Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa AKA Durbs, Joburg, Ellies and The Nellie: A Trip Report
 

It seems so long yet so short a time ago that we first decided to 'go on safari' and I searched the Fodor's Africa board.
In August 2006 I gleaned so much information that I was totally flummoxed!! I contacted a few companies, and booked with Julian of Timeless Africa. Dear, dear Julian. If he had only known what he was taking on I'm sure he would referred me elsewhere!!
First of all we wanted to go in August as we had heard the weather would be great and the sightings wonderful, didn't know quite which camps to go to, didn't want to spend a fortune on what I came to know as 'premier camps' yet wanted basic luxury (!!) and needed dates when we could upgrade on BA with miles. Thus started my several times a week for 52 weeks email contacts with Julian. He is totally responsible for a fabulous vacation and I don't know what we would have done without his guidance and expert planning.
Julian made some suggestions, most of which I agreed with. We definitely wanted to go to Botswana and see the Falls and Zimbabwe was suggested as a way to keep the price down. We travel all over the world, so I figured I could manage South Africa myself. I would probably have tried to arrange the camps too, but Wilderness Safaris, who seemed to have beautiful camps from the photographs plus great locations with small numbers of tents, demands bookings through an agent. Actually, just as well, as in hindsight I did not have the knowledge to determine exactly where to go and would not have benefitted from the vast amount of advice on all aspects of visiting Southern Africa which I received from Julian. Our safari itinerary:
3 nights Little Vumbura
3 nights Chitabe Trails
3 nights Selinda
1 night Victoria Falls
2 nights Somalisa
3 nights Makalolo Plains
We were a little nervous as we don't like 'tour groups' and being 'herded around', but our fears were allayed and the experience was nothing of the sort. We studied the BA web site, kept extending our return date and we were away for 5 1/2 weeks including a few days in England, and visiting Durban, Johannesburg and driving the Garden Route ending with a few days in Cape Town.

We flew to London and after a few days in the north of England flew back to London and then on to Johannesburg. Our plane was an hour late, and delayed even further when we had to return to the gate after departing for take-off. A passenger was sick and had to deplane. We arrived in Johannesburg only 2 hours late as we had made up about an hour, but I had only allowed a two hour connection time for our flight to Durban. What a nightmare; a two hour wait for passport control and then another hour for the luggage. Helpful hint: keep a keen eye on the 'South African States Passports' line; they open that up to the fastest runners from the 'Other Passports' line when those passengers have been processed. Heathrow is a dream compared to Joburg!!!! Obviously we missed the connection and were told that we would be put on the 4pm plane to Durban. We had a booking on ComAir through BA. I let them know (nicely) that this was unacceptable and with no problem we were put on an SAA flight at 1pm. What a surprise when we were upgraded to Business Class. Oh but what an experience. The food on SAA was basically inedible but we did arrive safely and no car was waiting. We had tried to get a message to the hotel but not to worry, Avis transports for 'Quarters' hotel so we talked to a rep. and all was well. Our plans for UShaka were shelved because of our late arrival. The room was lovely and we went onto Florida Road to eat. It was said to be safe and we felt mostly okay, except that I had read that gangs of teens were potential trouble and we did see a couple of groupings of teenagers along with occasional beggars which was a little disconcerting when the light was fading.
The following day I had booked a private tour for the two of us and we went out to Valley of a Thousand Hills after a fabulous breakfast. I don't know why but breakfast is possibly my favourite meal of the day when we are on vacation! We learned a lot about life in South Africa from the viewpoint of our white tour guide and there is still a lot of tradition in the Zulu culture. We had tea and cake before the obligatory tour of the crocs, but skipped the shop! We went on to tour the city sights and stopped at Victoria Market where the Zulu bead collection was quite vast. I bought several strands of traditional beadwork from a vendor who supplies the beads and the women bring the necklaces back to her. Our guide said she paid a fair wage and the quality was excellent. There is much building along the seafront and we were told that the cost of housing is up 1000% over the past few years. A very pleasant walk ensued before we went off to the Botanical Garden. It was only then that I really realized that this was the reason we had flown to Durban for two nights! My husband had known Earnest Thorp after whom the Orchid House is named. The gardens were beautiful and we had curried mince sandwiches and 'crumpets with the works' in the tea room. We ate at the hotel that night and the following day guess what--back to the Botanical Garden for another hour and then on to UShaka (sea world and aquarium). This was very interesting but once is enough. We had had the gardens call a taxi for us to take us to UShaka, and we arranged for the same taxi to pick us up, drive to the hotel to get our luggage and take us on to the airport. We were picked up at 2pm and in the airport lounge before 3pm having checked in and gone through security. How fortunate I had been to make the 'Silver' level on BA before leaving the USA, so we could use the business class check-in and the lounges even though I had booked economy for our internal flights. Onto the computer to check email and a glass of fabulous SA pinotage and off to the gate to find we were upgraded. What a difference between ComAir and SAA!! Sparkling wine was served before take-off, our drinks orders taken for after we had taken off and sandwiches and cheeseplates were served. Also, a huge carrot cake with cream cheese frosting was perched in the middle of the trolley and the flight attendants served slices of it for dessert! After being warned by my husband to avoid the biltong as he had dislodged a filling once when eating jerky, I took the package with me to try later! Another safe arrival and we were met by a staff member from the guest house where we were staying for two nights. This was a great place to stay; it was near the airport and trasfers were included. More later.

hi, philbill,

I'm struggling with my trip-report, so pleased to find yours to read instead. I so agree with you about breakfast, especially in SA - we were never let down and some were just spectacular.

looking forward to the rest,

regards, ann

Thanks Ann! I am doing this so I don't forget (a little selfish I think!) and also hoping that someone may pick up a helpful detail or two as I have done through reading many Fodor's trip reports.

HI Phil! Great start. I got an email this morning from Sophia (African Bushcamps, Somalisa) saying they now have a rhino on their concession, pops around in front of camp in the morning while guests are having coffee. Did you see any rhinos while there?

oooh fab, trip report!
Can't wait for the rest!

Next installment soon...but yes, we did see a rhino whilst at Makalolo Plains (next to somalisa). Somalisa is absolutely great by the way, and I will go into some detail later.
I was surrounded by elephants who came to drink from the pool while I was aiming at taking a siesta on the lounge under the umbrella. Needless to say being able to count an elephant's eyelashes was an experience never to be forgotten!

We were nervous about Joburg but wanted to get a cursory feel for the city with only one full day for touring. As we had heard from being in Durban the 2010 World cup is a BIG deal, and stadiums are being built and renovated in Cape Town, Durban and Joburg. No offence to Johannesburg, but how the city will manage to house spectators is a question to us. In fact, we were told by another tourist that Sydney has been put on standby for the World Cup. No South African we talked to had heard this, and to give South Africa credit the building of the stadiums and the expansion of infrastructure we saw in all 3 cities was impressive. The country appears to be doing its best to prepare and is very proud.
As I said, we stayed at a guest house close to the airport which was inexpensive and very welcoming. We were somewhat aghast to note that all other guests were hunters. Apparently the place is well advertised amongst the hunting population in the USA. Anyway, the staff were there to drive us to one of three recommended restaurants for dinner. We chose Italian and had some of the best Italian food ever and SO inexpensive. There was so much that we took the leftovers back with us. At the end of the meal we had the restaurant call the guest house and we were picked up. We were a little surprised to see that the door had to be buzzed open and that there was indeed a second security door. The guest house was surrounded by a wall and locked gates also. The owner had called Lords and as I had read about the quality of their tours on Fodor's that seemed great. We were picked up for our day tour at 8am the following morning after a lovely breakfast. The morning tour to Pretoria was wonderful and we learned 'African Time' meant that you make time for everything! However, about 1pm, after literally stopping at a gas station for us to buy a sandwich, we were transferred to a mini van which seated 14 people. As we were two of the last four on board the four of us got to crawl to the back 5 seats. It was claustrophobic and not pleasant at all. We went on a city tour of Jozi. We did not get out and saw what must have been the worst part of the city. Hotels and office buildings were deserted and we were told that squatters were living there. Afterwards we went out to Soweto which was interesting as far as the huge size (we were told 4 milloin people lived there) and seeing the mansions surrounded by the shacks. I had visited Kayamandi outside of Cape Town a couple of years' ago and was truly moved by meeting the people and being invited into homes. This was a tourist visit in Soweto and we just drove through some of the streets, but we did visit Mandela's previous home and the Hector Pieterson Museum. We hit rush hour...oh the traffic! On arrival back at the guest house about 6pm we were exhausted and the wonderful owner showed us the fridge which stocked soft drinks and wine at rock bottom cost (just tell me what you take) and we heated up leftovers in the kitchen after which we packed and went to bed! Another lovely breakfast and off to the airport. The owners will store luggage and deliver it to the airport (two weeks' later for us) for a minimal charge and so we left a large suitcase, taking our safari duffles with us. We had bought LLBean duffles (large size,) but as we had a 12kg limit for Zimbabwe we packed light. Off to the airport and to the lounge, slooooow internet connection and off to Maun. About half an hour before landing I took half a Valium. I had requested these from my doctor as I was panicked about the light aircraft. Consequently I fell fast asleep about 10 minutes before landing! At Maun the bags were weighed and an English couple were given duffles from Sefofane and asked to transfer their luggage from their large wheeled suitcases. Obviously their agent had not quite explained about the size of the baggage hold! We were surprised to be taken out to a 12 seater and we carefully squirmed towards the steps to the aircraft of the so that we could get seats at the front (as I had been told that these were less bumpy). The flight went surprisingly well except that we had a stop before ours and that was disconcerting as everyone knows that taking off and landing are the most dangerous parts of flying!!!!!! Still, I managed I am proud to say! We landed at the Little Vumbura airstrip (complete with toilet!) and were met by M.D.. (Note to Precious Ramwotse fans..you know who you are...apparently they were filming in Maun as it resembles Gabarone as it used to be. I assume the movie will be based on 'Number One Ladies' Detective Agency' as I believe that was the first book, but I am not sure.)

By the way, forgot to say I am honoured that you are even reading my trip report Kavey! I learned so much from your postings!!!!!!

You and Julian came up with an outstanding itinerary.

Good thing you heeded the biltong warning and avoided a dental disaster.

Counting an elephant's eyelashes is a privileged safari pastime indeed.

Thanks for the tip on the #1 Ladies' Detective Agency!

3 nights at Little Vumbura
What a fabulous location and the staff are so wonderful. The camp was reopened at the end of April after complete rebuilding from what I gather. After the vehicles, one has to board a motor boat to get to camp which is on an island. In my husband's words; 'Paradise 2'. Paradise 1 was when we stayed in the Amazon jungle outside of Manaus, Brazil, a year and a half ago. The tents are beautiful with linens and accessories rivalling a top hotel! The loo with a view is wonderful and the shower has a view too. From our deck we could sit and soak up the Delta landscape. The public areas were lush and I believe the pool was the largest in the camps which we visited. The food was the only drawback as that was not top-notch at all. Dinners were acceptable and the rest of the meals/snacks were barely passable. The South African wines were excellent! The location of this camp offered a wide variety of activities. We went on vehicle safaris, a walking safari, a boat safari and of course the fabulous mokoro ride...unbelievable.
Well, I had re-written my notes on the first few days and decided to write some quick notations in the back of my notebook on our first safari drive (intending to transfer them to my actual journal at the end of the day). I have to humbly admit that I wrote backwards in my rough notebook for the rest of the trip. Who would know there was so little time for reflection and the writing of 'journal standard' prose??!!!! We were caught in a whirlwind. I had checked with Julian whether there were paperback book exchanges at the camps as I read a lot and because of weight could only take three paperbacks. I need not have bothered. I didn't even finish two books in the two weeks of safari and the only time I had to read was a few minutes before I fell into a deep, exhausted sleep. Who could have thought that just sitting in the back of a jeep could be that exhausting??
We were awoken at 6am each day and were picked up to be escorted to breakfast at 6:30am.. This was the only camp where we were not allowed to walk to breakfast after the staff had checked the status during wake-up. A quick breakfast and off on the vehicle..or rather the boat to the jeep. We had 2 to 4 people with us during this 3 night stay, and we were informed that no Wilderness vehicle takes more than six passengers so that no client has to sit in the 'middle'. I took the best piece of equipment I can possibly recommend, a $3 inflatable 'camping pillow' from REI. This was the one thing I could not do without. It cushioned my back and it was malleable so I rode with the flow so to speak. I HIGHLY recommend it if you have back problems (or even if not). It was FREEZING cold in the mornings (mid August) and we had a couple of very cold nights in the tent. No bush babies here (hot water bottles). I certainly needed my gloves, earwarmers and hood together with five layers of clothing! I did not take a scarf but would do next time. My hooded fleece was great and I would definitely recommend a fleece with a hood attached. I also had a thin nylon windbreaker with a hood (so lightweight it could fit in a pocket) which worn over the fleece was perfect. We had a fabulous guide who gave us non-stop information and whom I couldn't say enough great things about, but the downside was that our drives were too long. I can just hear some of you voicing, 'is she nuts or what...too long..there can never be too long of a drive in Africa'. Our drives amounted to 9 1/2 hours a day, with 1 1/2 hours between the end of brunch and tea followed by the next drive which arrived back at 8pm. I just needed a little more down time. At night we froze even with the wonderful blanket lined ponchos, and getting back to camp at 8pm was just too late for me. We did get back earlier after the boat ride! This, I hasten to add, was just the pattern of our guide who was there on relief. By night two I was dreading the rest of the 12 nights and trying not to let my husband know!!!!!!! When our jeep companions told us they were skipping the afternoon/night drive one day I was so green with envy!!!!! Oh to have an afternoon in that beautiful camp!! But, I was too afraid of missing some wonderful sight that I never did miss a drive...and even though we obviously saw many of the same animals throughout the trip; each sighting was so different and so unique. Each day was a gift. I was nervous about having to go to the bathroom in the bush so monitored my intake of liquids at LV!! By the end of the two weeks I had a real problem along the Garden Route as I was so used to popping behind a bush that I had a hard time adapting to civilisation.
There was so much bird life and driving with water coming up to the hood/bonnet of the jeep was a kick. We had many great sightings: lions (two different prides), wildebeest, elephant, zebra, giraffe, impala, red lechwe, waterbuck, warthog, mongoose, sable antelope and tsessebe. The highlights were observing 4 hyenas and 8 pups and tracking the position of the lions from observing their markings in the sand. On the way to the airport the last day we saw a cheetah! We also went over a hippo on the river safari so we are lucky to be here to tell the tale! The mokoros were certainly unbelievable and we had no idea that we would be going right through the reeds and all the beautiful birds and plant life, not to mention the elephants, which we would see. We went on walks in every camp and loved the different perspective of the bush. I was aiming, as our guide so aptly put it, to become a certified crapologist! Dung tells a whole lot about animal life (civot middens, content of droppings etc. etc.!!!!!!!!). Sausage trees and the baobab were just two of our favourite trees in the delta, and my husband was absolutely fascinated with termite mounds!!!!! Wilderness has a wonderful booklet listing all the animals, birds, trees etc. etc. and our guide was wonderful about reviewing this with me so that I could record most of what we saw.

Reading your trip report is such a pleasure! Thanks for posting. 5+ weeks - lucky you! It sounds like you had a great trip.

I love game drives but have to agree that 1.5 hours per day of down time is definitely not enough. And I completely identify with jotting notes in the back of your journal and then keeping up with the trip backwards!

Was the guest house you stayed in the Afton? We stayed there before and after our trip to Botswana and it was very nice. Nice breakfast. (There weren't any hunters while we were there.) We chose steaks for dinner both nights and the restaurant was excellent (and cheap!).

Yes, it was the Afton and I have nothing but good things to report. I think it was $100 a night including a continental and cooked to order breakfast and also included were round trip transfers to the airport. Not to mention being taken to a restaurant and picked up at night. The Italian was fabulous and I heard the steak place was too. We paid 100 Rand (7 to the dollar) for two huge meals which were wonderful plus the bread they bring (yummy) and wine!!
For Fodorites like us who are passing through and don't want to explore alone in Joburg, this is perfect. Lords (the tour company) came to the guest house to pick us up and dropped us off there. I know a lot of people literally pass through Joburg and have to spend a night because of connections. This place is perfect. www.aftonguesthouse.com
You may see it referred to as Aftonio also, not sure why!! Annelise is the owner. Highly recommended.

Phil, are you kidding? I haven't been back to Africa since the looong trip in 2004 (though I'm working on a trip for next year) so I live vicariously through everyone else's wonderful trip reports!

:D :D :D

BTW I'm surprised they didn't provide hotwater bottles in the beds as this is a WS staple at all camps, so i thought, during winter months...

Did they provide the thick, waterproofed blanket ponchos during the game drives?

Also, I usually find myself wanting longer game drives as the standard hours (in June) at WS camps I've been to are about 4 hours in the morning and 4 max in the afternoon. 9.5 is a lot of hours to do everyday, and although I'd love it some days, I don't know about every single day!!!

MORE MORE MORE!

No hottie bs at all in LV. In fact the night I had the stiff neck and could not move it they said they would try to find one for me but never did.
The thick ponchos which were blanket-lined were great.
In CT we took the hot water bottles on our game drive (good old Newman suggested it!).
A note which I was going to mention later: We saw such prolific game going from the airstrip to the camp at Selinda around 2 or 2:30pm that we all wondered why at least sometimes they did not plan an earlier afternoon game drive and have sundowners at the camp.

hi again, Philbill,

I do so agree with you about the time between game drives. I soon found that 2-2/1 hours was my limit that I wanted to spend jumping around in our landy. Perhaps if it had been warmer /less windy I'd have been keener. also if there had been more cats around, but they didn't like the weather either.

we came across a family of hunters, who were teamed with us in our landy at schotia. I hope that we didn't show our shock too much on learning what they'd been doing for the rest of thier holiday. the impression we had was that their teenage daughters aged 16 & 13 had not really enjoyed themselves.

As for hot water bottles, I heard a story about people [Virginia Wolf from memory] who went to stay in a stately home. When bed-time arrived, they were told that there weren't enough hot water bottles to go round, so they could choose - a bottle or a cat!

looking forward to reading more,

regards, ann

Great trip report! And thanks for the tip about the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency movie, which I was able to find on imdb: http://imdb.com/title/tt0874957/ - looks like most of the cast is local, but Precious Ramotswe is being played by Jill Scott (the singer) and Grace Makutsi by Anika Noni Rose (from Dreamgirls). It's also being directed by Anthony Minghella, which I think bodes very well!

Can't wait to see the movie! Thanks for the link hlg22. I must say that at LV we wore socks to bed and my husband even wore a beanie!! It was sooo romantic! In the morning we rolled out of bed and straight into our clothes. No showers for us! Just bundle up and prepare the backpack for the day. One thing I hadn't thought of Day 1 was to warm up my camera as it was stone cold, so I put it in the bed until after breakfast!
Welucked out, Ann, as the weather was actually quite nice in the afternoons, and as the days went by the mornings even got warmer. Wind was not an issue at all.[BTW Between a cat and nothing I would take nothing!!!!!]
As for children we came across a couple of families and most of the kids were bored and one or two a problem but they didn't affect our enjoyment. I wanted to shake them and let them know how fortunate they were to be on safari in Africa!

Philbill, great trip report so far. Sorry to see the food wasn't up to snuff at Little Vumbura as we're heading there in November (also Chitabe Trails). Perhaps the regular cook was on leave? Oh well, maybe I won't come home 5 pounds heavier this time. Can't wait to get there. And 9 1/2 hours safari does seem awfully longo for most.
Leslie

Leslie:
Don't be concerned...that was just our guide and he won't be there! Note that he was a great guide! I GAINED ..oops caps lock... 10lbs in 5+ weeks but some of that was South Africa ...more to come later...and it was worth it!!!!!!!

Loved your LV account. That's good you bring up the long outings vs. shorter ones and how you handled it. Baby hyenas! And 8 of them!

The minimal progress on books has been mentioned several times now. I pack very light for reading material now too.

Great tip on that cushion and only $3!? I didn't think there was anything at REI for $3.

I am so excited about this pillow that I looked it up on line to give you a reference.
Go to the main REI website and it is Item 610507 (just put the number in the search box). The 'chambers' (just found the word in the description) make all the difference in the world to comfort and adaptability as you roll sideways and bump up and down. I did spend most of my trip in the front set of passenger seats or beside the driver.
If you have items sent to your local REI store and pick them up at the store there is not shipping. Our store had them in stock and I am embarrassed to say I bought 4 of them. I was so sure one would burst but it lasted the whole trip and is still great. I gave one to one of the camp managers who admired it. And of course, you let the air out and they pack down.
Am I thrilled with this pillow or what?? I guess it doesn't take much.........

More: LV, by the way, does wash underwear!! I took inexpensive 't' shirts and it seemed like they did shrink but may have done at home anyway. I had melted a pair of zip-off pants last year when ironing them at home (in a fit of domesticity!) so I did mention this when the manager reviewed the laundry procedure. I was advised that most of the staff at the camps knew about this fabric but it would be wise to provide a reminder. The zip-offs worked extremely well on both drives as we often unzipped when the morning weather got warmer and zipped up at sundowner time. Most of the camps were not full and some nights we were the only two people in camp, which I thought strange for mid to late August. I had expected 'sold-out' camps. LV told us that their camp's reservations have really increased for next year as word gets out about the rebuilding . At this camp (and no other) everyone was separated for lunch with individual tables set up for each couple or family group.
On the final morning at LV we had the mokoro ride and it was, as I have written, a wonderful experience. We had told our guide we had to pack so after landing on an island for morning tea and snacks we returned to camp around 10:00am. At last a chance to relax in the sun and admire the beautiful scenery. After a shower we wandered down to the bar where Jacks was holding down the fort. Jacks told us about his childhood and his experiences with mokoros and started my Bush and Tswana (Setswana) language lessons. Joy of joy, I can now ask for mofini o mohibidu (red wine) and we invited the cook and her assistant who were waiting to serve brunch to join us at the bar, as the other couple remaining at LV had not returned from their drive. What fun we had.. They had a drink of fruit juices and we took photoes. They laughed good-naturedly at my feeble attempts at Tswana, but delighted in teaching us how to say hello to men and to women in the singular and the plural. I had a chance to try all my phrases out on Unozeba (the shop manager) when she wandered down. It was a time I will not forget. My husband dissuaded me from the Valium for the upcoming light plane ride, so I had two glasses of red wine instead and that worked perfectly well. My fear of flying was a thing of the past!! My check-in to 'Betty Ford' might be a thing of the future!!!!! [Aside: Has anyone else drunk more wine on safari than they ever thought possible? Selwyn had introduced me to pinotage and we visited Backsburg two years ago and there it was at LV, along with a great merlot. South African wines are wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!] [Another aside: I found myself writing this section in the present tense as I was reliving the moment!! I think that is a great indicator of how meaningful the experience was.] We talked a LOT to camp employees wherever we went and learned much about their lives and the state of the country from their point of view, especially in Zimbabwe. Similarly it was interesting to get the viewpoint of our white South African guide in Durban and the black guides we had in Joburg.
We were so sad to leave and Lawrence, Uno and Dardley all came down to the dock to see us off as did a couple of the staff. Our guide told us of a cheetah sighting so we were thrilled to drive by and see a cheetah for the first time. We were not to see another one on our trip. On to the airfield where the big news was that 136 pieces of luggage were arriving by plane as Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, had taken over Vumbura Plains for 3 days. Two employees from VP were also waiting to board, and the four of us with my husband as 'co-pilot' boarded a 5 seater. One of the girls cried softly all the way and looked scared to death. Both of them were horrified to hear that we would be landing at Chitabe Trails and then they would have to take off again for Maun. At the Chitabe airstrip we were met and told that as we had asked to go directly onto the game drive (we had??) we would be meeting up with our guide who had left the camp on the afternoon/evening drive about the time we landed.
Sorry about the jumping around, but as I remember things I want to add them!

LALeslie:
Forgot to mention but at Chitabe Trails Newman told me people do sometimes request him, and if you can do that you would be thrilled! I am just starting my CT account but trust me, and maybe others can verify, Newman is the man!!!!! He is incredible.

Glad you got to see a cheetah after your mekoro ride. Thanks for the reference on the cushion. If you bought four is that one for each cheek and a spare set or are you going to be giving them as gifts?

Now that you have overcome the fear of small planes and have located a reliable source of cushions, you can plan another safari!

As a matter of fact, we requested Newman when we booked, but apparently no guarantees. We leave Oct. 30. Can't wait!

As I turn the other cheek (!!), the idea for four, atravelynn, was one for my back and possibly one to sit on and the same for my husband. As it turned out to sit on one was unrealistic and husband decided he didn't need them, so we held on to two in case one punctured.
Funny you should mention being ready for another safari, but I have been emailing Timeless Africa (Julian) about Namibia and either Rwanda or Uganda. We met two guys who had decided on Uganda for next year after researching the two countries.
I would go back to the Garden Route in a flash, although I have to admit that the 10lbs is coming off much more slowly than I imagined! I actually went to the gym for the first day in months as we had a dinner party, a reception, a luncheon engagement and we had people to dinner in a 48 hour period this weekend. I haven't got on the scale since Friday (at which point I was down 4 lbs.).
We have a couple of trips planned to England and the Caribbean (I go to England a lot as I am English but live in the USA and we like to cruise). Our next 'biggie' is to Antarctica in January after which we will go to Rio for Carnival.

CHITABE TRAILS- 3 nights
We hadn't seen the camp but we were whisked off to find our guide. I noticed an animal (can't remember what) and am surprised when our driver sped by and seemed intent on getting us to our transfer. We found out why: the huge news was that there was a leopard sighting and lo and behold we saw it! It was basking in the sun on a mound. A leopard and a cheetah within an hour or so was just great! It moved very soon into the bush and we transferred to Newman's jeep. Two honeymooners in their thirties who turned out to be a blast were already on the jeep, and immediately we were driving over bushes, through small trees and in shock. LV had never been like this, although we did drive through water up to the hood/bonnet of the jeep when we were there. Here in CT was a whole different experience and wildly (so to speak!) exciting! Newman was the best. So knowledgeable and what a tracker!!!!! We learned (through constant questioning) all about his life both from when he was born up to his current situation. That man has to write his autobiography and of course we encouraged him to do that. He told us other guests have said the same. He is remarkable. Apart from the tracking, sightings (more to come!!) and the conversation, I will never forget him regularly applying sun block and so carefully cleaning his glasses! No more leopard that day except for a fleeting glimpse. However, the rough terrain resulted in a flat tyre so we had yet another experience! The change went very quickly and off we went. Other animals were seen and when we stopped for sundowners there was a full bar. LV had miniature airline bottles and you requested your sundowner of choice ahead of time which worked out just fine. Most people had G and T or red wine. We did the typical night drive and I don't know how but Newman managed to conjure up several sightings and prior to nightfall many birds. Arrival at the camp was after dark, and it was so hard to acclimate as we had not seen it in the daylight at all so really had to be guided to our tent. We had an outdoor shower as well as indoor facilities and to my husband's amazement our very own termite mound as part of the shower area. We had hors' d'oeuvres by the fire and I asked in Tswana for my wine much to the shock of the camp staff. Already I knew we were in for a change as the appetizers were scrumptious. Although the dinner was buffet style, the food was fabulous and remained so the whole of the stay. As we got into bed we got a wonderful surprise as there were two bushbabies (hot water bottles). We were like children ; so excited! I might add that we always had plenty of bedding so were never cold at any of the camps once we had warmed up the bed. A great night's sleep, and we were awoken at 6am by the sound not of a knock on the door, but by Newman blowing the kudo horn and later pounding on the drums! The other new guests, a family, requested late starts and very short drives and the children often stayed in camp, but luckily as a family they had their own vehicle. We were about to leave when we realized that the other couple had their hot water bottles with them, so we ran back to the tent and had ours refilled! On to our drive and our walk. We walked at each camp and learned a lot about the flora, fauna, land development and tracking as well as the ant lion and other tiny creatures!

SIGHTINGS AT LITTLE VUMBURA:
I was reading some other trip reports which list the wild life sighted. So, I rooted out my 'Species Checklist' from Wilderness and here we go.
Little Vumbura (by no means exhaustive..I have the birds and trees but will only list the main species):
Sable Antelope, Giraffe, Impala, Kudu, Red Lechwe, Steenbok, Tsessebe, Waterbuck, Wildebeest, Zebra, Fruit Bat, Ellies, Hippo, Slender Mongoose, Warthog, African Wild Cat, Cheetah, Hyaena, the two prides of Lions, Chacma Baboons, Bush Squirrel, Crocodile, Ostrich (if anyone is interested I will post all the birds as our poor guide was forced to review with me daily!!!!). Now I am hearing in my head: 'Work harder, Work Harder, Drink Lager,Drink Lager, In Botswana, In Botswana.........agghhhh the refrain will be repeating itself to me all day now.

A leopard and cheetah within an hour is tremendous.

hi, philbill,

you'll know from my trip report that we never got to see leopard or cheetah. to see both in one hour makes me really green.

thanks for a really informative report,

regards, ann

Yes, I finally did finish your trip report Ann, and really enjoyed it.
I was glad we went to Botswana and Zimbabwe as we certainly saw a lot of game, the only exception being wild dogs.
The weight is coming off so slowly but I am plodding on with this report.
I have found it better to write a little on WordPad or whatever and then cut and paste it into Fodors. That way I can write a few sentences at odd times during the day and edit typos etc. more easily. Oddball postings such as this one are done directly onto Fodors.
I just downloaded some photoes last night (I don't know why it is so difficult to get them onto a CD in the correct order and with clarity. I must be doing something wrong!!).
Off to make my breakfast tea!!!!

It is midnight here..more tomorrow...

bump

Chitabe Trails continued...
The second day was a highlight (as was every day it seems!). We walked and learned so much about how trees communicate and produce tannin which makes the leaves bitter. Talk about survival! All of nature is so intricately balanced and I know so little! We saw an ostrich and close by spotted a nest in the sand which contained 14 eggs! I gather that this is a rare sighting indeed. One more scoop for Newman! He is so observant and, for example, can tell just from where an eagle sits in a tree if there is something happening in the bush. We did get stuck in the sand, but luckily another camp employee was also with us, so he could assist Newman. The jeep had to be jacked up, as placing branches in front of the wheels did not work. It was a hot and dusty job but we eventually moved on. No more flat tyres today, however! I might add to the tyre episode that Newman used the mosquito repellent as a lubricant when changing the tyre!
For the first time I actually took a siesta and we were awakened by an almighty noise. We had baboons on the roof of our tent, and very angry ones it seemed. The cacophany was unreal and I hadn't a clue what was happening until they started to jump off the roof and I counted 12 baboons landing and scurrying off into the bushes.
On our afternoon drive we suddenly saw a huge cloud of dust and heard the noise of what turned out to be a stampede of buffalo. Newman of course drove over to the area like a bat out of hell as he knew what had happened. A 6 to 7 month old buffalo had been taken down by two female lions and a cub. We were there to see the lions holding down the buffalo and attempting first to clamp on the windpipe and then to clench the jaws together in order to suffocate it. It was so gruesome, but with Newman's commentary elaborating on the process involved in trying to stop the buffalo from breathing in order to kill it, it was fascinating. I took so many pictures but this was partly to distance myself from watching an animal be killed. I had to remind myself that this is part of the circle of lfe. The most powerful memories are of the internal organs being pulled from the body and the awful smell of the blood. It was hard to watch, but what an experience. We also saw a huge elephant; the largest we had seen on our trip. I took more photoes of ellies than any other animal on our two week safari!! We saw some wonderful family groups and herds, and observed the babies which could still stand underneath their mothers!

On the third day we were greeted by elephants when we returned to camp for brunch. They were blocking our entrance across the raised walkway, shaking the fan palms and eating the nuts/fruit which fell down. We had to wait a few minutes and as they moved away from the fence we went quickly by into the camp dining room. Our meal was interrupted by the sound of more trees being shaken, and the three elephants were very happily eating! We were cautious going back to our room, and we were the only two clients left in camp. At this time Chitabe Main Camp was full, so we were very fortunate to have the camp and Newman to ourselves! [ The name Chitabe Trails has been changed this season as we were told that many people felt that the name 'Trails' meant a mobile camp.] We had problems negotiating past the elephants after our afternoon respite, but on meeting Newman again we went off to the Gomoti water area. We had very interesting sightings as usual including great views of a bushbaby and an owl on the night drive. There were great sightings of elephants taking mud baths (and later in the trip we saw wonderful displays of dust baths!). As we returned to camp, Ryan was there to meet us (all dressed up and not in his usual shorts and shirt). He proceeded to walk us back to our tent where we were flabbergasted to see our deck all lit up with lanterns and a table for two set with beautiful linens, crystal and china. A bottle of champagne was on ice together with a bottle of my favourite red wine. Ryan said that although it was not my birthday until the following month, this was a birthday celebration for me! He and Ruth, one of the assistant cooks, served us a four course meal as we toasted them. We also learned the toast "Pula!" (rain, and also the name of the currency). It was an evening we will never forget..a romantic dinner for two under the Botswanan night sky. The ellies had not left the camp, so we could see the approaching beam of the flashlight together with pauses partway up the long walkway as our servers went back and forth throughout the evening of dining! At night we heard lions' roaring and they sounded very close! The sounds of elephants splashing were also audible. We got up to the sound of the kudo horn and basically skipped breakfast as we were told the lions were still very close to camp and we might be able to locate them. We could not get to the jeep, (ellies what else!), so Newman drove around the back of the camp and we went under the fence to meet him on the 'back 40'! With Newman listening to baboons and birds and following his intuition, he eventually located tracks and soon we were face to face with two beautiful male lions. What gorgeous creatures. They decided to walk around a little and pose for us. What a treat having two private drives with Newman, but soon it was time to go for brunch and drive to meet the aircraft. for those of you following my fear of heights and concern of claustraphobia and panic attacks, it only took a glass and a half of wine at CT in order to have a very pleasant flight. Yet another young guy was the pilot, but I consoled myself by figuring that they must fly the plane about four times a day!!!!! The worst part was that Sefofane had subbed out the flight on the next leg three days later, and that company had all the biographies of the pilots and their ages together with a paragraph about each which stated in one form or other that their pilots were flying these plans to get experience in order to apply to fly commercial aircraft. So, I wondered to myself, were these pilots not good enough to make the grade to fly commercially at this point in time? Too much information can be a bad thing!!!!!

Sightings at Chitabe Trails
Here goes: Giraffe, Impala, Kudu, Red Lechwe, Reedbuck, Steenbok, Tsessebe, Wildebeest, Zebra, Buffalo, Elephant, Hippopotamus, Dwarf Mongoose, Slender Mongoose, Yellow Mongoose, Warthog, African Wild Cat, Large-Spotted Genet, Hyaena, Side-striped Jackal, Leopard, Lion, Baboon, Lesser bushbaby, Vervet Monkey, Scrub Hare, Springhare, Bush Squirrel, Ostrich, Scops Owl and many other birds.
Question: Why did everyone in Southern Africa pronounce Hyaena "High-HEE-na"? It's a little different from the, 'I say tomahto and you say tomayto'!!

Wow, loving this so far!

hi, philbill,

here's another pronounciation query - why the wierd "R" in "wildebearrrst" and "hartebearrst"?

all the SA guides and rangers said this all the time. did you hear this too?

your sightings were terrific - I'm green.

regards, ann