| August - September 2019 - Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa, & Egypt
Additional food pics and more photos may also be seen on my Tumblr. The original plan was to visit Zambia and Egypt. But as the trip evolved, Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe got added. Travel buddy kumi and I started off with Zambia first. There is no quick way to get from California to Zambia. The shortest flight we found was 27 hours… We were not on that flight. We left California at 7:35 PM on Saturday and arrived in Zambia around 12:45 PM Monday… Visiting a few airport lounges helped with the duration. You need a Visa to enter Zambia. You can get it online or get it when you arrive. There are several types but I recommend getting the Kaza Visa. It allows multiple entries and exits to Zambia from Botswana and Zimbabwe. I also recommend getting it online. Once we were out of the airport, it was a quick 20 minute ride to the Avani Victoria Falls resort. We didn’t get too much time to rest after our arrival though. We had booked a train ride/5 course dinner on the Livingstone Express. So we unpacked a bit, showered, got a little rest, then off to the train. The train was very nice. “A restored steam locomotive of polished leather, teak and brass.” Just before boarding the train, we served with a choice of juice, beer, or wine. On the train, we were served more drinks, salmon and satay, while listening to a brief history of Zambia. The train took us through the Mosi-oa-Tunya, national park, Zambezi river valley, and stopped at the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe on the Victoria Falls bridge. After the bridge photo stop, the train moved part way back towards Livingstone, then stopped so the 5 course meal could be served. It was very good. After dinner, we went to the bar car to relax while the train headed back to Livingstone, then back to the resort. The Avani Victoria Falls is a very nice resort. I think it's awesome that baboon, giraffe, impala, and zebra roam freely through the resort. Its location is excellent. The resort's rear gate exits to Victoria Falls. One reason we decided to visit Zimbabwe is it's about a 15 minute walk from the resort to the Zambia/Zimbabwe border. We began the second day in Zambia with a trip to the “Devil’s Pool.” A driver picked us up from the resort and took us to the boat launch for Livingstone island. A short boat ride on the Zambezi river and we were on the island. After a quick briefing and an introduction to our chef, (They made breakfast for us on the island.) we were off to the pool. Devil’s Pool is a rock pool on the edge of Victoria Falls. It is only accessible during the dry season. (How someone discovered this, I don’t know.) Visitors go into the pool, sit on the edge/look over the edge and get their pictures taken. The only constraints to go the pool are you have to be over 12 and a decent swimmer. I have one additional recommendation: Unless the soles of your feet are tough, wear sandals with a strap, water socks, or dive shoes/boots because walking on rocks can be a little brutal… Oh, it seems there fish in the pool too, they can be ignored. After our morning dip in Devil’s Pool, we were served a very nice breakfast on the island. Shortly after, we departed and headed back to resort. We only had an hour before our next activity, a Victoria Falls tour. It was actually two tours, one on the Zambia side and the other on the Zimbabwe side. We started with the Zimbabwe side first. The tour company we booked through, Bushtracks Africa, simplified the tour for us. Our Zambia Bushtracks guide drove us to the border, got our passports stamped at Zambia immigration, then escorted us to Zimbabwe immigration. After we cleared Zimbabwe immigration, our Zambia guide introduced us to our Zimbabwe guide. The Zimbabwe guide then took us on a tour of the Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls. It was a very good tour during which I had a couple of revelations: One, I had seen people doing part this tour earlier in the morning from Livingstone island. Two, the Devil’s Pool looks scarier from the Zimbabwe side. The Zimbabwe tour was good and would been enough for one day. But we decided to do both sides, so back to Zambia to meet our Zambia guide. Our Zimbabwe Bushtracks guide took us back to Zimbabwe immigration where we repeated our entire morning process in reverse. We cleared Zimbabwe immigration, met up with our Zambia Bushtracks guide, then cleared Zambia immigration. (This is the reason for getting a Kaza Visa.) The Zambia tour was good and luckily not as long. We finished it and returned to the resort. We had a late lunch after which we were done for the day. We showered, vegetated, and ordered room service for dinner . We scheduled a safari in Chobe National Park in Botswana for the next day. Bushtracks Africa again picked us up from Avani. Then we did a 90 minute drive to the Zambia/Botswana border. The border crossing between Zambia and Botswana is insane. When we arrived, there was already a long line of large trucks waiting to cross. Our driver told us the trucks may be there 3 weeks waiting to cross. The reason why is it’s a river crossing between Zambia and Botswana. There isn’t a bridge so vehicles have to be ferried across. There are 2 ferries that can hold about 2 trucks (with trailers) each, which ferry vehicles from each side. (Note: Others have realized the craziness of the border and are having a bridge built.) There are also a lot of smaller boats that ferry people back and forth. Since crossing by vehicle obviously wasn’t an option, Bushtracks already had a smaller boat waiting for us. Our Zambia Bushtracks driver took our passports, got us cleared through Zambia immigration, and put us on a ferry. Our Botswana Bushtracks guide was waiting on the other side. Once we cleared Botswana immigration, we met up with other people who were staying in Botswana, then off we went to Chobe National Park. (Side note: Once we got through Botswana immigration, we had to “clean” the bottom of our shoes before stepping into Botswana. This was accomplished by walking through a little tub with some liquid…) The safari was broken up into 3 parts: In the morning, we would drive through the park in a 4-wheel drive vehicle. We would break for lunch at Chobe Safari Lodge. Then, after lunch, in the afternoon, we would cruise in a boat on the Chobe river to see little more. The obvious question I get is “What did you see?” To which I always want to respond “Lions and tigers and bears.” But in reality, with the exception of tigers and bears, we saw a lot: Kudu, impala, mongoose, warthogs, water buffalo, baboons, hippos, elephants, giraffes, lions, crocodiles, and various birds… “Oh my.” It was a very good safari. After the safari, we returned to Zambia. We did the immigration thing in reverse. (Did I mention Kaza Visa awesome?) The next day was a do nothing day. (Something we learned to schedule in from our Sri Lanka trip.) Sleep in late. Eat. Stroll around the resort. Buy souvenirs. Eat and drink some more. Sleep. White water rafting day on the Zambezi river. This was intense. Even the walk in and out of the gorge to get to/from the river was intense. Officially, this tour was 21 rapids ranging from category 1 to 5. Unofficially, there are more. Some they don’t count because they’re not strong enough to be rated. Others were split into an `A` and a `B` rapid. There is also a category 6 rapid called “Commercial Suicide”. They have rafters get out and walk around this one. This white water rafting was an all day event. Once we were finished and walked out of the gorge, the company, Safpar, took us back to their home base resort to eat. While we were eating, they were editing the pictures and video they took. Here's the link for the rafting pictures and here's the link for the video. We checked out of Avani and headed to South Africa. The original plan was to fly to Egypt. But the layover in South Africa was so long, we decided to spend a few days there. The next day we did a Safari in Pilanesberg National Park. Another long day. Most of it spent driving. We drove around the park in morning, stopped for lunch, then drove around the park in the afternoon. We did see a lot of animals. In addition to the ones we saw in Chobe, we also saw rhinos and wildebeest. It was a good safari, but I liked the one in Chobe better. City tour day: Constitution Hill, Apartheid Museum, Soweto. While my feelings about the tour are mixed, however two other tourists on the tour deserve mention. First, there was the guy from London who argued with us about, among other things, Trump’s ratings being “sky high”. His wife had to point out that we were actually from the US and he had never been. The second guy has taken the number 2 spot on my list for “Most obnoxious tourist ever.” He started off by taking the first seat next to the van door and refusing to move. It might not have been a problem except for the fact that everyone else on the tour knew that seat was for the guy in wheel chair… It took the driver a little bit to explain that to him. Next, when our driver/guide was explaining things to the group, he was almost always on the phone. Of course, almost everything our driver told him not to do, he did. Then, during one of the driver’s speeches to the group, he walked up with one of the local vendors, interrupted the lecture and asked the driver if he could take him to an ATM so he could pay the vendor. But probably the worst was when we’re actually going to the ATM, and he decides he doesn’t need to go anymore, “he’ll just take care of it tomorrow.” Problem is the vendor has been following us in a car, waiting for us to stop at an ATM. Now our driver is concerned that he may get into fight because he has to explain to the guy behind us that the other guy “will take care of it tomorrow.” Luckily, tourist no. 2 finally figures out that he should pay the vendor and goes to the ATM. The following day we went to see the Sterkfontein Caves., the Cradle of Humankind, and the Long March to Freedom exhibit. Great attractions and a short tour day . Travel day. We had a late flight so we got to sleep in. We also got a late check-out so it was pretty much a lazy day. Many hours later, we were on the late flight from Johannesburg, South Africa to Cairo, Egypt. We arrived in Cairo around 5:30 AM. Getting off the plane was a little slow, but immigration was fast and we only had to wait a few minutes for our bags at baggage claim. Our driver was waiting for us outside. A few minutes later, we were on our way to the Kempinski Nile Hotel. Beautiful Hotel. Excellent staff. We arrived very early, but we got to an early check-in. They upgraded our room and put us in a 2 room suite. Besides breakfast and dinner, we pretty much vegetated most of the day. Sometime during our “vegetation” we went to the spa and did a scrub, sauna, and massage. The next day we visited a few churches and mosques. The itinerary was the Sultan Hassan and Al Refaie mosques, Ben Ezra’s synagogue, the Hanging church, and the Egyptian Museum. The mosques were impressive. The church was a bit strange because I think there was service going on while tourists were entering and leaving. Plus, there were little kids running around like it was daycare. The Egyptian Museum was good, but it wasn’t great. There is a lot of impressive stuff to see there. The layout was ok, but it looked like they were in the process of rearranging things. My biggest complaint would be the ventilation system or lack thereof. Considering all the types of artifacts they have, I would’ve thought they would have controlled the environment better. Pyramids! The first one we started with was the Bent Pyramid of Sneferu at Dahshur. This pyramid has been reopened to the public. People may enter from the north entrance. We did and I’m glad we did it, but I don’t think I would do it again. The entrance is a tunnel no more than 1.2 meters (~4 ft) high at its highest point. It’s 79 meters down, sloping at 45 degrees. Upon reaching bottom, there are a few more stairs up to a chamber. In the chamber, there are more stairs going up. (Another chamber.) We didn't go up. We went back the way we came, which seemed to be the correct choice because our guide was waiting at the entrance. (There is a west entrance to the pyramid, but it’s not open to the public.) That was the only pyramid we went in for the rest of the day. Here are the other pyramids and sites we went to that day:
The next day we went to Alexandria. Early start, long drive up… or down because this is lower Egypt and the Nile flows from south to north. Having done this excursion, this is something I would not recommend. The only thing worth seeing is the Citadel of Qaitbay. Travel day. We had to leave the Kempinski Nile Hotel early because we had a 7:00 AM flight to Aswan. Driver waiting, took us to the airport, boarded plane, no issues. Arrived in Aswan, driver and guide waiting, immediately off to our next excursion, Aswan High Dam and Lake Nasser. From there we went to Philae Temple. It’s on an island in Lake Nasser so we had to take a boat out to it. I liked this place. After a stop at an aromatherapy shop, we were off to our final destination of the day, a river boat. We had booked a 3 night cruise on the Nile. This worked out well because the cruise stops at a few places we want to see. It also gets us on a boat on the Nile. The following day we went to Abu Simbel. We had to leave at 3:30 AM for this one. It’s a 3 and a half hour drive from Aswan to Abu Simbel. The reason we had to leave so early was we had to be back at 1:00 PM because that is when the boat departed for Komombo. We really wanted to see the temples of Ramses II and Nefertari so we did it. Even with the long drive, I’m glad we did it. We made it back with time to spare. Our boat departed for Komombo. This is my first river boat cruise. I did one ocean cruise and I hated it. This river cruise is much different. You can barely feel the boat moving down the river. There’s always scenery to see. The rooms are bigger and you get a full size window to view out of. I like it. Once we reached Komombo, we got off the boat to view the Temple of Kom Ombo and the Crocodile Museum. After that we were back on the boat and off to our next stop, Edfu. Quick commentary: I have been to a few places around the world, so I am use to the concept of tourist police. Among other things, they enforce things like attire, the touching of or the sitting on artifacts. If there is a no taking pictures rule, they enforce that too. They are very serious in doing their job. I saw a tourist in Sri Lanka take a picture in an area where no pictures are allowed. The tourist police took his phone. Touching the Mirror wall in Sigiriya Rock will get you thrown in jail. In Egypt, some places don’t allow taking pictures with a camera, but they will allow you to take pictures with your camera phone. Other places allow you to take pictures with your camera, provided you pay a fee. Some tourists today didn’t appear to know that. The Tourist police were on them right away, asking for their camera tickets. (They didn’t have any.) The tourist was under the impression that he had the right to take pictures. (He didn’t.) I don’t think he realized he was about to lose his camera… They do give the camera or phone back… after they wipe the card.. We had sailed to Edfu the night before. So the first thing we did was go to the temple of Edfu. We got off the boat and there was a carriage waiting for us. It seems 95% of the people who visit the temple of Edfu, arrive by carriage. The temple is a good one to see and I’m glad we did it first thing in the morning. When we left, there was a line of carriages bringing people in and out. We returned to the boat and had breakfast. During this time, our boat set off for Luxor. We left Edfu at 8:00 AM and were scheduled to arrive in Luxor around 3:30 PM. Along the way, there are a couple of locks the boat has to pass through. I am used to “merchants” trying to sell you stuff outside attractions. What surprised me was there were some waiting for the cruise ships at the locks. Some were standing on the locks. Others were in rowboats around the cruise ships. From what I could tell, if a passenger buys something, they throw it up to them in a plastic bag. I am not sure how money is exchanged. We arrived in Luxor and opted to do some additional tours. Karnak, which was originally scheduled for the next day, and Luxor temple, which we decided to add on. Both were good. By the time we finished Luxor temple it was dark. We could have stayed for the evening night show, but decided not to and returned to our boat. Travel day. We checked out and disembarked. Quick comment about our disembarkation: Many of the Nile riverboats have a similar design. Which is good because there doesn’t seem to be enough space at the Luxor dock to accommodate them all. To solve this issue, boats dock next to each other. Specifically, one boat is docked at the dock, then another boat is docked to it, and another boat is docked to that one. We were the 4th boat out. So when we left in the morning, we had to walk through 3 boats to reach the dock. Once off the boat, we made a quick stop at a temple, then we were off to the Temple of Hatshepsut. We got there early so there weren’t many people there. When we were finished here, we went to the Valley of the Kings, which is basically next door. Access to the tombs in the Valley of the Kings is controlled by only opening specific tombs on certain days. Also, you have a choice of seeing 3 or 5 tombs when you buy your ticket. We chose 3. You can take pictures with camera phones. Cameras are not allowed. (Ignore the guys inside the tombs who will try to point out things to take pictures of, then ask you for money.) Both the Temple of Hatshepsut and the Valley of the Kings are definitely worth a visit. After the Valley of the
Kings, we stopped at an Alabaster shop, then off to lunch. We had
lunch at one of those restaurants that tour groups go to. So far,
they have all been good. After lunch, we parted ways with our
guide and headed up to Soma Bay. We had a driver, we slept most
of the way. We arrived at the Kempinski Hotel Soma Bay a few hours later. Dive day. A 2 tank boat dive here is an all day event. The boat leaves approximately around 9:00 AM. It takes about 90 minutes for the boat to get to the dive site we’re going to. Once there, dive, surface interval and eat lunch. From what I understand, normally somewhere during this time, people who wanted to do a third dive would do. However, conditions were not that great so they cancelled the third dive. Everyone just did a second dive after which the boat headed back. I think we got back to the resort a little after 5. Lazy day. Travel day. Fly up to Cairo to spend one night in the Royal Maxim Palace Kempinski, then fly home.. Things of note about this trip:
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