From our balcony, we can see the plume of mist from Victoria Falls, and that’s precisely where we are headed, but not before having taken a copious breakfast. On our way to the falls, we have to fend off a few vendors who want to sell us old Zimbabwean dollars, with surreal amounts in the billion or trillion dollar range. The switch the the US dollar must have made life much easier.
Victoria Falls is much more touristy than the areas we visited previously, and the prices reflect this fact. While the entrance price to a national park in Namibia costs about USD 5.5 for a whole day, the entrance to Victoria Falls costs USD 30, for a single entry. Not far from the entry, there is an imposing statue. Doctor Livingstone, I presume. (Sorry, lame joke…). The falls are impressive with so much water going over the edge that at some location it is difficult to see the fall. The reflection of the sun on the mist makes taking pictures difficult.
After the visit, we walk over the bridge that separates Zimbabwe and Zambia. We don’t go through the Zambian custom checkpoint, as it would then take some time to reach the falls from that side, and we are going for a cruise in the afternoon. On our way back on the bridge, we watch a girl bungee jumping. From the bottom of the gorge, we hear her shout: I’ve lost my cell phone!
We go back to the brewery for lunch, and spend some time at the pool in the afternoon, from where we witness a baboon stealing food from the table of a couple eating at the restaurant. We then leave the hotel for a sunset cruise on the Zambezi river. We are on a nice small wooden boat with 10 other people. The boat is named Ra-Ikane, from Lazarus Ra-Ikane, a young african boy who became one Livingstone’s guides. Or at least that’s what the crew of the boat tells us, passing a book amongst us that describes the fact, as well as Livingstone’s exploration of Africa. However, the book is edited by the tour operator, and searching about Ra-ikane on Google only points to the operator of the cruise. No mention of Ra-Ikane on Livingstone’s wikipedia page… So has the boat company created a legend around the character? Has he been forgotten by History? Who knows, but anyway the cruise is very enjoyable with good nibbles and a very ginny gin and tonic.
