Victoria Falls, Baboons and Sunset With Elephants

It was time to say goodbye to Madagascar and the tour group and head across the Mozambique Channel to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe to start the next leg of my  journey. Unfortunately, getting to Zimbabwe isn’t as direct as I had hoped. First stop, the Antanarvario airport, which is about 30 minutes from the hotel. Fortunately we were leaving at night, so we wouldn’t have to deal with the chaos of people and traffic. Unfortunately we would have to deal with a police check.

Given the language barrier, I still don’t know exactly why we got stopped and checked, but we did. Our driver handed the police all the required documentation, and there was a lengthy discussion between them. Then more police officers surrounded the taxi. It was 11:30 at night, we weren’t in a part of the city I would consider upper class, and now the police officers were asking for documentation from my friend and me. We obviously showed them our passports.

While the two of us weren’t talking, the same ideas were running through our minds. Will they ask for money knowing we are Americans? Will our taxi driver be taken away? Is this where the trip ends?? Well, the trip didn’t end there. The police finally let us go, and my friend and I sighed a sigh of relief. However, the rest of the drive was still a bit tense, and our driver, who spoke English, did not provide us with any context, and we didn’t ask.

There was definitely relief when we stepped into the airport. After checking in, going through security and immigration, we made it to our gate. It was easy to find as there are only 4 gates. The airport was fairly empty. Finally our gate agent called, “Time to board,” and everyone casually walked up to the gate to get on the plane. No microphones, no group numbers, just, “Everyone get on.” It was a very relaxed atmosphere.  

The flight to Zimbabwe should have been quick, but it was not. We first had to fly to Nairobi, Kenya, which is north (Zimbabwe is west). We then got on another flight and flew back south. It was an unnecessarily long day of travel, but we were happy to arrive in Zimbabwe. We got a taxi with an incredibly friendly taxi driver who gave us a tour on the way to our hotels (we were staying at separate hotels the night before the next tour started). Additionally, we saw elephants and baboons! You don’t have to trek through the rainforest to see animals in Zimbabwe!

I felt excited to arrive at my hotel, but then disappointment that I couldn’t get into my room since we arrived before check in. So I sat outside and waited. While waiting, I saw my third animal in Zimbabwe, a mongoose! I had no idea what it was, but other people outside told me to watch out as they could steal your stuff.

Finally 2:00 pm rolled around, and I went to check in. There was of course a line now, but by the time I got to the counter, my room still was not ready. I wanted to cry. I was tired, hungry, and just wanted to change out of my airplane clothes and relax. Those are the moments of traveling that usually don’t get posted on social media. Anyway, I finally checked in, slept, ate a delicious pizza, and prepared to visit Victoria Falls the following day. 

I was excited to spend the day exploring Victoria Falls. My friend and I got a double entry visa so we were able to visit it from both sides. We decided to first start in Zambia. We easily walked across the border and made our way to the park. After buying our tickets, we entered the park, and I was immediately attacked by a baboon! OK, attacked might not be the correct word. However, a baboon did run at me and tried to steal my water bottle! My friend yelled at it like it was an unruly child. Fortunately he left, and I was able to keep my water bottle. Needless to say, I paid close attention to the baboons after that. They aren’t as cute as lemurs!

We wandered around the park and enjoyed the incredible views of Victoria Falls. We got wet from the mist, and of course we took a ton of photos. Finally we walked back to Zimbabwe and decided to eat a late lunch.

We were on the fence about visiting the park in Zimbabwe. The Zambia side was spectacular, and the Zimbabwe side was quite expensive. The ticket prices depend on where you are from, and of course foreigners have to pay more. However, I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t go. With a couple of hours left of daylight, we got a taxi and headed for the Victoria Falls Park on the Zimbabwe side.  

There was a short line to get tickets, but the line was moving incredibly slowly so it was hard to stay patient. We were running out of daylight. Finally another window opened up, and we were next in line. We paid our $50, yes, it was not cheap, and made our way into the park. I, of course, had my eyes out for baboons, but they weren’t wandering around like they were on the Zambia side.

We made our way to the far end of the falls and then walked along the path into the designated viewpoints. It was definitely worth a visit as the view of Victoria Falls was of a completely different part of the falls than the Zambia side. There was definitely a lot more mist and a lot of rainbows!

I of course took a lot of photos, but photos never do it justice. The size, the sound, the mist, the rainbows, and the deer. Was that a deer we just saw? I’ll take a deer minding its own business over a baboon trying to steal my drink! We spent about an hour enjoying the views, walking around Victoria Falls Park. The sun was setting, and it was time to head back to the hotel as our second journey was about to officially start.

We had our first tour meeting with our guide, and it was time to meet everyone I would be traveling with for the next 18 days. Then the next morning we were off to Botswana. The drive wasn’t too long as we were near the border. The drive was smooth, and there were animals to spot! There are no fences in Botswana, so the animals are free to roam around. We would be driving along and spot elephants eating on the side of the road. It never got old.  When crossing the border, we had to get out of the bus and walk through a disinfectant to prevent our shoes from bringing in unwanted things. 

We arrived at our hotel, ordered dinner, and then headed off for our first safari of the trip. It was a river safari, and it exceeded my expectations. Of course you have to ignore the fact that we couldn’t open the bottle of wine that we brought (even with fruitful and creative attempts), and our boat broke down, and we needed rescuing. Because of all this, we missed the giraffes. Besides all of that, it was absolutely incredible. We saw hippos, which weren’t that interesting because they don’t do much, a crocodile (or was it an alligator?), birds, buffalo, and of course more elephants.

Our boat broke down before we reached the area where there were the most animals. Luckily I had my binoculars and spotted giraffes in the distance. I was so disappointed that we couldn’t get closer to them. I had yet to see giraffes on this trip. Granted, it was only my 2nd day. However, with one door closed, another always opens. After about 20 minutes of waiting, a small boat finally showed up to rescue us.

The giraffes were gone, and the sun was setting, but this provided us with one of the most beautiful experiences of the trip. There was a small herd of elephants on the shore covering themselves with dirt. With the sun setting behind them, it made for an incredible view. To top it off, the elephants then decided to swim across the river in front of our boat. It was so peaceful and an incredible experience. Had our boat not broken down, we would not have witnessed the sunset elephant crossing, a highlight of the trip.

We made our way back to land and went straight to the restaurant where our food was supposed to be waiting for us, but it wasn’t. After eating a sandwich, it was then off to bed as the next morning was a sunrise safari. Would I finally see giraffes up close? Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed today’s post from Andrea. Be sure to comment on or like the post if you did. Also I’d be thrilled to have you subscribe to my blog. There are exciting adventures to come in the new year.