For myself (Victor) and Phumi Zimbabwe is our homeland where all great things in our lives have been defined. On this particular tour (Zimbabwe Botswana ZBa16) the Jewel of Africa had a full package of surprises for us and the amazing 11 Adventurers we had. From dynamics of culture, history pristine beauty of the land and incredible African mammals and birds.
On route to Kruger National Park into the Blyde River escarpment, lady luck followed us through with an amazing sighting of the Black eagle in background of lush green Eucalyptus and pine forests. Kruger National Park offered the opportunity to meet a female herd of African Elephants, with more than 6 calves in tow. The majestic creatures were grazing on the sweet grasses, a clear sign of availability of good pasture as the dry winter dawns in to the southern hemisphere. Elephants being bulk grazers can afford to eat from grass to mopane leaves and tree bark. This amazing sighting gobbled a precious half of an hour as they perused through the veld and reconstructed the mopane bushveld.

On our third morning we headed to the House of Stones (Zimbabwe) to visit the ancient city of Great Zimbabwe. Our morning was coupled with a drizzle but that was not enough to derail us on our expedition. The adventurers (11 clients) made themselves comfortable with rain jackets and we explored the ruins with a local Guide who had vast knowledge of how the Governance and social structures of the city collaborated to make Great Zimbabwe the most developed states of the 14th century. We later on retreated to the site museum to view the national Birds, gold pieces used for trade in the city, jewellery and clay pot remains retrieved at Great Zimbabwe, and to sum up the time at the ruins the Karanga local inhabitants of the area offered entertainment of traditional music and dance with all the clients joining in to the rhythm of the African drum.

We experienced a close up encounter of White Rhinos on foot in the Intensive Protection Zone of Matopos National Park, an experience of a life time. There were 2 adult females and a calf who were grazing on a hill in a Terminalia bushveld. We approached the animals to an astounding distance of 25 metres. White rhinos are social animals and quite docile than their cousin the Black Rhino though they still remain territorial especially the bulls. It was quite a question with the clients as the rhinos had to be dehorned, all this being done to reduce efforts of poachers in the area. A sustainable population of over 35 white rhinos is found in the area. Park Rangers including women patrol the Matopos National Park day and night.

Hwange National Park was our time to drive through the Kalahari sands and Teak wood forests where we saw vast population of Elephants, Kudu, Sable, Impala, Zebra, Giraffe and plenty birds with more than 10 sightings of the short tailed Eagle (Bateluer).

With almost 5 nights of bush encounters, we retreated to the resort town of Victoria falls. From a distance after passing the airport about 8 kilometres before town, we were greeted with a cloud of smoke and roaring thunder of the falls. Visiting Victoria Falls at this time of the year will give one the impression that you are living in the tropical areas. The town is full of vibe and a lot of cultures and great minds meet in this small town. Our walk through the Victoria falls National park was graced with rushing water plunging violently into the gorge, this I turn rewarded us with showers of water in the heat of the day. Water levels are pretty high with the mighty Zambezi ensuring this till September.

The city life of Victoria Falls offers a lot from African fashion, adrenalin activities, friendly people and the beautiful African sun. After spending 2 nights there we took off to Botswana with our major highlights focused on Chobe and the glorious Okavango Delta.
With the rest of our tour we headed to Botswana where more experiences awaited us. The experience of Zimbabwe and Botswana on our Zba tour ensures one the memories of a lifetime through adventure.