Road to Kazungula & River Crosssing to Botswana - September 2

The hour and a half drive from Livingstone to the Zambezi River crossing to Kazungula revealed very primitive living conditions for the Zambian people. We passed numerous small villages with round mud and straw huts, billboards promoting the campaign against corruption, and a compound owned by a chief with five wives and 25 children - must be a Mormon missionary! Kazungula is the only place on the planet where the borders of four countries meet - Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia. It was a scene from National Geographic - natives in colorful dress with baskets and reeds on their heads, transporting stuffed bags and suitcases and other cargo. Hundreds of semi-trucks lined both sides of the river for as far as the eye could see. Many of them would wait for days to get from one side to the other on the single ferry. The scene was chaotic with no evidence of organization. Without our driver/guide, I hate to think of how long and how many bribes it would have taken to get across the river.

Our driver proceeded through the border gates, driving directly to the Zambezi River's edge. When we emerged from our van, we were surrounded by natives trying to sell their carvings or simply asking for a handout. Our driver escorted us to the immigration office where we got our passports stamped and then returned to the river's edge where a small boat with awning was waiting to load us and our luggage for crossing the Zambezi to the Botswana shores. It is amazing that clearing customs and reaching the Botswana shores only took about 30 minutes. We were greeted by our Chobe Marina Lodge representative, loaded into our 4X4, directed through Botswana immigration and whisked to the lodge for the first of two safaris.