It’s hard to believe it’s been three years since I started this little corner of the internet! Back then, I was just starting out, full of ideas and a touch of nervous excitement. Now, as I look at the amazing community of over 200 followers, I’m filled with so much gratitude.
Thank You!
From the bottom of my heart, thank you to each and every one of you who has followed along on this journey. Your comments, shares, and likes mean the world to me. They fuel my passion to keep creating and sharing content that I hope you find informative, engaging, or just plain entertaining.
Celebrating Together
To celebrate this milestone, I did this write up just to thank you all for being there. I have learned so much from many blogs I follow and hope to keep learning from you all.
Here’s to Many More!
Here’s to many more years of learning, creating, and connecting with this wonderful community. I’m so excited to see what the future holds for this blog, and I can’t wait to share it all with you.
In my last post, I contemplated doing another cycling adventure inspired by this one. Of course with a different map. Part 1 and Part 2 of this safari, I loved it! As I concluded Part 2, I shared how I bumped into some big animals. Elephants, elephants, elephants!
Point 4: Elephants
Just because this is Africa, it doesn’t mean these kinds of animals are everywhere. There are certain places you are guaranteed to find them. The particular route I picked for this safari sometimes has elephants and sometimes doesn’t. So, was I lucky or what?
The beauty of this unplanned stop was that I was alerted by a cyclist coming from the opposite direction. I had no intentions of retreating because if he “survived it”, I would too, so long I followed what he said and what authorities have stated about safety rules like:
Stay Alert: Be aware of your surroundings and listen for any signs of elephants nearby, such as trumpeting or rustling of trees.
Keep a Safe Distance: Maintain a safe distance from elephants. Do not approach them or try to get too close for photos unless you are with a professional or in a safe place to do so.
Avoid Aggressive Behavior: Do not make sudden movements or loud noises that could startle the elephants. Remain calm and move slowly if you need to change your position.
Respect Their Space: If you encounter elephants on the road or path, give them plenty of space to pass. Do not try to block their path or force them to move.
Do Not Startle Them: If you need to alert elephants of your presence, do so calmly and from a distance. Avoid using a loud horn or bell, as this could startle them.
Be Prepared to Retreat: If an elephant shows signs of aggression, such as flapping its ears, trumpeting loudly, or making a mock charge, slowly back away and find a safe place to take cover, such as behind a tree or rock. I remember doing so on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border when we saw a group of elephants appearing agitated.
Follow Local Guidelines: In areas where elephants are present, follow any guidelines or instructions provided by local authorities or wildlife officials to ensure your safety and the well-being of the elephants.
Point 5: By theZambezi River
I was happy to have had this peaceful encounter with the elephants. I was not the only one at the time standing in awe waiting to take pictures. There were few cars that stopped with owners trying to take shots. The scene was both awe-inspiring and humbling, a reminder of the beauty and power of these majestic creatures in their natural habitat. A Stone throw away was a beautiful place by The Zambezi River, where you could sit and relax or have a picnic.
I continued to cycle on to a village called Mukuni because I heard visitors frequent the place for tourism purposes but along the way, something hit me that I was not that kind of tourist. I already had an idea of what an African village is about. The detour led me to a place where I needed some peace, rest, and good food. The almost 4km of riding made me think of one thing only, food.
Point 6: Avani Hotel
After a workout, we all know we can swallow an elephant! I was starved! The beauty of the place I dined from was that it was a hotel and in the middle of nowhere. It is close to one or two places around but generally, this place is isolated.
The Avani Hotel not only served delicious food but also offered a serene environment that was truly captivating. What made the experience even more extraordinary was the presence of zebras freely roaming around, adding a unique charm to the surroundings. The sight of these majestic animals peacefully coexisting with the hotel’s guests created a tranquil atmosphere. It was a moment of pure bliss and harmony with nature, making the cycling journey to the hotel worth it. The combination of great food, a peaceful ambiance, and the presence of zebras created an unforgettable experience that will be cherished for years to come.
Point 7: Victoria Falls
I left Avani Hotel feeling refreshed. I cycled on about a kilometer or so to the Victoria Falls but there was not gonna be enough time to tour the whole of it or go through all the trails like it’s supposed to be done. I got here still and as I got my ticket, I knew this should be my last stop because it was getting late. Instead of wasting time I just sat near the waters that fall and this should be the Zambezi River. I must say that was an amazing sunset I saw.
After this lovely sunset, all I could think of was the 10km back to point 1 and this trip did not take long because there were no stops made.
The last time I filled you in on which cities you shouldn’t leave Southern Africa without seeing, I did mention that it’s good I have had to learn about my bucket-listed cities via blog posts, TV,and the like and that without them, I would not even know about certain parts of the world I desire to travel to. Today I am so geared to share with you the other cities around Southern Africa you should visit in 2023 or later. I was happy to have shared on why you should visit cities like Livingstone, Walvis Bay, Cape Town, Dar es salaam and Swakopmund. If this list didn’t make you start your travel plans, I hope to do a good job making you try out the following towns:
1) Mombasa(Kenya)
I once mentioned how Kenya is like literally the epitome of Africa.Very few humans could actually not have coastal cities as their ideal hide out or hangout place. Both the areas in and near Mombasa have a touristic touch but if not a tourist, you will still love Mombasa anyways. This city is known for its history and you could enjoy going down the history lane whilst admiring the Old Town which was the center for trade between the Africans and the Arabs.
Do stop over at Fort Jesus as well on your history tour and learn more there. It is tradition to take pictures of landmarks, so Pembe Za Ndovu should never be left behind without showing some love because this is like the face of Mombasa!
2) Stone Town (Zanzibar)
It’s good to be old school sometimes and seek the things of old. Stone Town is just perfect for this kind of vibe, l mean the place screams ‘history!’ The town has old structures rich in history. Visit the Old Fort of Zanzibar sometimes called The Arab Fort which is right in the heart of Stone Town close to lots of accomodation choices ranging from hostels to 5 star hotels. You will find some local entertainment going on there to keep your spirits up.
Stone Town is the starting point for the refreshing day trips to Prison Island, Nakupenda Island and indeed many other places I did not see. If you happen to be a food lover (especially one in love with seafood and Indian food), Stone Town will just do it for you! I found lots of restaurants and certainly enjoyed the ones I picked.
3) Lusaka (Zambia)
Not that the town is not that touristic but i have met many a traveller that aren’t that into touristic stuff yet travelling. Some travellers like this could enjoy many places in Lusaka like Trotover Farms for those into horses and enjoy some horse riding .
Lusaka boasts some game reserves and you don’t have to go so far off to have a safari experience and the perfect place for this would be Chaminuka Game Reserve which is close to the main airport and do enjoy watching animals.
Restaurants are also an ideal fun place especially for your taste buds. We have restaurants in the likes of Bombay Lounge, Keg restaurant and bar, Radisson Blu Hotel, The Quorum Hotel, Neelkanth Sarovar Premiere, for those who like to keep it fancy. Aside all these activities are others like the night life if that is your thing.
4) Windhoek (Namibia)
Namibia’s capital, Windhoek is a must-go. The city is calm, busy on some days and ideal for a short city getaway. There are historic landmarks like the Christuskirche i found which is the face of Windhoek. So much history attached to this structure! Other structures that captured my attention were the Independence Memorial Museum that focuses on struggle for independence. The museum is very close to the Christuskirche and could be seen in one tour.
I liked Windhoek for its affordable but neat accommodations. There are lots of shopping malls that offer lots of convenience. I loved the drive on the elevated pieces of land in certain parts of the city which was an opportunity to view the city from a better angle.
5) Kasane and Maun (Botswana)
There are many people I have asked about what one could do in Botswana and often times the replies make it appear like there isn’t really much one could do there. Maybe there is a reason some say so but I doubt the two towns Kasane and Maun would agree to that and am thinking so long there is a desert in the country, should be a reason for it to qualify as a place for people like me.
Kasane is a small border town in Botswana that offers the Chobe Safaris. These are famous safaris even on the Zambian side as you will find many Zambian tour companies offering day or more than a day trips to these national parks. This place I must say is elephant territory so you might want to watch out for these big fellows. I saw lots of those and other animals as well like the Impala family.
There are few cheap flights you could find from Kasane to Maun and back and this could give you the opportunity to see the lovely Okavango Delta from above that looks especially incredible!
These are the towns in Southern Africa that you should find a reason to visit.
I needed a treat and I let my appetite lead the way. My taste buds whispered they wanted something scrumptious and not home made. I looked up a few hotels from booking.com and found a resort called The Quorum. I loved the general outlook of the place and headed there.There are restaurants I know of that are not much of an attractive package in terms of outdoors but the food they serve is on point. I was in the mood to enjoy a meal with a view or in a place that appeals greatly to the sense of beauty.
Arrival
I didn’t necessarily make a call, reservation or anything like that. I just got on a cab and arrived there. The place had a parking lot on the outside and I think I only saw two cars on the inside. Most cars were parked outside. Am thinking there should be a bigger parking lot should there be a big event there. So unless there is parts of the resort I didn’t see, I gave them 3 stars for the parking lot.
Upon arrival, the guard did alert someone to take me to the reception and I saw some smiling and welcoming staff and I must say it was smooth sailing. I however understood in no time that this was a club hotel and there were some parts of it that I wanted access to that well…. I couldn’t get to simply because I was not a member. There was a way around it though. I stuck around in the wait room
About the resort
This resort is a club hotel or those kind of resorts that offer membership and loyalty programs. https://www.thequorumzm.com I went there to have an eat out at the spot I saw on booking.com only to be told ‘access denied’ because I was not a member. Ouch! I didn’t let that slide. After digging deeper, I found out I could still have access as a non member if I had one of the services in the resort like spa and spend about $30 dollars minimum there. It was fine by me.
Fast forward, I finally stepped into the restaurant I wanted to dine in because of it’s views. Though found at the resort, it had another name called Mafinga Peak Rooftop Restaurant. This place boasted a sophisticated yet informal atmosphere. There was another restaurant downstairs that I could easily access but that’s not the one I saw on booking.com. I had to get access to the rooftop restaurant.
I don’t think I want to rate their loyalty or membership programs that almost caused me to miss my dining opportunity because this is the lifeline of this resort, it’s a club hotel and ‘members only’ is the password for most services here. I am sure it has its pros but a con is definite, there are one time customers that they may miss out on that may never necessarily want to be all timers or regulars. It’s good that the way out of this was to make customers like us make use of other services as key to another.
The dining area
The dining area had two sides. One side had tables with four seats and others two seats closer to the bar area and covered by a glass demarcation and the other side that was more spacious had comfy sets of casual chairs. The theme colour was lime green a bit of white here and there with a brown floor. There was a seriousness to the place with a touch of casual. What a combo! The place can be ideal for family, business and group gathering yet perfect for an intimate or romantic get away. The beauty with this place is, the restaurant area is not all you see but as you enjoy your food, you have a beautiful view to go with it.
I loved that the place and neighborhood aren’t noisy. The music playing in the background was soothing. Rating the dining area as far as the general vibe is concerned was a 4 star. The reason for not having a 5 star was because the rooftop glass shield meant to enjoy spectacular views has to be super clean all the time because it’s glass. Had this been of other material like marble, a definite 5 star here. Glass easily shows blemish.
The other things that added a touch of beauty to the place is the fountain like structures around the restaurant that added to the relaxed mood. The orange flower pots added a touch of cheerfulness. The ceiling had beautifully hanging simple chandeliers which am sure look heavenly at night time. The rest rooms had a chocolate brown theme and the walls were slapped with modern oval mirrors.
Let’s order!
I was in the mood to have something meaty, a bit of Greek salad and my forever favorite, mashed potatoes. I want to always remember the medium grilled meat I was served. This steak was mildly charred on the outside and still had the brown all through and am sure it was a slow process to avoid it being too tough but succulent.
My Greek salad had simple yet perfect combination of tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, crisp onions, olives in olive oil. I found my mashed potatoes creamy and full of amazing flavor. They were fluffy and well served in a cute bowl.
The bar informed me that the cocktails they had always contained egg whites and they were nice enough to ask if I was allergic. I wasn’t. Funny thing is I have forgotten the name of this cocktail but it had strawberries, fresh lime juice, gin etc. Totally loved the cute glass they used.
As far as the food was concerned, the level of yummy was definitely a 5 star and I should have congratulated the chef. I spent about 40 dollars for the meal and that’s because of some taxes to go with the kind of place. I had two of those cocktails.Wink wink.
Lasting impressions and recommendations
The place is cosy and I loved it’s vibe. The staff bent over backwards to give great service. No place is perfect but so far it’s living up to it’s stars. I would go back again but this time to enjoy the room services.
I really get bored being in one place for too long.I don’t know who suffers from this condition but it’s depressing to have a monotonous life.
Nshima
The same feeling applies to food and views.Sometimes I am okay having my traditional Zambian staple food which is called ‘nshima’ but I wouldn’t want to give my mouth a bore by having it continuously the way I see it get eaten here.
Having a mother that was a hotelier,was literally married to food and fussy about food presentation, those things kind of rubbed on to me.
I feel eating out refreshes your soul.Leave your fridge, stove, pots, pans alone and head straight to a place all that can be done for you PERFECTLY.
No one wants to visit a four or five star hotel and come back loaded heavily with disappointments.We all expect perfection or something close to it!
I had already listed lunch and the target upscale hotel in mind was Radisson Blu hotel.
I may never be sure whether Radisson Blu is a four or five star hotel but the bottom line is it is an upscale hotel where only the best should be good enough.
Being in Lusaka at that time, I took a cab and off I went only to be so well received by a guard at the main gate and the other enterance.No one wants a grumpy waiter, guard or whatever.
I chose to have my lunch at the pool side.I found just few people outside, nothing that could interfere with my looking like a weirdo taking selfish selfies or asking employees to take photos of me for me…..coast was clear, just enough noise.
LET’S ORDER!
I ordered pork spareribs and mashed potatoes. I love potatoes! This was definitely going to go well with a cocktail. And it did! There is a lot of tantalizing that goes on from order time, to eating time and since I was not in the mood to go through that agony, I found something to keep me busy.Viewing!
Let’s order
I went round the hotel enjoying site seeing.When you seek meals in an upscale hotel, even the decor and vibe of the place are a biggie!
Ablution block so clean
I went round and I must say the decor fits well in the theme of the hotel.The hotel has some lovely decor and interesting art work that clients with an eye of art would fancy.My honest opinion is they should not let the same decor up for too long.There should be some changes every now and then .
The front view of the hotel
EATING TIME!
One of things to use to rate a good restaurant as far as I am concerned is length of time of the order. It shows how efficient the staff is.Of course other things come into play like the number of clients. Judging from the length of time it took to prepare the food to it’s mouth watering taste, one may think it took forever to prepare it.
The chef took a good 30 to 40 minutes which I think is the average waiting time for the kind of meal I ordered.Besides, I even inconvenienced the chef by changing my order slightly eating into preparation time.
The first thing I noticed when I saw the food was the generous portions. I have dined out with a 25 dollars I spent on the meal but left with my stomach protesting it didn’t get enough. I was not only stuffed but satisfied.The former has to do with quantity and the latter, quality. My general rating food wise was 9 out of 10!
FINAL RATING
The location of the place is perfect if you want an urban, boutique, close to everything kind of location which was a 9 out of 10.
The staff were super helpful and friendly and this is treatment they gave not for show but if it was fake, I am glad it looked real! That was a 9 out of 10.
I however didn’t appreciate what appeared to be a mini bar right next to the pool which I believe is for those enjoying the pool.I wasn’t there to swim but my eyes told me that place needed a touch up, ASAP before more critiques spot it.
My unbiased rating is a genuine 8.9 out of 10.Experiences differ.Mine was awesome!
Every traveller has different needs when it comes to lodging.Depending on budget, length of stay and one’s personality, some places will do the trick while others would not. My stay was short yet it involved crossing a border (Zambia). Though Botswana is a neighbouring country, I was going there for the first time as a solo traveller.
Booking
I reserved a room on booking.com and the payment was done when I arrived at the premises.I was supposed to be in the chalets but because I am enjoying genius level 2 on booking.com, I did attract a discount and a room upgrade.Instead of being in the chalets, I enjoyed the double room.
Location
https://maunlodge.com .Maun Lodge is located in Maun town in Botswana. A town where most tourists frequent. It is a town on the Thamalakane river and is the jumping off point for the Okavango Delta which is a habitat for vast wildlife.
The closeness to a water body adds serenity to the place
Airport pickup
Few times I have been adventurous enough to jump on a taxi from the airport to where am lodged but sometimes you skip that adventurous self and try the safest way which is to be picked up by your hosts.Nothing is completely safe but you just have peace of mind knowing your hosts are taking care of your transport to the lodge and the good part is it was a free service.The driver and the welcoming team had smiling faces which was a plus!
Room Service
The environment of the lodge was welcoming and there was thorough cleaning done by the staff.The sink, shower, toilet were sparkling clean and they did offer those extras.The room had a safe and television with a number of channels though I wished for more channels
Work out time!
I was impressed that the lodge did carter for the active bodies like mine.I of course didn’t use all the machines.The treadmill is my fav!
Food?
Most food I had ordered was well prepared and presented and you had the option in the restaurant to enjoy it indoors or outdoors.
Yummy😋
On the whole this lodge offered more than I expected and on a scale of 1 to 10, it was an 8.I would recommend it !
Bush Lodges? Or maybe you could use another name like remote lodges, whatever name in mind, these lodges tend to be found in remote places or set up in breath taking untouched wilds.Some are fancy whilst others are just moderately comfortable.
These lodges do share one thing, the peace and tranquility attached to nature.With all due respect to the other lodges, hotels, guesthouses in residential areas…..why do travellers flock, fancy or even opt to be in these remote lodges?
1) Stress relief
Work takes your attention six to six and the other fraction of the clock is dedicated to home and its own needs.What is left for poor you? Stress.The whole idea of just being close to nature is why you need to fancy these locations.They are perfect for relief from stress.
Seriously….do I look stressed?Bush lodge ablution section surrounded by lots of trees and free music 🎶 from birds 🇧🇼
2) Chances to mingle with animals
Unless am wrong, but we get fed up with meeting the neighbor’s dog everytime we take those walks. When in these remote places, we could have some variety instead of the usual dogs,cats and chickens lol!Some of these lodges are so inviting to animals that you literally rub shoulders with them.
Me, rubbing shoulders with zebra This my dear friends can only happen when lodging in the bush
3) The water bodies
These bush lodges sometimes are close to water. It is a well known fact that water has a powerful physiological and emotional effect on us.The colour of that water is known to give us calm. 💦
Remote lodge right next to the Zambezi river 🇿🇲
4) Road trip
These remote lodges are an opportunity for a road trip.Play that road trip music, relax, enjoy the stops, let the wind blow your hair whichever way!
WanderwithFaith 