first night, where a retarded rooster crowed and woke me every hour on the hour... I was immune to it this time and slept my best night of the trip.

We slept in a bit and hopped the 10 AM shuttle to Victoria Falls, the largest falls in the world that during the season we are here, has a flow of over 120 millions liters per second. Yes... Per second. We were told a few things about the falls: (1) Don't go over the falls in a barrel (check); (2) Be aware of the baboons (almost check); (3) And be prepared to be impressed by the power of the falls (definitely a check).

We broke out our 88 cent Walmart ponchos and spent nearly 5 hours walking all the trails and checking out all angles of the falls. While the mist hides much of the falls, and a helicopter ride isn't worth it for the price - you can really appreciate the power of the falls. To think that the entire Zambezi starts at a source the size of a bath tub in the middle of Congo, and puts millions of liters per second over the falls is amazing. There isn't much to say about the falls other than we could tell why its one of the Seven Wonders of the World. We did however have a run-in with the infamous baboons as they chased and followed us on the trails. Those things could rip my arms right off and slap me with them, so... Yeah, we stayed away.

We came back and watched the Swiss beat Spain (which was a shocker), and then were devastated to watch SA lose to Uruguay (3-0) and they had their keeper get a red card. All in all, it couldn't have gone worse. SA could be the first host team to not make it to the next round in the history of the tournament. A really sad night because the longer the people of SA stay engaged, the better it is for the World Cup overall.

A few other random things I've noticed (yes, I love being random). First, I am definitely... Not the only one who thought growing a beard for this trip was a good idea. I'd say 70% of all the guys traveling from the states have the same idea. I'd say as people in SA meet more Americans, and see these crusty and ridiculous beards, thier stereotypes will begin to change. Then there are the mullets. Not the euro-mullet tails that all the European guys have. But real, old-fashioned WV style mullets that are obviously an intimidation factor at each and every US game we attend. These guys really are all business up top, and a party in the back. Ah... America.

Secondly, there is marijuana everywhere here. Not that I see people smoking it, but I have literally stepped on multiple plants, and according to the local street cred (yes, I am that ingrained in the culture now), the best of it comes from Swaziland. Now I have never done drugs in my entire life, but as the following of this blog has expanded, I feel it is my duty to inform you of these cultural 'secrets' to give you the best picture of the area. I mean, I think I'd be letting you down if I didn't.

As we head back to Jo-burg for our next game on Friday, I can say that I really enjoyed my time in the nation and at Victoria Falls. While it is definitely struggling, and is without a doubt a third world country, Zambia is beautiful (like the rest of Southern Africa) and the people and culture here are as unique and friendly as SA. Victoria Falls is breathtaking, you cannot imagine the power you feel by just being near it. I will remember the trip, and the people I met well, but I am excited to see the rest of SA, the US games, and enjoy the last 10 days of the trip. I cannot believe its been 15 days, and I really don't want it to end. But... Ill appreciate what I have while I have it, and worry about coping with the depression of the real world when I get back.

Hopefully my POS blackberry will work in Jo-burg, and I will try to update everyone from Capetown over the weekend. Keep writing, I always enjoy comments or critiques of the blog, and I expect everyone to be rooting for the US on Friday vs Slovenia (its a must win). Until later...

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Photos

Victoria Falls
One of the Seven Wonders of the World - and you can see why.

Comments

[Dana]

Best post yet
This made me LOL in my cubical. Keep posting! I'm so jealous!!