Last day in Victoria Falls

Day 4: Sunday, 18^th December 2011: Victoria Falls

We had one more day in Victoria Falls but woke up not knowing exactly how we were going to spend it. However, shortly after breakfast, it was decided.

We were going to do an elephant back safari!

Luckily we managed to get a booking for later that afternoon (it is best to organise your activities they day before as they do tend to get fully booked).

With a few hours to pass before our safari, we took a walk into town. In town we found a big notice board that had an artistic illustration of Victoria Falls and its main attractions depicted on it. There was something called the Big Tree that did not look like it was too far away to walk to and so we headed in that direction.

As mentioned before, one cannot walk through Victoria Falls without been escorted by the tourist police and soon enough Pilani introduced himself to us and told us he’ll take us to the Big Tree via the short cut.

En route to the Big Tree with Pilani.

 
We followed him along the railway line, across the line and through the bush. Along the way he told us about his job and how he was to protect the tourists from being harassed by the hawkers as well as protecting them from the wild animals in the bush. If we were confronted by an animal he would know how to act and would be able to get us out of danger.

My natural question was to ask him what kind of animals would we find in the bush and after a while I realised I should have left my curiosity in peace. Not only was it possible we could meet lions or hyenas but we should be very careful of the buffalo which was the most dangerous due to their un-predictive nature. Hmmm, not the sort of warnings you want to hear when you walking through the bush.

However, I must admit that the only encounter we had was with a bright orange beetle that crawled out the ground. Pilani told us that they usually crawl out of the holes in the ground just before it rains; which it actually did later that afternoon.

We soon reached the Big Tree which is a baobab tree that is estimated to be about 1 500 years old. It could possible even be older than that but historical evidence detailing the tree only dates as far back as 1 500 years.

The Big Tree - Baobab (adansonia digitata).

Hundreds of years ago the tree was a trading post where people from Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana came together to trade goods.

The locals believe that if you want a big child you have to crush the bark of the tree and wash the baby with it. However, not his or her head, otherwise you’ll have a baby with a big head. They also eat the leaves of the baobab and crush the flower to use as a powder to flavour food.

As you stand beneath the tree, the branches cascade in a wide protective umbrella over you. It is beautiful and remarkable that a tree can grow so old, enchanting many generations from the past as well as into the future.

The Big Tree is 23 metres tall and the girth is 18 metres.

Pilani escorted us back to town where we wished each other well and said our goodbyes. At first I was irritable that we had to be escorted. It felt like it took some of my freedom away but it is actually an eye opening experience and a glimpse into the real world around you, connecting personally with the people and the country you are visiting.

We were all incredibly excited but also a little apprehensive about our elephant back safari. When we arrived we had a brief induction and were greeted by our ‘safari vehicles’ for the afternoon and the guides who would be riding with us.


Ready and waiting for an elephant back safari.

There was no more time to be apprehensive as we were ready to board. The elephants were lead into a gully from where we had to step off the platform and climb onto the elephant. 


All aboard.

And then we were off, plodding along through the bush. All along the way our guide told us interesting facts and stories about the elephants.


Through the bush on elephant back.

We were lead across rivers.  


Leading us safely across the river.

And when our elephant got the munchies we had a quick pit stop so he could tear off some leaves from the trees and pop them into this mouth. 

A quick pit stop on the way.

It was an incredible experience walking through the bush on an elephant. I felt privileged to have the chance to be in the wild, not as an intruder but as if one belongs there. You had the chance to view the landscape around you from the perspective of an animal whose natural habitat is the bush and one can’t help but look around in wonder.


On top of the world.

Our last river crossing was more exciting as it was a little deeper than the last. As the elephants lead us across we had to raise our legs high up so as not to get wet. 

Back to base camp.

To thank our trusted escorts for the splendid afternoon we had a chance to feed them sugary pellets of molasses and all good things an elephant likes. Of course I freaked out but after a while I realised it was not that bad but an elephant’s trunk is truly like a vacuum cleaner. You drop the pellets into his trunk, he pops them into his mouth and before you have grabbed the next handful of pellets, his trunk is already sniffing around, looking for more.

Ella had a great time interacting with our elephant as elephants are her favourite animal and she was simply blown away by the experience.

A treat for our elephants.

Mom and dad’s poor little elephant had a quarter of his trunk bitten off when he was a young calf and so they had to pop the pellets straight into his mouth. A little too frightening for me but they enjoyed it.

After all our excitement and an unforgettable few days in Victoria Falls we ended our holiday with a traditional supper experience at The Boma.

The Boma experience.

Our introduction to an authentic Zimbabwean meal begun with a drink of African beer; all I am going to say is thank goodness for hops and barley! But before we began our meal our hands were traditional bathed in warm water and then we could sample the local mielies and roasted beans and peanuts. What followed was a feast of all sorts of meats including crocodile, warthog and buffalo accompanied by traditional prepared vegetables, modern salads and decadent desserts.

Traditional Shona Foods.

During the evening we were entertained by traditional dancers, singers and drummers. Even the audience had a chance to partake in a drum session which provided many laughs.

The Boma drum session.

 

We had more laughs when mom decided to braid her hair and go home looking African as she said. As the saying goes, when in Rome... or this case Zimbabwe. 

Mama Giuditta.

Sadly, as all good things must come to an end, our wonderful holiday in Victoria Falls and Chobe National Park, visiting our neighbours came to its end. However, now that we know our neighbours, we can always go visit again.

Crossing Borders

Day 3: Saturday, 17^th December 2011: Chobe National Park

Part of my parents 60^th birthday bash was a safari day at Chobe National Park. It has always been an item on my mom’s bucket list and I don’t think even she realised how wonderful it would be for her.

The 60th birthday bashers.

I had visions of describing to her all that we would see. “Ma, see that big brown blob in the distance, next to the second bush, it is an elephant with its back to us, stretching its trunk above its head, pulling leaves off the tree and popping them into his mouth.”

Never mind that! She was scouting animals and telling us to look at the hippo over there, or watch out for the monkeys playing catch on the grass.

It was a wonderful privilege to see some of our African animals so close in their natural habitat.

Early that morning, the shuttle picked us up at the hotel and we headed to Botswana on a long straight road lined with acacias and rolling hills of grasslands to look out over. We were even lucky enough to see hyenas scamper across the road.

When we excited the Zimbabwean border post, our safari vehicles were ready for us to jump on and take us to the lodge from where we would start our safari. But first, before actually entering Botswana, we had to jump off the vehicle and all walk through a little ditch and brush our shoes on a soggy towel, just in case we were to bring some disease in from other countries. I really did feel like a cow going through a cattle dip!

However, we eventually did arrive at the lodge and finally could embark on our safari adventure for which we were all excited for.

We started the day with a morning boat ride on the Chobe River.

Boat safari on the Chobe River.

Our first sighting was a lazy crocodile minding its own business while a troop of vervet monkeys were playing in the grass not too far away. We watched the entertaining little creatures teasing each other, wrestling around and even trying to steal a mother’s baby.

Watch out monkey, don't get too close.

We then saw a cluster of what seemed like smooth grey rocks, bobbing in the water; our first sighting of hippos. We waited for them to show us their mighty yawn but with no luck. They slowly, one by one, submerged themselves under water and all you could hear was a snort that sounded like a steam engine. Little did we know that there were many more hippos to see and many big hippo yawns we would witness.

No Chomp jokes please!

On our trip around the river we were even accompanied by a hippo who decided to swim next to us then disappear under water and while we were all frantically trying to see where he went, he suddenly and surprisingly, leapt out of the water with a big splash.

We also saw buffalo and many types of buck grazing on what seemed to me like a floating island.

Peace and serenity on the Chobe River.

Our guide spotted and named many beautiful birds included plovers, snake birds, ibis, spur winged geese, egrets, fish eagles and king fischers. I must admit though, I was having so much fun enjoying the serenity of nature, spotting all the animals while floating on a river with the wind in my hair; that I wasn’t concentrating too much on what he was saying.

That was until he spotted a crocodile floating right next to our boat. I am sure if one stretched out their arm they could have touched it.

Thumbs up to Chobe!

After an exciting and relaxing morning on the boat we headed back to the lodge for lunch and of course dad and I had to try a local Botswana beer, a St Louis.

Lunch at the lodge.

After a short rest we were ready for round two of our Safari Day.

We headed off to the gate entrance of Chobe National Park for a game drive.

Chobe National Park.

Unfortunately we did not see the Big 5 as it was the rainy season and the animals stayed further inland, not needing to come to the Chobe River to drink water.

Field of green grass and accacias.

I did not mind too much that we did not see the Big 5 as the landscape is simply beautiful. It is as if the Chobe National Park is God’s emerald in December; the green trees and bush boasting the wealth of the rains.

Game viewing in the Chobe.

We did see more hippos, warthogs, Impala, Puku (a buck only found in Chobe) and a huge herd of elephants.

Life in the Chobe.

Seeing the large herd of elephants was definitely Ella’s highlight as they are her favourite animal.

Elephants in Chobe minding their own business.

We all sat and watched in awe as they waddled in the water, rolled in the dust and shielded their babies from the dangers of the bush.

On the move.

At one point, a warthog snuck into a pool near the elephants and I was waiting for one of them to charge the poor warthog and chase him away from the fun in the mud.

A warthog joining the party.

On our drive through the park we got a chance to admire more gentle giants of the bush.

Watch your step.

Our peaceful time of admiring the elephants was soon cut short as we heard the other safari vehicle had got stuck and the engine would not start, so off we speed to the rescue.

At first our game driver tr1ied to tow the other vehicle and run start it but the rope soon snapped and the bakkie would not start. He then attempted the same tactic and we got a little further but once again the roped snapped.

Rescue attempt take one.

Eventually he had to give up this method when with great grandeur the rope snapped as the bakkie been towed went through a big puddle.

Rescue attempt take two.

After another bakkie came to pick up the stranded game viewers (and I will not say that it was a Toyota – oops, was I thinking out loud!) four happy but tired game viewers headed back to the border post where their bus was waiting to take them back to their hotel.

A day in the bush :-)