More Photos of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (March 13, 2008)

On Thursday, I went with a small group of people over to Zimbabwe for the day to see the falls, walk with lion cubs and go on an elephant safari. The lion walk and elephant safari were fabulous, but seeing the town of Victoria Falls and speaking with the Zimbabwean people was the real highlight of the day.

Zimbabwe is a fascinating place. Despite the outrageous unemployment rate (our guide estimated 80%), ongoing food shortage (the supermarket shelves were almost bare), and sky-high inflation ($1USD is now worth $20 million Zimbabwe dollars, and the Zimbabwean bank notes come printed with an expiration date), the people were almost universally positive, friendly and extremely welcoming.

It was a shame to see the town of Victoria Falls so empty; it was obviously once a thriving tourist destination, with several huge resorts and many nice shops. Now, artisans are happy to sell their beautiful wooden carvings for a pittance, or trade them for worn t-shirts or shoes. Tourist police escorted us to the market, and roadside signs warned against carrying too much cash.

Lions, like most cats, spend the majority of the day sleeping. This one was reluctant to get up from his nap!

Here I am walking with two 13-month lion cubs - a brother and sister
Traveling in style on the back of an African elephant

It was fun, but a bit messy, feeding the elephants A warning sign in downtown Victoria Falls
A page from the local newspaper. One would hope that the upcoming elections (to be held on March 29) will herald a brighter future, but most of the Zimbabweans I spoke with thought that a change in government was unlikely, regardless of how much it's needed and desired.

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (March 13, 2008)

A view of the falls from the Zimbabwean side. At the left is the Devil's Cataract.

A group of school children on a field trip to the falls. They all wanted to shake hands and give high fives!

Another view of the falls from the Zimbabwean side

There were monkeys everywhere on the Zimbabwean side (the Zambian side had baboons). The view of the Zambezi River from the bridge above. This rainbow was actually a complete circle (!), but I couldn't fit it all in the photo.

Victoria Falls, Zambia (March 11-16, 2008)

At 1.7km wide and 108m high, and with an annual average flow of one million liters per second, Victoria Falls is known as one of the seven natural wonders of the world. During rainy season (now through May), the spray from the falls can be seen from miles away...it looks kind of like a cloud rising from the forest. The local Kololo name for the falls is Mosi-oa-Tunya, or The Smoke that Thunders.

I visited the falls from both the Zambian side and the Zimbabwean side of the Zambezi River, and both sides were spectacular. From the Zambian side, the mist from the falls was so thick that I couldn't actually see much of the falls themselves, but I sure could feel them: I was completely drenched from head to toe within seconds! From the Zimbabwean side, which is further from the falls, I still got wet, but the view was better - I could get a sense of just how massive the falls are.

From either side, though, the huge amount of mist makes photos difficult (see below). On the flip side, that mist made for some wonderful rainbows. I saw an enormous fully circular rainbow (which was too large to capture with my camera, but I took a video that I'll upload when I have a faster Internet connection), and I even got to walk through the end of a rainbow!

Here I am on the Zambian side of the falls, completely soaked
This bridge over the Zambezi River is a no-man's land between Zambia and Zimbabwe; it's also the site of Victoria Falls' famous bungi jump
A typical view of the falls. The small bridge in the picture runs along the front of the falls.
The view from afar - still pretty misty

Ponchos and umbrellas for hire...not that they'd keep anyone very dry in all that water!

More Photos of Chobe National Park, Botswana (March 9-10, 2008)

Elephants in the late afternoon sun
A family (or two) of elephants, drinking from the river
Hippos in the river. During our game drive, a hippo ran across the road in front of our truck, and it was suprisingly fast for its size!
Baboon parent and child
Two kudus at sunset

Chobe National Park, Botswana (March 9-10, 2008)

Chobe National Park in northeastern Botswana (near the border with Zambia, Namibia and Zimbabwe) encompasses 11,000 square km of riverside, woodland and marshland. Unlike Etosha NP in Namibia, Chobe NP is not fenced, and we began to see elephants on the side of the road hundreds of kilometers from the official park entrance.

We went for a morning game drive through the park, as well as a late afternoon river cruise, and we saw some spectacular wildlife: hippos, elephants, crocodiles, baboons, kudus, fish eagles, hornbills, vultures and the ever-present impalas. We also saw plenty of lion paw prints, but no lions...yet.

Sinister looking vultures keep an eye out for their next meal. Our guide told us that the eight-lion pride in Chobe has taken to killing elephants for food, and we drove by a week-old carcass that was surrounded by vultures!
Young impalas play-fight while another watches

A red-billed hornbill

A crocodile relaxes in the dirt beside a water hole

An African fish eagle

More photos of the Okavango Delta (March 6-8, 2008)

Sunrise on the delta
A woman poles a mokoro through the reeds
A relaxing way to spend a morning (well, for the passengers)
Ostriches on the run - quite a funny sight!

Okavango Delta, Botswana (March 6-8, 2008)

The Okavango Delta is a 16,000 square km wetland area in northwestern Botswana. It's the terminus of the Okavango River, which originates in Angola and dries up in the Kalahari before it can reach the sea. Because of the vast amount of water in an otherwise dry land, the delta attracts a wide variety of animals as well as tourists, who come to explore its many lagoons, channels and islands.

The traditional way to travel through the delta is on a mokoro, or dugout canoe, that is poled through the water like a gondola. We took mokoros to an island in the middle of the delta, where we camped for one night in the bush. Gliding through the tall reeds and water lilies was beautiful and peaceful, but also very hot and buggy.

While in the delta, we took long game walks in the late afternoon and early morning, hoping to see some wildlife. We did see plenty of zebras and antelopes, and lots of elephant dung...but alas, no elephants. We also had a close encounter with a baby black mamba - Africa's largest venemous snake! Last but not least, we passed a group of ostriches running alongside the road on our drive out of the delta.

A poler with his mokoro
Water lilies and tall reeds in the Okavango Delta
A herd of zebra in the tall delta grass A water hole at dusk
Palm trees and blue sky - a reminder of home!