After spending 5 months interning at ZippingZebra’s Hout Bay office, I felt more than ready to hit the road and see more of the African continent. I didn’t travel from my home country Germany to only sit in an office after all – albeit a very pleasant office with nice colleagues. So you can imagine my joy when I heard I was chosen to accompany Zippy on our own Cape to Vic Falls tour! It turned out to be an experience of a lifetime! I got to experience many of the highlights South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe have to offer. I came back with memory cards full of photos and many new Facebook friends from around the globe.
Our first stop was in the scenic Cederberg. Zippy has gotten quite accustomed to life in the wild but for me using the bush toilet and setting up a tent in the dark formed new but fun challenges.
I could write a book about the experiences we had in 21 days but Zippy advised me to keep it short. I was quite impressed with the included activities but also enjoyed the fact there were so many optional extras. Wouldn’t have wanted to miss quad biking through the Namibian desert dunes but Zippy wouldn’t want to be seen anywhere near those bikes and spent some time at our accommodation.Sleeping on a mountain near Spitzkoppe under the starry sky was definitely another great experience on tour. Tugged in our warm sleeping bags we exchanged our campfire stories – some embarrassing, others funny but all of them very entertaining.
As the trip went on we gathered more experiences and plenty of stories to tell on future trips. White water rafting down the rapids of the Zambezi and an elephant back safari made it an adventure of a lifetime!
I have particularly fond memories of the two day excursion through the Okavango Delta. We used a mokoro (wooden canoe) to get to our camping spot in the bush, far away from any signs of civilization. With no cell phone reception and without the convenience of a supermarket but who cares… This is the Africa I came to see when I traveled to the other side of the globe! The international group sang around the campfire, we did bush hikes, a sunset hippo cruise and spotted an amazing variety of wildlife. We also get to meet a kaleidoscope of cultures, from the San to the Himba.
Zippy enjoyed this interaction a lot although he almost stayed behind in a Himba village after the local children discovered Zippy makes a very nice toy.
The tour offered me an adventure of a lifetime and countless photos. I will even miss the bush toilets.
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Also want to experience Afrika like Christina did? Take our Cape to Vic Falls tour! (There is an accommodated option for people afraid of bush toilets).
