Final thoughts on our African Adventure

Before we came on this trip we were told: we were mad ; asked “is it safe?”; “are you taking a gun?” and  “how will you cope being together 24/7?”.    

No we're not mad  - we are definitely not the only couple traveling in Africa and have met and shared a beer or two with a varied mix of people and nationalities and often with more extreme trips than ourselves.   

Yes it is Safe?  - everywhere we went we were met with waves and smiles – the more remote the place the friendlier the people.   

No we didn't take a gun -  camping in the bush is perfectly safe as long as you follow a few basic rules and remain vigilant – we had lions, hyenas, leopards and elephants through our camps at various times and it was great. In fact, the most dangerous situations we found ourselves were with an over friendly snake, and an aggressive baboon which a water bottle with a hole in it proved an ample deterrent (just!).   

We are still together!!  - living together 24/7 is not as hard as you think if you are in a Landrover with the windows open as its too noisy to speak!  Writing the blog has in fact proved to be the most contentious part of the trip and the only thing we argued about.  

To write the blog, we had to write notes in a book which got typed up when we had power on the computer (charging it proved quite difficult!!) and then combined with downloaded photos from our various cameras (we had 5 in total!) .  Finally on the rare occasion that we had internet connectivity we could upload the blog but often this could take several hours!! Despite the complexities we are really pleased we made the effort as we have a great record of the whole trip and we hope that those of you who have read it enjoyed it too!!

Quick reflection on the countries we visited:

Tanzania - most expensive but most wildlife

Malawi - poorest country but friendliest people by far

Zambia - worst border crossings but with the best guiding 

Zimbabwe - most persistent hawkers but with the best flowing waterfall 

Botswana - hottest country but with the proudest people

Namibia - worst place to buy beer on a Sunday but most stunning scenery

South Africa - busiest campsites but the most organised (and they play cricket!)

So as a finally summary of our trip: 1 apartment, 2 Landrovers, 7 countries, 20 tented camps/lodges, 47 campsites, 127 days and 15,863 kilometres.  It has been an absolutely fantastic journey, we have loved every minute and are missing Africa and the people we have met on the way already!