Namibian Village and Final Game Drive

Waking up at 5:30 AM and riding in a freezing, open air Land Rover had lost its novelty, so a number of us slept in for the morning.  Our group activity today was to visit a real African village in Namibia - just across the river.  Of course, since you're crossing borders, we had to visit the government offices exiting Zambia, entering Namibia, exiting Namibia and re-entering Zambia.  So a lot of our day was spent in a queue to get our passports stamped, but it was still worth it.

After the first two government offices, we had a 10 minute walk from the boat landing to a village on the island of Impalala.  This was the real deal - mud huts with corrugated aluminum or thatched roofs, goats, lambs and chickens running around, and a single water tap in the middle of the village.  There  were probably 60 houses in all, housing approximately 500 inhabitants.  When we arrived, a few children greeted us, and our guide had some candy for them.  Bryce also brought a few toy cars along to give to the kids, and they were thrilled (although Bryce later felt "both happy and sad" about giving away his beloved cars). Some of the kids immediately put them in a wheelbarrow and watched them roll up and down.  It was a great gift for them.

A village child with his new toy car

Inside a village hut

This gives you a feel for the village

The village has a fallen Baobab tree in the middle of it, but in spite of the horizontal angle of the main trunk, it was still thriving.  Baobab trees are very special, as they have huge, thick trunks, and can be three thousand years old.

In front of the Baobab tree

After returning through two more government checkpoints, we had a quick lunch and had our last game drive.  Since we ran late, we weren't a part of the 3PM exodus of Land Rovers, and we had our own less crowded drive.  After yesterday's amazing boat ride, we figured we had seen everything, so this one was going to be more relaxed.  It was still incredible though. We watched a herd of young male elephants for 30 minutes or so.  A couple of them fought, and one walked right up to one of the Land Rovers, and temporarily got his trunk caught in the antenna.

Close encounter of the elephant kind

We also encountered a journey of giraffe (yes, a group of giraffes is called a "journey").  A few of them would gallop along for us, and watching them run was a real treat.

Journeying giraffes

Another treat was a herd of about 150 baboons, all traveling together.  (I don't know the correct name for multiple baboons, so "herd" it is). The coolest part was watching the babies cling to the mommas.  Some rode underneath, some rode on top, and some just galloped alongside.

Baby riding on momma baboon

Back at the Chobe lodge, Bryce photographed some of the monkeys and baboons as they caused  trouble in the open air dining hall.

A vervet monkey where he shouldn't be.

And of course, another awesome sunset:

Sunset over the Chobe river