Victoria Falls

Thank you all for your kind messages of support for the project, my time here and interest in Africa generally. I am still in Zambia so thought a few words about my travels may help those keen readers who may be considering coming here for either volunteer work or travel.
I have done a tour before in Africa but really, I only actually FELT the true Africa this time. I have been travelling on public bus alone, using the same taxi’s as any local and walking the streets of villages, Livingstone and Lusaka. Of course you need to have your wits about you - ie. dont carry valuables and blend in... I do feral pretty well so wasn’t hard for me! Of course there are some parts of Lusaka that are best left alone, so don’t go there, but for the most part I have had no dramas what-so-ever. Not sure what happened at the Lusaka bus depot when a bloke was bleeding from the mouth going off but not my business – had just negotiated a good cab fair with some guy so was happy that he was looking after me.
The way to get around is by taxi. If you find a driver who speaks good English and negotiates a good rate, stick with him. They want your business so generally wont let you down if you are giving them work. My driver was fantastic and never missed a minute to pick me up as I asked. I stayed at Marumba Lodge which was incredible, but, perhaps not ideal for the lone traveller like me as it was very quiet on the social scene with mainly family guests. I’ve heard many happy people brag about a backpackers, Jollyboys, so would go there next time.
My research prior to coming here pretty well relied on Bradt, trip advisor and experiences from friends that are living here. I give Bradt a big thumbs up – for the first thing it got me out of bed nice and early to see the sun rise over Victoria Falls! Ok, there was no one else there for about 20 minutes, including the staff, but this is Africa time so I just got a bit of a laugh out of it. They did however arrive in time for me to get into the park with plenty of time to see the sunrise over the falls – definitely worth while and I hope my pictures can explain why... amazing. Lots and lots of mist but the cameras are OK under the rain jackets they provide.
The Falls are massive and you can’t see them from the ground as such, just the other side of the cliff that the falls is broken away from. Zambia has a tiny part of them and you need to cross the border to Zimbabwe to see the rest – not sure if worth it or not. I walked all the park on the Zambia side which was incredible enough and took a good hour and a half – another hour would have been nice to really stop and smell the mist but had a helicopter to catch...
Apart from the rude English lady who almost refused to get on the helicopter because she didn’t get a window seat the heli ride was amazing (Her husband got front seat and she was complaining! First in best dressed.) A very quick trip, but they loop around the falls a few times from either side. My pictures should explain it all anyway.
So in a big nutshell – thats Vic Falls! I could go on about Livingstone and how I almost died in my white water rafting experience but I wont now, if you want to know ask!