Moving along...

 Monday-Tuesday, March 13-14, 2023

On Monday we said goodbye to our home and transportation  for the past 27 days, with mixed emotions.  The RV provided a wonderful opportunity to see parts of South Africa we would never have imagined,  But, on the other hand, a regular bed and a nice shower is pretty enticing!  The camper return in Johannesburg was uneventful. As we checked in, someone did a review of the vehicle before we made a final exit. Those with damage had to report it and since we all bought insurance when we initially departed, those with damage paid only 750 Rand (about $40)—Not too bad for a broken window, a scraped up side, a banged up bumper, etc. etc.

The workers checking in the campers were thrilled to find the leftover beer wine and liquor—you could tell from the cheers! as they checked the vehicles in.  

Everyone was commenting on how much “stuff” (aka treasures) they have accumulated since we left Capetown.  One couple bought two large suitcases to carry the excess and others were making trips to Postnet to mail things back to the USA.

It was quite a logistical challenge getting 33 people and who knows how many suitcasesand extra totes and shopping bags to the hotel.  They had two 22 passenger vans with a trailer behind for the luggage—pretty smart move.

We arrived at our hotel in Johannesburg--Southern Sun, for a one night stay 

and unwound with a beer in the bar before turning in for the night.

It was nice to land in a room with a hot shower and soft bed, however, we were awakened around midnight by someone trying to enter our room.  Thankfully we had the security lock on, so the door couldn’t fully open,  but it was a little scary.  We later got a call on the phone in the room saying that they thought our power was out—it was not—who knows what was really going on.  Needless to say, we didn't get a great night's sleep even though the bed was soft!

After breakfast, we gathered for transportation to the airport for our flight to Victoria Falls.  The O R Tambo Airport in Johannesburg is huge, It was interesting that along with a passport, each passenger was required to provide evidence of Covid vaccination or a negative PCR test.  The vaccination card was verified at check-in, at boarding and at customs!  They are serious!

The airport was very nice, with with more shopping opportunities, but less suitcase space! (Luggage weight is limited to 20 kilos (44 lbs).   Most everyone took advantage of the opportunity to add one more treasure to their stash.

There was even a Lego store in South Africa!

Finally, we boarded the airplane for the flight to Victoria Falls.  

It was a short flight--only about 1 1/2 hrs. It was amazing and exciting that we were able to see the spray and mist from Victoria Falls as we came in for the landing.  It illustrates how massive those falls really are!

We landed at Victoria Falls airport in Zimbabwe. 

We had to go through customs at the airport, and actually get a VISA ($50), which is a sticker in the passport book.  My passport is getting a lot of stamps...too bad it's up for renewal in 2024.

We loaded a bus for the trip to the hotel, but since we landed in Zimbabwe, and our hotel is across the river in Zambia, we had to get processed through two countries.  We got to the border patrol and deboarded the bus, with passsports in hand, and each had to be processed to exit Zimbabwe, even though we just entered!

We got back on the bus and drove about 100 yards to the Zambia border patrol and went through the same process to enter Zambia!  It's been quite an education learning about the border crossing process.  I don't understand all the requirements, but there seems to be a lot of scanning passports, filling out papers, and stamping papers and passports.  There were many many trucks lined up on the side of the road, awaiting clearance.  Apparently each truck has to be inspected before being cleared.  Our driver said it usually takes 24 hours for a truck to clear.

We arrived at our hotel, the Avani, a beautiful place in the middle of the Mosi-OA-Tunya National Park.

We  barely got a chance to check out our room before it was time to go again! 

We headed out for a cruise on the Zambezi River on the Lady Livingstone  The Zambezi river is the largest river flowing into the Indiana Ocean from Africa.  It also is the border between the two countries we passed through today.

Music greeted us as we boarded the boat, putting everyone in a festive mood.  

They served food and drinks along the way!  (Drinks made it even more festive!) 

 Our guide pointed out wildlife along the river--hippos and crocs in the water, cape buffalo along the shore, and vultures and egrets in the trees.In the distance we were able to see the spray from the falls, with the sunlight reflected, making colors show up in the mist--quite an impressive sight!.

Check out this gym on the water--Having a place like this to exercise would be good motivation!

.And, we got to enjoy the sunset over the Zambezi river....a great way to close out another amazing day!

The days are moving along...only three days left of this fabulous adventure!