Travelogue: South Africa, Zambia, and Botswana

We visited the Cape of Good Hope, the southern most tip of the continent and Cape Agulhas where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet--an awesome experience! The Dutch (Boers) influenced the region with Dutch-style architecture, and the French (Huguenots) brought a flourishing wine industry. South Africa has a spectacular coastline (comparable to California's or the Almifi Coast in Italy), with waves shooting about 80 feet high. The mountain ranges are also quite spectacular. We crossed several mountain passes, as we traveled inland with stops in Durban, the Kingdom of Swaziland, and Zululand, where we stayed in traditional Zulu huts.

Next was our safari in Kruger National Park, one of the largest game parks in South Africa. In Kruger, we were fortunate and lucky to see the famous "Big 5": the lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino, and the elusive leopard. We were very excited to see a leopard dragging an impala (fresh kill) off to high ground. While in Kruger, we also saw zebras, wildebeests, impalas, rhinos, and a variety of exotic birds. From Kruger, we went on to Johannesburg and Pretoria, the capital.

Then we flew to Zambia to see Victoria Falls, whose African name is Mosi-oa-Tunya or "The Smoke That Thunders." It is truly one of the natural wonders of the world. The highlight of our trip was a one-day safari in Chobe National Park, Botswana. We saw large herds of elephants, giraffes, hippos, lions, impalas, monkeys, crocodiles, and exotic birds to name a few.

Overall, our vacation/safari was educational and exciting! In two and a half weeks we covered about 2,242 miles of travel by coach and plane. This was by far one of my favorite and exotic vacations, filled with wonderful memories and pictures that I hope you all enjoy as you view them at http://www.flickr.com/gp/11700805@N07/0tVX7f.