Sunday, April 6 – transit from Victoria Falls to Kasane, Botswana

The group is hitting the road this morning. Destination: Botswana. We’re not departing super early though, so first…

…a nice (English) breakfast at the hotel.

Following our arrival in Kasane later today, we’ll be going on a sunset river cruise. There will be no food or drink provided, so we’re going to stop and pick up those things while we’re in transit. Fortunately our tour leader, Shadwell (Shaddie), was aware of the fact that the liquor stores in Botswana are closed on Sundays. Can you say Victoria Falls booze run?!?

Our ride to the border took about 90 minutes, and there was basically no waiting to get through immigration control (Sunday factor?). Citizens of the U.S. are able to enter Botswana without a visa. Sadly, foot and mouth disease is endemic here, so each of us also went through a shoe cleaning process (and at subsequent check points throughout our travels in the country). The tire treads on our bus were also cleaned.

(Photography was not allowed at the border control station)

A half hour later we were in the town of Kasane. Here we stopped at a little shopping center to pick up snacks for tonight’s cruise. Shaddie also suggested that we each buy a 5 liter bottle of drinking water, which would last us throughout the trip. This was also where we obtained some local currency, most of us via an ATM, but there was also a money exchange office in the shopping center. (I was able to use my credit card at the grocery store)

1 USD = 14 BWP (Botswana Pula)

Travel Note: While I’m thinking of it, kudos to both my credit card and debit/ATM card companies (Fidelity and Schwab, respectively). I had no issue using either of these cards at any stop on this south African journey. I provided each company with a detailed travel itinerary though; no doubt that was a factor in the success. I did have to make phone calls to clear a couple fraud alerts on my credit card, but that occurred when I was attempting to make online purchases (plane tickets and Namibian visa).

Our lodging for the night.

A nice little hotel.

Travel Note: You may have noticed the mosquito netting in my hotel rooms on this trip. Malaria is a concern in this part of the world, especially as we’re just coming out of the rainy season. I’ve taken anti-malaria pills in the past, but have not liked the side effects (nausea, fatigue). Therefore, on this trip I’ve just been vigilant in using insect repellent and clothing to prevent bites. And (spoiler alert) I’m happy to report that I was only bitten twice during the two week journey (ankle and knuckle)!

Our cruise this evening is on the Chobe River. Its origin is in Angola, where it is called the Cuando River. It then flows through Namibia’s Caprivi Strip and into the Linyanti Swamp on the northern border of Botswana. Below the swamp, the river is called the Linyanti, and further east, the Chobe, before it ultimately flows into the Zambezi River (the location of my hotel in Zambia, which feeds Victoria Falls).

We had a lot of space on our boat, which was nice.

A few elephants in the area…

You’ll notice that we weren’t the only boat on this part of the river.

Matt was my gin & tonic drinking buddy (throughout the trip!)! He’s a patent lawyer from east London. Nice guy.

Due to the sensitivity of their skin to the sun, hippos will stay in the water all day. Coming out only at night to feed.

Five more hippos lurking about.

Sidenote: Hippos are known to kill more humans than any other land animal in Africa, including in Botswana. Estimates suggest they cause around 500 human deaths annually. This is due to their territoriality and aggressive behavior, especially when protecting their young or when they feel threatened. They are known to charge boats and cause them to capsize, leading to drownings. Wait, what?!? (Fortunately. I think our boat is a little too large for that to happen…)

I typically don’t have much of anything worthwhile to say; Francisco (also from London) must be feigning interest to make me feel better!

This is a Puku, which can only be found here along the Chobe River near Kasane. They are one of Botswana’s protected animals.

A local guide joined us on the cruise.

Beautiful.

Here’s a photo of our boat.

Wait, how did I get this picture? Am I standing in the river (with the hippos!)? Hardly! I took this from another boat. And why am I on another boat? Because ours has run aground! Ugh!

We spent about a half an hour trying to maneuver out, but to no avail. Then another boat made its way over to try and tow us out. No go. All of our group eventually transferred over to this other boat (exact same type as the one we were just on, from the same tour company).

Our new craft had quite a few passengers already onboard; made for tight quarters on the remainder of the cruise. I felt bad for this other group, as they wasted time trying to tow us out, and then we invaded their space. It all worked out though, and we ended up sharing our alcohol and snacks with them!

Hippos lit by the setting sun.

Buffalo ahead…

Pretty late afternoon glow.

A photo of our group (and the boat operator, the one who didn’t run aground!) with the sunset as a backdrop.

Very enjoyable, despite hitting the sandbar!

Following the cruise, our group reconvened at the hotel for dinner.

I went with bream fillet (again), with a bottle of cider, and…

…ice cream (with sprinkles)! Cost of dinner: 215 BWP ($15). This was good, but the bream fillet at my Zambian hotel was better!

A fun day; this is a good group of people! (whew!)

It wasn’t a late night, as we’ll be departing at 5:45am tomorrow for a Safari in Chobe National Park. Can’t wait!