Just got back from South Luangwa. Got back isn't really the right term really, as we never left the bus and we're on our way to somewhere completely different, but we are back to some kind of civilization, and more importantly back to tarmac.
Our journey to South Luangwa started slowly. As I have mentioned before, the roads in Zambia are crap, even those lucky enough to be covered with tarmac. We started at 7.00 and had only done 150 km by lunch and then broke down soon after. Repairs took a long time and we still had 130 km off 'really bad' dirt roads to go. At first bouncing and bumping along the red dirt roads that were under construction was almost amusing, everything got rattled off shelves and across the floor. You drive past small thatch huts that kids run out waving and shouting from, makes you feel famous. The people here have really dark skin and when they smile it literally lights up their face. The kids we pass are all happy with nothing more than a wave and you are rewarded with this huge great grin. This along with yet another amazing African sunset and we were almost distracted from the bumping for a while. With the onset of darkness however, there came a lack of waves and smiles and the journey began to get irritating. Three hours later and even the most mild mannered on the bus were becoming highly strung. Huge potholes that whip lashed us from side to side and constant rattling that shake the bones and gets inside your head.. no stopping, no breaks, 6 hours in all on that dirt road. It was like Chinese Torture. To make matters worse we were driving in the dark, and in remote places things always go wrong when it's dark. When we eventually reached the entrance lane to where we were staying, confusing signs and us not really being able to see much after having our brains shook loose for a day resulted in us going the wrong way. After wasting another hour battling through gulleys and a track built for narrow 4 wheel drive vehicles, 3 wrong turns, 2 fallen tree blocked routes, an incident requiring sand tracks, and we were lost in the middle of a forest in a game park. Our guide Gareth was not amused when we insisted enough was enough and we really now needed a toilet stop. It took us 7 hours to go 130 km.
The reason we went through this huge ordeal was to visit a game park with a big reputation. Not only is it reportedly one of the best places in the world to spot the elusive leopard, but is also one of the least visited parks you can find. Wonder why that would be then...
One game drive can be much like any other, and I'm not going to bore with too many more details. That is apart from to say that South Luangwa is the Jurassic Park of game parks. It is not the flat open planes from the TV, but it is huge and it is beautiful. With a river, small planes, forests, ponds, lagoons and coursed with winding waterways, it's the perfect image of a game park. We didn't see anything new there, no leopards or lions, but the concentration of animals was incredible. It was the game viewing I've always imagined, giraffes blocking the road, piles of hippos snoozing in green stuff, baby elephants next to the car. We even had hippos nudging tents at the stunning riverside Wildlife Camp. The only bad thing about being there was the fact that we were 6 hours away from the nearest tarmac and had to go back the way we came.
As you travel through Zambia you are constantly reminded of how poor the country is. Dan was followed a kilometre back to camp by a kid who had asked for a pen and was willing to do a 2 km round trip just for a pen. At our most recent grocery stop lots of left over stale bread was given to the guys hanging around our bus. It's quite humbling to see men get so excited over slightly mouldy bread. You quickly realize how privileged we are. Apples with a few bruises that get looked at and then put back by everyone on our bus are seen as a real treat by kids with no shoes. Life expectency here is 33.
