Planes, Boats, & Automobiles

This was a big day of travel, four countries in one day! From Kwando, we flew to Kasane, where we crossed from Botswana into Zambia by motorboat, enjoyed a brief visit to Victoria Falls, then flew to Windhoek, Namibia by way of Johannesburg, South Africa. Other tourists were flabbergasted by this crazy itinerary put together by our travel agent, saying it couldn't be done! But, somehow, amazingly, it all worked out.

Flying out of Kwando, looking back at the elephants.

The Kasane Ferry is a border crossing where four countries (Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) meet at the joining two rivers (the Chobe and Zambezi Rivers). We passed by a long line of trucks waiting to cross. The ferry itself is nothing more than a pair of dirt banks with boats running between them. We crossed by motorboat, stopping in the middle to admire the view of all four countries.

On the Zambia side, there was a little confusion when the guys waiting to greet us didn't have our names on their list. After a few minutes of standing around on the dirt bank, and a few mobile phone calls, it was all figured out. Our Zambian guide found us, helped us pass quickly through Zambian immigration (visas, $100 US per person), and we were on our way!

We drove to Livingstone, Zambia, and somehow had just enough time to squeeze in a quick tour of nearby Victoria Falls before going to the airport! At the falls entrance, a company called "Soviet Segway" was trying to advertise their high-tech product alongside the rows of traditional African crafts for sale. The falls, a canyon of waterfalls, were like nothing we'd seen before.

On the Victoria Falls Bridge, you can cross to Zimbabwe, or go bungee jumping from the middle!

Then, after a long process of flying two sides of a triangle (south to Johannesburg, and then northwest to Namibia — due to some scheduling difficulties), we spent a night in Windhoek.