Hello everyone- happier news to report! We have spent the weekend at Livingstone and seen Victoria Falls - 1.7 km. wide - makes Niagara seem like a trickle. We did the whole experience - all the trails and look-outs and got thoroughly soaked. It has taken 3 days for my running shoes to dry. We stayed at the CARE guesthouse - basic but clean with wonderful friendly caretakers. On Sunday, we went to Chobe National Park in Botswana for the day. Jess knew the tour manager for an adventure tour and we had a wonderful adventure. We spent the morning on the Chobe river, watching hippo crocs, black mamba snakes, elephants and impala. The birds were fantastic - too many to name! Lunch was at a wonderful lodge beside the river and then we did the "game drive " in the afternoon - saw herds of elephants, giraffe and impala and kudu. We travelled in an open safari 4x4 truck- you do NOT get out of the truck! Our guide told great stories and was great at finding everything - even a huge flock of marabou storks and at the end - two baby hyena and the mum, hiding in a concrete culvert! Jessica is a fantastic tour guide- bargaining with taxi drivers, advising on how to dress and what to watch for (pickpockes!) and knows the ins and outs of all the taxi/mini-bus/ coach bus details. Her little flat is lovely, in a guarded compound with friendly staff and beautiful flowereing trees.
On Monday, we wnt to Monze Mission Hospital - 4 hours from Livingstone - and had a tour of the facility. It was fabulous- clean and extensive and very friendly staff. It is a series of low bungalows, each for a different purpose- men's ward, women's ward, tb ward, AIDS counselling, etc. We visited four tiny waifs in the malnutrition ward. One baby was 18 months and looked as though he was 4 months old.- So sad. We delivered the flanellette baby blankets (thank you Kate and Oma!) and creams and ointments from Huronlea . The confiscated meds (a huge suitcase ) will apparently be given to the hospital when they can send someone to fetch it from the drug enforcement police. We have given the administraor a list, so hopefully most of it will make it to Monze. There is so much corruption here that someone else may end up enjoying the antibiotics and cough meds! Today- we are banking but there is a bomb scare at one bank we walked to, so we are on our way to another. We are trying to get together enough cash to buy 100 blankets. I brought travellers cheques but only one bank will cash them and only $300 at a time- each day! Very frustrating. Howver we have our bank cards with us, so between us, we will have enough cash to get the blankets- on order from a local shop like the Giant Tiger or Biway. Tomorrow we go to Flying Angels and on Thursday to Kondwa. We are excited about delivering the big suitcase of school supplies and the teddy bears and blankets!
Hope all is well with all of you!
God Bless- H.