It looks simple on the map. Google Map it if you like. You just zip from Livingstone in Zambia to Muchenje in Botswana. Right? Doesn’t look far.
But this is Africa! So we leave the Zambezi Sun resort (could have stayed there for a month) with a driver called Collins. He takes us to the river crossing by ferry, across the Zambezi river, to Botswana. We do the passport thing, then he sends us off on the ferry (takes about 3 minutes to cross), where we then meet Stanford, who takes us to the customs office. More passport business here. There’s a queue about 50 people long out the door, but we go to the foreigners window and miraculously get many stamps in our passports in very few minutes. There are some countries where the whole stamp thing has been left behind with the advent of new technology, like Australia where you don’t actually get a stamp in your passport. Then there’s the “stampers” . These include: India, Zambia, Mexico, Botswana – in fact anywhere that wields a bit of power at the border, and might just not be called a first world country. Thump, thump goes the stamp.
But I digress.
Stanford takes us about an hour’s drive to Kasane Airport for the “handover” . One could easily feel like a kidnappee! Here we are met by Nick, who works at the lodge we will be staying at here in Chobe National Park. Nick drives us the final 50 minutes or so and we arrive at the beautiful Muchenje Lodge, just outside the national park. We are greeted by our delightful hosts, Joy and Robert, and could not feel more at home in this spectacular place. We are perched on a rise above the Chobe River, with views across to Namibia on the other side of the river, and housed in two person bungalows. The lodge takes a maximum of just 22 guests. So good bye crowds.
After a huge lunch (I’m currently looking at dieting for a year after this trip) we head out for an afternoon safari drive. See photo below of Ferg taking the front seat.
Our truck is just for us, and two others head out too. The tracks are sandy and bumpy but before long we come across herds of impala, we see giraffes just cruising through the bush, there are vultures, warthogs, eagles, and my all time favourite – elephants. Photos below…..I have more elephant photos than you can imagine. We saw a family group having a mud bath and blowing dust all over them selves. It was quite amazing. I never really imagined it would be this good. The guides are just great. There is nothing they don’t know about the animals and the area. They have eagle eyes, and will stop the truck and turn off the engine to show us tiny birds perched among the trees that they spied, or a rare antelope camouflaged in the bush.
The whole area is so dry, it looks dead. The elephants have ravaged everything edible and it’s hard to imagine anything can survive. The boab trees are spectacular. Just huge, and leafless.
We stop about 5pm for sundowner drinks (photo below) where we get to know a family from Sydney in one of the other trucks. They have two boys about the same age as ours, so all of a sudden it is kid city. They get along like a house on fire, and after a couple of wines for the parents, we head back to the lodge with the kids in one truck and the “grown ups” in the other.
Some of the guests head out after dinner for a night safari, but we call it a day as we have a full day safari tomorrow.

The sun set with a glass of wine in hand. Baboons scared the birds into flight as I took the photo.

One of many beautiful boab trees.

Ferg up front in the truck, helping spot for wildlife.

An ugly warthog.

Elephants at the mud bath.

The vultures lie in wait.