Delta, Dunes and Falls - Africa 2011

Africa… Africa… Africa…. I am still dreaming of Africa……

I was lucky enough to escort a small group to South and Western Africa! I knew it would be truly amazing, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. I loved it that much that I am in the process of planning another trip for 2012!

We started our journey in the historic city of Cape Town, with its dramatic landscape of Table Mountain towering over the great city. It’s breathe taking views of the ocean was the perfect way to start our adventure. From here we travelled north through the Cederberg range full with farms. Although the wildflowers were not in full bloom we were still able to witness the ray of colours. Crossing into Namibia our first visited was to the Fish River Canyon, as the sun set we watched the canyon walls change colours. From here we descended into the Nambi-Naukluft National Park were we visited the most spectacular and breathtaking desert scenery, the great sand dunes, which blaze orange and ascend 300 meters above the desert floor. Inside we visited the salt and white clay pan of Deadvlei and Sossusvlei. We headed northwest towards the Atlantic Ocean coastline to Swakopmund, the adventure city of Namibia. There are many optional tours available from here, some decided on the cultural tour while others did the Seal and Dolphin Tour. I took the opportunity to skydive over the Ocean and Dune, exhilarating! We headed north deeper into the Damaraland, with a stop and visit to the Himba people. They are semi-nomadic and are unique in that, they have rejected modern ways in favour of traditional beliefs and methods. The women have elaborately plaited hair and incredibly smooth skin.

 And of course no visit to Africa is complete without viewing wildlife. We spent the second half of our trip in search of animals. We visited Etosha National Park where we commenced our game drives.

I learnt so much about African animals, which was definitely one of my highlights. We saw Zebras, Giraffes, Warthog, Elephants, Rhinos, Lions and much more. There was so much wildlife, some I had never heard of before. One of my favourite moments was when a lion walked past our vehicle; he was big, beautiful and strong. Another typical day at sunset, a herd of 40 elephants walk directly toward our truck then split and walked around us, the feeling was indescribable.

After these amazing experiences we entered Botswana and travelled through to the Okavango Delta, such a contrast to the scenery we had been travelling through, lush and green. The delta boasts an array of birds. We had the opportunity to travel the waterways in a Mokoro, a traditional dung out canoe. We spent the night on a houseboat in the middle of the Okavango River. We re-entered Namibia and travelled east to Chobe National Park, we enjoyed a cruise on the Chobe River, where we watched the hippos and the crocodiles lining the banks taking in the sun rays. We saw so many animals again, so impressive.

That night we spent inside the Park, the suspense of wondering how close the animals would get while we slept, was so exciting. Our trip was nearly at an end with our last stop in Livingstone, we spent the afternoon at the magnificent Victoria Falls, one of the natural wonders of the world.

There were so many moments throughout the trip that I just explain can’t explain and as I think back I will always remember it as one of the most memorable journeys and the memories will stay with me forever.