Livingstone, Zambia was our base before our safari would begin by crossing the Zambezi river into Botswana. In Livingstone, we could avail of the tourist activities like bungee jumping, microlite planes, elephant and lion walks, bird watching, helicopters and canoes for our first two days.
On the third day, we set off in Toyota Land Cruisers - open aired, canvas canopied, Jurassic Park, 4 wheel drive vehicles. The cooks and staff always went ahead with their own vehicle to have the camp set up soon as we arrived at the end of each day which was usually 18:30 - 19:00. Dinner would be 20:00 - 20:30; and most everyone would hit the sack (literally) soon afterwards.
April was at the tail end of Botswana's Summer and rainy season. Evenings and mornings were cool and it could get as hot as 30-35 degrees Celsius by midday. At 5:30 A.M. we were expected to be up as well as packed on alternate days - head strap flashlights came in handy while rummaging around the tent in darkness. Every morning we'd leave camp greeted by Impalas, those incredible Antonio Gaudi style termite hills reaching heights of 12 feet, and the scent of wild sage. We'd break camp about 7:00 for drives which sometimes went on as long as 11 hours along dirt or deep sand roads which reduced our speed to 15-45 kph most of the time. In the 11 days we were on safari, we travelled 2000 kilometres and while exploring the Moremi Game Reserve and Chobe National Park we saw so much wildlife we became a little jaded, especially with Impala.
Midway through our journey, the routine was broken by a trip to an island by mokora - very basic dugout canoes. There, I smoked some Wild Dagga I got off one of the male polers. Wild Dagga is a weed similar to Cannabis; nothing special. The best part was watching the young women mokora polers making bracelets and baskets from palm fronds which are collected, pulled into strips, naturally dyed and then hung to dry.
I swam in The Okavango Delta (the biggest inland delta in the world) among Hippos, crocodiles, elephants, and water buffalos while trusting the locals that the waters were safe from Bilzharia and microscopic fish which can swim into the urethra. I also drank local water for three days when my bottled water ran out - tasted "froggy". I kept myself smelling sweet and fresh by showering under a bucket with a valve attached at the bottom. I managed not to get eaten by the occasional Lion, Hyena, or Honey Badger who roamed through the camp while I slept. And the one thing I am so grateful for is never having run into a Puff Adder or Black Momba on my trips to the "Long Drop" which was a deep hole, accompanied by a mound of sand and a trowel with a roll of toilet paper perched on the handle.
Botswana has one of the strongest currencies in Africa - the pula. Its economy is solid and though poverty is under control, HIV isn't. At many of the road stations I saw free condoms for both men and women. I found the people outgoing and friendly and I was happy to find an African country which didn't fit the stereotype we all have become accustomed to on the news.
I shall never forget bedtime when I would gaze up at the Southern Cross and the huge expanse of the Milky Way while listening to the "children of the night".
SLIDES