Victoria Falls to Zambia

It must be the genes on my mother’s side of the family that forces me to continually wake before any alarm goes off. Again, I could have slept for another hour, but it was not to happen this morning. Did the monkeys outside awaken me, I was not sure. We were at breakfast by 7:00 to meet the others, but we arrived first, then Hans and Suzy followed us in. The waitress said she was not expecting our group and the kitchen had not been told a group was coming. She had to call and verify our tour was paying the bill for our breakfast. Regardless, she trusted us with a menu and took off to the kitchen.

When we attempted to order ham and eggs, the waitress said “No, we are out of ham.” Okay, how about … “No, we are out of …” Alright this is turning into a game of 20 Questions, so we finally had her tell us the options on the menu that they did have. Finally, I settled on a cheese omelet. I have to say the omelet was surprisingly excellent.

Bruce, Bettina, Markus, and Thomas wandered in and joined us. Jean and Omo who had moved to a different hotel last night, came back to meet us for the Falls. Others from our group came in for breakfast sitting at other tables since none could accommodate all of us. When we were ready to leave, we went around saying our good-byes to everyone. Endings are always difficult and especially when you have really enjoyed all of the people like we have, it is worse.

After eating, Thomas, Hans, Suzy, Omo, Jean, Ron and I went trekking down the road to the Falls entrance. It looked so much shorter a distance when we passed it on the truck and Bruce said it was a “15 minute walk”. That should have been our clue that it was more like a half day’s hike. We needed to be back here by 11:00 for our transport to Zambia.

My leg was giving me real troubles today, so I was walking extra slowly and limping. Ron wanted to take the shortcut Bruce had pointed out, but forgot the admonition Bruce added to the it that is could sometimes be dangerous. Even if we were in a group, why risk it? I insisted on the long way to be safe. It was that lame giraffe mentality kicking in again. With the heat, I was not sure if I was going to make it at all, but eventually, we arrived at the gate to the park. Admission is $20.00 per person on the Zimbabwe side, but only $10.00 on the Zambia side.

The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya are situated on the Zambezi River, on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and are roughly 1.7 km (1 mile) wide and 128 m (420 ft) high. They are considered a remarkable spectacle because of the peculiar narrow slot-like chasm into which the water falls, so one can view the falls face-on.

David Livingstone, a Scottish explorer, visited the falls in 1855 and renamed them after Queen Victoria, though they were known locally as Mosi-oa-Tunya, the "smoke that thunders". The falls are part of two national parks, Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia and Victoria Falls National Park in Zimbabwe. They are one of Southern Africa's major tourist attractions. They are also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Vastly larger than North America's Niagara Falls, Victoria is only rivaled by South America's Iguazu Falls (excluding large rapid like falls such as Livingston de Chutes). While Iguazu is divided into over 270 (relatively) 'small' falls and cataracts, Victoria is the largest single sheet of water in the world , over 100 meters tall, and over one mile wide.

The woman asked our country of nationality and I said USA. She said $20.00 please. I said I live in Hungary, how much is it now? She said $20.00. So I asked where I could be from to get it cheaper, but she just laughed at me.

After she collected all of our fees, she took us over to a map on the wall and pointed out the paths explaining where to walk, which were look out points and which were dead ends. Along the first path was a side path down 73 steps. Ron and the others went, but I knew that would have been the quota of exercise my leg would take for the day, so I stayed at the top and waited.

We walked the other paths; saw the falls from various sides, angles, and heights. There is a large stature of Livingstone who “discovered” the falls. These types of commemorations really irritate me since the falls did have a native name prior to his arrival, so he did not “discover” them. They had been discovered already, just not by imperialists.

The falls are magnificent as are all falls, but my favorite is still Iguazu Falls in Argentina and Brazil. The heat and the humidity negatively affected my mood, and leg pain did not help any. It was like walking in a hot sauna and my clothes were pasted to my body. After suffering in a lousy place last night, I was disgruntled to say the least. I only lasted a bit over an hour, when I pushed to get back to the hotel for our 11:00 transport. We left Hans and Suzy behind, they did not have transportation coming until 12:00.

Ron wanted to stop at the open air market on the way back, but I could not walk there or from there. Omo, Jean, Ron and I took a taxi back dropping the three of them at the market and I at the lodge.

As I was sitting with my leg stretched, Ron came in a half hour later, impressing me that he was cognoscente of time, with his new acquisitions. For the little Zimbabwean currency we had exchanged, he managed to buy a bowl, a hippo statue, and a kudu mask. Very impressive!

With our bags in tow, we went to reception where our ride was waiting for us. Bruce had stopped by and said Germine wanted to say good-bye and to wait for her. We said more good-byes with great people, who we do hope we will see again in the future. There was some confusion as to who was supposed to honor our vouchers for transportation to the Zambia hotel, pay for the hotel, and then transport to the airport the next day. Bruce made some phone calls and then gave us cash in US dollars to cover all of the expenses. He asked for the hotel to send him a fax receipt for the total.

A van with driver and a young woman was waiting for us. The woman explained that the van would drop us off at the Zimbabwe border, and then she would walk us through the border control. On the other side, there was another van waiting with a Zambian driver. When he drove us to the Zambian border control, he took our passports and the waiver for the Visa and went in alone. Within minutes, he was out and we were on our way.

Twenty minutes later, we were at our hotel, the Waterfront, which sits right on the Zambezi River. It is a beautiful place with a rustic looking lodge, bar, and restaurant. There is an Internet Café upstairs in the lodge as well as a travel agency. The pool was sparkling clean and inviting. Our room is downstairs in a two-floor building with all entrances from outside amongst lush greenery with slate paths leading to the rooms. The room is spacious with two beds, a lovely dark wood armoire along one wall, sliding glass doors to the patio which overlooks the river’s tributary and a full bath with attractive tiles. The porter brought our bags to the room and warned us to keep the sliding glass door closed when we were not around as monkeys would get in and destroy things.

Transportation to the airport for tomorrow was our concern as it was pre-paid, but now we had the cash instead. When we asked at reception, they directed us upstairs to the travel agency and the manager came with us. He explained to the agent what we needed and she collected our money for the transport to the hotel and to the airport tomorrow and gave us another voucher. We paid the balance to reception for the hotel and the amount was exactly what Bruce had given me.

We spent a lazy day swimming, napping in the sun, reading, and writing. While I was sitting by the pool having a gin and tonic, a monkey jumped onto the railing. The place is so relaxing and a fitting end to an energetic trip. This is the type of place where we should have spent our last night a group. Though they have an Internet café, I am able to resist. On the entire trip, I have only spent twenty-four minutes on the Internet checking e-mails. However, once we get to Cape Town that will change, so I am appreciating the relaxation now.

The evening is spent by the pool, still reading and relaxing, watching the other guests. There is a group of college students here from a university in the States. They are enjoying themselves without the usual loud raucousness associated with US Americans.

The sounds of nature around us are hypnotic. The service here is exceptional adding to the attraction of the place. Feeling incredibly mellow, we went to bed and were sleeping within seconds.

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Zimbabwe - The Final Day as a Group

Our cabin was still flooded this morning. Last night when we went to bed, there was the most orchestrated sound of frogs we have ever heard. There must have been a bullfrog right out side our door and we will swear he was hooked up to an electric amplifier. If the cabin were equipped with a phone, I am certain people in Namibia would have called to complain about the noise these frogs were making. Regardless, we slept well; it had a lulling effect one would not expect. Though this was not the common consensus of the group. Many had difficulties sleeping through it. When the sun broke through in the morning, the sounds stopped again like someone pulled the power cord and cut it off.

Breakfast was set out for those of us who were staying behind while the rest went on the river cruise yet again, but under better weather conditions than last night. We started out later this morning so we could pick up the others directly at the pier and then we are driving to Zimbabwe.

Some of the group needed to get more cash. We were not informed we had to pay US cash at the Zimbabwe border. As we approached the Botswana border, we were leaving the country for the last time. As far as I was concerned our stay was entirely too short; I could have stayed much longer.

At the Zimbabwe Border Control, we had our filled in forms ready. We lined up and handed our form, passport, and cash over to the officer. For Europeans and US Americans, the fee was $30.00 in US currency only. The Brits had to pay $35.00 and the Canadians $65.00, which no one could figure out why. As the officer took our passports, he put the money in his shirt pocket, which was suspect in itself. They held everyone’s passport and we had to wait in the parking lot for about thirty minutes before getting them back.

We had heard rumors that the money paid at the border goes directly into Mugabe’s Swiss bank account and that his first wife is the number one customer of Herrod’s in London. Others told us that commercial airline flights are cancelled if Mugabe or his wife want to fly off somewhere to go shopping. It gave me and others in the group the creeps to be here. It would have been much better if the tour had ended in Zambia rather than here.

Within the hour, we were in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. We stopped at the lodge, but the rooms were not ready yet. Bruce took us to the Outdoor Adventure provider for a presentation for those who wanted to book something while we were here. The options were bungee jumping, elephant rides, helicopter rides, microlight rides, and so on.

Bruce had primed us that the Zimbabwe currency is no longer tradable with any other world currency, so we should be careful with how much we withdraw from a bank machine. He said there was an official exchange rate and a black market exchange rate with a wide gap between the two. He also warned that using ATMs or credit cards could be dangerous, with many finding shocking surprises on their statements once they were home again. He suggested using US dollars whenever possible. There are signs in stores stating that non-residents must show the receipt from the currency exchange before their Zimbabwean currency will be accepted. Jean found this to be true when she want to by batteries for her camera.

Jean, Omo, Ron, and I were going to take a thirteen-minute helicopter ride over the falls for $90.00 each. I have always wanted to take a helicopter ride and this was a great opportunity to do. This is the first time Ron has agreed to do it with me. The only time we could go was the next morning, but the company was booked solid. The guy found another company, but the timing was bad. It had to be that afternoon. It was disappointing. Everyone in the group signed up for a dinner river cruise for tonight at $45.00 per person, our last night together.

The truck took us back to the lodge and we got our keys. The t-shirt man was there to take our order for custom t-shirts that show our trip on it. When we settled this, we went to our rooms with the plan to meet at reception by 4:00 for the cruise. It did not turn out that way. We went to our room and I stormed back looking for Bruce. The cabin was four walls with two beds in it. There was no sink, no running water, no toilet, no shower, no towels, nothing. It was no better than a permanent tent. For our last night together after a wonderful trip with some exceptional accommodations, this was like a slap in the face. As I looked for Bruce, there were others who felt the same as I did, we were all furious over this.

When Bruce looked at the rooms, he agreed. He had not been to his yet. He spoke to reception and had us changed to lodges, where we were supposed to be four to a lodge. We anticipated sharing with Omo and Jean again, but when they saw the lodge, they made plans to find another place for the night. As you enter the lodge, you are entering a dining area. To the left and right, there is a bedroom with two beds in each. Beyond the dining area to the left is a kitchen and the right is the bathroom. The tub had no shower. When Bruce asked if it was okay, I was not going to make a scene over it. It was dark and dreary, but for one night, we did not really care as long as there were clean sheets and towels.

Our other concern was the Visa waiver we were supposed to have for Zambia. Supposedly, if you are staying one night in Zambia to travel on, you do not have to pay the fee for a Visa. Bruce did not know anything about this and he called the hotel where we would be tomorrow evening. They faxed the form that I turned into Go2Africa so we had it in hand.

Others on the other hand, still had major problems with the new rooms and spread out looking at other hotels and making other reservations spending upwards of $250.00. Some were able to negotiate lower fees, but then they found out that they had to have a residence card from an African country to get the rate. This really put a blemish on our last night as a group.

There is a sad hopeless feeling in the air and I was very uncomfortable being in the country, but anticipating going on to Zambia tomorrow. The bike rack at the lodge was a large metal pole with a series of hang man nooses going across it. It really threw me and I did not know what the reason for it was until people started to hang their bicycles seats from the nooses. Perhaps the message is if you steal this bike, you will hang for it. It was creepy to say the least, but it seemed apropos for this country and its government.

At 4:00 sharp, the vans were here to take us to the cruise, but we had to wait for some to return from other hotels. The pier was at a fancy hotel and in spite of our being a little late, the food was not ready or perhaps waiting for our arrival to stay hot.

Once aboard, we were given safety instructions and the bar was ready for happy hour. It was an open bar inclusive in the $45.00 fee for the cruise. We were floating above the falls. The crew included the captain, bartender, waiter, and two chefs. We had a choice of three salads, chicken, beef, macaroni and cheese, mixed vegetables, and two desserts. The food was delicious and we mingled about the boat, but when a crocodile was discovered floating along side us, everyone rushed to hang over the rail to get a better look.

As the boat trip progressed, we saw elephants, hippos, and a huge lizard on shore. The cruise was supposed to be two hours, but lasted closer to three. After we reached shore again, the captain allowed us to stay aboard for another hour. It was a fitting ending to our 20 days together.

Back at the lodge, we were again faced with the unpleasantness of a cheerless accommodation and people went in all directions for their place to sleep that night. It had the feelings of a family breaking up after the patriarch and matriarch are gone.

We went to our uninviting lodge, but after five gin and tonics on the cruise, it did not seen so bad after all. We filled out our feedback form for Nomad Tours giving them the complements and the negatives. Some of us are meeting at 7:00 for breakfast and those who are not going for the adrenalin rush, will go to the falls together.

Our total mileage as a group has been 5,090 km, a 45 minute plane ride, and a speedboat return.

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