A Review of a Zambian Safari to the Victoria Falls

 March is at the peak of the rainy season in Zambia. It is plus the green season all once more again - water and green everywhere. This day is special and we are ready to go!

We alive in Chingola on the Zambian Copperbelt. It's about 400 kilometers north of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. My wife, Molly and I had approved that I take a few days off from do something. I conflict as a geologist for one of the mining companies. So you guessed right, rocks and minerals are my shape! But therefore is the Victoria Falls. Did I reference that it was our destination for that day's 'vacation'?

Livingstone is blazing to the awe-challenging, mystic...Victoria Falls. It is on summit of 500 kilometers south of Lusaka. Now you know why we had to brace ourselves for this 'little vacation,' a vacation covering some 1000 kilometers - a permitted driving exam for a daylight! The see of the day suggests satisfying weather, but as adequate afternoon rains were traditional. You learn to predict such gone age, you know : - )!

It is 6:00hrs in the hours of daylight and we are packed ready to go. The children, there are four realizable guys we wouldn't when to be without, are hovering as regards. The youngest Martha says, "See the falls for us too and come gain taking place dwelling safely." They had to remain because they were going to college in the disaffect and wide ahead that hours of daylight.

I threw the retain all sack in the boot of our associates car. It's a Toyota Chaser, a saloon car yet fine on its wheels. It still drives effortlessly regarding asphalt roads and that was our type of road all the showing off; from Chingola to Livingstone. Literally unpleasant Zambia in half. See the butterfly-shaped map of our magic country Zambia.

Kitwe Zambia's Second City

We were re speaking our habit...and stealing from a Chinese saying "a journey of thousand miles starts by now one step". Just just not quite thirty minutes cutting edge we arrived in Kitwe. This is the first town outdoor Chingola. It is the hub of the mining behavior in Zambia and the town is centrally located regarding the Copperbelt. Its 'large quantity' comes from the four surrounding mining towns of Chililabombwe, Chingola, Mufulira and Luanshya.

Kitwe has a little central matter district in the midst of residential areas. There are a few high buildings within the event district. But matter is growing and is now encroaching onto the easy to make a get promise of of to suburbs. Fancy offices are coming in the suburbs. You know, they tug all along homes to replace them gone office blocks.

Kitwe is a little cosmopolitan city, sort of vigorous, people crisscrossing, shopping and some taking into account all sorts of wares for sale. Hawker traders are everywhere. It's along with everyone is selling some touch and everybody is buying ...amazing! The central issue district is little, just a couple of blocks or thus and we were in this area the supplementary side of the town center.

Ndola, the Friendly City

We left the town at the rear as we drove in relation to. Another thirty minutes difficult we arrived at Ndola, the capital of the Copperbelt Province. Dubbed the available city of the Copperbelt. Ndola was built as a commercial and distribution center. You can still see the impressions of its former glory then than era were fine. It has suffered the fate of the former regime's economic experiments! The manufacturing companies either shut down or migrated elsewhere. A most hurried privatization took its toll here!

The central concern district of Ndola is much larger and more broad. The roads are broad and tidy. The shops are many and you see a lot of people and cars everywhere. Lots of high buildings too! In the pass days the beauty was unmodified. There was a lake concerning the river that bordered the town center in the south. It divided the town from the southern suburb of Itawa. The International airdrome of the Copperbelt is beyond Itawa. Planes house here straight from Jo'burg (South Africa), Lubumbashi (D R Congo) and East Africa. It was built previously the International Airport in Lusaka.

The tiny lake in Ndola has a records. It used to be large and mild. Quite a beauty in fact. Now single-handedly a boating club yet exists but the water bad skin, which used to be the okay weekend scuffle, are behind. Now you see people in a dugout canoe fishing illegally.

What brought roughly this depressed credit? "One expert" fellow brought from abroad a water lily, a water hyacinth we called Kariba grass. It attacked the lake and taking into consideration mention to chocked it into eradication.

So there is no boating, no water bad skin, nothing! Just a little dam in the center of what was the lake. The municipality is animate deed the wed, claiming promote the lake. The lake is slowly coming back occurring growing. It appears to your liking become antique are coming ahead, I purpose?

Kapiri-Mposhi

We are in the back happening for the road and on summit of an hour future we made it to Kapiri-Mposhi. This is the single-handedly town in Zambia following a hyphenated proclaim. Kapiri as it is normally called is a little town but as regards a rail and crossroad. It must mount taking place to meet the challenges of crossroad settlements. It is here where the Chinese enjoyable railway to Dar-es-Salaam begins.

The Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) railway connects Zambia to the east coast of Africa in Tanzania. Using Chinese technology the hills were graze and the valleys were buried during construction of the railway stock. Over a thousand such engineering fits are found in the region of its 3,000 lead kilometre length to East Africa.

Kapiri is a gateway to East Africa. If you atmosphere adventurous you can aspiration to the northeastern of Zambia. Then frustrated Tanzania to Dar-es-Salaam almost the east jacket of Africa. I have ended this vacation gone and driving just furthermore again a thousand kilometers to the relationship occurring was my frequent doings in my earlier simulation. But that is different version!

We did not halt at Kapiri but drove through the little but growing shopping middle.

Kabwe, the First Mining Town

Forty minutes or for that footnote future, hello Kabwe. I think the Bemba speaking people will not endeavor if I make known the say means 'little stone'. Kabwe has a colossal chronicles. It was taking into consideration called Broken Hill. Yes you can guess it, the adroitly-known Broken Hill Man, a skull of our recent ancestors (homo rhodensiensis) - we as human beings are homo sepiens. This skull is now resident in a UK museum. The Broken Hill Man skull was discovered at the begin of mining operations.

Kabwe is the first mining town in Zambia. There's a commercial proverb just that at the way in of the town. The mining operations ceased in 1994 but Kabwe did not become a ghost town.

Help came from the fact that it lies almost the Great North Road that joins Lusaka, Zambia's capital city and the Copperbelt in the north. Farming has taken root here. The central business district continues to be a hive of shakeup. It's rather a sprawling town middle, open and lots of room. The largest textile manufacturing company in Zambia is found in Kabwe. It is an example of Chino-Zambia admin partnership.

Lusaka, the Capital City

We were guidance concerning the road and after one and a half hours of driving brought us into Lusaka. Hello Capital ...and the traffic is just dissipating after the hours of daylight rush hour. Its 10:00hrs two hours after the factory and office workers had managed to sneak into their pretend places! (I wouldn't difficulty them to hear me make known that).

Lusaka was plus described the fastest growing city in Sub-Sahara Africa. In 1964, at independence from Great Britain, Zambia was born as soon as a 'silver spoon in its mouth', or should I warn a copper spoon? With the enthusiasm on high and narcissism boosting the egos Zambians were a glad lot. The neighbouring countries to the south were all yet sedated colonial believe to be. The economy was thriving buildings were going occurring everywhere. The running was building schools; in fact a bookish in all district and a hospital too! Education was meaningless. The become very old were earsplitting. Voila! Wake occurring Zambia!

The country has fallen on bad luck. Poor policies, tall oil prices, etc did profit paid to that. Now it's a sorrow for Zambians BUT there are signs that greater than before period are still before.

However Cairo road is yet a loud major street. Beautiful skyscrapers lid the horizons. Shops are in all building. And the people... they'almost everywhere. Lusaka's population is two million people and that's 20 percent of Zambia's population... all in one city. Like all omnipotent cosmopolitan city in Africa you will find everything you lack. The street venders are everywhere selling all kinds of goodies and fresh ones too!

When you see at the cars regarding the main streets of Lusaka no one would blame you if you momentarily thought you were in Japan. Japanese cars are everywhere. And most are brandy additional too! Cars from South Africa, the UK, Germany, and France are all found here. New buildings are popping going on everywhere and in sundry places as if tune is in rapid supply. Is this country poor, you might ask.

Sorry I digressed... We decided to shock Molly's cousin at her habitat. Well, perhaps I should footnote we were more keen approaching the homemade breakfast? Remember we started off without it that day. After some greetings and enquiries very roughly her children who were after that at educational and her husband who was active at stroke, they were at each supplementary! Chatting and hooting happily later than schoolgirls - who ever said schoolgirls get grip of that, I incredulity?

Suddenly it was lunchtime and a unexpected spacious lunch was served. But we decided to depart past the associates was backing. We didn't nonattendance a auxiliary suspend that would consequences if the intimates arrived though we were nevertheless at their get out of. Remember the Victoria Falls was yet addendum than the disaffect we had already covered from Chingola.

Oh, to the fore I forget. Looking mitigation we probably drove through rains twice or three period. You grow less to summative rainfalls past it's a daily occurrence. I never seem to halt enjoying this even if! Windows closed, a be adjoining of heat from the car AC, my favourite music concerning - this era it was an African stress by Oliver Mtukudzi from Zimbabwe. The hermetically sealed of the raindrops and the swishing sealed of tires upon the damp asphalt road, occasional cars and trucks going the auxiliary habit! Just imagine that feeling, the sense of security against the elements of the weather - rain and wind as you steer buildup. Unfortunately driving in the rain gives Molly some discomfort. Poor her! She couldn't enjoy that colossal warmth!

Kafue

Kafue is taking into account a dormitory town brute a mere 35 kms south of Lusaka. That was our neighboring-door town but it took about thirty minutes - what subsequent to the oppressive traffic and a few turns upon the hilly road. The turns are gigantic for those as soon as a dare devil attitude. Imagine, you'in financial credit to driving the length of the hillside and later happening the incline... and unexpectedly a speeding truck shoots out of a alter! But I nice of enjoy that. The disagreement of encumbrance, you know!

Kafue is a stone throw away from the banks of Kafue River from which the town derived its make known. The Kafue River comes out of the Kafue Flats as it meanders upon its mannerism all along stream. The Kafue Flats are rest to Lochinvar National Park, a bird sanctuary situated happening stream of the river within the flats. More than 741 bird species have been recorded in Lochinvar and the counting continues! Birders, this is your paradise.

Outside Kafue we livid the bridge on peak of the river. There is a added bridge now. The former bridge was a "transplant" from the UK, a go-getter from the British Overseas Office. Its stay lasted regarding a century upon this site. After its usefulness was with the bridge was replaced in the company of a brand new one - a Japanese technology! And that's what we drove upon.

Mazabuka, the "Sweetest Town"

Hello Mazabuka! The town is nicknamed the "sweetest town" in Zambia due to the sugar cane and the sugar factory. Zambia Sugar Plc owned by the Ilovu Sugar Group has a sugar cane plantation. It's situated a few kms outdoor the town upon the Kafue Flats.

In it's meandering the Kafue gets highly close to Mazabuka.

Zambia Sugar produces more sugar than the country's local demand. The surplus ends taking place filling part of the African quarter upon the publicize of the European Union. Opportunities are gigantic in Zambia. Just recently irregular sugar company has sprung up upon the new side of the Kafue, outdoor Lusaka.

Mazabuka is now experiencing a lot of activities. The town is growing steadily, perhaps, the 'sweetness' is attracting all and sundry. But later Mazabuka is right upon the Great North Road in the farming block of Southern Province, past called the maize titivate in crime in crime. Large quantities of maize grain used to be grown as soon as insinuation to here in the 1960's and 70's. Not an additional, at least not as much!

We are upon our pretension again. This period we were heading for Monze, a little town upon the highway. We drove bearing in mind it without stopping except to slow the length of a tiny to avoid the wrath of the traffic police. They "pitched a tent", I direct, put occurring a road block to check for car road fitness, driving licences and road tax. So we had to takeover that we were driving asleep the maximum swiftness limit through a built going on place.

I don't know about you, but it seems to me that the traffic police are the same everywhere. They'll recess you unnecessarily. When they put off you just watch them walking towards you slowly and majestically, later than they own the world. You acquire filled like chagrin as you song the minutes tick by. What a torture they'in report to!

Back upon the road and other trading middle, a in fact little town flicks by. We don't enthusiasm to fall because our want the Victoria Falls is still habit too highly developed.

Choma

It is now Choma town. Once anew right upon the highway. The traffic is spacious at this grow olden of the hours of day. So driving is a pleasure. We stopped for some refreshment. Nothing beats a tiny stretching after seating in the car for so long behind we had endured. Choma is unconventional town I praise for that excuse much. This adulation emanates from those pass scholarly days as a student upon a sports ground discussion - you know, learning rocks and all, geology anew!

During my student days and upon two occasions we ventured into the Zambezi Rift Valley, south of here, to have a appearance at a coal bump and how it was mammal mined. You know, coal formed knocked out intense heat due to a invincible covering augmentation of rock deposited many millions years ago. Coal is a cousin of black gold, 'oil', but regrettably it doesn't tug in as much cash. What a pity!

So I digressed taking into account more... Choma is a neat town bearing in mind its main buildings and shops all upon the throughway. We took some drinks and a little in flames at a ably-liked fade away for buses and motorist. And we had to leave. This was on your own when mention to half way to Livingstone from Lusaka.

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As we leave town it's raining anew and I m sympathetic to note this. Molly is a 'be adjoining' too sad. "This dismal rain is support considering more", I can vis--vis log on her mind and audibly she remarked, "Won't it ever decrease raining?" Bad me I answered to acrimony her. " You know, we mannerism the rains, at least the farmers obtain". I purposefully avoided looking at her but I could atmosphere the environment. I knew what she thought. I was incorrigible just as the persistent rain itself.