Day 17: Victoria Falls, Saturday, Sept 13

Day 17: Victoria Falls, Saturday, Sept 13

QOTD:

They tell me that our brothers over there

Refuse to work in the mines.

They may not get the news but they need to know

We're on their side.

Weather: hot, and feels more dry than yesterday

A long day! From 7:45am until 5pm we are in process of getting too, enjoying, and coming back from Victoria Falls which is about 50 miles from Chobe across the border in Zimbabwe.

Buffet breakfast featuring warm toasted croissants (which THB supplements with granola and yogurt).

From Bush, we are picked up a bit after 8 and with 3 Germans (no surprise) we are transported to the border where getting out of Botswana is easy and getting into Zimbabwe is hard.

Zimbabwe is run in US dollars, and two guys are there to issue visas, one at a time, to about 40+ people on their way to the Falls. It takes almost an hour and 45  minutes (maybe THB is exaggerating, it could have been only an hour and 30 minutes) and costs $30pp (in US dollars, and the VISA credit card machine is broken, to be matched on the return with a sign that says their computers are not working, and the sign was not something that just went up).

Because it is the border, the Botswana guys turn around and we are taken on to the Falls by a Zimbabwe company, Shearwater Tours. THB helps them out by encouraging the 3 Germans to take the helicopter ride, which at $140 (in US dollars) they decide to do while waiting in the visa line. A young German couple joins us at the Zimbabwe side. THB sees a very pretty iridescent bird, a gross (or gloss?) starling, and does not take its picture because pictures are a huge no-no in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe when near any type of government installation.

Shearwater van

Helicopter van

Our helicopter tour is the first thing we do upon arriving; at least the Shearwater VISA machine is working so we can charge the ride. Before we can take the 12 minute ride in a figure eight over the falls, we pay an additional $12 (US dollar) park fee (THB thinks this is strange, since it is a flyover).

Whenever we stop outside a park, guys approach us to sell us Zimbabwe money: you too can be a trillionaire if only you’ll give them as little as $2 (in US dollars)

I can't buckle up, my legs are shaking too bad

THB IS SCARED!!! It is his first helicopter ride (DB did one over the Grand Canyon with another British couple, so she is now specializing in helicopter rides with Brits; if the Brits don’t helo, neither does DB). More scary to THB than nervous-making (like THB can explain the difference), the flight itself is uneventful. The view of the Falls is great!

THB somehow took this pic with steady hands

After our ride, we’re dropped at the entrance to the park, another $30pp (in US dollars) gets us in, and our very first stop is lunch at the Rainforest Cafe (really, a rainforest? only if mist over the falls counts). THB and DB share peri-peri chicken with chips and salad and a chicken burger with chips and salad, D&M have paninis and lots of THB's and DB’s chips. With local beers and water and iced tea, $74 including tip and it goes on a VISA card (their machine works).

Croc Tail?

The group sitting next to us are Aussies (they had to ask for the table because their group of 7 wanted to sit together, and one of the three asked to move almost made a big fuss) and they had stayed at Sausage Tree Safari Camp and loved it; we’re going to be there in a few days, so that’s good news for us! Oh, and they are staying at Safari, so we’ll see them at dinner tonight. Oh, and their leader runs Sausage Tree. Aussie Aussie Aussie Oy Oy Oy!

Another form of "selfie"?

It's a longggggggg wayyyyyyyyy down

It was no coincidence on running into people we had met before: almost all the people appear to be either staying in Chobe like we are, or part of big groups we saw in the Jo’burg airport. It seems to THB that there aren’t more than a few hundred people roaming the park (it isn’t that big), and sure enough when we are done walking the rim opposite the Falls, sitting at the Rainforest Cafe are our 3 Germans plus the 2 Germans picked up after immigration and our Shearwater guide. D confirms with the guide that he can pick us up at the famous hotel here, the Victoria Falls Hotel, at 3pm.

Vic Falls Hotel, a throwback of luxury and elegance

We hop in a cab, pre-negotiated for $10 (US dollars) and find out we’ve only slightly overpaid for the less than a mile ride. No problema: the cabbie has the radio on and they are playing Bob Dylan singing Knockin’ on Heavens Door so D&M&DB and the cabbie get a rare opportunity to hear THB sing along; the cabbie enjoyed it so much he almost (not quite) refunded the money (THB think maybe he considered taking the most direct route to cut the sing-along short).

THB with the Queen Mum; THB's mum's parents ate with the QM

Drinks at the VF Hotel with a very surly waiter who keeps promising to bring over the credit card machine; THB leaves a $20 US dollar bill. Our guide picks us up and we find out that we’re going to the helicopter spot to pick up the 5 Germans. Then we stop at the oldest tree in the area (only 3500 years younger than the bristlecone pines in Great Basin NP, Nevada), and hit the road back a bit later than planned.

Passing through immigration in the Botswana direction is a breeze, and we have to wash our shoes off to prevent bringing in hoof and mouth disease to Botswana.

Dinner at Safari, it’s dim, very  dim here and there’s a much larger selection, though no additional quality. A bottle of unoaked chardonnay and water, somewhere around $25 (nobody is really sure what the exchange rate is here). On our way out we meet up with the Aussies and their leader, Richard, who is in charge of Sausage Tree Safari Camp. He’s a talker, it will be interesting to see if we have any trouble filling the middle of our days (between game drives).