22nd – To Botswana

Off to Maun in Botswana, the gateway to the Okavango Delta. Our flight strangely went via Victoria Falls in neighbouring Zimbabwe before backtracking to Maun ??!! (no information on our Air Namibia flight about this).

Stayed at a really cute hostel called Old Bridge right on the river outside of Maun. Our little furnished permanent tent was overlooking the river.

Pumping bar where all the locals go (we can't say that wasn't part of our decision to stay there).

That night met a whole lot of people living in Maun, but as it happens not Maun locals – mostly south africans working there as pilots as so many parts of the delta are only accessible by air and there is also a huge business in scenic flights. The pilots were all in their early 20s, getting progressively drunker with the same favourite subject – themselves. Comforting thought that we were heading off on a flight the next morning and they were all working the next day...

Did meet one cool guy, an American called Wilder (yes real name) who decided on a whim to come with us to Oddballs the next day. He was on a short break from working in South Africa and hadn't really organised anything. As it turned out he became our little travel buddy for the next week through Okavango, Chobe and Vic Falls.

Next day – off to Oddballs in the Okavango!

Our pilot, you'll be pleased to know, was luckily not one from the night before and looked quite fresh (josh – he reminded us of Toofer from 30 Rock both in looks and the way he spoke!).

Flight over Okavango to Oddballs. Flew quite low – pretty, but didn't see many animals, though it was the middle of the day when fewer animals are out and about because of the heat.

Arrived at our private airstrip – shortest one in the Okavango apparently, but our pilot dealt with it perfectly. Greeted by a bunch of friendly African faces at the airstrip. Our host, KG (I keep going to call him HG) and our guides. 

A short walk and we were at the lodge – first to the lounge areas rather than our rooms, and OH MY GOD, so beautiful! A set of shacks built from wood and reeds and built around trees to blend perfectly in with the surroundings. They're fully open and set right upon the river, with mokoros (hand-made dugout canoes) floating serenely in the water just ahead. There's a deck above for better viewing of the river and maybe hippos!

Old Bridge backpackers, in Maun

Staff nice and happy to share their knowledge about this beautiful place. KG is quite a joker always telling us there's a lion around the corner or some other tale to try to scare us.

Afternoon mokoro ride - just anna and me and the guide who punts us around like a gondola ride really. Through the beautiful lilypads and reeds, and hippo infested waters – totally scary as we could hear them grunting around us! 

Then a walk, yes a walk, around Chief's Island where there are potentially all sorts of scary animals. Just a guide with no gun or phone and us. We felt no less concerned after hearing the brief talk from our guide about which way and how to run from various sorts of animals (zig zag downwind [now how to tell that when there is no breeze], up a tree etc - but apparently you don't run from a lion even if it's right in front of you! Quite an adrenalin filled walk although we didn't see anything too scary, just some impala and a couple of monkeys shimmying up a tree.

Back before sunset when the crazy hippos fully wake up and start to rule the waterways!!

After a yummy dinner KG told us there were elephants in the camp. After his crying wolf occasions before, we though he was joking, but off we went and a huge ellie was just by the kitchen! We heard another one splashing around the water nearby. At bedtime, the water ellie was very nearby and it stayed there for hours munching on the reeds and making lots of noise, while there was another one just outside our bathroom, stomping and crashing through the brush which was a little disconcerting given our 'bathroom' was essentially just an open shack built of bamboo set on wooden deck over the [elephant and hippo-filled] water, and our accommodation was a tent on the same deck. They never seemed scary before but they are so huge close up, and our mind was fresh with tales of young bull elephants (which these were) cluelessly crashing through brush and knocking trees. We did get to sleep though and the sounds of the splashing elephant, and later the grunting shuffling hippos out around our tent for a feed, were interesting accompaniments.

Next day, more beautiful mokoro rides paired with island walks. Walks much less scary now - amazing what becomes normal after you've tried it once. Mokoro rides always serene but with an undercurent of potential angry hippo action. Didn't see much in the way of wildlife but it was such a gorgeous place.