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Perth CBD, Western Australia, 5pm <\/em><\/p>\n Going away\u2026 lunch over\u2026 desk packed up and all work assignments finished:\u00a0 it was officially my last day as a nine-to-five public servant.\u00a0 In four hours\u2019 time, I\u2019d be on a plane and heading to Zambia to start my new life as an Overland Tour Leader with Acacia Africa.\u00a0 Sounds a lot more exciting, doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n \u00a0Livingstone, Zambia, two days later<\/em><\/p>\n After watching a spectacular African sunset over the Zambezi river, I had a sip of my Mosi lager and marvelled at how lucky I was to have an opportunity to work in such a spectacular part of the world.\u00a0 My first tour as a Trainee Guide will depart from Livingstone and over 19 days travel to Cape Town, South Africa.\u00a0 I have two crew members to learn from \u2013 TJ and Khumbu \u2013 and nine passengers on the trip; a little nervous about what to expect \u2013 after all, how many first days at work last for 19 days? \u2013 but excited too!<\/p>\n \u00a0On tour<\/em><\/p>\n After learning about the preliminary paperwork and necessary preparations for departure, the first stop was one of the natural wonders of the world: Victoria Falls.\u00a0 Then, in Rumphi \u2013 all Acacia trucks are named after African rivers \u2013 we drove onwards and crossed the border into Botswana for two nights in Kasane.\u00a0 The big wish from our passengers was to see some elephants on our first game drive and Chobe National Park didn\u2019t disappoint.\u00a0 An absolutely magical afternoon of watching three elephants wrestling and playing in the river had everyone thrilled, especially me!\u00a0 It\u2019s not only great to watch such amazing animals in the wild but to see your passengers having such a genuinely great day makes it even better.<\/p>\n \u00a0After Kasane, it was on to Maun for our trip into the Okavango Delta.\u00a0 As part of my training, I\u2019d been studying up on the wildlife found in the area and was looking forward to spotting some of the new birds, frogs, flowers and bugs I\u2019d learnt about.\u00a0 I must say, the view from my mokoro on the relaxing ride in, sure beat my previous office window\u2026\u00a0 The traffic was much better too…<\/p>\n \u00a0After an enjoyable night in the bush \u2013 where I took carefully notes about what to pack and how to cook in such a remote camp site \u2013 we headed onto Ghanzi to learn about the San Bushmen and then through to Windhoek, Namibia.\u00a0 Here, we picked up a few more passengers and said goodbye to one, and I learnt more about how Acacia\u2019s tours work; offering a variety of trip lengths and start\/finish locations to suit passengers\u2019 travel needs.\u00a0 In Etosha, I learnt how to guard garlic bread from mischievous jackals; our passengers added to their elephant viewing experiences with a pretty special lunch break in the company of a herd of elephants; many patient hours were spent watching the campsite\u2019s waterhole every night; and the highlight, was a pride of lions spotted on the way out.<\/p>\n \u00a0We then spent a night under the stars in Spitzkoppe, and a few days in Swakopmund \u2013 relaxing for some and adrenaline pumping for those who skydived,\u00a0sand boarded\u00a0and quadbiked.\u00a0 We laughed till we cried listening to one passenger\u2019s tales of sandboarding in the dunes and all had to agree: it\u2019s something everyone must try.\u00a0 Having been on these trips myself, it brings back good memories hearing how the passengers all en joyed their day.<\/p>\n After an enjoyable desert walk, and time spent at Dune 45, Deadvlei and Sossusvlei \u2013 yes, more beautiful sand dunes too climb \u2013 the tour headed to Fish River Canyon, then on to South Africa.\u00a0 On this leg, I took careful note of the fabulous showers and pools at campsites, and the best stop for delicious homemade apple pie\u2026<\/p>\n After a day canoeing in Orange River, we spent the last night with a rowdy celebration at Highlanders and were joined by Acacia staff Becs and Lauren from whom I\u2019ve been learning about the company and job and getting lots of helpful tips about life on the road!<\/p>\n The tour wrapped up in Cape Town and I think all in all I\u2019ve been extremely lucky to have such great passengers and to get so much advice from a variety of other staff members.\u00a0 I survived my first trip (admittedly more comfortably after buying a pillow and cosy feather duvet!) and can\u2019t wait for the next one!\u00a0 All in all, I think it\u2019s a good trade from life in an eleventh floor office cubicle\u2026 J<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Perth CBD, Western Australia, 5pm Going away\u2026 lunch over\u2026 desk packed up and all work assignments finished:\u00a0 it was officially my last day as a nine-to-five public servant.\u00a0 In…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3838,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,30,9,16,32,18,26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-acacia","category-botswana","category-guest-posts","category-namibia","category-overland","category-south-africa","category-zambia"],"yoast_head":"\n