After 44 days in Zambia we were finally about to leave, not however to go home but instead to go on a 1 day safari in Botswana. We had to get up at about half six as the bus was due to collect us at 7. It was waiting for us when we reached reception so we hopped on and set off. The bus stopped at another nearby hostel and picked up three English girls. Oh how we wished it hadn’t they talked and talked so loudly during the bus trip and later in the day. We found out every detail, every mind numbing detail of their lives (I bet if we listened long enough they would have told us their credit card details even though we never spoke to them directly ourselves). The journey to the Botswana border post took about an hour to a place called Kazangula. It also took us through one of Zambia’s national parks and by the side of the road we managed to see both a giraffe and an elephant which was strange to see out of the blue. At the border the bus driver took us into immigration and they stamped our exit visa’s (for the next half hour or so we were not officially anywhere in the world). Once out of immigration it was a short walk to the banks of a lake where there was a small boat waiting to take us to Botswana. We docked on the Botswana side and boarded an open sided safari truck. It was a short distance to the Botswana immigration and once stamped we drove the short distance to the town of Kasane and the Kalahari Safari’s compound on the banks of the Chobe River. First up was payment and breakfast (as I thought we’d be paying in Zambia I had only kwacha so the rest had to spot me enough dollars). Breakfast was an apple and loads of donuts in the nice courtyard area of the complex. After breakfast it was out the backgate of the compound and onto the double decker open sided boat for a river cruise on the Chobe. The journey started quite enough with sightings of a few monkeys, birds and lizards in amongst trees. The we started seeing hippos and elephants off miles in the distance. Suddenly we were locking at 2 hippos when they lifted their heads and started at us it was an amazing sight to see two wild hippos in their natural habitat. After this we saw hippos everywhere we had so many pictures of hippos it was almost normal to see them. The area we were cruising through was an amazing river delta with the Botswana/ Namibia border running down the middle of the river. At one point the river splits then rejoins creating a large island was disputed between Botswana and Namibia until the international court ruled in Botswana’s favour, it’s uninhabited by humans but crawling with animals. Next up we pulled up right beside the island where 3 crocodiles were lying. It was awinspiring to see such a dangerous wild creature so close up. They really do look amazing and camouflage really well. We rounded the island and saw creatures such as buffalo, iguanas and many many more hippos and crocs. It was an amazing experience to see these animals in their natural habitat. At one point we see a load of animals running from the trees towards the water they were a horse/dear like creature whose name I don’t remember followed by a number of zebra it was like a scene from David Attenborough documentary but it was right in front of our eyes. Shortly afterwards we returned back to the dock and disembarked the boat and went for lunch. The choice was endless for lunch there was rich, chicken, small burgers, and even chocolate mousse cake (of course I had some). Almost as soon as we’d eaten it was back outside and onto the open sided safari trucks. On our trucks it was only us and one other girl called Linda from Melbourne originally but now working in Dubai for emirates airlines. She was really sound and we ended up chatting with her quite a bit over the next 2 days. The drive to Chobe national park was really windy with our hair being blowing back on our heads (we looked like a bunch of Jedwards, it’s like OMG were in Zambia and its so like Zambia and stuff – what a national embarrassment). Once in the park the roads became really uneven but it wasn’t long till all kinds of animals were everywhere. We saw a load of Giraffes eating from trees and the as we approached the water front, this amazing scene opened up in front of us, there was a river delta full of small island with elephants, hippos, monkeys and warthogs everywhere its possibly the most amazing sight I’ve ever witnessed with my own eye’s. We drove along a path by the beach right through where the elephants were drinking in the water. We had to keep stopping and allow them to take their time to decide where they wanted to go until we could pass. They were all around the car so close. The size of them was amazing, they are massive towering above the car. Our driver told us they could easily topple a car but they generally don’t feel threatened by it cause they don’t see the humans inside unless we move too much or make too much noise. If they do feel threatened and they give a mock charge stamping their feet at which stage it’s time to get the fuck outta there. There was one elephant who looked really sick and the driver said he was really old and quite sick. It was sad to see such an amazing creature so sick. We got so many pics of elephants its crazy. We then saw a load if elephants walking across the water together and then knocking down a large tree with ease. It was so unique even the driver of the truck with 4 years experience took out his camera. There really was animal life everywhere with little monkeys jumping over a small stream and the bay ones falling in. After we left the water front the driver heard word of some lions so we set off in search. And we found them. A bunch of female lions with a young adult male and about 3 cubs sitting under a tree. The driver stopped the a few feet from them and we just sat and watched it was really unnerving sitting so close to them knowing them could attack if they choose to. The drive told us to keep really quite so not to disturb them or let them know humans were there in case they attacked. All of a sudden a truck full of Americans came along all shouting loudly at the lions, what a bunch of twats but unsurprising really. Luckily the lions didn’t attack (the effort involved in eating a whole American just wasn’t worth it). After that we drove a few hundred yards away and hopped out to stretch our legs it was weird walking around with lions only a short distance away. After our leg stretch we started making our way back to the start to head home. On the way we still saw tonnes of animals and one twat on a safari truck with an iPod on and his eyes closed. It was an amazing trip and we saw more wild animals than I thought possible (apparently there are over 100000 elephants in the park). We then set off back to the border post and departed Botswana and got ourselves stamped back into Zambia (one page in my passport is covered in stamps). Once we arrive back at the hostel we were all wrecked and I wanted to write my blog so I went and got pizza in a restaurant with wifi while the guys headed off for their seafood dinner. Once again it was bed early as we had white water rafting to look forward to the next day.
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