Friday, May 17, 2024

Saturday, May 18, 2024

Royal Livingstone Hotel, Victoria Falls, Zambia

Victoria Falls is a spectacular waterfall located about midway along the course of the Zambezi River, at the border between Zambia to the north and Zimbabwe to the south. It is approximately twice as wide and twice as deep as Niagara Falls, spanning the entire breadth of the Zambezi River at one of its widest points (more than 5,500 feet. The falls plunge over a sheer precipice to a maximum drop of 355 feet, with a mean flow of almost 33,000 cubic feet per second. The Zambezi River does not gather speed as it nears the drop; the approach is signaled by the mighty roar and characteristic veil of mist, for which the Kalolo-Lozi people named the falls Mosi-oa-Tunya “The Smoke That Thunders”. The falls’ precipice is split into several parts by various small islands, depressions, and promontories along its edge. Getting to view the magnificent sight from the air thanks to a helicopter so we can grasp the entirety of the famous natural wonder.

We went to see the rare white rhinos. Zambia once had a healthy population of several thousand black rhinos, but decades of poaching nearly wiped them out. In 2008, the Zambia Wildlife Authority successfully relocated four white rhinos from South Africa to Mosi-oa-Tunya Park on the north side of the Zambezi River. This has helped create a new population of white rhinos, which is the largest and most numerous of the world’s Rhinoceros species.

Accompanied by armed park rangers, we went on foot to see these sleeping giants in the mid-morning shade. The rangers were prepared to shoot poachers on sight. Why are poachers so focused on rhinos? The myth is that the male mates on top of the female for an hour to 1 1/2 hours, thus the belief that rhinoceros horn has aphrodisiac qualities. Huh! Contrary to its name, the “white” rhino is actually gray in color. They have a huge head, which they invariably hold low, a humped shoulder, and a fin-like ridge on the spine. Mama white rhinos produce a single calf, born without a horn, roughly every three years. Maybe she just can’t handle prolonged mating more often!

Nicknamed the “tree of life,” baobabs play a key role in the ecosystem. They help keep soil conditions humid, promote nutrient recycling, and prevent soil erosion. And, they are an important source of food, water, and shelter for various birds, reptiles, and insects and can live for a hundred years.