Elephants & Waterfalls: The Road from Gaborone to #JVFC
Written by Tendai Chitombo
The time had arrived for the annual Jameson Vic Falls Carnival 2015, and all roads where leading to the small resort town of Victoria Falls. As an avid MAPP Africa user, I was happy to be informed about the free ticket give away to the “best new year carnival in Africa”. Naturally expectations were high about my chances of winning, but I came to realize that I had given myself false expectations as the days went by and the competition got so intense. After an intense 20 days of fierce competitions from other MAPP competitors, I came a distant forth and lost out on the give-away. However, that did not dampen my spirits as this trip had long been planned.
Accommodation had been booked months in advance and we had a crew of 6 coming from Gaborone, Botswana to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. A one-way trip is 990km of driving, making the total roundtrip journey 1980km.
Our next stop was Francistown, the second biggest city in Botswana and approximately 440km from Gaborone. We continued north towards Kazungula, where the borders of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe all meet at the same place. The 490km between Francistown to Kazungula consists of a game park, where there are plenty of wild animals and signs warning people not to stop.
Taking a break after 500km, somewhere between Francistown and Kazungula.
One of numerous warning signs regarding the wildlife in the area.
Daddy elephant in front, followed by the baby and mum at the back. They almost brought our journey to an end. One came charging at our car whilst we were at stand still and we had to reverse the car back.
This Giraffe randomly ran across the road.
We eventually arrived in Victoria Falls in the afternoon and checked into our lodge. As the sole driver throughout the journey, I passed out as the rest of the crew went out to have fun. The following day, we went to see the famous Victoria Falls.
The majestic Victoria Falls.
This bridge has plenty of history, this where the initial declaration of the internal peace settlement of Zimbabwe was negotiated.
The musicians were on spot..ANARK, MANGO GROOVE, DILOXCLUSIV, GOODLUCK, JASON LE ROUX AND JUDGEMENT YARD.
Me with the MAPP Africa crew at JVFC 2015, best crew ever!
MANGO GROOVE, they were brilliant.
GOODLUCK performing, taking us into the New Year, 2016!
It should be noted that they was heavy police presence during the event and thankfully nothing happened that warranted police intervention. The music was great and it is indeed a must-go event for new years. We enjoyed the concert till the early morning when, sadly, we had to leave.
I can only hope and wonder what will be in store at the next carnival, JVFC 2016. As for MAPP Africa, I hope everyone downloads the app and enjoys it. There is something for everyone and it makes one appreciate this continent of ours, that is AFRICA.
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