2011 – Itezhi-Tezhi Dam to Makumbi Safari Lodge (Kafue)

Each day in Africa is so different. This morning I found myself fully dressed standing in a shower cubicle (the one and only for ladies), holding a plastic basin under the nozzle in order to get some hot water to do the dishes. I was thinking about my friends and family who would making school lunches or giving their husbands breakfast round about now (only to discover later in the day it was Saturday). In order to get to the shower, I had to climb about 200m up a hill with the dirty dishes and plastic basins. With hot water in basin, I found a ledge and while I washed the dishes, a troop of baboons sat and watched me, with a look of ‘this is one strange human’. Eventually, they got bored and went off, to be replaced by two rock rabbits; they were only interested in sunning themselves and not in me. I no longer miss the dishwasher and find the daily chores oddly fulfilling, it is easy when you have a beautiful view and the plaintive cries of the fish eagles all around. I’m also a lot luckier than a lot of women in the world who have no water with which to wash their dishes, let alone hot water.

We were on the road by 8:15. We crossed over the dam wall, where lots of construction was taking place – supervised by Chinese (obviously they have the contract for the implementation of the hydro electric scheme here), this must be a total culture shock for them.

We passed through the town and their funny little stores and taverns, with names like “Gods Will Shop” and “Risen from Ashes General Dealer”.

Take it as given, that the roads we travel on are sandy and potholed but today was a total shocker – I’d hate to know what’s happening to our shocks (I hope my girl friends are impressed). We were chatting to one of the guys who works at the resort yesterday and he said, “South Africans don’t moan about our roads here but everyone else gets stuck”, this says something about some of our roads in S.A.

We arrived at Mukambi in one piece and the whole journey was well worth it – this place is amazing. It is on the banks of the Kafue River, we never realised this river was so large, this section is certainly on a par, size wise, with the Zambezi. On the other side of the camp site is the bushveld, so we have the best of both worlds. Gray has also got a bit nervous about the camp site facilities (after my little episode at Nanzilha) but we have a proper toilet and hot and cold running water so I am very happy.

It seems standard, that if you are campers or lodgers, you have full use of all facilities at the resort or lodge. The facilities here are stunning; there are 3 decks, on varying levelsand a pool, all overlooking the river. At the moment I am in heaven; watching the river flow past with an elephant drinking on the opposite bank.

Risen from the Ashes General Dealer

                                                                   Camp view on left

                                                                     Camp view on right

Day 22: 6/5/2011 – Nanzhila Plains to Itezhi-Tezhi Dam

We packed up early and walked up to the offices to pay, hoping for an early start. No such luck, we were greeted with coffee and chocolate cake (I hadn’t had breakfast yet) and eventually left ¾ of an hour later. We really didn’t mind, besides it’s not every day you get home made choc cake for breakfast. Nanzhila Plains will never hit my list of the top 10 camp sites to visit but the hospitality we received from Brad, Ruth & Steady made the stay worthwhile. I think that this camp and area must be absolutely stunning in the dry season once the grass is short and the water not so spread out.

We headed north along the same sandy and potholed roads for 2½ hours to the Musa Gate. For anyone visiting Southern Kafue, I would suggest you do so in the winter. The vegetation, although luscious and in great condition, offers very little opportunity to see game in the rainy season.

From Musa we headed up to the Itezhi Tezhi Dam (pronounced Itchy Tetchy). We were aware that there was an options of 2 resorts with camping facilities in the area. Here all camp sites are attached lodges, bungalows or resorts; it makes no difference how smart or run down the resorts are, the going rate is around $200/person, so camping is certainly a cheaper option.

The first resort we came across, we enquired about their camping facilities and they informed us that the camp sites were much nicer at the resort next door – it still amazes me how honest Zambians are. The camp site at New Kalala is certainly stunning and we are the only ones at the resort tonight. We have set up camp on the banks of the water with a view of this massive expanse of water in front of us and what looks like deserted islands in the middle.

Once camp was set up, we headed into Itezhi Tezhi town, we had been told to visit Melissa’s store for fresh bread and produce (the frozen salad had now passed its use by date). We crossed over a newly built dam wall, obviously built for hydro electric purposes. The town seemed to be divided into 2 sections; the one on the top of the hill for ZESCO employees (Zambian Energy Corporation) and on the low road, the locals live in a mixture of huts and semi built structures. In neither section could we find Melissa’s or any other shop we felt worth stopping at.

Back at camp we just sat and admired the view and tranquillity of the lake; a row boat crossed into the middle for a night of fishing. We eventually moved up to a bar/restaurant area for a drink and to watch the sun set. The bar is set about 20m above the lake, which was as smooth as glass. This place must have been a top holiday spot in its day and still has an old colonial feel to it. Although it is clean and well kept, it definitely is from a bygone era.

We felt a bit braaied out, so we used our frozen tomatoes, onions, peppers and some homemade chilli sauce (supplied by Brad) to whip up a spaghetti arabiatta on the camp fire. To all of Gray’s braai buddies – I promise he hasn’t gone all soft on you (or maybe he has chosen vegetarian pasta over a chunk of steak). Our issue at the moment is trying to sort out how to cook for two – we are kind of over catering but we will get there – and just as we do, there will be 5 of us again.

Viewfrom our camp

Fishing on Itezhi-Tezhi

Sun set andcamp fire

Day 21: 5/5/2011 – Nanzhila Plains, Kafue National Park

We had a good night’s sleep and I woke up in a much better frame of mind. It turns out, 10m out of the hyena’s hide hole are beautiful plains, with water lilies and bull rushes.

We spent the morning sorting out camping equipment, now that ‘hurricane Hilda’ is back in Joburg. We packed away things no longer needed, sorted out what was and repacked. During this exercise we discovered that with all the sand roads and rain, mud had formed at the bottom of the trailer, so everything had to be unpacked and cleaned. I unpacked all the food boxes and duct taped all the little holes, so they are now secure from little creepy crawlies. We sorted out the car and finally Gray did the washing. This was because he lost the bet as to who had been the most organised – this is a turn for the books and I won’t let him forget it in a hurry.

A stunning guy, Steady, the camp assistant, arrived and offered to help with anything and everything. He boiled a bucket of water for us (it turns out there is a tap at the camp site, but only to be used for washing) and soon I was having a hot shower out of the bucket in the tree. Nothing makes me feel better than a good shower and a hair wash (as Tony and Gray well know). Robs you will be proud of me, I showered and washed my hair using only ½ a bucket of water.

I then ‘cooked’ lunch, tuna pasta – well 2 minute noodles, with chopped onion, peppers and tuna. Cooking 2 minute noodles over a camp fire takes a good 22 minutes, at least, to cook.

We then went for a drive around the area. It is difficult to see animals as the grass is so high but we saw some stunning birds, including a flock of ground hornbills and a pair of wattled cranes (they are on the vulnerable species list).

It is not often we do game drives with the windows closed but if you dare to open them, the tsetse flies swarm in and nip you. It had to be a really good shot before we opened our windows for a pic. I once opened my window to let a tsetse out and 6 flew in, so it was no more Mr nice guy after that.

Gray had read somewhere that we would be bothered by these little buggers and there were 3 methods of ‘avoiding’ them: a) Avon body lotion, b) diesel oil and c) get the smelliest person you can find to put in the car and the flies will go for them instead. I opted for option (a) and eventually found an Avon rep the day before our departure and bought out her whole stock of ‘Smooth like Silk’. I have replaced my Revlon lotion with Avon and so far I have had fewer nips than Gray.

On our return, Brad and Ruth arrived – they are the managers of Nanzhila Plains – and invited us up to their lodge area for drinks. They were extremely hospitable and gave us advice on the road ahead and where to stay. The sunset over the plains was, as sunsets are out here, beautiful. We eventually, walked home in the dark, along the side of plains (probably a little silly in a National Park, with 4 of the big 5) but the moon was coming up and it was so peaceful and beautiful.

I feel a little guilty about yesterday’s blog but hey, we all have our days.

PS. While chatting to Brad & Ruth, they were moaning about some ‘boneheads’ who had stayed here recently and how rude they had been, particularly to Steady , threatening him in the same way Jackson had been spoken to at Namushasha. I had taken the number plates of our ‘friends’ and they were on the guest register here and guess what, they were the same group of obnoxious caravaners.

Wattled Crane

Kafue main road

Big Panda – Baby Baobab

Day 20: 4/5/2011 – Livingstone to Kafue National Park

I have loved Livingstone – possibly 5 days was a bit long, the originally planned 3 is ideal but we knew planning was an impossibility and we would have to adjust accommodation and routes to the circumstances.

We left at about 9:00 and headed 120km up the main road to Kalomo, where we filled up with diesel. From here we left the main tarred road and took the road to the south entrance gate of Kafue, it was back to dirt and potholes. The first few km were particularly scary as we were sharing the road with donkey carts and bicycles coming from all directions. The speed limit on the road was 65km/h but we were averaging around 35km/h. Eventually, the traffic subsided and we were the only vehicle on the road. The area was sparsely populated with maize and sunflower crops. There are indigenous trees in the middle of the fields, the crops are planted around the trees, which are used for medicinal purposes. Every 10km we would encounter 2 speed bumps with a sign indicating “Basic School” and either a school close to the road or a road leading off to one. The term ‘basic school’ concerned me until we came to a sign indicating an “Upper Basic School” and I realised ‘basic’ was the equivalent of our ‘lower primary’ school. If it had been school term, I would have visited one of the schools but unfortunately it is school holidays in Zambia.

We have this kind of travelling deal, I will camp for max 5 nights and then I want a clean bed, a warm shower and a cooked meal (done by someone else). Gray worked out that of the 20 days on the road, we have slept in beds for 10, so I have 40 days in a row in the tent. At that point I was kind of looking forward to a being back in our tent home.

The road was a pleasant one to travel, with lots of mopane forests and for the first time in about 2 weeks the flat land gave way to a few mountains. At the entrance to the gate we were told by the guard that they had been fairly busy. We had to fill in a register giving entry details; we were the first car through since 22/4/2011and the 8^th car through this year – I would hate to know what the quiet period was like.

We were headed for the camp site at Nanzhila Plains, the gate guard warned us to keep off the ‘short cut’ road, as it was impassable. The long road added an extra 50km and 11/2 hours onto our journey. We saw very little along the way, most of the vegetation comprised of thick mopane. What was frustrating were the number of lion spoor along the track; it looked as if someone had lion spoor tyre tread but we never saw any lion.

Gray had spent 2 days researching camp sites in the area and boy did he bomb out on this one. We are the only people here, not surprising. It reminds me of a scene from the “Lion King”, the part of Africa where Shenzi, Ed and the other hyena dude live. It is full of thick grey dust, has a ghastly, smelly long drop (I will be digging holes here) and a shower bucket in a tree (with no tap). The worst thing about this area are the tsetse flies that keep nipping us and the good old house flies that think we are dog turds and won’t leave us alone. Gray, wondering why I am somewhat miffed by my change in circumstances, informs me this is luxury compared to what we are heading into. He could have let me know this a little sooner.

The evening arrived and we managed a pretty decent meal; sosaties, butternut, baked potatoes and frozen salad. No Amarula on ice, with a river running by – actually, life in Africa can be kak.

The road to Kafue

Fafue’s ‘busy’ entrance

The Thunder Box

Day 19: 3/5/2011 – Livingstone

After breakfast we headed into town (town is the main road, Mosi-oa-Tunya Road) to buy supplies for the next leg of the journey north. We had done a reccie earlier on in the week and discovered the Shoprite Checkers far superior to the Super Spar, it was actually better than a lot of the Jhb Checkers stores. This was not exactly a month end shop; we purchased meat for a few nights and some fresh fruit and salad. The problem being storage, our fridge/freezer can only be one or the other, so if we freeze the meat, we freeze the lettuce. Oh the dilemmas of being a cook in the bush.

We then made a stop at the local craft market for Robs to buy her Zambian bracelet, before heading off to Livingstone Airport. At the entrance was another ‘more than giant size’ statue of Livingstone, this time with Susi and Chuma, his trusted aides and guides by his side. Wherever you go in Livingtone there are these huge statues of the man. Robs was flying back home so she could attend bush school with her classmates, for three weeks, in the Waterberg area. My wonderful sister would be meeting her at the Airport and looking after her till her departure on Sunday. Thanks Juls and Ads for taking care of her, the school lifts and everything you always do for the kids. She was sorry to leave; she has a wonderfully adventurous nature and was upset about missing out on the rest of Zambia and Malawi. However, on the flip side, she was excited about going to bush school and it will be good for her to see her friends after being with the two old farts for the past 3 weeks.

After booking her in, we had a coldrink in a rather run down ‘restaurant’ and then waved her good bye as she disappeared into the departure area. I feel like I have lost a limb. I really miss not having all 3 kids around. Gareth, with his big bear hugs, always so willing to help me and his dry sense of humour, plus he can cook up a pretty decent meal these days. Kirst, who just takes over with her ‘bigger than life’ personality and wicked sense of humour. I even miss her ‘attitude’. Robs is kind and gentle, always thinking of others but a bit like the Duracell bunny, always on the go and keeping us in tow.

So here we are – Darby and Joan for the next 6 weeks. Besides the odd week here and there, this is the longest stretch in 21 years that it’s going to be just the two of us. I joked with my friends before we left – that we would either come back divorced or like Dr and Mrs Livingstone. In hind sight, I think David Livingstone traipsed around the African jungle for 27 years to try and escape from the dog ugly Mary Moffat. Hopefully, we will survive and return as good old Mr & Mrs Morrison.

Gray dropped me off at the Waterfront to sort out washing and admin (I managed to get the washing done, for a reasonable fee – my nails have just recovered from the last encounter with Mama’s washing powder). He then went back into the township to visit his bush mechanic mates; they had some final touches to make on the car (new universal joints or something). Then he went to sort out the Comesa insurance, a 3^rd party insurance for Africa. We could only do the first leg, from home to Zambia, in S.A., the rest had to be done in Zambia (this saves us sorting it out at each border post).

On his return, we decided to visit the ‘Mosi-au-Tunya” Game Park (clearly everything around here is named after the falls), about 1km from the Waterfront. It was a stunning little park, reminding me of the Okavango in Botswana. We saw 3 monitor lizards and a croc lying in the road in the first 3 km. Besides lots of general game, the bird life was amazing and we both had fun trying different settings on the camera. This is the one ‘tourist attraction’ which is not advertised but well worth a visit.

After dinner we sat on the banks of the Zambezi, sipping Amarula on ice – “ life is kak in Africa”.

Livingstone & Co

Good bye Robs

Monitor Lizzie

Day 18: 2/5/2011 – Livingstone

The workshop

The gorge fron the bridge

Robs over the gorge

The matching shirts were not planned – this was Grays replacement for his white one.

As we walked into the open plan thatched roof dining area, along the river and next to the bar, for breakfast, the first words I heard were “Osama Bin Laden is dead”. It came from the voice of a presenter on Sky news – this was the second time this holiday we had come across a T.V. and both were recording major news events – what else have we missed out on, in world news?

Our plans for the day were to have an early start, Bin Laden aside, breakfast eaten, sun screen on and day bags packed. We were to cross the bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe, on foot, have tea at the Victoria Falls Hotel (all very old and colonial but a top hotel), see the falls from the Zimbabwe side and cross the river back, hoping to avoid Robs doing the bungee-jump.

For all of our friends who laugh at us for driving a Land Rover and especially for attempting to take one up into Africa, you may laugh with good cause. After our early start we headed up the seriously pot holed road to the main Livingstone road, a road we have taken many times as it was the link from the Waterfront, Chrismar and all the adventure entertainment (tourist trap things) in the area. Just before the main road we hit one too many potholes for the Disco, hearing the most awful grinding sound we came to an abrupt halt. Gray got under the car (as usual when he gets under a car, he was wearing a white shirt but this was the least of our worries) – we had broken the front drive shaft. This meant nothing to me but according to Gray was serious, as we were not going anywhere and this was a problem ‘Camel Man” could not fix alone, although he started giving it a serious try.

I could write a book on the “The fixing of the Land Rover in Livingstone” but I will try and give a brief version for our blog. First to take into account, today is a public holiday, making it a long weekend, so all businesses and shops are closed.

Gray was under the car in an attempt to disable the metal contraption hanging down from the bowels of the car in the hopes of limping back to the Waterfront. The tools in the car proved hopelessly inadequate for the job. So I began the fairly long, hot walk back to get his big red box of tools out the trailer. I was soon offered a lift, which I gratefully accepted, in a farm truck taking deliveries to the Waterfront. With big red (& very heavy) toolbox in hand I caught a lift back in the same truck. By now many people had stopped to see if they could offer assistance. With serious tools in hand the nut thingies attaching the thing hanging down to the undercarriage of the car still did not budge. The next plan was for Robs and I to walk into town to find the number of the Land Rover fixer guy. Again a lift was offered and gratefully accepted, we didn’t think twice about getting into a strange car with 2 strange men, who went out of their way to take us to the Land Rover ‘garage’. The place was obviously closed but we got a number from the guard to phone and obviously the mechanic was away for the long weekend (he would be open the next day but would have to order the part which would take 10 to 14 days to arrive). From here we decide to walk into town to see if there were any open garages/parts places/tow trucks (unlike Jhb where the leaches are on every street corner we haven’t come across one tow truck since leaving S.A.). Eventually, we gave up and hailed a taxi, Samuel was the next Good Samaritan on our list. He drove around; to no avail, helping us look for a place for assistance. Back at the car, some chap on a bicycle asked Gray if he needed welding done, not welding but he had a grinder on the back of bike (just what was needed for the stubborn nuts and bolts). Now we needed power, so Samuel (for no extra charge) took us back to the trailer for the extension cord. On the way we chatted more about what was wrong with the car and next thing Sam whipped out his cell and phoned Tom, someone he knew who had a maroon car like ours and was a mechanic.

Back at the car, extension connected to the inverter, linked to the 3 batteries, supplied power for the welding guy. Now with 2 passing assistants he began the task of grinding off the nuts (this took about ½ an hour). In the mean time Tom phoned back to say he could help with a part. Gray then got into Sam’s taxi, leaving Robs and I at the car to go Tom’s house (in some township about 10km away) to fetch the part. They arrived back with some rusted part and 2 of Tom’s mates (no Tom) buy Gray was happy with the part and the ‘mechanics’ – we actually had little choice. They had a look under the car, decided they needed some tools and got back into Sam’s taxi (by now Graeme had employed Sam for the day). It was pointless Robs and I sitting around on her last day before returning to S.A., so Gray said we should go back and chill at the pool. Yes, again we accepted a lift from 2 total strangers and felt safe, as they chatted to us about the business they do in S.A.

An hour later a very dirty Gray arrived at the swimming pool, he had driven back in the Disco. During the fixing of the vehicle, numerous people stopped to offer assistance, the lady living in the house next to where we had broken down offered her home for Gray to sit and rest in while the mechanics worked on his car. Nobody tried to rip us off the cost involved in what they did and most were happy to help without payment (where payment was due Gray doubled what was asked for) and the total repair, taxi fair etc came to around R2500. Gray says Quinton did warn him to check these things but he ran out of time – so apologies, I will see he listens next time !!!!!

I know none of the people who assisted us will be reading this blog but I would still like to thank each and every person for getting us back on the road. The Zambians certainly live by their philosophy, “The birth and death of an individual are less significant. What matters are ones deeds between the two periods”.

Six hours later we were on our way to the steel bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe, the brain-child of Cecil John Rhodes, as part of his vision to link Cape to Cairo by rail. We parked our car, went into the customs office, where we got a scrap of paper with 3 on it, no passport stamping or anything. The bridge, I guess, is considered ‘no man’s land’ – the middle of the bridge is demarcated with 2 painted lines about 1m apart – the locals refer to area as ZimZam. It was the first time we had been on the bridge (which has 3 lanes, one for pedestrians, one for cars and a railway track). From here we still got wet from the spray from the falls. The view of the falls and swirling waters in the gorge below are truly spectacular. Robs was desperate to bungee-jump but due to previous back injuries, they suggested we get medical clearance (much to the relief of her parents). As a substitute she did the zip slide across the gorge onto the 111m high bridge. We have done similar slides across gorges in the Magaliesberg and the Drakensberg but she said they paled in comparison to the adrenaline rush she got from this 240m long slide.

We watched some idiots bungee-jumping and swinging off the bridge (including a Japanese couple who got married yesterday do a tandem jump), it looks a lot worse watching from directly above than from the falls.

We finished the day off with a relaxing dinner at the waterfront and played games.

Overview of Namibia

NAMIBIA

Mel

As European countries were colonising Africa, Germany grabbed the area between the Kunene River, in the North and the Orange river, in the South. In 1884, it was declared a protectorate – Deutsch-Sudwestafrika. (Walvis Bay was excluded as Britain had already laid claim to it). After WW1 South Africa was given the mandate to govern the territory and it became South West Africa. In 1990 S.W.A. became Namibia under the leadership of Sam Nujoma.

Namibia remains more German than Germany and until we reached the far northern section, around Rundu, we encountered mainly Germans, locals and tourists. The other predominant language spoken by all locals was Afrikaans. As English speakers, we were definitely in the minority but certainly understood by most. Gray and I speak fairly fluent Afrikaans, so this was not an issue but Robs (having elected to study Zulu as a second language) had to have things interpreted regularly.

Namibia is the 34^th largest country in the world and the second least densely populated, with fewer than two million people. Possibly, the Namib Desert might play a role in this; it is also why you can travel for hours without encountering another human. The roads we travelled on, tar and sand, were all in excellent condition. The roads were constructed by the S.A. army back in the 1970’s and 1980’s and the present government has done a great job of maintaining them. The country is clean and there is no sign of litter in the towns we visited or in the rural areas. There is no need to change currency from the S.A. Rand to the Namibian Dollar, as the Nam $ is fixed to the rand. One change to bear in mind is the hour’s time difference, until you get to the Caprivi area, you can sleep in for an extra hour (and two when day light saving kicks in).

Highs:

Each area had its own charm: I loved the trip around Walvis harbour; the tour around the ghost town, Kolmanskop; Swakopmund with its brightly painted buildings, interspersed with German architecture and the Ovahimba women and children; the fast flowing Kavango River; the oysters; I think my favourite spot were the dunes of the Sossusvlei area.

Lows:

The floods; South African caravaners – neither a fault of Namibia.

Graeme

Watch this space.

Pictures (at last)

Upington

Aus

Morning wake up in our new home

Robs up a tree

Kolsmanskop – the Ghost Town

The long Namibian roads

Our buddies in the camp site

Sossusvlei

Robs going up

Robs coming down

Pandas birthday at the Brauhaus

Walvis Bay main road in flood

Walvis Harbour

Robs cold Atlantic swim

Etosha

Kavanga River

Robs on top of the car

Victoria Falls

View from our helicopter flip

Sun set on the Zambezi

The bar men

Day 17: 1/5/2011 – Livingstone

We sadly booked out of the Chrismar hotel this morning; it really was the friendly staff there that made our stay so enjoyable. We have booked into the ‘Waterfront’ for the next 3 nights. Our accommodation is a thatch roofed cabin on the banks of the Zambezi River, with a view of the ‘smoke’ rising off the falls. We have an upstairs family room and at the moment I am sitting on the balcony watching monkeys’ play in the trees between us and the river. Much as I enjoyed the luxury of the 4 star hotel, I feel more at home here with the river and the natural forest, in a rustic room – I have been Africanised.

This morning we went on a helicopter flip over the falls. It was awesome. It is only from the air that you get to see the full extent of one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World and the 7 meandering gorges that the Zambezi flows into. All too soon we were back on the ground.

From there we visited the Livingstone Museum. We love museums and spent the next two hours exploring. I thought it would be a museum about the life and explorations of Livingstone in Africa but this information, photos and artefacts were confined to one room. The rest of the museum deals with the natural history of man and life and politics in Zambia. One of the sayings dealing with the rites of passage of the Zambian people I found profound and worth a mention – “The birth and death of an individual are less significant. What matters are ones deeds between the two periods”.

We boarded the MV Makumbi for a sun set cruise on the mighty Zambezi. With free food and drinks available (not quite, it was included in the cost of our ticket), the cruise turned into a big party. There were locals as well as people from all over the world, babies and old people. Robs went behind the bar and had helped the 3 friendly barmen for most of the 2 hour trip; all commented on how good she was (glad we are paying school fees to educate her). I took stacks of photos and Panda drank stacks of Mosi. Again, the peace of being on the water was what I needed after a busy day.

We spent the night chilling on the restaurant deck at the ‘Waterfront”, watching the Zambezi flow by.

Day 16: 30/04/2011 – Livingstone

Happy Birthday Nicky – Hope you have a great day.

We started the day off with a full English breakfast in a big open plan, chandelier clad room. We did very little communicating with each other, as we were so busy listening to the Black ‘business tycoon’ at the table behind us. He was either shouting into his cell phone at some poor manager for not having done their job or holding court over the employees sitting at his table. Then he summonsed the waiter with a “come here boy”, the three of us could no longer control ourselves, we whipped around to find him drinking sherry with his English breakfast. Colonialism is still thriving in Africa, well in Zambia at least.

Besides the 4 bikers (also from Jhb) doing the mid-life crisis thing; riding their BMW’s to Vic Falls and back for the long weekend, we were the only whities in the hotel. Most of the residents were either on conference or on holiday from Lusaka for the long weekend. Very seldom were we left alone, there were always people coming up to us to chat, we feel so welcome here.

The weather was stunning this morning and we headed into town to buy some odds and ends. I drew 1 000 000 kwacha from the autobank (no teachers’ salaries haven’t increased), this amounted to R1 500 S.A. Rand. At the shopping centre there was an Education Expo, advertising different professions and tertiary educational institutions. Then we heard a commotion, it turned out to be the army brass band, followed by a long line of students, marching down the road. They marched into the car park and before speeches were made by some official, the band played N’kosi Sikele Afrika – the whole car park, including us stood to attention. Like in Namibia, I am so impressed by the emphasis on education and quality of school buildings in urban and rural Zambia.

Our next stop was obviously Victoria Falls. I prefer the local and original name for the falls Mosi-oa-Tunya, which means ‘smoke that sounds like thunder’, so much more apt than being named after some old Queen who never set eyes these magnificent falls. Gray and I visited the falls for our 20^th wedding anniversary, having spent a wonderful weekend at the Matetsi Game Lodge on the Zimbabwean side of the falls. I think the Zambian side is even more impressive but we are now visiting them in the rainy season. It’s hard to describe just how amazing the falls are; the sheer volume of water cascading over the falls into the gorge below, sending up plumes of water making visibility minimal but making rainbows and us sopping wet. We then walked through the amazing rain forests and watched people bungee-jumping off the old steel bridge linking Zambia and Zimbabwe. Robs is nagging us to allow her to bungee- jump, we managed to avoid her doing something so idiotic (for now) by exploring the area around Livingstone this afternoon.

We went to a Squires Loft, at the Zambezi Sun, for dinner (remember the old steak house chain), this is only one of two left, the other being at Sun City.