Lufupa and Kafue Rivers Sept 5 Friday

Today we woke up to the safari alarm clock of lions, hippos, and elephants. Our first activity was a cruise on the Lufupa River to see hippos, crocodiles, birds, and an elephant. We loaded into two pontoon type boats and immediately came across a big pod of hippos just entering the water after feeding on land all night. We saw about 10-12 hippos and a couple little babies. The babies were adorable, but the mamas would have chomped us in two if we had fallen into the water. Mind you, she would not have eaten us because she’s a vegetarian, but she would have made two pieces out of us. They can hold their breath for 4-6 minutes, so they were bobbing up and down, all while keeping a very watchful eye on the two boats nearby. We kept quite a distance from them.

Hippo warning us to not come any closer

We saw three pods of hippos on our route up the river. Along the way we saw a few crocodiles, several log-idiles (logs that looked like crocs) and some Puku antelope, African Fish Eagles, African Darters, Saddle-Billed Storks, and White Fronted Bee Eaters. It’s a bird lover’s paradise out here by the river. We came across a giant old elephant who was wading in the water having his breakfast and we sat and watched him for a bit. It really is fascinating to see them up close in their natural habitat. He is well known to the camp, and our guides said because of his age and declining health, he now lived a solitary life away from the herd he once inhabited. This is common behavior until they die. So he just strolls around wherever he pleases and eats whatever he wants. Kinda like hippo retirement. When we returned from our trip up the river, he was on the trail to our cabins, so we were held hostage in the lodge for a bit. We saw him and another elephant in camp off and on for the next several hours before they went to take afternoon naps in the shade somewhere.

Elephant having breakfast giving us the side-eye

In the afternoon we had a discussion about Zambian culture with Julian, our camp manager, who is a native Zambian. She has a degree in Hospitality Management and is just a lovely young lady. It was fascinating to hear the differences between our cultures. The elders of the community are quite revered and respected here, and given deferential treatment by all others. They are honored, looked to for their knowledge and experience, and well cared for. Julian also taught us about their “chitenge” cloth that has many uses including clothing, carrying babies, linens, storing things, hair wraps, carrying things, and diapers. It’s a brightly patterned multi-use cloth that ranges from two to four yards in size. She also showed us how they make peanut butter with a mortar and pestle, no sugar or anything else added, and it was delicious. They grow and use peanuts in many of their dishes.

Julian making peanut butter

In the evening we set out on our sunset river cruise on the Kafue River to watch for animals and have a sundowner. It was an absolutely beautiful evening on the river where we almost saw a leopard. I think I saw his feet through the bushes, but can’t be sure. Better luck the rest of the week!

After dinner, we had a cultural exchange out by the fire pit, where the camp staff performed traditional Zambian songs and dances. We were expected to perform something from our culture for them, and we had quite a time coming up with something. Ideas ranged from the electric slide and other “wedding” songs and dances to the National Anthem. We settled on “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and while we managed to get through it, it was probably not the best performance they had seen. (Sorry for any typos, about to lose the inter webs.)