Blogs from Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Africa - page 25

Having survived being shocked on an electric fence & nearly drowning in the Zambezie it was time to find another novel way to cheat death, todays choice was a helicopter flight over Victoria falls. Whilst waiting for the helicopter we got to watch videos of the previous flights from that day. It soon became obvious that they filmed you getting on & off the helicopter & just cut in stock footage of the falls, especially obvious when they showed the sun setting on an 11 am flight. The helicopter flew us several times over the falls, across the wide Zambezie at the top & over the zig-zagging rapids at the bottom. The rafts making there way over the rapids seemed to be going much slower than when we had the previous day. We found out later ... read more

The last country on the itinerary during this wonderful trip to Southern Africa is Zimbabwe; formerly known as the bread basket of the region but now a country devastated by a collapse of the farming sector, chronic shortages of food and fuel, hyperinflation and massive levels of unemployment. Tourism levels have also plummeted in recent years due to instability and violence, but as a humble blogger I will leave further political comment to the politicians, and simply share as always my travel experiences. The previous journal left off in Livingstone, constant reader, on the Zambian side of Victoria Falls. I farewelled most of the safari group, and went to the Zim border where I had to fork out a hefty 50 smackaroos in order to secure a visa for the country. Oh well, I lined up ... read more

The train from Bulawayo to Vic Falls was ok, nothing flash, just two small bunks in a very small room, an unlockable door and a window blind that kept shooting up. Still, it made a change from having to drive on the truck all that way. We arrived at Vic Falls at 7am, tired and hungry, to find that bread wasn't available anywhere in town that day. We had a great, but expensive, time there. I went on an amazing microlight flight above the falls, we both did the "Sundowner Cruise" and watched the falls from both the Zimbabwean and Zambian side, getting really wet in the process. We also bought more souvenirs and sent more parcels back to NZ. The falls are really impressive, especially now as the river is about full. They fall into ... read more

Well. We are back in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and feeling much more at home. The trip has been fantastic!!! Highlights? The Irish lads on our tour - a young barrister and a fabulously talented singer who has just signed a recording deal with Sony. Consequently we have been enjoying quality live music in the African bush. Look out for Owen Brady (unless he takes on a stage name) - he deserves to be the “next big thing.” The group we have been traveling with has been mixed and interesting. Besides the Irish lads, we’ve had a young South African lawyer, a grey haired I.T. man and his teenage son, a young farmer and his teacher wife, a firefighter, a travel agent, an adventure tour agent, a stockbroker, and a young I.T. couple. I’ve developed a taste ... read more