25 January 2010

12. Botswana - Caprivi – Namibia – S. Africa 2 Nov – 20 Nov



Crossing a border once again, this time on a ferry into Botswana, we made our way to Kasane, near the entrance to Chobe Game Reserve, and pitched camp at the Chobe Safari Lodge. It turned out to be a great plan, as all the lodge facilities were for the campers as well, and we made good use of the swimming pool and bar. We took a magnificent sunset cruise on the river, where the beautiful storm clouds, made for a great sunset and gorgeous light for photos………the animals came to the party too, and it was a wonderful introduction into Botswana. On our game drive the next morning we experienced huge herds of elephant for which Chobe is famous, and they kept us entertained and fascinated for hours.


At the western end of the Caprivi and over the calm and beautiful border into Namibia, we discovered an amazing and very eco and camper-friendly place called Ngepi Lodge, situated very close to Popa falls. The quirky and humorous signs displayed to guide us there, gave an inkling of things to come, and we weren’t disappointed.!!!! Our grassed and shady, private campsite, was on the banks of the wide and free-flowing Kavango river. There was a huge, steel, floating cage, placed in the river and this was the swimming pool…..it was accompanied by a sign which read ‘World’s largest Hippo and Croc diving cage’, and another which said, ’Swimming at your Own Risk..’ All the staff had t-shirts with “Get a Life ,…….Yes You!”, emblazoned on their backs and so it went on………… ………. we decided that we could happily stay here for a couple of days.


We took a guided bird walk with a really knowledgeable local man who had never been to school, but his best book in the whole world was a ‘Roberts Bird Handbook.’ This had been posted to him by a grateful New Zealander, and he had taught himself to read so that he could further his bird studies!!!! On his day ‘off’, apparently, he is seen striding through the bush, looking for rare birds (of the feathered variety), so that he can add a precious tick next to their names in his book. He says that all the people who he grew up with, laughed at him at first, but now, because he earns good money from taking people birding, they are begging him to teach them!!! There are many such amazing stories.


Ngepi lodge has become famous for their ablution blocks. There must be 10 different ones that they have creatively and humorously built using the natural bush, rock and trees. Some of the names of them are ……… Garden of Eden (a galvanised slipper bath on a raised timber deck amongst the trees and overlooking the river. (Lionel’s favourite) The King’s Throne (Toilet set into the seat of a carved wooden throne, overlooking and open to the river, and Brandon's favourite, hence the picture) and next door………… The Queens Royal Flush!!!!!...........Then there is Pooper Falls, which is a toilet set high (15m) above the ground and accessed by a winding wooden staircase (not recommended for the inebriated)……………… My personal favourite was the “Adventure Bathroom with Unlimited Stars”, open to the skies in a colourful natural bush setting, with the taps fitted into a beautiful fallen tree-trunk, and the shower spout being an enamel bucket with holes in the bottom, strung from a tree. There was also a ‘De-vine bathroom, (set amongst flowering vines on a wooden pedestal) and also a ‘Holiday Inn, 5 Star’ bathroom, with tiles and a roof, complete with a huge pair of chained-on sunglasses and towels. (This was my LEAST favourite!). An ablution which we found particularly funny was the ‘His and Hers’. ………………..2 toilets sitting side by side with the ‘his’ version with the toilet seat lid chained and padlocked up, and the ‘hers’ version with a toilet roll and seat covers, along with a bathroom mat and the seat lid………….yep!….. DOWN!!!!!


One morning in the sweltering heat, the guys were ordering drinks and I decided to have a swim. I was just about to dive in when I realised that it would be better to take a pic before I got wet, so walked back a little and was just about to click the shutter, when there was an almighty “THUMP” and the whole swimming pool cage jarred causing big waves in the river……….I got such a fright and ran back to the bar to tell them that a hippo was bashing at the pool,……….they, and the staff, looked at me quizzically, and thought yea, right, just another panicky female in Africa!!!!!! They grudgingly walked to the pool to be confronted by a huge hippo and mate cavorting in the water next to the cage, (I’m convinced I saw a painful lump on his head and I was sure that he had a almighty head-ache!!!!).


Etosha was next on our itinerary and we found that the camp-sites in the three camps were over-priced for the sandy and unkempt sites on offer. The reception staff at Namutoni were also very off-hand and uncaring. One evening an Ellie decided that the trees in the grounds of the lodge were enticing and stepped over the fence at the side of the waterhole. We had a bit of excitement while the rangers headed him back into the wild with a few shots fired over his head, putting paid to any other animals making use of the hole that night.


Halali camp, (also in Etosha), has a beautiful waterhole in the middle of a rocky outcrop which serves as an amphitheatre for viewing the animals. They supplied us with an endless spectacle, from young male elephants chasing off Rhinos (with much trumpeting, and when that didn’t work, resorting to the splashing of water with their trunks). The Rhino’s were fighting amongst themselves and also threatening the hyena’s. It was like a National Geographic Movie with animals coming and going all night!. I felt really sorry for Lionel as he wasn’t able to sit around and watch as he had a persistent cough that would have troubled both the animals and the spectators! We wanted to buy 6 eggs (medium) at the shop in the Halali camp ………. they were marked at $32.65 (a Namibian dollar has the same value as the S.A. Rand),………… the same eggs from the same supplier were marked $12.70 at the Namutoni camp shop!! I think that Etosha, sadly, has fallen into the bad policy of catering for the people who have £’s, $’s and Euro’s to spend, and the locals just don’t matter.


The Okaukuejo camp is by far the best and most creatively-planned, and the chalets and campsites are all well-placed around the water-hole. We had not booked our site (we never pre-booked and had never been turned away) and were told that the camp was full……..we took a chalet and it was great, but noticed that the camp was not full at all…………..we wondered if this is how they fill their un-booked chalets (which have just been renovated at great cost). In spite of these gripes, we enjoyed our experiences there.


Using Mount Etjo’s Dinosaur camp, as an overnight stop, we cruised to an undiscovered little gem called Norotshama Lodge. Perched on the banks of the Orange River complete with swimming pool, restaurant, bar and, wonder of wonders, an ablution block with a bath!!!!!!!!! Brandon was travelling with us and had virtually taking over all the setting up that had been in my job description, I really enjoyed the break!!! We pitched camp for 3 nights, allowing Lionel a rest from driving, and to recover from his bad cough. Norotshama is set on a magnificent and efficient farm that is the biggest African supplier of table grapes to the European market. It is a vast green paradise on the edge of the arid Fish River Canyon National Park.


With the border to S.A. being only 50km away we found our thoughts turning to home…………..and with family, friends, dogs, shopping malls, soft beds, en-suite bathrooms, washing machines, hairdressers, and good roads, all luring us onwards, we stepped up the pace. With two overnight stops, we arrived in beautiful Cape Town, to a perfect 30 degrees C.


It was really good to catch up with the family and we all attended the Johnny Clegg concert on a perfect evening at Kirstenbosch.


Knysna is the most amazingly beautiful place to come home to, Everything was perfect, thanks to the best dog/house-sitter in S.A. (if not the world)!!!!!! Thanks Margaret, you are a gem. Our arrival back in Knysna was heralded by a wonderful never-ending round of wining and dining with our friends………..so much so, that Lionel was seized and attacked by a painful bout of gout! Our very understanding doctor said it would only take a couple of days to clear but gave him a months supply of medication explaining that it being ‘that’ time of year he might just need them.


We have found that 3 months is long enough to be away, any longer than that, then one day just seems to melt into another. We had become a bit dis-enchanted (aren’t we spoilt) with the poverty, begging, constant heckling to buy curios, cruelty to animals, totally reckless driving and disgusting roads, not to mention day after dry day, of never-ending heat, making it difficult to sleep.


We loved the camping with the evenings sitting around a camp-fire accompanied by the night sounds, as well as the children in all their innocence. The early mornings, alive with the sound of birds and animals (we have seen more sunrises than at any other time in our lives.) and all the new, different and wonderful experiences that we encountered, the friendly and stoic local people, more than made up for the other short-comings .


We have rolled (due to the excesses of the ‘silly’ season), into 2010 with a feeling of thankfulness. Thankful that we were able to experience such an amazing journey,………….thankful that we returned safely without any major mishaps and most of all thankful for Gods provision and direction that was evident throughout the whole trip.


Thank you to everyone who followed our blog with such interest and encouragement!

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