In South Luangwa National Park we spent five days bushwalking and rarely saw another white soul. What we did see were resident elephant families from year-old infant to pregnant Mom, the local pride of lions and their cubs, a leopard in a treetop making one with the spotty shadows, the usual leering spotted hyenas, wondrous bird life and that magical sun, setting like a peach flambé behind a lacy curtain of acacia trees.
Then again, thank goodness I talked myself out of my usual isolationist stance when it came to Victoria Falls. This is one place one simply must see and, like everyone else, get drenched in the heavy mist rising from the mighty Zambezi as it flows from its wide, island-dotted bed, thundering into a narrow, twisting gorge below.
Standing on the cliff shore it is easy to imagine David Livingstone’s awe as the spray lifted from the chasm depths 350+ feet below, reflecting myriad rainbows from the sun. Here Bernard took an ultra-light flight over the Falls getting airborne in an impossibly frail craft which I could not imagine would bear his weight. I’m not a flying person, much preferring to have my feet on the ground, or at least no more than an elephant’s height above the ground.
Which brings me to the last marvel of the Victoria Falls area: elephants. Many were saved from starvation or killing in Zimbabwe by being walked across the border into Zambia. They are cared for, nursed, babies raised, loners integrated and temporarily wild ones welcomed back, at the Livingstone Elephant Sanctuary.
I am seriously hesitant to visit such places, my experience being they are more depressing than heartening. This sanctuary was the opposite of all my expectations and gave me a good lesson in keeping my mind open to all potential experiences while traveling. So enraptured were we with handling and riding the elephants in the bush, and so impressed by the skill and dedication–and love–exhibited by the sanctuary staff, that we stayed for a second session. If I could have stayed all day I would have. But Zimbabwe awaited us across the bridge spanning Victoria Falls gorge, along with a light plane destined to fly us.
If you’d like to know more details about my experience, post to me below.
