Angola to Zambia

Hallo from Malawi…

We finally made it in Zambia and enjoyed the country and its people so much!! However, the signal was not so great in Zambia and airtime expensive. So could not post anything. Arrived yesterday in Malawi and finally some decent wifi. We are now on our way to Cape Maclear at the Malawi Lake. We are so far from home now and about one month past since we left South Africa!

Angola was an adventure. It is definitely not a tourist country and the language barrier makes it really hard. You don’t have to look hard to find negative things but I will try and focus and also remember the positive. My heart goes out to the people in Angola. They don’t deserve this. Many in villages are so poor and for some reason they still survive with the bare minimum in the harshest environments. Even in the desert area close to the coastal region you see people living and doing their daily work. In the valleys between mountains, farming gets more productive and on a bigger scale. But still it seems that nothing is being done on a global scale and is only provided for the communities. I think Angola is all about the oil and this is what resulted in the huge gap between rich and poor. Also, the effect of the war is still showing. Even after the South African forces were retrieved in the 70’s, the Cubans and Russians were still fighting. It seems like Angola is still struggling to recover from the war. Also, there are not many animals left. Even at night when we drove we only saw rabbits. Landmines still remain a problem but currently they are busy with deactivation projects as we saw on the Angola news. But I think apart from these obstacles, Angola has so much to offer and can be a major holiday destination. The country is so diverse: From jungle to desert and to beautiful white beaches. But like everything in Africa, improvement will take time.

So getting from Kwanza in Angola to Zambia was super hard and a psychological challenge. We drove from Kwanza along the coast and from there inland to Quibala. This was all done in about 7 hours. The route was lovely as soon as you go inland from Sumbe. The next photo was a stopover on our way to Sumbe.

A lot of trees and hills when when we went inland from Sumbe and we came across a beautiful waterfall next to the road – Waterfall do Binga. About 200kw entrance but well worth it and can have a look from above and below. Also, a hot spring a bit off-road but we did not have time to visit that.

Quibala is a beautiful little town with friendly locals. You can see the war also had its effect here. We came across what looks like a russian tank.

We bush camped at Pensao Pedras Soltas. Basically, its in a big yard with a few buildings where people live. There is a gate in front but it remains open and all sorts of vehicles went in and out throughout the night. Don’t know why. Also a local bar across the street. Mario and his sister lives there who is in charge of the place with a restaurant. They came to talk to us (we used google translate) and we invited them to have a few shots of Jägermeister with us. In return we asked for some café (coffee). They made us the best espresso!

The next morning we had an eggrole and coffee and headed for bridge 14 on the way to Waku Kungo. Bridge 14 is where the South African military build a bridge in the 70’s to move over the river in an effort to push the enemy back. Unfortunately, we could not find it!? We drove every direction we could think of but were unsuccessful. The chinese are busy rebuilding that road and the remainings may be moved. Or the coordinates could be wrong. So, from there we turned back to Quibala and headed for Luena. That’s where the long journey started. We drove about 29 hours in 500km without any sleep. It’s definitely the worst road we came across. I realize how often we say that for every road, but this one completely drains you. There is no place to sleep along the road because of the single track (mostly 4×4), dense vegetation and danger of landmines. So its pushing forward little by little.

We arrived at 17h00 in the city of Luena. I think it can be classified as a city. We were so tired that we booked ourselves into a hotel (Hotel Kawissa). Very expensive for what you get. Cost 2200 kw for a room. Meal was not included and cost 1300 kw (“cow meat” with egg on top). No gin available so I brought my own. Bathroom not in great condition, but we were happy with getting some well deserved rest. Note to ourselves: we always fell in the trap of paying too much when overly tired.

We woke up early the next morning and left Luena at 07h00 to get to the border of Zambia quickly. Huge mistake: we did another night of driving for about 700km without sleep. We arrived at 16h00 at Luau (border town of DRC) on reasonable tarred road. From there we drove through the night on 4×4 sand road to the border of Zambia at around 15h00 the next day (22 June). When we heard the words “welcome in our country” in english, we felt immediately at home.

We arrived at about 18h00 at Zambezi and bush camped at Zambezi Motel (100 zkw per tent) with a stunning view over the Zambezi river. The guy there was so friendly and went out of his way to accommodate us. He opened a room for us to use the bathroom and brought us a bucket of warm water to shower. The next day was operation cleaning. The Angola roads had its effect on the hilux. Dust everywhere and we needed to reorganize our luggage. We also realized the previous day that one end of the aluminium roof rack came loose where it was welded together. Also the front aluminum bar where the gas bottles are, bended. First time we saw aluminum bend. So, the rack was fixed by drilling holes and bolted it together. The canopy of the toyota was becoming a irritation and we don’t use it. So, we took it off and left it there. Paying for camping was a problem since we couldn’t find an ATM along the way. After packing up we went to the bank in Zambezi and had to wait about 2h since the bank had no money. This is also the only bank in town.

We left Zambezi about 15h00 and headed for the town of Mongu (Capital of the western province in Zambia). The road to Mongu was beautiful. Very narrow single track through dense vegetation and crossing a branch of the Zambesi river (Kasesi river) by ferri (150zkw). Because of out late departure from Zambezi we arrived at about 12:00am at Ikithe Luxury Resort. Gates closed so we had to bush camp in front of the gate. Ikithe as the name says, is luxurious and provided us with some beautiful pictures and a breakfast (first breakfast where we got a starter breakfast as well; 80 zkw pp) the next morning.

That morning we made the arrangement that our long road journeys were something of the past and from now on less driving and more camping. We arrived at Kafue national park at about 18h00 that day and chose the best camping place right on the river banks where we can spot the activity of all the hippos. What I like about this time of the year is that we are mostly the only people camping and can get all the nice camping spots. Kafue national park is the oldest park in Zambia (established in the 50’s) and one of the largest parks in the world (22400 square kilometers). We camped in the northern part of the park in Mayukuyuku lodge for 2 nights. The next afternoon at 17h00 – 19h00 we went for the best safari game drive so far. Our requirement to the guide was to see an elephant and lion. That is what exactly what happened! Immediately as we turned on the tarred road we spotted the female elephant about 30 years old. She was not very impressed with us and was shaking her head, pulling out pushes and even stormed at us. A few minutes after that we were lucky to drive behind a lioness that was busy stalking an impala. In the end she was unsuccessful in catching the impala. That night we made a big campfire to talk about the successful game drive but mostly for protection against cold and animals. The cost for camping at Kafue is a bit ridiculous. This is the outlay of our cost per person for one night: park entry fee: $15; vehicle fee (only pay for one person): $15; camping fee: 31zkw; camping: $25; night drive: $45. Don’t know why they can’t stick to one currency. Luckily the game drive made up for everything.

From Kafue to the capital, Lusaka. We arrived at 14h00 and the friendly guys at Toyoto did a service without booking. Already drove 9200km from South Africa!. Replaced front and back disk pads. I think it is from all the emergency stops we did in Angola. That night we camped at Wanderers Backpackers and Camping. Very cold since we are higher above sea level (over a 1000m). The following day we went to Department of Immigration in Zambia to extend our stay in Zambia. Went faster than we anticipated. Next was Mandahill Mall in Lusaka to buy some supplies (antibacterial ointment for an infected bite I got in Angola) and a quick breakfast at the Spur (300g steak). The best Spur! Had a nice conversation with the owner that originally lived in Brakpan. Lusaka is a really nice city and much more organized than Luanda. Feels more like South Africa but more friendly. However, Lusaka is very corrupt according to the manager of Spur. We haven’t experienced any corruption so far.

We arrived the same day at Kariba Lake at Camping place, Eagle’s Rest. The scenery from Lusaka to Kariba changes dramatically. A lot more green and mountainous terrain. Great for pictures along the way. When you walk into reception of Eagle’s rest camp, you see the Trip Advisor award they won in 2015. Beautiful view over the Lake Kariba. We camped (80zkw pp) right on the lake and bought some real fire wood from one of the local people (100zkw). We decided not to stay two nights since we don’t get the feeling of privacy and being in nature (too much noise at the bar area). I think Kafue park showed us the real camping experience.

The next morning we drove over Kariba dam wall. It is the road towards Zimbabwe border. Therefore, we had to check in and out. But well worth it.

We arrived the same day at about 16h00 (28th of June) at a camping place just 20km before Southern Zambezi National Park (Mvuu lodge and camping). One of Zambia’s newest national parks. You can’t camp inside the park but there are very exclusive lodges inside (one lodge ask about R19000 per night!!). However, our camping place at Mvuu was too much luxury for us ($25 pp per night). Every night the fire was being made up and lit by someone. First night the wood is free. No electricity. Each camping spot has its own open shower and toilet. When its getting dark they bring you a lantern for the bathroom. Even a table (with table cloth) with comfortable chairs. Only camping spot “Mvuu” and “Ellie” have a direct view on the river with private lookout point. Our camping place “lion” was more at the back with no view. They also offer game drives and boat cruises. Ain’t got no time for that. Again, we decided only to stay one night since too many people around and we don’t get the same feeling as in Kafue park.

The next morning at about 09h00 we drove more east to South Luangwa National Park. This is being classified as the best park in Zambia and the park of choice if you want to see leopards. To get to the park we had to drive back north to Lusaka and then east. Lusaka traffic was a nightmare. We drove about 2h to get through the city. It was getting dark quickly and we had to stop for the night at bridge Camp that is situated on the border of Mosambique and just before the bridge that cross Luangwa river.

The next morning we packed up early and drove north all along the park.  Again, we chose the worst road to the park but we saw some elephants along the way. We arrived the 30th at South Luangwa, Wildlife Camp at about 18h00 (camping $10 pp for one night). We needed to recharge our “batteries” and stayed for 3 nights. All the camps is outside of the park and you have to pay the park fees of $20 to enter the park. We saw so many elephants but they are not as big as the Botswana ones. These weigh about 3 tons.

The next eveving (4-8) we went on a game drive ($50 pp). Very informative. The guide was excellent and you can ask him anything. Apart from the bigger animals we also saw the rare Pel’s fishing owl that is the only owl with no silent flight. Don’t need it to catch fish. Unfortunately, we did not spot any leopards.

Till later when I blog about Malawi…