Blogs from Zimbabwe, Africa - page 5

This trip is gruelling....long days...early mornings and late nights...but you really have to make the most of it and see as much as you can while you can. Takes us extra time to get ready every day with applying deet, deet and more deet, our tour guide contracted malaria about 4 weeks ago, so we have to be vigilent. Took the long 7hr drive back to JoBurg from Thornybush, visiting the potholes and the Blyth Canyon on the way. Overnight JoBurg and took flight next morning to Victoria Falls, I think this would have to be the smallest international airport we have ever been to. Bused to our beautiful hotel The Victoria Falls Hotel, what a grand old dame she is, built in 1906 and virtually right in Vic Falls. Took a cruise down the Zambezi ... read more

So, I left my last post describing how we had been absolutely drenched in Livingstone and heading back over the boarder into Victoria Falls town. Now when I was planning our honeymoon and had mentioned to friends that we were going to Zimbabwe they mostly responded with 'are you mad??' or saying to be careful being a British woman in Zimbabwe (???). To be honest, I am not overly worried about going anywhere as I always take care, but if ever there was a hint of worry it would very much have been unnecessary. Victoria Falls town is a dream- a teeny tiny quaint town with an old railway intersecting the town, with a smattering of cute cafes and pretty hip restaurants and bars, and small craft shops selling handmade souvenirs. We were told by our ... read more

Geo: -17.93, 25.84 Last night we slept in civilization again, enclosed in a very pleasant hotel with all its attendant (and undesired) amenities: windows that don't open (monkeys could scamper inside), television, sounds of traffic, a refrigerator humming on and off, outside lights shining all night long, and an annoying fresh paint smell because our rooms have been recently renovated and there is no way to dissipate the foul air in these sealed rooms. I'd rather be in the bush any day. But the staff here at the Rainbow Hotel is lovely, accommodating, friendly, courteous, and seemingly happy, as are all of the Africans we've met on this trip. And so today is our last full day here in Zimbabwe, here in ancient Africa. It will be enormously sad to leave this continent. I need to ... read more

Today we were hoping for a bit of luxury to make use of all hotel facilities but instead we were up ready for 5:45 ready for a trip to interact with elephants! We were taken in a safari lorry to Stanley & Livingstone safari park and then sat down for instructions on how to board an elephant. Then we signed our lives away and queued to see our elephants. They arrived in convoy. We were allocated Deka and handler Claus. We got on from the top of a tower. It was a bit wobbly at first but we soon got the hang of it. We were followed by security guards carrying guns in case we were attacked. Claus assured us there had been no incidents in the 5 years he had been there. We walked up ... read more

After Kruger National Park we passed through the Botswana border and you would not have believed the hundreds of lorries queued up to cross. Everything is so slow! It is also very, very hot. We went to Chobe National Park and went out on a day safari followed by a boat cruise on the Chobe river which I organised for a group of 14. Both events were superb and we had a good viewing of lions on safari. Following that we crossed into Zimbabwe by coach to see Victoria Falls. That was a real whirlwind tour as we dropped our belongings at the Kingdom Hotel, jumped back on the coach to Victoria Falls ... which was spectacular ... and then went back to the hotel for half an hour. Next we were on an excellent sunset ... read more