Nairobi - Meltonia Luxury Suites

This morning Lisa and I had a massive sleep in- it was the best! I made phone calls to the family- also the best and finally got a chance to check out this blog that Sharni set up for me! Can't wait to load all my entries on this page so everyone can keep up with what I'm doing- Thanks Sharni! Xx

We went down and had a buffet breakfast by the pool. Boiled eggs, sausages, baked beans, pancakes, milo cereal, yogurt, lady finger banana, toast- big spread! It was hard to choose what to have- but so good at the same stage as we have been eating Marie biscuits for breakfast over the past few days! It was a nice change- there was even juice!

We organised a driver from the hotel to take us to a mall close by to organise some groceries and SIM cards for our phones. He was lovely and stayed at the mall until we were finished to drop us home.

The mall is only 15 minutes walk from the hotel, although the receptionist told us maybe it be would be best to take a taxi as someone was attacked in daylight the week before! Eek! Glad our hotel had a 24 hour armed guard at the door, high high fences that have barbed wire- and electric wire around the top!

The mall was also interesting in terms of security. As we drove in the gate we were stopped by another armed guard that made us stop and open the boot- just checking for explosives- no biggie! :/ I wonder if this is normal, or whether security has been amped up since the West-gate mall attack.

Back at the hotel, Lisa and I set ourselves up around the pool and read our books. The weather here is more similar to Aus. Really warm in the sun, but a bit of a chilly wind- not hot muggy wind like Botswana.

We had showers- even got to blow dry my hair which now feels amazing- and cooked up a storm of spaghetti bolagnase crammed with zucchini, broccoli, carrots and beans! The best! Feeling much better now- Lisa and I were feeling quite ill in the stomach today.

We watched Bones on TV- got to chat to Nan, Mum and Leigh over Skype and had a relaxing night.

Meeting up with the rest of the Tutembee Pamoja group tomorrow. They have all left Australia and should be on their way!

19° Mostly Clear
Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

Happy New Year!

Well waking up this morning sucked! What a night!

Today is the day our little group of three must say goodbye. :( Lisa and I leave for our next adventure in Kenya, and Callum heads over to check out Zambia before trying his luck at climbing Kilimanjaro!

We packed up our little chalet, said goodbye to our SA boys and the three of us when for brekky- Lisa and I had organised and paid for transfers to the airport the day before so we had an hour to kill together. For breakfast I ordered some sort of vegetarian pasty and a cup of roobois tea- what I got was a chunky steak pasty and no tea! Gotta love Africa! Lisa smashed a chicken pizza and Callum had a pasty with a coffee.

At 10.45 we returned to the hotel- our transfer was to arrive at 11. We said goodbye to Callum as he got in a taxi towards the border and we waited….and waited….by 11.30 our transfer had still not arrived. The hotel made several phone calls and I physically ran to the transfer office myself to ask why our driver had not yet showed up! Ugh it was so frustrating- so many things seemed so out of control- apparently the office I booked at isn't the office that deals with transfers, but oops they are not answering their phones, and their driver is unavailable now and wow- was I stressed! I did not want to miss that flight and we still had to cross a border!

Lisa and I grabbed our bags, left the hotel and walked back to the office- as we got there, one of the mangers had some keys and directed us into a mini van- he had phoned the border to explain we were running late and had a plane to catch and organised another transfer to pick us up at the border to minimise delays getting a car through and we were on our way!

We arrived at border control to exit Zimbabwe and almost walked straight through- yes! But… Our driver had not arrived yet. Ugh. 10 minutes later he showed up. We raced to the next border control to enter Zambia and I almost died. There was a line about 20 people long and some very frustrated American travellers who got quite annoyed when our driver tried to talk our way to the front- nope! To the back of the line we went!

We eventually got to the front of the queue - and guess what?! Wrong line! We hadn't even bought our visa yet! We went to the next line and the Visa officer was dealing with another traveller, but got to us soon after- eventually, we had each paid $50 US to enter Zambia (we had researched that it would only cost us $20 for a transit visa- but we were running too late to question it so we just paid and ran!) Always losing our money to random fees all over the place! Seriously- most of my spending money has gone towards Visas, parking fees and everything else we didn't expect- you pay for everything! I'm sure we get ripped off all the time being young white Australians… But honestly- I think sometimes it's just easier to pay and be done with it!

It was a speedy trip to the airport! But- we made it! Got stopped at security and had to unpack my bag to show them that the Australian animal wooden pencils Debbie gave me to give away as gifts were not weapons of mass destruction and got our boarding tickets- handwritten of course.

Feeling very flat at this stage and was glad to get a viber call through to Dad and Sharni. Very teary. Not a day to have a New Years hang-over on! I hate borders.

Sitting on the plane, Lisa and I were asleep within minutes. So annoyed I had just paid $56 Australian dollars to enter Zambia for 2 stressful hours only to land and have a stop over straight back in Zimbabwe! Surely we could have organised that better! Luckily we were able to stay on the plane on the stop over which allowed me to have a bit of a Greys Anatomy marathon on my iPad which returned my stress levels back to normal. :) Lisa was able to catch up on more sleep.

Landing in Nairobi was very carefree. We met some lovely Kenyan Visa workers who basically approved a 3 month Kenya visa to us for on the spot, had our bags come out on the conveyor belt first and when we walked out of customs, a driver was standing there with a sign that had my name on it! Upside down… But it was there!

It took twice as long for us to arrive at our hotel as our driver was terribly lost. He did not work for the hotel and I believe was just a taxi driver that booking.com had organised. Oh well- we got there. We drove down some dodgy alleyways with people sleeping under tarps and had security guards with very big guns point us in the right direction- which was actually the wrong direction- but we got there eventually!

The receptionist 'Paul' was very lovely and showed us to our room/ apartment. Yes, an apartment with a bedroom, a bathroom, a laundry, and lounge room and even a kitchen! I'm in heaven! I have been craving home cooked food for so long and need veggies!! I get to cook! It brightened my night. Spoke to the family- feeling much better.

19° Mostly Cloudy
Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

Vic Falls - Zimbabwe - New Years Eve

This morning Lisa had a massive sleep in while I caught up on writing some journal articles. It's nice to have a day of rest.
We have been trying to organise our accommodation in Nairobi for the past few days with no luck at all! We have sent emails, called a billion different numbers that we have found to try contact the hotel,- but they are either not answering or cannot help us. We wish to book transfers from the airport to our hotel, as we land quite late at night, and Nairobi is not really the place I want to be after dark.

Finding 'air time' to have the ability to actually make the calls was probably the most stressful part of the day. Again, everyone wants your business which means that people are extremely helpful when trying to sell you something but also will tell you anything you want to hear to make the sale meaning that you may or may not be getting the correct information! We were dragged from place to place trying to buy these stupid 'air time' cards. The hotel told us we could use their phones if we bought the air cards, but everywhere we went they were simply just trying to sell us an entire Zimbabwe phone kit because 'landlines don't exist in Zimbabwe'…. Well they do. You have one right there. :/ ugh. Anyway, we eventually bought some airtime tickets that he he didn't want us to buy for $3US and it turned out to be exactly what we needed! We went back to the hotel and an incredible receptionist 'Rejoice' helped us make a few calls. Again with not much luck. She continued to call people all throughout the day for us! Even sending emails- I wish we had been able to give her a massive tip for everything she did to help- even if it didn't work! However, it was difficult to do it when she was always with other staff and we didn't know if it was acceptable or not. During this time I had got to my most stressful point and used my Australian phone to call the Australian office for booking.com, which is the website we booked through. I explained my situation how I had called the hotel many times with no response or answer and I was almost settled that what I had booked was a fake. She wanted me to hold the line while she made a few phone calls- but I politely told her I had waited on phones enough and that if she could organise my transfers and confirm my booking from her end and call me back I would be extremely grateful!

Meanwhile, Lisa and I had done some research and contacted Tim and Andrew with an accommodation back up plan when this all fell through. Annoying!

I returned back to the Chalet after my stressful phone calls to find Lisa still asleep! Very jealous- but also understanding since she is a little bit of a sick girl! I hope I don't get it!

We got up, had some showers and then sat by the pool with Callum. We organised to go to the 'Victoria Falls Hotel' with our new found South African friends camping on our yard, which is this extremely fancy hotel with a great view of the Falls 'smoke' rising and the bridge that joins the borders between Zimbabwe and Zambia where the falls begin. It was very 'Colonial' according to the boys, which I have found out means very fancy with dead animal heads all over the walls and a man constantly playing the piano in the corner of the bar. Very 'Colonial'! So many old rich ladies sitting in their overly classy leather chairs tapping their fingers away to the piano notes while a lion skin lies on the floor, and a zebra skin on the wall! We had a few ciders but then decided we were not dressed well enough to look like we belonged there!

Back to the hotel for a sleep to prepare for New Years!

Got dressed- put makeup for the first time since I arrived in Africa and sat around at the boys camp for a few pre-drinks. By 7.30 we made our way to the bus and hit the carnival!

It was fairly quiet when we first arrived but the South African's wanted to get there to watch the band 'Short Straw' who played at 8. So glad we did! I loved them! So much fun dancing to their music! During this time I also ran into Nick Coots- a boy I went to uni with in Ballarat! He is a PE teacher now working at Assumption College and he was there with his partner Ally and 5 other friends- from Ballarat! Random! It was nice to have a bit of home here! Trust the Carroll's to find someone they know in some other random part of the world!

The next artist was Jeremy Loops. He was a bit of a mixture between Xavier Rudd and John Butler trio- good relaxing music! He started something and looped it over and over adding more and more to each loop- it sounded awesome! We met so many great people here and I loved every minute of spending so much time with Lisa and Callum- it was nice to have our little group even if we missed the others. I took so many great photos of us this night- I'm so sad I can't share them with anyone or keep them. :( Unfortunately, my poor little worldly travelled digi camera fell victim to the craziness of Vic Falls Carnival and is now lost forever. Shattered.

One of the best parts of the night is when booking.com called to say our hotel had been confirmed and there would be a driver waiting for us at the airport! Finally!

Vic Falls, Zimbabwe - end of tour

Today Lisa, Callum and I had to wave goodbye to our wonderful tour group.
We stayed in our own chalet last night as technically we are no longer part of the tour, although I don't think Tsepo would have minded if we stayed in the tents for one extra night- but, when you have paid for an actual bed- you might as well use it! We got up in the morning and walked over to help everyone pack up their things. Having lost Coops and Brooke yesterday we had to work on how to pack the truck without them! They were the most organised, productive couple I have ever met! Usually, by the time our bags are packs and our tent is down, Coops and Brooke had already packed most of the truck on their own. Today was a challenge.

It's going to be so lonely without our large family! Eventually the tents were packed and everyone was ready to hit the road. There were a few tears, I think Belinda started us off! The tour bus left singing our famous 'Beautiful Botswana' song to a very sad Lisa and I.
I'm really glad Callum is still with us. At least we are not completely on our own. We spent the day relaxing by the pool, Callum met a few local friends, and we walked into the markets.

The markets were an interesting experience. As soon as you get close to the stores you suddenly feel the store owners pounce! They just walk beside you, constantly talking to you, trying to convince you to come look at their shop, or trade something with you! Sometimes you have 4 or 5 people trying to get your attention. Callum got a ridiculous amount of offers to trade something for his t-shirt and hat. There is just so much desperation for even a dollar- or new clothes! In most of the shops and outside stalls they are all mostly occupied by men, however as we walked into one of the tin sheds, it was very confronting to see a gauntlet of women with cramped together stalls willing to sell you anything they had! This is where Lisa and I got most of the attention “Beautiful skirt” “beautiful eyes” “come look at my art” “ this necklace is perfect for you,” they had so much fabric and beads and wooden bowls and spoons for sale. Wooden and stone carvings- everything! Although most stalls had very similar or the same items, even though they all told us they were the 'artist' and we should come to admire and support 'their' work.

Back to the pool for a swim and a relax before the start of the festival tonight. The Vic Falls music festival is a big event held every year that plays a variety of different African bands and music. There is a shuttle bus that constantly runs back and forth from the primary school (where it is held) to our campsite. Convenient! Callum convinced us to get tickets, and I am so glad we did! There are so many people if our campsite specifically here for the festival- I'm so glad we booked our accommodation here so early, as we probably would have missed out! It's packed! Mainly with South African's on uni holidays here for the festival. We have a group of South African boys camped on our chalet's front yard. There is about 6 of them all together- and they seem really awesome! They have a good set up with eskies and a BBQ, so we are planning to try join them for New Years before the concert tomorrow night.

The power has been on and off all day, so it has been very difficult to get Internet reception here. There seems to be a lot of storms over the past few nights- lots of rain and lighting, even though it is still warm! I was able to get a text message home to the family as I have been out of contact for a few days.

Unfortunately Lisa has been feeling unwell in the stomach for a little while after eating some local beef stew. When you order a local dish, always look at it first. She was expecting was a vegetable casserole with beef pieces in it. No. It seems like they get an entire cow, and chop it up into small pieces to put in the stew, bones, organs, arteries and all- waste nothing! Although disgusting, she was determined to experience all of the African culture, although I think she might be regretting that choice now.
It was a challenge to get her on the bus to the festival, but I'm so glad she came because she picked up so much when we got there! She decided not to drink, but when we hit the atmosphere at the festival, it was hard not to enjoy yourself! We both loved it! It was incredible! There were a lot of people there, but it was not crowded. You never felt as if you didn't have any space.
The set up was great. Barely any line to get in, and you were given a wristband to now simply enter. Rather than dealing with cash- which is extremely difficult to do (they use US Dollars over here which all look the same from a glance, unless you read them), you bought coloured tokens which are used for your money. This made me feel much safer. Everything is so much cheaper, even with the expensive festival prices. $1 for soft drink $2 for beer and cider $3 for spirits. There were so many workers behind a long table taking tokens that you never had to wait for drink. It will be interesting to see if it will be much busier tomorrow since it is New Year's Eve.

We visited all the tents, some much more random than others. One tent was a 'green tent' where you sat in furniture made on completely recycled products, eg beer cans or water bottles. One tent had blow up couches with some under water movie playing. One tent sold coloured eye contacts?! One tent sold food, pop corn and fairy floss, as well as colourful lit up toys. One tent sold detoll sanitary wash items and durex condoms?? They must all be the festival sponsors- but it was very random!

We had a few drinks and lots of dancing listening to the bands! It was surprising when we actually knew a few songs! Callum was completely in his element-loving life. Lisa and I left him there to party the night away, while we went home to have a good night sleep. We would rather prepare ourselves for the bigger New Years event.

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Victoria Falls- Zimbabwe

This morning we had to be on a bus at 7am for whitewater rafting! A tough ask when we had partied well into the night! We had to say a quick goodbye to Rebecca and Rhiannon (as they fly back to Abu Dhabi this morning) and sadly also to Coops and Brooke. :( We have become quite close to Coops and Brooke and although technically our tour finishes today also, Lisa, Callum and I had already booked another night in the same campsite so we get another night with the others.
The bus trip on the way to the falls was rough! Very bumpy, dusty roads. Lisa had to sit on use edge- just in case! When we arrived we were out in an open aired room overlooking the gorge-beautiful! We were fed tea/ coffee and Marie biscuits for breakfast, and listened to our safety guide, Colgate! I love all their strange English names, there was a justice, blessed, sunrise, the list goes on!
What I got out of the safety message was don't let go of the end t-bar of the paddle because you will hit someone in the head, don't stress about hippos- the water is too rough for them, and only swim in the water that is constantly moving- there are too many crocs in the still water…what have I got myself into!?
Luckily there were 7 of us in our group so we had an entire boat to ourselves with our guide, James, which the boys playfully renamed Jimmy. We all grabbed our oars and life jackets and started our way down to the boats. 1 hour later we were still walking down the steep, one person wide path, tripping and spilling on the loose gravel and at times walking down makeshift dodgy ladders- nothing about this track would have passed Australian safety standards- but it was definitely a great way to wake us up and walk off the hangovers!.. And it was incredibly beautiful. There was another of other rafters struggling to make their way down the path- there was no warning of these walks when we all booked- probably for good reason! If you were not reasonably fit or did not have good balance- you would be in a fair bit of trouble!
Eventually we made our way to our boat and went through the safety precautions and learning how to paddle properly in the calm pool of water before the rapids. There were am number of times where we had to abandon the boats and then learn how to drag each other back in again- the whole duck and pull. It was only later when I thought about it that I asked about the crocs in that calm water….the only response was?.. we were not in the water for very long! It made me question whether there were crocs even in there, and maybe it was just a scare tactic! Nope…sure enough, soon James had pointed out 3 crocs sitting in the banks. Whoa. Only little ones though! :/
The rafting was Incredible! I loved every second when we hit the rapids- some which were massive but we were able to keep our ground and no one fell out. I was very nervous about the big whirl pools we kept seeing. If we were to fall out and be sucked down by a whirlpool, we had to count to ten before it spat us out again. If we counted to 10 and it hadn't released us- count to 10 again! Luckily none of us had to experience this.
There were a few rapids that James allowed us to swim down without the boat- all we had to do was to keep hold of each other and try not to let go - I was having the time of my life! Towards the end of the rapids their were a few long paddles between and you could feel the energy levels in the group die down. Every time James told us to paddle you could see the exhaustion in everyone's faces. When we saw the end point though- we all didn't want to stop! We wanted to keep going through the rapids!
It was done… But oh no it wasn't! The same kind of walk we did on the way down- we now had to do that- up hill! The people that struggled before… were really struggling now! Belinda found it very difficult, as did Lisa- so they took their time to come up together with the help of James. It was so hard! Zea had poor knees, so also found it difficult. Callum and I powered to the top. I was afraid to stop in case I couldn't start again! I think for both if us, it was nice to get in some exercise again! Reminded me if hiking- although much steeper in some parts! On our way up we passes many poor tourists upset about the walk- secretly again- I loved it! We also passed these incredibly fit men- some of which could have been well into their 70's racing up and down the paths carrying the boats!! We were struggling just to walk it and they had a boat over each shoulder! It was nuts! Later we found out that these poor workers get paid $1 per boat they drag up the hill! And…. To qualify for the job they must be able to walk the hill (without a boat) in 6 minutes! A climb that took Callum and I 45 minutes to do and about an hour for the others! It was absolutely insane to think about! James,our guide, had been a boat carrier for 10 years before he was able to complete his qualification of becoming an actual rafting guide. Whoa! Talk about tough!
At the top of the hill we were rewarded with rice, chicken and salads for lunch along with ice cold beers and soft drinks. On the bumpy ride back to the campsite, we all began to notice how incredibly sunburnt we were. We had sunscreen on- but the sun must have been strong coming off that water! Being wet and sunburnt made the ride back actually feel freezing!
Back at the campsite we had showers and then Lisa and I went for a one hour massage, manicure and pedicure! I fell asleep during my massage- and for the first time in a few weeks my fingernails and toes were actually shiny and clean! I don't think this will last for long!
We had this done at a backpackers down the road from our campsite- called Shoestrings- and it's here where the others met us for dinner. We all had pizza and cider for dinner- although some of us were still waiting for our pizzas 3 hours later! Again… No one is in a rush over here….Over the course of the night, people slowly retired off to bed until there was only Lisa, Callum, Tsepo and I left along with a new found friend Sunrise, and Blessed, which we called B, who was a guide for us on the rafting boats that day! We had a few drinks, watched some fire dancers perform and then eventually made our way back to the dance nightclub next to our campsite! There was a market place where we could buy souvineers and Lisa bought a drum from a Bob Marley look-a-like who took 20 minutes to carefully wrap the precious drum, of course taking a quick break to search for his weed stash in the garden!?
We ended the night with a Millers promoter following Callum around and giving him free drinks so he could keep taking photos of him! Such a model! ;) a really good night!

Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

Leaving Botswana into Zimbabwe

2.45am sucked- and it was raining and thunder storming all night.
We packed up our tents in the rain in record time and was on the bus! Because we were went and it was so early it was a bit of a chilly ride, so we sheltered under towels, as I had not thought about keeping out a jumper! It had been too hot for that!
We slept most the way until we reached the border. We didn't have to be up this early- but none of us wanted to experience what we did at the Botswana crossing again!

Tsepo got so excited when we got to the post around 7am- no lines- 1st bus! We got through the exit checkpoint almost immediately! The next checkpoint is always the worry though. No one there- good sign. We filled out the paperwork and Tsepo took our passports and completed the process while we went back to the bus. Much different to Botswana- still had to wait about an hour though! At least we could sit in the shade and out of a crowd though! We entertained ourselves by watching the crazy baboons that are everywhere and trying to scare them away from getting in our bus. They are absolute menaces! We saw one come in the building once and grab a lady's shopping bag full of 2L soft drinks!
Eventually we got our passports back with Visa's inside. We are now extremely early into Vic Falls and arrive at our campsite by 9am. We set up our tents and have breakfast around the bus.

Tonight the new tour members join the party - so it's going to be strange! We go from having 16 of us to 23 of us for one night. 7 of us started in Johannesburg and finish in Vic Falls (me)- 7 started with us in Johannesburg and finish back in Johannesburg on another route through Botswana- 7 new ones start in Vic Falls and finish in Johannesburg. It will be incredibly sad to watch half our group continue the tour tomorrow without us- and with replacements!

We left our campsite to organise our last few days together. Dave, Belinda, Zea, Ben, Callum, Lisa and I all booked a half day white water rafting experience, while others booked helicopter rides, elephant tours, adrenalin packages etc- we all booked a booze cruise along the Zambezi river as our final goodbye as a group. After booking tomorrow's adventures, we all went to check out the famous Victoria Falls- one of the seven natural wonders of the world!

Wow- awe-inspiring. Victoria falls is one of the biggest waterfalls in the world with more than five hundred million cubic meters of water per minute plummeting off the edge of the Zambia border, with over a width of nearly two km into a gorge 108 meters below! It's an incredible sight- and as you stand on the edge of Zimbabwe looking over to the falls it's almost like you are literally standing under the shower- you get saturated! We all had plastic zip lock bags to try and keep our cameras dry and safe. We were prepared an d had rain coats- but it was such a hot day we just embraced the cool water!
You can see the spray from the falls from kilometers away which looks like smoke rising into the sky. Local tribes named this place 'Mosi-oa-Tunya’ meaning ‘The Smoke that Thunders’. It's an incredible sight.

There is a path wrapping around the cliff edge- but no safety barriers or anything. It made me very nervous to watch people getting extremely close to the edge to take their epic photographs. As some of the spray cleared we were even able to see a across to the Zambia side and watch people swimming in the Devils pools. People actually pay money to go swim in the pools where the water goes straight off the edge! It was absolutely insane! People climbing on slippery rocks and having to hold onto anything they can grab as to not be swept over the edge by the current! You would hate to be a weak swimmer! We all watched in horror as we were certain someone was going to be swept off the edge to their death below! Never.ever.ever! I would love to know the statistics of how many people have been killed going over the edge.

After our incredible view of the falls- we went back to camp for a snooze before preparing for our cruise.
By 4 o'clock we were in our way to the boat- 2 hrs, unlimited alcohol! Oh dear! It was a big night to finish on all together- the best part? The family of hippos that were swimming less than 10 meters from our boat! A little baby one too! We went to dinner at a place called Mamma Africa and then some of us joined the dance party at the club next to our campsite- even in bed the music continued until about 3.30 at night making it difficult to sleep!

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Elephant Sands - Botswana

This morning we got up, packed up our tents and got on the road towards Elephant sands. A big 8 hour day of driving.
I spent most of the trip reading my swahili book and trying to catch up on some learning of the language. It's difficult to practice it down here- because. I have met no one that speaks it yet!

A lot of our drive was through the national park, which meant that at times we had to slow down for the bamboons to get off the road, and even wait for the elephants to cross! The first elephant we saw was the most exciting! It was so close and just trying to hide behind this tiny little tree- he wasn't fooling anyone, poor little buddy! He was just gorgeous!
When we arrived at our new campsite there were people everywhere- mainly other tour groups. It so funny to see how territorial everyone became when we saw another tour group, as it it was 'them' and 'us'- and of course we were always the better group! What we have noticed for most of our campsites is that we never camped with fences, we were in with the animals for the night! When I mean with the animals for the night, I mean they literally set up a pool, a bar, a restaurant and a campsite right next to the waterhole! Which meant that when you sit down to have a drink at the bar- there is a very real elephant having a drink 20 meters away from you! Very surreal!

We went of a game park drive through the park that afternoon, however we were not as lucky as our first game drive. We saw a few birds and a few Elephants- but still no lion or leopard! It just seemed there was not a great deal of animals around, unfortunately.
That night we had another buffet dinner at the restaurant where we had the choices of chicken casserole, ox tail casserole, Pep, rice and salad. Callum and I challenged each other that we had to eat at least a little bit of everything! I tried everything- but I think he was the clear winner as he even went back for seconds! The food is very filling and rich here. Ox tail was interesting, but actually just tasted like tough beef! I think the trick is to mainly avoid the meat and try and scavenge out the veggies!

While we were eating, Elephants were constantly making their way down to the waterhole for a drink. It was amazing to just sit there and watch them so close!
All night we were dodging dung beetles that seem to fly around with seriously no direction or purpose- it's as if they have no control and they constantly run into you! It's a good little thump too when they hit- they are fairly massive for beetles- and everywhere! You had to just move them out of the way when you try to wash your hands or brush your teeth in the bathroom- they seem to be in every sink! As if they had somehow flown in there and now can't get out! Strange little creatures- Tsepo tried to make Lisa hold one and I've never seen her scream so much!

Tomorrow we have to cross the Botswana border into Zimbabwe. We never want to experience the Botswana border crossing incident again, so as a group we decided to have an extremely early start. 2.45 wake up call! Wish me luck!

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