The Zambezi Queen

 Yesterday was a full day of travel to reach the Queen.  We started at 7 with a ride to Cape Town airport flying to Victoria Falls, Botswana with COVID results in hand.  This was our last trip with driver Sean who has been incredibly friendly and easy to talk with.  For the first time since we arrived in Cape Town Table Mountain is clear with no clouds.  Our flight on a small regional jet took 3.5 hours and was less than half full.  










Once we landed in Botswana it was immigration, customs, purchase a double entry visa and load into a van. We drove along the main highway passing trucks carrying cargo from country to country with villages on one side and national forest on the other of Teak trees.  It is nearing the end of dry season and they look dead but will green up in wet season November to April.





We pass through Zambia and back into Botswana each time having to fill out a health form and showing passport.  We even had to each take a rapid COVID test in Zambia to continue. After about two hours of van travel we reach the Chobe River.  Another health form and passport check and into a boat.  We take the boat 10 minutes up the river and walk a dirt path to Namibia immigration and fill out another health form.


Monkeys in the Teak tree.


File back into the same jet boat and they take us to the Zambezi Queen.  We are welcomed with singing and a crowd of AMA staff.  There are 13 Ama people to our 10 guests.  This is the most relaxing feel yet. Namibia became a country in 1990 from what used to be German Southwest Africa.  There is a beautiful sunset and the air turns cool.  We pass herds of elephants, see some giraffes, impala and lots of birds along the water.  

Botswana immigration office


Jet boats to take us to Namibia immigration and then to Queen.

We get an informative talk about the country of Namibia and introduction to all the staff and dinner at 7.  Too much food for this late and I try to limit the amount but try everything.  Namibia became an independent country in 1990 and used to be known as German Southwest Africa.  We are in the “panhandle “ which is just the Chobe River with Botswana to the South and Zambia to the North.


Namibia flag at immigration office 

We have a room on the water level with a lounge chair on the balcony .  I was tired and fell asleep by 9.  Next time I wake up at 2:30 and had trouble going back to sleep so I went out on the balcony and slept on the lounge chair for awhile. It was surprisingly comfortable and I had a blanket for warmth. The stars are incredible and it’s fun to pick out satellites from the stars.  There are frogs croaking, water lapping against the boat and occasional grunts from other animals.  I returned to the bed for awhile and went back out around 4:30.  The stars are fading, the frogs quiet and I start hearing lots of birds.  What an incredible experience!  



Thee Queen travels along a small distance on the Chobe, turns around and goes back and forth from 7am to 7 pm. At night they are required to anchor and several fellows hook up a line that goes out to a generator on shore.  Twice a day we convert from a generator on board to a generator on sure. As we travel along the river Internet service is very intermittent. The antenna is also on shore and the further we go we lose connection, which is slow, when present.  Makes it difficult to get photos downloaded and blog written.

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