Tag: game drive

Experiencing 4 Countries in less than 20 minutes

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Experiencing Southern Africa has been such a joy. Each country I decided to see, left me with lasting memories.

I have made more than one trip to some of these countries. Many things took me to Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia. And Zambia being my home country, has been a wonderful home.

Just to go down memory lane, I will, should I leave my country for good, always remember the Mighty Victoria Falls. It is a touristic identity of the country and being in Zimbabwe many times, I must say that the same falls will remind me of Zimbabwe as it is also found there.

I will always remember Namibia for its beaches and deserts and Botswana for its wildlife.

If the truth be told, I would love to do a revisit. What was closest to this visit I am desiring, was when I took a trip enjoying my moment on the safaris of the Chobe River, only to find out I experienced all four of these countries in less than 20 minutes!

Before I got to Chobe River for the safari, I passed through Kazungula bridge and it is at this place that Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Zambia borders meet at a quadripoint. I love that this bridge was worked on and looks beautiful and I spent time admiring the Zambezi River from this side of the country.

This Botswana- Zambia border connects two points on the Zambezi river, one with Namibia in the Northwest to one with Zimbabwe in the Southeast. This boundary on the Zambezi River is also known as the “Four Corners of Africa”.  The four countries meet on the eastern side of the Caprivi Strip. What is more interesting is that research has it that there are more than 150 tripoints in the world like Egypt, Libya, and Sudan in Africa; Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela in the Americas; Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan in Asia; Austria, Germany, and Switzerland in Europe but there is only one International quadripoint in the world and I am happy to have had seen this point.  It is always a great feeling to come across rare places. You will find the four countries Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana meeting at the confluence of the Chobe and Zambezi Rivers.

I bet there are other points one could enjoy this quadripoint from, but one of these is on the Chobe River. I sat on the boat waiting to come across some wildlife of Botswana. There were lots of animals to see but that is a story for another day. What made my day was learning and experiencing this rare truth that the boat I was on did not just make a stop on ordinary waters but on a spot that made me experience four countries in less than twenty minutes!

Though this point could take about five to six minutes, I decided to wait longer than this by asking the boatman for his permission. I figured this rare place could be appreciated more if there was a poster or something but because this was on water, there was little chance of this.

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A Four-Day Lower Zambezi National Park Safari

Just because I tell stories of solo adventures, does not mean I have avoided group adventures. Group travel is more cost effective than individual one. When you travel with others, you feel a sense of security especially when in remote locations. Group travel also provides opportunities to meet new people and make friends with like-minded people.

I felt this way about the trip to Lower Zambezi. Some of the things I loved about this trip were:

1) The preps

As one who loves food blogging mostly through restaurant reviews, I would have loved to share step-by-step how I prepared the mouth-watering roasted spiced potatoes with meatballs in onion rings dish and vanilla cake for dessert. It’s always exciting to be in the kitchen and more so if it has to do with a trip. I loved the other preparations like packing of things we were going to be using.

2) The wonders of an 11 hour road trip

It is a known fact that a road trip can be relaxing. I loved this trip because as earlier mentioned, it was one done with like-minded people. Sing-along songs were done naturally, goofing around was welcome and I think that is why some people prefer group trips to solo trips. We passed through many towns like Kitwe, Ndola, Kapiri Mposhi, and Lusaka to get to the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. You will find the Zambezi River here and surprisingly in many parts of the country because it happens to be one of the longest rivers in Africa.

3) Camping out

Camping solo sounds like a thrilling activity if the place is one having wild animals. I know of some places here like hostels in the middle of a city yet have camping sites. This does not appear the same as camping in or near a national park with all sorts of wildlife. Some dangerous, some not. This is not the sort of place to do a loner camping trip unless you are as brave as the Incredible Hulk. I am glad we were a team.

In certain parts of the world, camping is more common than in other places. In this part of the country, tourists coming from outside the country camp more than locals. I must say we are missing out on lots of fun here. Some lodges in the outskirts do offer camping space and we enjoyed this service at Kiambi Safari Lodge.

We had enough camping space next to the Zambezi River and if we wanted to, we could have been in the other type of accommodation offered like chalets and cabins but that was not the style of this trip. The good thing about being with people who are expert campers is that you just tag along or help where you can. I learned several things I am gonna try out on my next camp trip. I loved the spot and the fact that the convenience block was close to our tents. There were times I imagined myself face to face with some large animal on my way to the restrooms because of the signposts that were around.

4) Great views on boat rides

It was not enough to just camp next to the Zambezi River but also enjoy the lovely scenery on the boat. Kiambi Safari Lodge did offer boat rides. Boating on this long river is a must-do. I loved the beautiful scenery of mountains on the horizon, the greenery as well as the presence of some animals on water. Elephants were found in these waters either on their own or in numbers. Because we were on the water, most animals spotted were crocodiles, hippos that were trying to cool off, elephants, and bird life. I am not sure what sort of birds make holes like this but the woodpecker was my guess. On the other hand, I figured woodpeckers only make holes on tree bucks.

5) Driving through the national park

As we approached the Lower Zambezi National Park gate, we found a signpost having some park rules that should be followed. It was a long drive around and through the park and to be honest, all of us were dying to come face to face with a lion. We have heard enough stories of those who have found the lion on these park drives. Did we find the lion or the lions? Was this our lucky day?

We were happy to see water bucks and I liked the species that had a white ring on their backside. I was only lucky to take a photo of one because they are jumpy or scared. Not to sound ungrateful to mother nature but I have seen enough antelopes. We saw loads of them and I think I have seen enough to last a lifetime.

The national park is graced with lots of chimpanzees and monkeys. Having seen lots from the monkey family, I was dying to see animals I don’t see often. The elephants were in numbers here. It was a treat to spot warthogs and buffalos because I don’t get to see them often. The other animals I should say I was happy to see were zebras. These I do not get to see often and I thought their close friends, the giraffes would be close by but this was not our lucky day to spot them. And just like the giraffes, the lions were not within our reach. I can’t say I was that disappointed but coming here again just to see a lion may or may not be possible so better luck next time.

6) Lasting moments

Lasting moments should be to end this trip with a good evening on a sunset cruise enjoying our last moments here. This scene is unforgettable. And because the weather is chilly during this time of the year, having a fire place set was a perfect idea telling all our stories there and having some other campers around was nice. This last evening made me want to rewind select, so we relive the four days again. I also thought of this because it was when we heard a lion roar from a distance and I was happy that though we didn’t see the lion on the game drive, this was an audible gift from this beast.

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Would I visit Fort Jesus again?(Part 2)

The answer to this question is a simple “yes!” because as things are at the moment, I wanted to read many of the information posters and boards standing and stuck in the museum at this fort but because of time……I couldn’t. Like I mentioned in the previous blog post about Fort Jesus, the place was dripping with history content unlike the Old Fort of Zanzibar that I don’t quite remember spotting a big museum at. Fort Jesus of Kenya had so much in it that shows that there is a lot of past to be treasured.

The few hours I spent in the museum got me to the realisation that a picture is truly worth a thousand words.This is so because I looked around the museum on my own for some of the amazing ancient figures that were there but also sort the help of a guide to explain some facts on other figures.

Some of the cool old stuff I saw at the museum, though junkie looking, did have lots of history attached to them. Like say this antique below which am pretty sure I have seen in some homes here in Zambia, could just be a chair…..but this chair was a state chair used in the 17th century and made In India in a Portuguese style.

It was used by the last up holders of independence  who was the Sheik of Siyu (Bwana Mataka Bin Mubarak Al- famau) and his son Sheik Muhammed. ‘Siyu’ is a location in Kenya and ”Sheikh” was in the Arabic sense an elderly man with a position of leadership and yes, that is a full name. Cool chair!

‘‘You know what? This treasure chest looks like my jewellery box back home……,” I thought to myself as I continued to explore Fort Jesus museum. It was a Persian chest dating as far back as the 13th century. Like wow! Hopefully it continues to be preserved in many more years.

I looked ahead and noticed some place near the left side of the museum as you get in. The label Mombasa Wreck Excavation caught my attention but what was this place trying to showcase?

All I saw was some structure that looked like a diver. It sounds like divers find really cool stuff under water, huh….? This local diver must have been doing his own thing when he ”bang!”found some ship of 38 metres going by a cool name Santo Antonio de Tanna. His adventure (thanks to him) has led many to learn about this ship that sunk and some man going by the name of Dr James Kirkman directed a small excavation which later on led to a survey done on the wreck site. Cool stuff if you ask me.

Time was running out and I had to be out of this place so in wanting to do a quick exit, I bumped into some cool structures of what I think were figures of Arab ,Portuguese or Indian people because of the kind of dressing. For these ones, all I wanted was to stand next to them.

Whales! Ever seen a 48 foot long creature? Maybe you have but I haven’t. It’s good I saw the remains because imagining one in motion will take up lots of my energy.

So basically you will find a skeleton of a humpback whale on display here, the remains of  a Portuguese sailor, some cool old Mombasa doors which remind me of Zanzibarian doors and something that looked like it was a make believe human thing to be placed in a corn field to chase away unwanted ‘visitors’ from the field.

What can I say except another visit is in order so that I get to read in detail what I couldn’t because of rushing to leave. Do try this place out by all means.

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Mombasa to Nairobi train experience (review)

In this world of “microwave” experiences, people want to get to their finish line very fast! We are in a rush to arrive. We don’t want delays, stops or any interferences to our goals. And this is okay! I was not up to this kind of speed even if I had the option to book one of the faster trains called Madaraka Express or Kenya Railways. I loved the coastal side of Kenya that I didn’t find it too thrilling to do a big city like Nairobi and stay there for long so a night in Nairobi with the sole purpose of enjoying the train trip was gonna do for moi.

BOOKING PROCESS

Like earlier mentioned about this world being so “microwave -like”, speed is very important and I give them a plus for having an online booking process because that is definitely not the case in some African countries.

“Madaraka Express – Travel Kenya – Online Booking” https://metickets.krc.co.ke

All you do is book online but the con was how you had to book at least five days in advance or else you would not stand a chance in this world to use the train! Searching four days away before departure was almost all the time showing fully booked but again this was a con maybe just for me because I had no clue it gets filled up so quickly and I also didn’t plan this trip to Nairobi, it was abrupt. As one planning on doing Kenya, I advise that you do your booking five days in advance but then again it was festive period am pretty sure it was peak of the season. After making the payment, you could only get a ticket from the station either through the cashier’s office ( lots of queues here) or go to the section where you could print it out on a machine.Choice is yours. The other con is that you can’t complete the transaction or payment with your bank card online.

I only saw payments using Mpesa which only works if you have a Kenyan sim card and in this trip I really advocated for the saying that goes, “lets wander where the wifi is weak” and so I wandered from home but I didn’t wanna be online every single moment! With that being said…I asked a local to pay for me using their Mpesa and I gave them cash. So my unbiased review score as far as the booking process is concerned was a cool six out of ten. I think they should accommodate those travellers that plan every of their movements ahead considering that Kenya is a touristic country.

FARES

Like earlier mentioned, there is an online booking process. Even before I air out my views on this, we all know that saving a few moneys is always at the back of most people’s minds. Check their website for different fares. There was provision for the fastest train that took about four hours to get to Nairobi from Mombasa. I will or may use it later. It was the first class costing about 24 dollars for adults and 12 dollars for the younger folk but the other train I used was an inter county train costing about 8 dollars and 4 dollars for adults and younger folk respectively. The children less than three years of age were allowed to be free loading. So as far as prices are concerned, Kenyan Railways fares are fair and I rated this a nine out of ten. Of course this is according to me, subject to lots of scrutiny of course.

LOCATION OF THE TRAIN STATION

Depending on where you are staying, getting to the train station is as easy as finding a bus called Coast Bus in Mwembe Tayari road and try getting there at 7 o’ clock in the morning and you will pay just a few pennies for the ride to the train station which is approximately 24 minutes away. If you are loaded, you could drive or take other types of transport to the train station but the tuk tuks and boda bodas do not get to the train station. So the means to get to the train station have been made so that everyone is able to be at the station in good time in good time not to miss the departure time. I rated this service at nine out of ten not because of the appearance of the bus but the fact that everyone can easily get to the train station in good time. Thumbs up here!

THE VIEWS

You know what? As far as tours are concerned, every tourist wants to have as many of them as possible. And countries like Kenya are those that you can’t visit minus thinking of doing a safari trip. Though I have had my fair share of them, this trip had a touch of a safari trip as we spotted lots of animals along the way like zebras, camels, the antelope family, buffalos, monkeys, elephants and the like and I must add that the views were absolutely breath taking which is why I think the day train is a better option for a first timer to Kenya than using the night train because you miss out on all this.

I remember asking a local lady for her window seat and explained to her that I really needed to enjoy the views up close as I was not a local and guess what? She was so willing as she probably noticed my ‘wow’ face as I stared outside the window. As far as views are concerned, this was a nine out of ten and the reason for not awarding a ten was because I think it was going to be nice to see members of the cat family doing their thing in the wild but then again….that’s really a rare commodity even on an actual safari!

FOOD, TOILETS AND GENERAL CLEANLINESS

I couldn’t stay on an empty stomach for long and it was three hours into the journey. My stomach protested like crazy and since I was curious to experience first hand of their services, I stopped the next hostess that had a trolley of food. They just had snacks, juices and sodas but I wanted warm food so I ordered rice, chicken with veggies. The food was well prepared, pretty much the same you would have on a plane or decent cafeteria. I think an eight out of ten for the food specifically. Their menu had some variety of finger foods, chicken, chips, wraps and juices.

I have seen trains with toilets so dirty, it is better for your bladder to pop! I loved that this train has a cleaning service and even as you enjoy the train ride, the cleaning can be done in places they feel have to be cleaned especially if it was a customer that messed up. The toilets were very clean and they do have tissue available and hand wash and the cleanliness of the train was a nine out of ten. They should keep up the good work!

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