Breath Taking Bostwana & Zesty Zimbabwe

Our Route around Southern Africa

So here it goes, my next adventure around Southern Africa! On Monday 16th of November, myself along with 3 friends from Na/an Kuse; Adam, Annika, and Amy, headed to Windhoek to collect our rental car that would take us around Southern Africa. This time around, I had rented a Suzuki Vitara 4x4 SUV which was a significantly cheaper but it did mean that we would be staying in lodges. Upon arriving at the rental site we noticed that the car was drastically smaller than we had imagined, which made us think in the back of our heads if it would be able to take the tough terrain in Chobe national park, Bostwana. We had already upgraded from a VW Polo (which was probably the worst idea ever) but nevertheless it was something! After signing some documents and getting the car we headed out to the Botswana border. All in good moods, we were really excited for our trip! 3 hours later and we said goodbye to Namibia and crossed the border to Botswana. We spent a couple minutes going through the border crossing formalities and within minutes of driving through Botswana we noticed the immediate change of landscape. Instead of the dry “deserty” Namibian environment, we were greeted with lush green trees and a completely different scenery. There are also some unique aspects of driving in Bostwana, firstly about every 500 meters there are hitchhikers on the side of the road trying to get a lift. Unfortunately we were already quite limited on space so we couldn’t offer anyone a ride, but hey, next time! The second obstacle is the amount of cattle and sheep next to the road and crossing the roads. The amount of times we had to stop for cows crossing the road was just unreal, and something you would only find in Africa! Anyway, for the first night we had set our sights to stay in a little town called Ghanzi. Towards the end of the day we had finally made it, and were searching for accommodation. The first place we passed by charge about 2000 ZAR (about 150 Euro) which was waaayyy above our price range, so we quickly moved on. The next place in the city was fully booked, which was not good news. With only 3 lodges/hotels in Ghanzi our cards were all on the final place. Located just outside Ghanzi we already started preparing for the worst: sleeping in the car. All signs pointed that way when we enter the gates of the lodges as it looked very, very fancy. Nervously walking to the reception we found out they had tents available for 500 ZAR (30 Euro). This was a big sigh of relieve as we told them that the four of us would fit in one tent (saving money of course!). Finding a place when we were pretty much hopeless gave us a huge energy boost and made us so happy. The tent had two large twin beds, so the girls shared one, I had my own, and Adam took everyones sleeping bags and blankets and slept on the floor. We were clearly the only ones in the area which made it quite adventurous, especially as we could hear lions rarwing outside!

When picking up our ride!

All in good moods!

See ya later Namibia!

Our first nights accommodation

And....it already looks like a dump!

After a great nights rest we continued our journey to Maun, Botswana. The drive only took 3 hours which was a nice break. In Maun we decided to get our priorities strait and find a place to sleep as soon as we got there. Unlike Ghanzi, Maun is one of the largest cities in Botswana, so there was plenty to choose from, but remember we were on a tight budget so it was a challenge. For about 1.5 hours we went into every lodge/campsite/hotel we passed and enquired about the rooms and rates, at the end we finally stumbled upon the Audi campsite which had small tents available with only a stretcher and mattress for 100 ZAR per person! What a steal! Especially as it was right next to the river by the Okavango Delta. In Maun we had planned to do a Mokoro (traditional canoe) tour the next day, so we headed into town to try and book something. We knew it would be expensive but decided to proceed anyway. Again, like the hotels, we went into every agency we passed by, and after about 5 agency it was clear that the going rate was about 70 euro per person. We were almost ready to pay, when we decided to try one last agency. The woman said she had a contact who would bring us directly to the guides without a middle man. When meeting the man he charged us less 70 euro for 4 people, which was insane! We would now be paying a forth of the price! This gave us a great feeling (saving money always feels good) and we headed back to our camp with a big smile on our face. We made some sandwiches in the car and spent the rest of the evening playing cards next to the river, which was quite special!

Second night at the Audi Camp

Just a stretcher in a tent...

Beautiful sunset by the river

At 6am we were met by our agent who would join us in the car and guide us to the Mokoro station. The drive there was very challenging, as our car was quite low to the ground, and the sand being quite deep. After sliding around for about 30 minutes we made it to our destination, and met our guides (polemen) who would be taking us in their Mokoro’s. With 2 people per canoe (along with the guide) we headed out to explore the Okavango delta. Slowly we cruised around the low river and through the long grass when we suddenly spotted some elephants right in front of us. The experience was amazing, here we were in Okavango delta, in a tradition canoe, with elephants right in front of us. After taking in the sights for awhile we continued flowing through the Delta when we came across another pair of elephants, except this time it was different as they were close…very close. One of the elephants only had one tusk, which meant it was more aggressive, as it indicated that it not only had fought before, but also that it felt more vulnerable because of its disadvantage. Standing less than 10 meters away from us, the elephant clearly had us in his sights and could have easily charged at us, leaving us stuck in a little boat! Luckily, after a couple of tense minutes the elephant decided we weren't a threat and headed back into the bush, phewww! After the encounter with the elephants, we made our way back to shore where we would be shown around the local village. The village was very basic, with small clay/mud huts, cattle running around, and most importantly a “football” pitch. To our complete amazement the village had tv and…wifi!!

Cruising through the Okavango Delta

Our first elephant sighting of the day

Best.Mokoro.Ever

Asian Pose!

Chilling with the elephants

Nerve racking moment when theres an aggressive elephant right in front of you...

Giving it a try (its very hard!)

The Village with Wifi and TV!

After an exciting morning, we fueled our car up and headed to the south gate of Chobe national park, where we would be staying the night, as we had planned to go through the national park the next day. This is where the drama comes in (theres always drama!). After driving for about 2 hours with no road signs we finally drove past a sign to a lodge, so we decided to check it out and ask for directions to the nearest campsite. Driving through a small road with very deep sand we headed towards the lodge, which was situated in another national park. 2km further and we found ourself stuck in the sand… our car was too low to the ground and couldn’t handle the deep tracks. So we all got out of the car and started digging the sand from under the car and trying to get some grip for the wheels. Two hours later we were still at the same place with absolutely no movement. This is when we knew we had to split up and walk to the lodge to ask for help. Adam and Amy would stay in the car, whilst Annika and I would trek through the bush to find the lodge. The walk was probably one of the most nerve racking walks in my life. In the middle of nowhere, in Bostwana, in a national park… coming across lion tracks, elephant tracks, and leopard poo. Not daring to make a single sound we tip toed our way to the lodge which, when we finally made it, looked like the best place in the world. We found the manager who racked up 8 bushmen to come with us to get the car our of the sand. And without much trouble, the 8 bushmen picked up the back of the car and simply set it back on track, insane! If we could’ve bought them a beer we would’ve, but with limited resources the only thing we could do was thank them. 

Well.....shit

2 hours later

In the mean time the manager called his friend who managed a campsite a few kilometers up the road. The campsite manager met us on the main road and guided us to the campsite, which is where we had a dilemma. The campsite didn’t have any accommodation options… only campsites (sounds obviously right?). The manager then offered us an unused tent in the local staff village, with nothing in it except a single (very used) mattress. With not many alternatives we gladly accepted the offer, and stayed the night in the staff village, which was truly remarkable as at night we could hear and see a hippo swim by the river about 5 meters from our tent. Without thinking twice, I zipped up the tent and went straight to the river, where there was a Hippo just doing his thing…Amazing!! 

Casual elephant crossing!

And more wildlife

Getting almost too close to an elephant the next morning

Another member of the Big 5: The Water Buffalo

The next morning instead of driving through Chobe, we decided to take the safe option and go all the way around the national park and stick to the tarred roads because there was no way our car would be able to make it through the park. At that point we also decided to go to the Victoria Falls first and come back to Chobe on the way back. By this time it had become a common occurrence to see elephants every, next to the road, at our campsite, in total we had seen over 30 elephants from up close, very close, to the point where it sometimes got a bit dangerous! We were also very lucky to find another member for the big 5: The Water Buffalo! The drive to the Zimbabwean border took about 7 hours. At the border we were greeted with a handful of officers with huge grins on their faces, everyone we had met so far had been very very nice, including these guys. Instead of the strict protocol you have in Europe and the States, these guys were laughing, playing around, and together we had a great talk about football…unfortunately he made fun of Chelsea, but hey, there’s not too much I can say about that! Whilst at the border, we were also caught in the middle of a big storm, which was the first time it had rained for months. The customs officers clearly had no intention of getting wet, so instead of searching the car for any prohibited items they simply asked me what I had, the conversation going like this:

Customs: Do you have any prohibited items in your car?

Me: What’s Prohibited?

Customs: Look at the list.

Me: *looks at list* well we have bread, meat, and cheese.

Customs: That’s prohibited.

Me: Ok, shall I take them out?

Customs: No… but its prohibited.

Me: Ok… so can I continue?

Customs: Yeah go ahead, have a nice day!

Haha, not what I expected, but then again, its Africa! By this time the rain was absolutely pelting down onto the car, which made driving through a dirt road very challenge, but at the same time exciting. With no maps, and no signs, we had to find our way to Vic falls, which is when we used a pretty ancient device… a compass! To be honest, I think I would never have to use a compass in my life, but I was from as it turned out to be very useful in guiding us North to the Vic Falls. Just before sunset we had made it to the town, where we used an internet cafe to find our accommodation for the night: Victoria Falls Backpackers Hostel. For 20 usd per person we had four beds in a room, in a very cool backpackers hostel. We took a quick shower and were invited to join the Braai, which after not eating for a long time, was definitely what we were looking for. We were also entertained by a local tribe who performed Zimbabwean dances for us, which really made us feel like we were in Africa.

Fixing the car!

Selfie in Zimbabwe

We made it!

The local dancers

Group photo :)

Practicing those African moves!

Finally... a Room!

Casually no doors for the toilet!

This is the first part of my blog of my Southern African adventure, with the second part coming later this week (two much writing!!). So far the journey has been incredible, and fingers crossed that the next part will be even better! Signing out from the Victoria Falls!