New Years at Victoria Falls

When I left Kenya in September 2005 I was pretty content with what I had seen during my time in Africa. I had hiked the mountains of Kilimanjaro and Kenya, explored the beaches of Zanzibar, and seen countless wildlife in places like the Serengeti plains. One destination that I had considered visiting, but didn’t because of its distance away was Victoria Falls. Little did I know that I would be spending my New Years there in 15-months time.

Victoria Falls proved to one of those places that you go to with medium-to-high expectations and then still manage to be impressed when you finally see it. The first thing that struck me was how wide it was (1.7 kilometres), although it wasn’t possible to see the full distance across because of the spray and mist coming from the Falls. Also, with Zambia being so flat I wasn’t expecting to see the impressive Batoka Gorge that followed. Certainly a place worthy of its inclusion as one of the world’s natural wonders.

Of course, one can’t spend all day at the Falls. Fortunately, there was no shortage of things to do around Livingstone, including such adrenaline activities as white-water rafting and bungee jumping. Acting my age for a change, I contented myself with a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River. I went by myself and quickly got acquainted with the bartender. My recent activities in Zambia had caused me to question whether I had developed immunity to alcohol. It seemed like the only sensation I would get from drinking beer is feeling bloated. In order to test this theory I did an experiment with rum (doubles) and coke. I was quickly able to conclude that without a doubt I was not immune to alcohol. Anyways, there would be no sunset to view on the cruise that evening, so the highlights were the hippos lazing in the water and the Russian couple sitting next to me at the bar.

This was the beginning of what would prove to be a very interesting night out in Livingstone. Sadly, I won’t divulge what events took place, due to a self-imposed blog story size limitation and also because I know my parents will be reading this. Let’s just say that when I awoke the next morning and looked around my hotel room one of my first coherent thoughts was “Livingstone, I presume” (sorry, I couldn’t resist using that line). The next evening was New Years Eve and I drank Coca Cola (without rum) with my dinner and by 11:00 p.m. I was fast asleep. So concluded my memorable New Years weekend in Livingstone and at Victoria Falls.