Gauteng

It was a long night - 11+ hours of flying time - and everyone tried to get some sleep. The plane was full but South African Airways looked after us well.

We landed at 4.45 a.m., passed through Customs into a very quiet airport, and headed for a cafe to use as a base for the next few hours. Everyone did a bit of exploring to kill time. Even managed to introduce kudu and ostrich biltong to a few prepared to experiment. At last our flight time to Zimbabwe crept closer.

It was a full flight on a SAA Airbus 320-200 that took us north on the short trip (about 1:20) to a very dry Zimbabwe. The Customs there have to be one of the slowest in the world. It took us longer to get through Customs than it did to fly from Johannesburg !

Once through we were met by the ATC safari team of Bheki and Munya (last year’s cook), and the minibus driver, Brian, and taken into the village and our campground at Shearwater Explorers Village . Our tents were already up so a quick move into them followed and we were soon ready for a walk into town.

We visited the beautiful old colonial Victoria Falls Hotel, with its flags still at half-mast for Robert Mugabe. It has a great ambience and the view down the Zambezi Gorges below the Falls never fails to impress. From the colonial-era hotel, the destination of European flying boat passengers in the mid-20th century, we walked to the Outlook Cafe, perched above the first of the rapids below the Falls. Unfortunately the rebuilding program after a disastrous fire there had not been completed and our visit was brief. On our walk we had seen mongoose, monkeys and baboons.

From there it was a case of curio shopping, bargaining with the vendors, or returning to camp for a swim or shower. By 6.30 we had all changed and were ready for an evening of fun at the Boma Restaurant. The venue gradually filled up and throbbed to the sound of bongo drumming. To their credit, most of us tried some of the local foods on offer among the international fare - crocodile, and impala cold meat, eland meatballs, kudu steak, guinea fowl stew, mopani worms, etc. The food was good and once that was over everyone was given a bongo drum and the fun started. Hair-braiding experiments were tried. Exhaustion began to set in but most managed to get on the dance floor before it was time to head back to camp and a welcoming bed.

It had been a very, very long day and the group had done remarkably well. A quick debrief with plans for tomorrow discussed and soon the camp was silent.

Our first day in Africa was a huge success.Read more