Today in Trust member Kate Thompson’s South Africa diary, commences her exploration of Victoria Falls by foot and helicopter and visits an elephant sanctuary.
Livingstone town was more like the Africa I remembered and the roads certainly weren’t a patch on most of those in South Africa. There was a warm welcome at the hotel and the temperature was considerably higher there. Having dumped my stuff in my room I set off to explore the Falls. On the way there I saw three zebra and the man who was looking after them told me that he would be feeding them, along with the giraffes, in the hotel grounds (which are part of the national park) at 3.00.
I went as far as a bridge but needed waterproofs to go any further because the spray from the Falls would have drenched me. I returned to the hotel and went to the activity centre to see what was on offer. I booked up for a visit to an elephant sanctuary, which included a ride on an elephant but it looked as if I would be unlucky with a helicopter flight. There are lots of seriously scary activities on offer, such as bungee jumping, white-water rafting and a rope swing. No thank you! The last thing my sister said to me was ‘Don’t go white-water rafting’ as my brother-in-law broke his leg doing this on the Zambezi and spent a week in a Johannesburgh hospital a couple of years ago.
As I’d eaten on the plane I used room service to order a sandwich and drink. I am trying to avoid going out after dark because of the mosquitoes although I’m not sure that it is a problem at this time of year. Still, I’ll continue to take the tablets and use the repellent and gizmo in the hotel room, just to be on the safe side. …
I watched the final two group of 16 football matches, of which one went to penalties; it was the worst match I’ve seen apart from England v Algeria. Later in the evening, I had problems with insects in the room, especially the bathroom; they were mostly ants but also some slightly more worrying – and larger! – ones, so I slept with the mossie net over my head. I was far too hot and couldn’t adjust the air conditioning, so not a very good night.
Day 22: Wednesday, 30 June 2010
After a good breakfast I asked the hotel reception about the insects and the air-con and both were fixed promptly, by spraying the room in the case of the former. When I went to the activity centre for my elephant trip I spoke to a different member of staff who was able to book me a helicopter flight at 12.00; she had been born in the UK and told me to forget I was British, and get to the front of the queue so I got a window seat!
The drive to the elephant sanctuary took about 15 minutes along very bumpy and dusty roads. My fellow passengers were an American lady and six teenagers, three of whom were hers. She was a gynaecologist and very pleasant; they were in Zambia as volunteers at a soccer school (just like the lady I met in Cape Town). We were introduced to our elephants and drivers; I was pleased to have the smallest one, called Tata (wasn’t that the name of the Indian company who bought Rover?), which apparently means ‘to take’. My driver was called James.
Kate with the animals
We mounted the elephants by a platform, although later in the trip the drivers got them to sit down. It was surprisingly comfortable, although I would have preferred some stirrups! There was just a strap to hold onto, but when the elephant sat down James told me to hang onto his waist. I certainly did! He showed me how to feed the elephant and when we finished the ride we had a demonstration of some of the elephants’ tricks. We then thanked and rewarded them, by giving them some small pellets that they apparently love.
I was very grubby so had a quick face and hands wash before it was on to the next adventure. This time I shared the trip with three Mexicans, who spoke excellent English; the older lady’s husband had done his PhD at the University of East Anglia a few years ago and they had lived in Norwich. The ride was only 15 minutes but the pilot circled the Falls and the gorge and then spotted a lone elephant on one of the islands. It was a great trip and really put the Falls into their landscape, and fortunately none of us was sick! We had to wait for the next trip to return before being driven back to the hotel. I decided to buy the DVD of the flight, although when I saw myself on it nearly changed my mind! Still, they say the camera doesn’t lie.
Helicopter Ride
Because the package I’d bought included a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River with complimentary snacks, I had a proper meal at lunchtime, sitting outside at the poolside bar. Everything was priced in $US and was very cheap. The boat trip started at 4.00 on the ‘African Princess’, built in 2005. We saw quite a few hippos and a few buffalo on the banks of the river, which incidentally appears to be pronounced with a short ‘e’. There were some pretty birds going into holes in the bank, which we were told were bee-eaters, and some kind of swallow that were much prettier than hours.
There is a sign outside my hotel room warning of crocodiles but I didn’t see any, nor on the boat trip. Although the weather had been lovely in the morning, it had clouded over so that the sunset was a bit disappointing, although you could see how it must be on a clear day. I had assumed that the sun set in the east in the southern hemisphere, but it appears that I am wrong. The trip finished at 6.00, by which time it was fully dark. I was so tired after the previous disturbed night that I went to bed at 9.00 and slept through until 6.30.
Part thirteen of Kate’s diary will appear tomorrow