Wednesday 28 February

We have had a quiet day - no sightseeing. We slept until 8 this morning, right through, no tossing and turning! Bonus for me, I haven’t slept properly since the first night. We went for breakfast at 9:45 and had a lazy morning. We left the hotel at 11:30 to begin our journey back to South Africa. Our flight was with British Airways and actually left early to avoid some weather. Only about an hour and twenty mins. We are staying at the same Jo’burg hotel as last time so we know our way around. Dinner tonight was at a steakhouse, food was awesome. I had a Ladies steak (only 200grams), it was the smallest on the menu, the biggest was 500 grams but that would have killed me! Ian had something from the Impala family - he is really getting into game meat - said it was the best steak he’s ever had. Meat is really cheap here. Two more people joined our tour tonight, they are from Canada too so we are 100% Canadian group of 14, even our tour manager, who is from Vancouver but married a South African and now lives here. No photos today.

Tuesday 27 February

It has been a long day today. We had a day trip to Chobe National Park in Botswana, about 2 hours away.

We had a bit of a confrontation with a lone male elephant on the way out - he was walking on the road, we slowed down to pass him and he became aggressive with the mini bus, our driver stood firm and the elephant backed down and went back into the bush. Not long after that we got a flat tire only 10km from the border but another company’s mini bus stopped and gave us a ride. We had to change vehicles and companies when we crossed the border anyway, so no time delay.

We first took a game drive through the bush in open sided vehicles, then had lunch at a lodge, and then took a boat trip on the lake. 

We saw loads of animals - impala, water buck, hippos, birds, elephants, lions, hyenas, water buffalo, water monitor, Nile crocodiles.

When we headed back into Zimbabwe we saw elephants, giraffes and water buffaloes at the side if the road but they were peaceful this time.

After a quick wash and brush up we went out to the Victoria Falls hotel for dinner. This was the old colonial hotel we’d visited the day before. We had a nice meal in opulent surroundings.

Monday 26 February

Today was our visit to Victoria Falls. First stop was the Big Tree, a Baobab between 1000-1500 yrs old, 18 metres wide. We continued to the Falls which are a series of falls. They made Niagara look pretty insignificant - they call them the Smoke that Thunders and we could see why. We are here during the rainy season, to see them at their fullest, and the water rages over them. The mist from them was from light to a downpour depending on which section we were at. We all got totally drenched despite rain jackets and trousers. My underwear was wet and my shoes were squelching. We took photos as best we could, trying to keep the cameras dry. We were there more than 2 hrs before going into the Victoria Hotel, a beautiful old colonial building that looks out over the bridge between Zimbabwe and Zambia. We then headed back to the lodge to change into dry clothes before lunch. We thought we’d have a walk around after lunch but it started raining heavy so four of us stayed at the Three Monkeys restaurant  until it stopped. 

Tonight’s dinner was at the Carnivore restaurant. Ian had wildebeest and I had the zebra, then we shared. Both nice lean meats. No room for dessert again. Back to the lodge for an early night, early start in the morning.

Sunday 25 February

We left the hotel around 9 this morning for our 11:30 flight to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. It was a easy flight, about 90 minutes, not too much waiting around. We didn’t need a visa to enter but we did have to fill-in a form for visitors and pay a $50 US fee. We probably waited about an hour or more until everyone was processed - everything was written down, twice, by hand, and a sticker put in our passport. Hope it is easier when we leave!

From there it was a twenty minute drive to our lodge, which is on the banks of the Zambezi River. We’ve been warned about the monkeys, who will come into the rooms if left open. Also, hippos who come to the vegetation via the river banks. And I thought I only had to watch out for Ian🤣

We left at 4:30 to go on a two hour cruise on The Zambezi - the local guide said it was a booze cruise - all drinksincluded. It was a slow ride, keeping our eyes open for 

birds, we saw kingfisher, egrets, plover, stork. We also saw quite a lot of hippos, they keep putting their heads above and below water. The crew brought us some hordeurves to help soak up the beer. After that we had a buffet dinner at the hotel. On the menu was crocodile, warthog and koodo (antelope), all were either nice or ok. Ian also tried worms and said they were fried and chewy, I gave them a miss! There was also some music and dancers for entertainment. When we got back to the room the bed was turned down and the mosquito net was in place.

Saturday 24 February

We had a very relaxing day, it was 10:15 by the time we finished breakfast. We are staying at Sandton, a good area in the suburbs. We went for a walk to the mall and wandered around for a few hours. Everything in there from top end designers to a drug store and a grocery store. We walked back to the hotel and sat in the sun by the pool for a while. We were getting tired so we had lunch in the bar at the hotel - a huge bowl of butternut soup and a beer. The lunches and drinks are all cheaper here so Ian is impressed. 

We met up with the rest of the group before dinner. There will be 14 altogether plus our tour manager Peter. All Canadians except one American. We walked to dinner at The Butcher Shop and Grill. I had slow cooked lamb that was awesome, I struggled to finish it. Ian had Ostrich which was very lean and cholesterol free. Apparently they are big meat eaters here so we will be eating very well I think. 

Nobody had room for desert.

Friday 23 February

We have arrived at the hotel in Jo’burg after a long journey. The KLM flights were both on time, as comfy as expected, and they fed and watered us often. First flight was 7 hours and the second 10 and a half so glad they are over. Lots of movies to watch. Our luggage arrived and the hotel shuttle driver was waiting for us, he showed us where the ATM was at the airport so we have lunch money for tomorrow😀 

It was about a 20 minute ride to the hotel, dark so we couldn’t see much. Clean and comfy, fingers crossed we manage to sleep tonight.