August 14th - to Zambia

August 14th, 2014

We got the 8am hotel shuttle to the airport, which was not far away. Checked in for our international flight to Zambia, then went through customs and immigration and headed for the departure area. Amy and Jeromé joined us. The airport in J'burg is a lovely building, and there were a number of shops in the duty free area. We did not purchase anything, but enjoyed wandering around looking at everything. Our flight was only about 1.5 hours, and we were in Zambia. It was hot outside for us - 26 degrees - but it is winter time here! We walked into the terminal, a beautiful new building which is not quite finished. Paid US$50 each for our visa, and went to collect our bags. Fortunately we were among the first to disembark the plane, as the queue was long behind us and it took quite ä while to process each person.
A short taxi ride to the Waterfront where we are staying, and we checked in and were shown our tents. They are permanent tents, and high enough to stand up in. There is an electric fan and a light in each one. Beds - a little too short, and certainly too short for Jeromé - made up with sheets. These tents are our home for the next three nights.
There were monkeys running around the camp site.

We settled in and then all 6 of us went to the main camp area to find out about activities for the time we are here. There certainly are plenty of options - rafting, Bungy jumping, helicopter rides, microlight flights, and much more.
We booked a sunset dinner cruise on the Zambezi River. So at 4.15 we embarked for a meander down up the river to see the wildlife. We saw hippos, crocodiles, giraffes, and lots of birds. The dinner was basic - sausage, chicken, coleslaw, salad and a bun. however the atmosphere was really lovely - it was calm and quiet, with lovely scenery around us. There was a beautiful sunset.

The cruise finished just after 6.30.  We returned to our tents about 7pm, and that is where I am now sitting to write this.