“We
were sent out into the bush to fend for ourselves for nine months.
Seventy-six boys in four groups. Ages 15 to 20. In my group
one boy died. The lion killed him. Four boys were injured and had
to return. Another boy was killed for being a coward.” “What
on earth could he have done?” I thought. Answering my thoughts,
Alois, Maasai warrior, continued, “He flinched during circumcision at the
warrior-hood ceremony. The elders clubbed him to death.” His
words consumed the vastness of the crater and what followed was stunned
silence and quiet reverence for our guide, driver and friend, Alois. Overlanding
through Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya over four weeks gave
us an insight into that enigmatic continent. A continent of tranquillity
but unrest, innocence but corruption, abundance but poverty.
Overlanding
means pitching tents and pitching in, whether it be washing up, truck cleaning
or cook’s help. Overlanding also means no television, no telephone,
infrequent showers, long-drop toilets, dirty clothes and dust. But it means
experiencing Africa in her true state: raw and wild. Buffaloes grazed
near our tent; hyenas chased zebra around it; an elephant blocked off the
toilet.
Zimbabwe
Victoria Falls town has an outpost
feeling about it. Miles from the politics of Harare, it survives on tourism
alone. There are adventure sports aplenty, but the ever-present mist
rising from the falls reminds you which is the greatest drawcard. Pack
a raincoat and umbrella, pay the US$20 entrance and, as the ticket collector
told us, “Enjoy your cold shower!” It is positively cyclonic but
every so often the engulfing cloud lifts to reveal the majesty of the falls.
There is plenty else to keep you occupied: bungee jumping, white water
rafting, river boarding, jet boating, canoeing, abseiling, gorge swinging,
horse riding, elephant riding, booze cruising, game driving, or taking
a flight over the cascades. Take high tea at the historic Victoria Falls
Hotel for a wonderful colonial feel and fantastic view.
The
restaurant Three 10 Parkway offers the best and cheapest game buffet in
town for those wanting to try African delicacies such as wildebeest, impala,
kudu and crocodile.
Hawkers are constantly on your heels
and do become very irritating so steel yourself. They are just trying
to make a quid but you are advised to buy at the local curio market. And
do not change money on the street as you could be robbed blind. Stick to
the banks that now offer a proper official exchange rate.
Zambia
Across the border, the town Livingstone
is the Zambian equivalent of Victoria Falls, offering all the same activities
although entrance to the falls costs half the price. When overlanding,
Zambia is mostly drive-through country so you experience it from the truck.
A scrubby landscape of acacia, ebony and lupani trees interspersed with
baobabs. Villages of conical thatched mud huts and shacks with corrugated
iron rooves kept in place by rocks on top.
People lining the roads walking to
and from their villages. Women laden with supplies on their heads and babies
strapped to their backs. Men driving oxen. Children waving madly to you.
Donkeys pulling carts. Bicycles loaded with provisions.
Cars
packed to the rafters and beyond with people. The smell of burning charcoal
wafting by. These are images with which you will grow very familiar throughout
your overlanding trip. However, all day cannot be spent gazing out the
window so pack some good books or a deck of cards.
Malawi
Time spent in Malawi is by Lake Malawi
and with white sandy beaches, crashing waves and lush vegetation you are
fooled into believing you are on a tropical island. That is until
you take a swim and get a mouthful of fresh rather than salty water. For
US$2 you can take a walk with the local chief to experience life in the
village first-hand. Malawi is desperately impoverished and this village
is no different but the people are happy and welcoming and the children
are keen to make friends.
“The government gives the children
one pen and one exercise book a year,” said our guide, Savimbi Sickner,
the chief’s son. This explained the children’s constant requests
for pens. We gave out all the pens we could muster up, a child actually
doing a jig for glee at receiving one. On the beach and in the adjacent
markets you brush shoulders with the likes of Banjo Patterson, Kevin Bloody
Wilson, Mel Gibson and David Jones. They swear these are their real names
and who am I to doubt them. In their stalls you will find ample souvenirs
so bargain away with Dr Ian, Stan the Man, Sweet Like Chocolate and Christopher
Columbus. At Dr Ian’s urging we got down to a game of bao, a local
form of checkers that he graciously let me win.
Tanzania
The capital, Dar es Salaam, is used
as a stop-off point for getting to and from Zanzibar. In the main
city, Stone Town, take the Spice Tour around the main sights, including
the ancient underground slave chambers. “Men were crammed into this
room and women and children into this one. They were deprived of
food, water and light for two days. Then they were taken out and
whipped. Those who did not collapse fetched the highest prices,”
said our tour guide, Ali. Next we were whisked to a spice plantation to
discover the delights of cardamom, cinnamon, turmeric, vanilla, pepper,
and cloves. “Chew some cloves when you have the runs. Natural Imodium!”
explained Ali. At night, the waterfront comes alive with the seafood market
so load your plate with squid, octopus, fish kebabs and crab claws and
try to ignore the scrounging cats. After the bustle of Stone Town, a few
relaxing days are spent at the glorious northern beaches of Nungwe.
Powder white sand is lapped by lazy
turquoise waves adjoining sapphire-coloured ocean upon which dhows sail
gracefully by. Rocky outcrops encroach on the beach and on these are built
restaurants and bars with sandy floors. Luckily you have a few days
to relax here. The water babies can go snorkelling and scuba diving
while the beach bunnies sunbathe, play volleyball, get massages and have
their hair braided. Such languor is a far cry from what is next on
the agenda: a tour option to the Serengeti Plains and the Ngorongoro Crater.
Dust off the binoculars, affix the telescopic zoom to your camera and get
ready to see game, game, and more game. Lion, cheetah, leopard, zebra,
wildebeest, antelope, gazelle, giraffe, warthog, hyena, elephant, rhinoceros,
hippopotamus, as well as abundant bird life. Everything becomes caked
in dust but that is part of the African experience.
Kenya
With a population of two million
Nairobi is the largest city between Cairo and Johannesburg. There
you will find lively markets, leafy suburbs, erratic traffic and dusty
shanty towns. Take note of its reputation of being a dangerous city
with endemic petty crime and just be on the alert. From Nairobi we
travelled to the Masai Mara National Reserve, a six-hour trip for our truck
on a pot-holed road occasionally sprinkled with bitumen. Along with
game drives we had the opportunity to visit a Maasai village.
Chanting and leaping warriors cloaked
in red welcomed us before the chief’s son ushered us inside. Young
women with beaded bracelets and ears looked at us curiously. Children
looked quizzically at images of themselves on digital cameras. We
saw inside a mud hut, smoky from the evening’s meal preparation.
We stood inside the inner enclosure where the goats are kept out of reach
of prowling leopards and lions. We bought beaded bracelets and Maasai
clubs. The village women sang us a farewell song and finally the
warriors guided us back to our campsite.
Fact File
Visas:
Zimbabwe - US$30
Zambia - US$20
but waived if you are doing an activity in the country
“We
were sent out into the bush to fend for ourselves for nine months.
Seventy-six boys in four groups. Ages 15 to 20. In my group
one boy died. The lion killed him. Four boys were injured and had
to return. Another boy was killed for being a coward.” “What
on earth could he have done?” I thought. Answering my thoughts,
Alois, Maasai warrior, continued, “He flinched during circumcision at the
warrior-hood ceremony. The elders clubbed him to death.” His
words consumed the vastness of the crater and what followed was stunned
silence and quiet reverence for our guide, driver and friend, Alois. Overlanding
through Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya over four weeks gave
us an insight into that enigmatic continent. A continent of tranquillity
but unrest, innocence but corruption, abundance but poverty.
