VICTORIA FALLS, ZIMBABWE: Guest Post by Karen Minkowski

Young male giraffes, Zambezi National Park, Zimbabwe.

My friend Karen Minkowski, a frequent contributor to The Intrepid Tourist and definitely an intrepid traveler, is currently in Africa, a place that she has visited often. She spent the month of December in and around Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. She begins her report: 

Since late November I’ve been living in Victoria Falls, a small tourist city just across the Zambezi River from Zambia. Two national parks, Zambezi NP on the west, Victoria Falls NP to the east, surround most of the city. Fences only partially separate Park lands from commercial/residential areas, so walking on the edge requires alertness. Baboons and warthogs move through the commercial and residential areas, mostly unharassed, though people understandably chase baboons from their vegetable gardens. Baboons will go after women – not men - carrying shopping bags. A large male baboon followed me once, too close. I was trying to figure out where to take refuge until a human male noticed and offered to walk me to my gate. Elephants and buffalo often wander through town at night. Recently, lions were sighted in town, attracted by buffalo. Elephants and lions very occasionally kill humans, usually when someone is chasing an elephant raiding a garden or is trying to protect their livestock from a lion attack. Overall, Victoria Falls is quite wildlife tolerant – tourism is a huge source of foreign exchange and employment.

Giant kingfisher.

A full report of Karen's recent activities, including excursions into nearby Zambezi National Park, filled with a description of her activities and her wonderful photographs, is HEREas a PDF.  There are incredible close-ups of birds--Karen is a devoted bird-watcher with patience to catch the birds at their best--and other wildlife. Karen's text makes you feel as if you are a vicarious visitor too. Enjoy!

A white-backed vulture tries to grab some meat from a marabou stork.

White-backed vultures and a marabou stork.

Chameleon