Connal Home

Back to June

Previous Page 

Next Page

June 10 - Zambia: Overland trek to Flatdogs Campsite on the Luangwa River

Skin Heads

Not to be out-done by the three red-headed Aussies (see June 8) , Jon, Dennis, and our guide Brendan have shaved their heads.  Dennis has a Nike Swoosh on the back of his.  This occurred sometime between my going to bed and the game of "Strip Three Man" they started at about 11:00 last night.  All I know is that at about 2:30AM, the Aussies played football (soccer) for a while and then crashed.  And I woke up to a very bald husband.  (He deserves this for having put up with my various hair colors over the last year).  The good times just keep on coming!  This crowd is such a riot.

Thou Shalt Push The Truck

We set off at 6:00AM to hit the road.  I've forgotten to mention that the truck - the fabulous ride that it is - sometimes has a hard time starting.  So we have to push it backwards while Brendan does something to make it start again.  It's never a problem, and is apparently expected as this was written up in the Kiboko Tour Commandments ("Thou Shalt Push the Truck When It Stalls").  But it's funny nonetheless and adds to the flavor of the trip.

Driving In Africa

Driving through Africa is a cool experience.  The roads are sometimes paved although often full of potholes.  Today, 80% of the roads were unpaved and dusty, and therefore even more tricky to maneuver around.  Brendan is a very good driver, but whenever he hits a hole quickly we feel like we're on a roller coaster and yell accordingly.  That makes him smile - which is important since he's the one behind the wheel all day.

Occasionally, we'll pass a mud hut or two and sometimes a group of them, but most of the time we don't see anything but trees and hills.  Despite the lack of structure and homes, people are constantly walking on the side of the road.  We have no idea where they've come from or where they're going, but they stroll along without a care in the world.  Africans LOVE to wave at us, and we are always very accommodating.  The children are the best.  They'll come running out to the side of the road from their huts yelling and screaming, and they smile so big when we all wave.  I don't know whether it's because they rarely see cars, or if our truck is just different, or if they're simply being friendly.  But it's clear that it's part of the culture.  Today I saw a child of about 1 1/2 years wave at us as if he was conditioned to do it.

It's not unusual to see brush fires along the way.  In fact, the other night when we were driving in the dark we could look out of the window and see at least 4 burning at one glance.  It's just nature's way of rejuvenating itself, and no one seems troubled by it at all.  It's an interesting comparison to the US, where brush fires make the news because of the close proximity to homes.

We stopped quickly in Chipata, a small town where we could hit the Shop-rite and get ice for the cooler.  There was a little farmers market manned by locals that sold fresh vegetables, dried fish, clothes, shoes, and various bike parts.

We have a new rule: if anyone sings "The Sun Has Got It's Hat On", then they get punched.  We're so sick of hearing it that we've digressed to bodily harm to prevent it.

National Anthems

At the end of the trip today, the Aussies kept singing random songs so the Russians decided to contribute with their national anthem (I think that's what it was).  If you know the movie "The Hunt for Red October", it's the song the crew sings as they submerge the sub at the beginning of the movie.  They have very deep baritone voices and it sounded very nice and we all clapped when they were done.  Then we sang the anthems for each nation represented on the truck.  Jon and I had to sing the Star Spangled Banner, Mathilde sang something Dutch, the South Africans reluctantly sang something, Kerry sang "God Save the Queen", and then the crazy Aussies - standing with their fists clasped on their chests - proudly sang their anthem.  Actually I think "belted out their anthem" would be a more appropriate description.

Flatdog Campsite

We've settled into the Flatdog Camp, which has hot showers THANK GOD!  A flatdog is another name for a crocodile, in case you ever get asked.  It's kind of cool because there are a few platforms in the trees, and Jon and I tried to setup our tent so we could say we slept in a tree.  Unfortunately, the platform wasn't big enough for the tent and we don't fancy falling out of the tree in the middle of the night going to the loo.  (Note that I'm getting the hang of the African lingo here - the British origins are obvious).  

Flatdog Camp is on the Luangwa River, and there is a large family of very large hippos wallowing just off the bank.  They make the funniest noises when they're inclined.  It sounds like a very deep snore, although it's difficult to differentiate between the hippos and the Russians' snoring at night.  The camp is directly next to the South Luangwa National Park which is hardly fenced in.  At the registration office, there's a sign that basically reads: "It is very dangerous to leave this campsite on foot.  You must only leave by vehicle.  If you leave by foot, you should take your things with you because we won't let you back in.  We're not kidding."  In other words, 'if the crocodiles don't get you, we will'. 

Yet another fantastic sunset, as viewed from the campsite

We can't go on a game drive tonight because it's too late to get one together, but we're going to spend all day tomorrow on a drive and probably tomorrow night as well.  Must go to the bar and have a Mosi now (Zambian beer - tres yummy).  We need a guide to accompany us from our campsite to the bar and back in case we run into any hippos or elephants along the way.  Cheery-o!

Connal Home

Back to June

Previous Page 

Next Page