Flatdogs camp where we spent much of the past week is right outside the national park gates of South Luangwa National Park. As such any animals seen in the park can be seen at the campsite. Hippos are particularly prominent with around 200 visible at any point from the campsite. My new theory is that the reason hippos kill more people in Africa than any other animal is not due to their ferocity but just sheer numbers of them and the fact that the campsites are set up in the middle of their feeding ground. After dark you are supposed to have a night watchman with you to help you avoid the hippos, elephant or whatever else is around... but frequently it was just you and your little headtorch hoping not to get trodden on. The last two nights we camped on the ground very close to the river and the sound of a hippo eating next to your head is a little disturbing - and then I turned on the torch to have a look at it seeing as how I wasn't sleeping anyway only to startle it and see a stampeding hippo. Elephants were also fairly common in the campsite and surprisingly quiet (unlike those hippos who never shut up and can be heard 3km away). So quiet in fact that the first time we saw them in camp they were about 3m behind Jason and he didn't hear them. As I was walking towards him and called out elephants he started coming towards me to find them not realising all he had to do was turn around. The other highlight was the tower of 17 giraffes (tower is the name for a group of giraffes) that came into camp one day. We missed the day the four lions came into camp and as we were leaving this morning we found out that leopards come in most mornings to chase the baboons outside the chalets!!!! And the watchman didn't think to mention this until this morning! ARGH! Oh well, we are yet to see a leopard, but here's hoping.
We went on three game drives at South Luangwa and all were amazing in their own way. Just being in Africa and watching impala, puku, zebra, giraffe etc from metres away is incredibly special. But some of the main highlights were:
- watching two 3 month old lion cubs playing whilst the rest of the pride slept on unawares.
- hearing the angry trumpet call of an elephant. The guide stopping turning off the engine and the angry elephant appearing through the trees 5m from the car (it was a mother protecting her baby). She didn't look very happy and took a few menacing steps towards us, whilst the 6 of us encouraged our guide to turn the engine back on and be ready to go - he ignored us. Then another trumpet call and she charged... stopping a little bit short. The guide remained relaxed whilst the rest of us were convinced we were about to die. She charged one more time before withdrawing and only once she was out of sight did the guide start the engine again.
- hearing a male lion roaring into the night and then finding him,
- all the baby animals - hippos, elephants, zebra, giraffe etc.
- coming across a buffalo on foot (the only animal the ranger had ever had to shoot) and having him stand up and watch us whilst the guide and ranger tried to stop us taking photographs to get to safety.
- seeing a dazzle of zebra, tower of giraffes, raft of hippos, parade of elephants, obstinance of buffalo (ok, we didn't actually see the last, but I want to remember the terms).
We saw nearly everything South Luangwa has to offer, except the leopard so here's hoping we'll manage later.
Showing posts with label Zambia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zambia. Show all posts
Friday, May 16, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Kasawa Village
Flatdogs is a beautiful campsite and we pitched our tent up in the trees (they have wooden platforms) and spent our days doing laundry, sitting by the pool watching hippos in the river and doing game drives. But I'll write more about that later as we have another game drive tomorrow.
After much deliberation we decided to spend a night in a traditional village. We were a bit worried that this would be incredibly touristy, but wanted to see more of Africa than just animals. It was about a 40 minute drive away mostly over a dirt track that passed by numerous villages and crossed a couple of rivers (we saw a tractor get stuck at one of these crossings). Eventually we reached the village of Kasawa where we were greeted by the head teacher at the school.
The school has 804 students who come from approximately 250 villages in the area. The children attend school in batches as there are not enough teachers for all the children at once, so the children will attend school in the morning and then in the afternoon do sport or clean up the town or learn how to work in the fields. This is despite the fact that the school is better off than most due to the tourism project they run. The government only pays for 14 teachers, and the income from tourism pays for another 9. They also use the money to buy books, equipment and generally improve facilities. For this reason we were told everyone in the area is always very happy to see 'mzungus' as by visiting we are helping all 250 villages.
As soon as we were taken on a walk through some of the villages we realised how true this was. People were calling out to say hello and asking our guide 'Raphael' if they could meet us. We also had a line of children walking behind us who loved having their photos taken. The villages have no electricity or running water or much in the way of possessions but we were both struck by how genuinely happy everyone was. The children spent hours playing with old bike wheels, balls made out of plastic bags or just dancing away.
One of the highlights was meeting a traditional healer. She was very sick when she was a child and was told that this was because she was possessed and wanted to be a healer. After this she got better. She goes into a trance whilst reading the bible and is possessed by a spirit out of Eden, who is able to tell the person standing before her what is wrong. After this she is able to prescribe medication based on information given to her by the spirit in her dreams. It was fascinating to hear her talk, although as she had a toothache we were not able to stand before her. She did give Jason something that from the description is African viagra, whilst I was given the female version. She then proceeded to tell us that we must stay together till we die before sending us on our way.
In the evening we were treated to traditional dancing and singing. This was beautiful to watch and we were thoroughly entertained as within minutes of the drums starting a crowd had started to form. People from all the surrounding villages came running and children wore strips of chitembe fabric tied in the same manner of the dances and as the evening wore on they would emulate the dancers and join in the middle of the stage. Both Jason and I were invited to dance during the dance to celebrate a girl becoming a women (Jason wishing he could have done a different dance), but I think the children outshone us all. It was loud, bright and colourful and impossible to put into words but we couldn't keep the smiles off our faces.
Whilst we were there we attempted a few words in the local language, although every attempt was met with laughter. I attempted to cook Nshima (the local staple) although it was like trying to stir concrete after it's set. We also spoke to Orbi's mother who is blind but still cultivates her field and looks after her house. (Orbi was one of the guys who set up the project originally).
All in all this was an absolute highlight of the trip so far.
After much deliberation we decided to spend a night in a traditional village. We were a bit worried that this would be incredibly touristy, but wanted to see more of Africa than just animals. It was about a 40 minute drive away mostly over a dirt track that passed by numerous villages and crossed a couple of rivers (we saw a tractor get stuck at one of these crossings). Eventually we reached the village of Kasawa where we were greeted by the head teacher at the school.
The school has 804 students who come from approximately 250 villages in the area. The children attend school in batches as there are not enough teachers for all the children at once, so the children will attend school in the morning and then in the afternoon do sport or clean up the town or learn how to work in the fields. This is despite the fact that the school is better off than most due to the tourism project they run. The government only pays for 14 teachers, and the income from tourism pays for another 9. They also use the money to buy books, equipment and generally improve facilities. For this reason we were told everyone in the area is always very happy to see 'mzungus' as by visiting we are helping all 250 villages.
As soon as we were taken on a walk through some of the villages we realised how true this was. People were calling out to say hello and asking our guide 'Raphael' if they could meet us. We also had a line of children walking behind us who loved having their photos taken. The villages have no electricity or running water or much in the way of possessions but we were both struck by how genuinely happy everyone was. The children spent hours playing with old bike wheels, balls made out of plastic bags or just dancing away.
One of the highlights was meeting a traditional healer. She was very sick when she was a child and was told that this was because she was possessed and wanted to be a healer. After this she got better. She goes into a trance whilst reading the bible and is possessed by a spirit out of Eden, who is able to tell the person standing before her what is wrong. After this she is able to prescribe medication based on information given to her by the spirit in her dreams. It was fascinating to hear her talk, although as she had a toothache we were not able to stand before her. She did give Jason something that from the description is African viagra, whilst I was given the female version. She then proceeded to tell us that we must stay together till we die before sending us on our way.
In the evening we were treated to traditional dancing and singing. This was beautiful to watch and we were thoroughly entertained as within minutes of the drums starting a crowd had started to form. People from all the surrounding villages came running and children wore strips of chitembe fabric tied in the same manner of the dances and as the evening wore on they would emulate the dancers and join in the middle of the stage. Both Jason and I were invited to dance during the dance to celebrate a girl becoming a women (Jason wishing he could have done a different dance), but I think the children outshone us all. It was loud, bright and colourful and impossible to put into words but we couldn't keep the smiles off our faces.
Whilst we were there we attempted a few words in the local language, although every attempt was met with laughter. I attempted to cook Nshima (the local staple) although it was like trying to stir concrete after it's set. We also spoke to Orbi's mother who is blind but still cultivates her field and looks after her house. (Orbi was one of the guys who set up the project originally).
All in all this was an absolute highlight of the trip so far.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
3 days of buses
Well, we've come a long way in four days, from one side of Zambia to the other. On the 4th May we did the 8 hour bus journey to Lusaka. After spending a day looking around and buying a mobile phone (we were assured by other travellers it was a good idea... and it has since proved useful) we were on another bus (this time for 9 hours) to Chipata. We spent a night in a very dodgy hotel with no water (we hadn't realised this when we agreed on the room)... a drop toilet I can handle, a normal flushing toilet which isn't flushing due to the aforementioned no water issue is absolutely repulsive and disgusting. Luckily there were public toilets across the road so we paid to use those instead. On the plus side it was the cheapest night so far, being cheaper than any of the campsites we've used. The next day we were on the minibus bright and early (7am) but didn't leave until 11am, making it to Flatdogs camp at 3:30pm. There was seating for about 15 people on the minibus, but 30 people plus accompanying luggage (50kg bags of meal, clothes etc) all crammed together. The lady I was squished against spent the entire trip eating, although she did share some of the fruit with me (I'm not sure what it was, but it was very nice).
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Labor Day
Today was a quiet day for us, but big for the locals. We walked out our front door and within two minutes spotted this huge procession marching towards us. Uh oh, what was that our parents warned us not to do... that's right get caught up in marches or demonstrations. Turns out it was labor day and the march was for improved working conditions and social justice. Every business seemed to be represented and it went on for as far as the eye could see in both directions. We spent the rest of the morning at the Livingstone museum which was quite interesting, going through the history of man, Zambia, slavery and more. It also gave a rather strong view on the movement of people from the villages to the urban centres, with a couple of rooms dedicated to "our village" and "their town".
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
And then Vic Falls from the ground
After the microlight we headed to the falls on foot. From Zambia you can only see a small portion of the falls and at the moment most of what you see is spray!! Although we were pre-warned it still is astounding to stand in what amounts to a torrential downpour on a beautiful cloudless day. The spray falls like rain, not coming horizontally as you might think, and it is heavier by far than most thunderstorms you encounter. You can see the edge of the rain and move in a couple of steps from nearly dry to absolutely soaking wet. To fully explore you are forced to go over a small bridge which is positioned such that you will be absolutely soaked!! (see photo) We did catch beautiful glimpses of the falls occasionally and there are rainbows in every direction due to the amount of water in the air.
Victoria Falls from the air
We spent the first day or so relaxing in Livingstone, doing the washing (ah, the joy of clean clothes!!) and doing some shopping (food is much more expensive here than Botswana so we decided to self-cater as much as possible). Our first dinner was 70,000K just ridiculous! Of course we did get 2 million out of the ATM, so it's probably not that bad, but still double what we were paying in Botswana... but the accommodation is cheaper, so we don't need to camp as much.
Our first splurge for Africa was on a microlight flight over the falls. We were up at 6:30am and after a couple of minutes were at the runway. It was absolutely amazing! We got dressed up in flight suits, which were a one size fits all (or none depending on how you look at it). Then after being strapped in we were up and away. As soon as we were in the air we could see the spray from the falls, which goes at least 250m up into the air. It is currently absolutely peak flow for Victoria Falls which means that the view isn't as good (the spray stops you being able to see the falls), but you really get the feel for the sheer quantity of water going over the falls.
The current falls are actually the 8th, and you can see the beginning of the 9th. As well as the beautiful gorges which are the remains of where the falls used to be. The slight gash which is the start of the 9th falls has taken 5,000 years and depending on which pilot you believe(mine or Jason's) in another 40,000 to 20,000 years the falls will be completely in the new location. The view was completely stunning from the microlight and I highly recommend it to anyone coming to the falls.
Our first splurge for Africa was on a microlight flight over the falls. We were up at 6:30am and after a couple of minutes were at the runway. It was absolutely amazing! We got dressed up in flight suits, which were a one size fits all (or none depending on how you look at it). Then after being strapped in we were up and away. As soon as we were in the air we could see the spray from the falls, which goes at least 250m up into the air. It is currently absolutely peak flow for Victoria Falls which means that the view isn't as good (the spray stops you being able to see the falls), but you really get the feel for the sheer quantity of water going over the falls.
The current falls are actually the 8th, and you can see the beginning of the 9th. As well as the beautiful gorges which are the remains of where the falls used to be. The slight gash which is the start of the 9th falls has taken 5,000 years and depending on which pilot you believe(mine or Jason's) in another 40,000 to 20,000 years the falls will be completely in the new location. The view was completely stunning from the microlight and I highly recommend it to anyone coming to the falls.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Another day, another African border crossing
We had an early start this morning, primarily due to the three overland trucks that left by 6am with much calling out to each other, loud farewells etc. Unfortunately the kitchen didn't open until 7:30am and as we are supposed to eat something before taking the anti-malarials we hung around until then. But, it didn't open. So rather than waiting around for who knows how long until the kitchen opened and then the further 30 minutes it takes for them to make toast we decided to just start heading for the border and hope. A few minutes after we started walking a nice South African stopped and gave us a lift all the way to the ferry, driving past the 1km of waiting trucks right to the front. Bananas made for a quick breakfast and then we jumped on the ferry with about 10 other passengers (plus 1 truck and 1 ute - which explains why it takes a week to make the crossing).
The difference once we hit Zambia was obvious. We were instantly designated as money trees and approached from all sides by people wanting to show us their wares, sell us money or find us a taxi (even coming into the customs booth to ask what we needed). We forked out a ridiculous amount for the visa ($80 each!) and tried to find the official exchange bureau... but, it was Sunday and it was closed. So we ended up changing with one of the guys who was hanging around and quickly jumped in a taxi for Livingstone.
Arriving at Fawlty Towers was blissful, and the staff are the most competent yet.. nothing like the TV show. There is a beautiful garden with a nice pool, hot showers with good pressure and best of all, free pancakes everyday!! (The free internet helps too) So we decided to stay... and keep extending how long we are going to stay here.
The difference once we hit Zambia was obvious. We were instantly designated as money trees and approached from all sides by people wanting to show us their wares, sell us money or find us a taxi (even coming into the customs booth to ask what we needed). We forked out a ridiculous amount for the visa ($80 each!) and tried to find the official exchange bureau... but, it was Sunday and it was closed. So we ended up changing with one of the guys who was hanging around and quickly jumped in a taxi for Livingstone.
Arriving at Fawlty Towers was blissful, and the staff are the most competent yet.. nothing like the TV show. There is a beautiful garden with a nice pool, hot showers with good pressure and best of all, free pancakes everyday!! (The free internet helps too) So we decided to stay... and keep extending how long we are going to stay here.
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