Toka Leya Camp, Mosi oa Tunya National park near Livingstone, Zambia
But we have air conditioning, a fridge, and Wi Fi in our “tent.” There is a spectacular view of the Zambezi River looking across to Zimbabwe, a mosquito net contraption that completely encloses our king bed at night, and staff who somehow knew our names the moment we checked in. These are like suites in a nice hotel, but with canvas wall coverings that allow us to pretend we are camping while enjoying every possible comfort.
Incidentally, I have been mispronouncing the Zambezi River my entire life. It is Zam-bay-zi, not Zam-bee-zi. We are still arguing with Mama G over whether it is Zee-bra, with a long E like “meet,” or ze-bra, with a short E like “met.” So far the tour group is firmly in the Zee-bra camp, except for Mama G. Both sides now have entrenched positions, although Sarah and Victoria seem to be returning to their English roots and siding with Mama G.
We are here for three nights. In the dry season the tour would normally have continued on to Kafue National Park, but this is the rainy season. That park is flooded and tours do not operate at this time of year. Instead, we are forced to remain in our air conditioned tents, enjoying a few relaxed days and, as the Barenaked Ladies advise, to “open the fridge and stuff”.
From our room we have seen zebras (Zee-bras!) and bushbucks. I have also been followed very closely (really, I was chased) along the elevated walkways by velvet monkeys who were after the mangoes I was carrying back to the room. I should have hidden them in my pockets instead of carrying them so obviously in my hands.
Toka Leya Camp is in Mosi oa Tunya National Park. At just 66 square kilometres, it is one of the smallest parks in Zambia. Its main claim to fame is its population of white rhinos, all of which are followed by armed guards 24 hours a day. This makes the rhinos remarkably easy to find. Our guides simply call the guards and ask where they are. The term white rhino comes from a mis-translation of the Afrikaans word “weit,” which is pronounced ‘white’ but means ‘wide’. That refers to their wide mouths for grazing. Black rhinos have more pointed mouths for eating leaves. There are other minor differences, but both rhinos are the same colour, which is grey. Unlike the rhinos we saw in South Africa, these still have their horns, so they look like proper textbook rhinos.
On our first evening we took a river cruise in small boats and saw hippos, crocodiles, and an impressive variety of birds. We also took a game drive through the park and spotted a small crocodile living in a puddle on one of the park roads, and a group of wildebeest yougsters playing “chasie-chasie” in the field. I have to be less afraid to increase the ISO on my camera because the shutter speed I used only captured blurred action.
Sarah and the ladies on the tour learned from Nono, the camp manager, just how versatile the chitenge is. The chitenge is the 2m piece of material that Mama G gave the ladies on the way to Hwange National park. It can be a covering, head-dress, and baby carrier. Depending how you wear it, it can also signify whether you are married or single. Almost every women we saw in the market had one.
Mosi oa Tunya means the smoke that thunders, a reference to the constant mist rising from the falls. There was a movement to rename Sarah’s sister Victoria to Mosi oa Tunya. I do not think it will stick, even though this is what locals call Victoria Falls, and Victoria does indeed smoke.
The falls themselves were not what I expected. They are about 500 metres wider than Niagara Falls and more than twice as high. During high flow periods, the water can form a solid curtain 1.7 kilometres wide. The flow is relatively low right now, which surprised me given the rainfall we have had. Presumably much of the river’s volume comes from farther upstream. The most surprising feature is that the falls empty into a gorge about 1.7 kilometres long that is only around 100 metres wide, followed by a single outlet that is also only about 100 metres wide. You can see the historical path of the falls carved into the landscape downstream. A picture really is worth a thousand words and it helps explain what I am trying to describe. The formation is the result of interesting geology. As I understand it, volcanic basalt flows solidified and later developed fissures running east to west. These fissures filled with sediment, and the resulting sedimentary rock eroded over millennia, exposing one fissure after another. We viewed the falls from the Zambian side today and will see them from the Zimbabwean side after our upcoming week in Botswana.
We also visited the Dr. David Livingstone Museum, which covers the full history of Zambia. Livingstone seems to be one of the rare early explorers who did the right thing in his lifetime and continues to be genuinely respected in the countries he visited. A walk through the downtown market in Livingstone was equally pleasant and notably free of aggressive attempts to sell us copper bracelets.
To coax us to eat more, a number of the staff said at mealtimes that “if you lose weight, I will get fired.” This is part of their strategy to make sure we suffer the Fat 5 I mentioned earlier. We got our revenge at our last dinner by giving the staff a tin of Quality Street chocolates for Christmas. Since they are making us gain weight, we decided to give them cavities. The group devoured them like a fresh kill. I’m happy to report that we did not lose weight, so the staff will survive to the next tour group. Perhaps they deserve a raise, because collectively we all gained weight.
On Saturday, December 20, we leave for Botswana for three days in Chobe, followed by three days in the Okavango Delta, and then return to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe for a few more days.
