Day 16 - Maybe, maybe not.

16:30
Despite the lovely cool room, and the lovely comfy bed, I’m still awake at 04:30, and I’m getting a bit bored of it. I was gonna try and sleep through till 08:00, but since I’m up, I might as well join the morning game drive - my first guided/organised game drive of the trip. It’s a very different experience to self-drive. When I’m on my own, I can spend as long as I want; I can inch the truck back and forth to get the perfect angle for a photo; I can head back to the lodge whenever I’m ready. My colleagues on the game drive today are all German. I say hi, and get a pretty frosty response. They all speak English really well, as I hear them talking to the driver, John, who doesn’t speak German. The upside of an organised/guided game drive is that the guides have eyes of the hawk. They are going to spot stuff that I just wouldn’t on my own.

About 2 minutes after we leave the lodge, LEOPARD! To me, a leopard spot is the pinnacle. I think it’s because when I was first lucky enough to visit Kenya, there just weren’t many leopard around. I didn’t see one on my first 2-3 safari trips. It was only when I went to South Africa and visited Kruger National Park that I saw one in the wild, and then it was a cub snoozing in a tree. Seeing an adult slinking through the brushy bush gives me the fizz in the best possible way. This creature is just SO beautiful. The markings, the movement, the facial structure. I’m spellbound. Unfortunately, the loud fucking Germans scare it away. Eejits.

The next hour or so is pretty fruitless. We’re in Mudumu National Park. The terrain here is very different to Etosha. In Mudumu, it’s heavy bush and brush, and it makes spotting game that much more difficult. The plains of Etosha are more a test of eyesight, here you need real skills to spot animals moving through the brush - skills I don’t have nearly enough of, compared to John. We spot a few impala, a couple of zebra. We do come across an eland, which is an all too rare sight. These antelopes are HUGE. They compete with moose for the title of world’s largest antelope. Big bulls can weigh A TON. This one’s a female, and scampers away when she hears the Germans chatting away.

We spot some elephant, but from a distance. They’re cowering under a tree. It is HOT this morning. We’ve been out on the road for nearly 3 hours already, and the sun is starting to prickle my legs. We FINALLY get back to the lodge at 10:15, fully 45 minutes later than advertised. Now, my plan had been to extend my stay here another night. Lianshulu is just such a lovely place to hang out and spend time. As a result, last night I booked the last remaining room for tonight. Over breakfast, I’m told that the room was listed as available in error, and I need to move on. TIA.

Not to be defeated, I make plans to stay at a very cool looking B+B in Katima Mulilo, about 60km from the Botswana border, which I will cross tomorrow. It’s a quick drive over to Katima, maybe 2 hours. Vicki and I comment how it’s crazy that a ‘quick drive’ is one that in the UK we would approach with caution.

Arriving into Katima, it feels a little like a frontier town, which I suppose it is. Checked into my B+B, I head out to forage for food. Stefan (B+B owner) has recommended a little restaurant/bar not far from the property. It’s air-conditioned, has Savanna, and is showing the Arsenal/Leeds game. A group of very excitable locals are watching the game. One, who seems desperate for Arsenal to win, is wearing a Liverpool shirt, because of course he is. I have fried hake and chips, which is delicious, and a couple of super cold Savanna. Back at my room, I can feel the early waking catching up with me, and get my head down for some nap.

22:30
There are strict rules about what you can take over the Botswana border. Strictly no meat, dairy, vegetables. As a result, dinner is a room picnic to use some of my leftover stocks. Some cheese, some salami, and a half decent loaf of bread; the remainder of a bottle of red that’s been kicking around the truck for a few days. Very civilised. I have exactly the kind of afternoon/evening I wanted and needed - total relaxation. My eyes start to droop by 21:30, and I’m looking forward to a decent sleep.Read more