Africa: Livingstone

We started yesterday with a trip to Victoria Falls. There are paths along the side that allow you to see the falls and the towering basalt cliffs. The falls are much less fierce now as this is the end of the dry season. Had it been the wet season, none of the cliffs would have been visible and we would have been covered with spray. The falls were still astounding as they thundered to the bottom- 180 meters down which I believe is twice Niagara's?

Our guide, Fabias, knows birds well, so he pointed out a number of different species as we walked along. It is not nearly as hot here as in OK, probably due to the lesser humidity. After Vic Falls we wandered through the curio market. Unfortunately the artists are intent on a sale and so I did not stay as I was too distracted by their salesmanship.

Next we dropped some folks at the Royal Livingstone hotel which had giraffes nibbling leaves near the hotel.

Then we returned to Tingabezi for a tasty lunch and a bit of relaxation before leaving for the Livingstone Museum which was quite interesting. It contained excellent maps, models and dioramas depicting the history of Zambia and village life. They had tools displayed (some found recently by school children) from the Stone and Iron Age.

There was also a section on David Livingsyone, the missionary, who explored Africa and was also looking for the Nile. There were actual letters he had written in closed cases, enclosed in glass that we could pull out and read.

Next was the bustling fruit market which was the real Zambia. Everything was for sale including fruit, clothes, beans, and dried fish that look like silver leaves with eyes (among hundreds of other items). We were told not to take photos as that's intrusive. Most stalls were primitive with tin roofs and fabric or paper walls. One makeshift table was supported by perhaps a car motor or transmission. Music was playing with a rollicking beat and families and children were everywhere. The sound of roosters could be heard often as they and chickens were available to buy live to be taken home and cooked for special meals.

One stall contained a man with a sewing machine and a poster of fashions on the fabric wall. People will choose an outfit and he will make it for them. He even makes school uniforms as they are more expensive purchased elsewhere. Two men were playing checkers in the shade using bottle caps as tokens. There was even a pool table on a concrete slab where two men had a friendly game in progress.

My main thought was that despite the heat, multitudinous flies, and primitive environment, people were joyous, joking with each other as they went about their daily lives in the market.

Back at the lodge, we cracked open the bottle of wine Mary Ann, the woman who organized our trip, had left in our room, and watched the sun go down over the Zambezi River.