Fantastic experience in Vic Falls

ere are Tourist Police to look after the tourists and they do their job diligently and efficiently. The hotels are not crowded but tourism seems to be on the increase again thank goodness.
The shops are stocked with a delightful selection of good quality curios and Zimbabwean objects d’art. There are bikes for hire, or beach buggies or trail bikes and go-carts for the rough roads.
The Elephant Hills Hotel is absolutely striking. The decor cleverly incorporates the essence and mystery of Africa and yet remains regal, cool and imposing.
Instead of massed arrangements of flowers, which would have to be imported at great cost from other centres, the hotel uses beautiful soapstone carvings of hippo ponds with tastefully arranged bamboo shoots nestling in the water – subtle and original.
The service is impeccable, the waiters are friendly and attentive to one’s smallest need and yet discreet and highly trained. The food was excellent. We had a full on sit down banquet the first night for the 120 delegates to the conference, served with acceptable local wines or imported wines at a price.
The next night we had a true African experience – the Bush Dinner, served under the stars surrounded by braziers to keep away the cold, with the tables beautifully laid and an excellent array of local and traditional dishes.
Marimbas played and young ebony skinned maidens kept us entertained while we feasted from tables laden with macimbi, mazondo, braised sable, fried kapenta and sadza and relish.
Of course there was plenty of steak and chicken and salad too for the less adventurous. The logistics of serving over 100 people under the stars and the brilliant full moon, in the magical African bush must be seen to be believed.
A sundowner cruise on the might Zambesi River brought back all those memories of days gone by when life was less stressful.
Elephant, hippo, crocodile and bushbuck were apparent and the boat crew kept us entertained with gin slings and river anecdotes.
A morning jog on the golf course was however the “piece de resistance” Bushbuck, duiker, waterbuck and warthog were in abundance, watching me with their deep onyx eyes, suspicious yet unafraid. Those minute mesh spider webs were everywhere glistening with silver dew, hopeful of an early morning ant snack.
Hornbills mewed like babies, vultures soared lazily in the thermals overhead as if trying to compete with the helicopters and microlites which forged backwards and forwards ferrying tourists eager to get an aerial view of the mighty Victoria Falls.
Back in the sumptuous conference rooms, mining matters were discussed heatedly, but all this seemed very far removed from real life.