After a week in the Cape Town office being taught the ‘behind the scenes’ of overlanding – accounting, budgeting, checking equipment and preparing the next truck – it was time to set off on trip number two.
With 21 passengers, it was a much larger group than my last trip so shopping, cooking and general organisation would be a bit different. It was also good to see how different tour guides plan and organise their clients and the trip. I only spent two days on this trip and it was a fun time – after wine tasting at Highlanders on night one, then a campfire singalong and group dance lesson at Orange River, I think that group was set to party all the way to Livingstone!
After two days on tour I said goodbye to the group and rejoined TJ’s truck to commence a transit to Nairobi. A transit is when an empty truck is driven to its next departure point and in this case we needed to take a truck to Nairobi as extra trips will be running from there in the high season.
There were some long days of driving but I was glad to be able to pass through the Caprivi Strip – an area I’ve always wanted to go – and check out the northern bushveld stretch of Namibia. Also interesting was passing through the remote villages at night and seeing people cooking and socialising: it was an interesting glimpse into life in these remote areas. The drive time was also useful for me to be able to read up on the history and geography of the areas Acacia visits, as well as brushing up on my animal knowledge in preparation for the game drives coming up on my next trip.
Once in Livingstone, we picked up another Acacia driver named Duncan who’d be coming to Nairobi for the next trip as well. We spent a few days there, where I met lots of other drivers and guides, heard stories from the road and learnt how to make a simple but extremely tasty steak marinade – an excellent braai!
Next we headed north to stay a few nights with some friends of TJ’s – Charlie and Etienne – two former crew members who worked for Acacia for a number of years. They live and work in rural Zambia managing a cooperative of ten farms. Learning about the farms was really interesting – particularly tobacco farming and the processes behind that. Charly and Etienne’s hospitality and advise was truly appreciated and I hope to revisit that part of Zambia and see another spectacular sunset!
A few more long days of driving, then we reached the Snake Park where I met Ma and BJ, who run an excellent campsite which I’ve heard other guides refers to as their ‘home away fro home’ – I can now see why: great place, great company and a few rowdy nights in the bar was a welcome relief from driving… J And then onwards to Nairobi to get ready for the trip!
Wildlife and beaches – it’s great to be back!
My next trip involved myself taking on a lot more responsibility for the group, so I started my planning early. Which was lucky – with all the chatting and beer drinking to be done, it was hard to get a menu written without interruptions at the campsite in Nairobi!
Prepared with menu written, budget worked out, pre-departure notes ready and paperwork all printed and ready to go, I was ready to get the trip underway. My first pre-departure meeting went well, the group seemed nice and I felt organised and prepared. Little did I know, nothing ever goes that smoothly…
The next ten days or so saw a passenger not show up – rendering all my pre-prepared budgeting useless – a flat tire, an overheated van, a van battery die just metres from a pride of lions (luckily this could be fixed from within the car!), a mystery mechanical problem along the bumpy road to the Mara, a few unwell passengers, a passenger need to leave early, a passenger/police run in… not quite the smooth sailing of my previous trip!
But you know what? Though all that the passengers always kept a smile on their faces and a positive attitude, and were rewarded with fantastic game drives (two leopards, up close napping cheetah, a pride of lions feasting on a wildebeest, a lion up a tree, a serval, interactions between some hungry lions and thirsty wildebeest and an adrenaline filled elephant interaction for one vehicle), great weather, great service, great food and good traffic. And from my point of view, I’ve learnt how to handle a whole variety of new situations!
Currently we are all sitting on a beach in Zanzibar enjoying some afternoon cocktails and getting excited about the snorkel trip tomorrow. I’m stoked to be back in Zanzibar after a number of years and have enjoyed the night market food, discovered a cool new rooftop bar and tomorrow will be heading out for a dive in the crystal clear waters off Mnemba. The good and bad experiences balance out and once I finish a bit of paperwork, I’m free to enjoy the beach – life as a trainee guide is going well, I think!