Sunday came, and I had to honor a promise I had made earlier in the week. On Wednesday, I had had a wonderful conversation with Sister Maureen, and as we disembarked from the bus, she asked me if I was going to come to church in Sunday. How could I say “no” to a nun?

Sister Maureen said she would be at the 10:00 am Mass. I showed up around 9:40 because it was a shorter taxi ride than I had anticipated. The previous Mass was still in session, so I was offered a plastic chair in the courtyard, where the overflow crowd sat. The African hymns that were sung by the children’s choir were beautiful.

I was the only white person there, but the congregation was welcoming and friendly, especially during the exchange of peaceful intentions. A number of people came over to shake my hand.

Sister Maureen arrived in the back of the courtyard and I went over to chat with her for a while. It was wonderful to see her again. While we were chatting, a gentleman in khakis and and African designed shirt approached us. Sister Maureen introduced him as the Archbishop. Yes, I got to meet an Archbishop. He was a very nice man.

The previous Mass ran until 10:30. Sister Maureen thanked me for coming, and I didn’t really feel like spending another hour plus there, so I said my goodbyes.

Sister Maureen leaving church. 

Later in the day, I joined four other Jollyboys guests in visiting a local orphanage. The hostel arranges a weekly soccer game for the kids and encourages the guests to come play.

My futbol cohorts were Ed & Matt, two brothers from England who in addition to traveling the continent, brought 100 regulation soccer balls to distribute to orphanages. Ed had raised money to buy the balls. His brother Matt has lived in China for the last seven years, working as an English teacher.

The other couple in my group were Daniel and Keelin, a darling pair who were exploring Africa. Daniel is a tall, long-haired Korean Australian who gained the nickname John Lennon because of his Lennon-esque glasses and long hair. Keelin is also Australian and brings such a wonderfully calm presence to any group she joins.

Team Muzungu (white person in Swahili) arrived at the orphanage and Ed presented ten soccer balls to the orphanage. He asked if we could get pictures of the kids with the balls, but unfortunately their policy is not to allow the kids to be photographed. Completely understandable.

Ed (from England) presenting ten futbols to the women who run the orphanage.

Then, as we prepared to go outside to play, we were advised that the orphanage team has consistently destroyed the visitors. We had a feeling it was going to be a long, very hot afternoon on the pitch.

Since we only had four players (Keelin ended up hanging out with the girls, talking about boys all afternoon), the kids have our team a few extra players.

The game started and it was tightly fought for a while. Team Muzungu was able to score the opening goal. We were fortunate in that two of the kids on our team were very good players, and Ed was also able to hold his own on the pitch and scored three goals. With these superstars, we were able to build an 8-0 lead on the kids. Amazing.

The field was a partially barren, dirt area with the sidelines delineated by where the grass had been recently cut. There were stones, some the size of golf balls, in the dirt. The kids played barefooted and were amazingly agile. I was wearing my hiking boots (the only laced shoes I have on the trip), and I couldn’t help wonder how much pain I would be in if I ran onto one of those stones in my bare feet.

We decided to wrap up the game and announced that the next goal would win. After a few minutes of intense play, the kids scored their first (and winning) goal. They were ecstatic. It was fun to be a part of such a fun game.

As we said goodbye, the kids were all very polite and friendly. It was a great pleasure to have been a part of their day.

That night, one of the orphanage alums, Anxious (yes, that’s his real name), joined us for dinner. Anxious got his name from his father, who anxiously awaited his arrival in the day he was born.

Sarah (from Germany ), you’re truly and Anxious enjoying a Springbok Shooter.

He is a tremendously nice gentleman, and we had a wonderful time with him. He is currently in university and would like to be involved in the running of an orphanage in the future.

All in all, it was a fantastic Sunday, and it was a nice break from my travels and all the activities I’ve been pursuing.

After my adrenaline-filled day of high thrills from the VicFalls Bridge, I decided to step it down a notch for my next adventure.

There is a company called Batoka Sky that provides a number of tourist experiences, but the one activity I wanted to experience the most was to see the falls from a microlight airplane. A microlight is basically a hang-glider outfitted with two seats (one for the pilot in the front and one for the passenger in the back), a small engine and a propeller. When you see the little flying contraption, you really wonder how sturdy the thing is.

Unlike seeing an attraction from a helicopter, where one is in a loud but secure cocoon, a microlight flight is an experience that exposes one to the elements. It’s windy, unencumbered and quite the thrill.

I arrived at the airstrip, signed in and was then escorted to the aircraft. My pilot for the 30 minute ride was Heiko, a German expat who lives in Zambia with his wife and three adopted children. He’s been flying microlights for over twenty years.

I strapped into my seat and we were quickly taxiing down the runway. The acceleration of the microlight was impressive as we shot along the dirt strip. In the blink of an eye, we were airborne.

The immediate view was amazing as I had a 270 degree open view of the Zambian countryside. We quickly gained altitude and then leveled off at our cruising height of 4,000 feet.

The falls were immediately visible, revealing themselves with their mist rising above the horizon.

We made our way over to the falls and flew a half-dozen circles around this grand spectacle. While it’s one thing to see the falls from the ground, to witness them from above is a whole different experience.

The depth of the gorge, the black rock, the white mist, the blue water and the many colors of the perpetual rainbows all combined for an awe-inspiring view. I could have stayed up there all day.

After 15 minutes of enjoying this natural spectacle, we then spent the second half of the flight flying up the Zambezi River to view game, which come to the river for water.

Again, it was an amazing perspective to see these animals from the air. We saw hippopotamus, crocodile, elephant, water buffalo, gazelle and giraffe from our heavenly perch.

Heiko and I communicated via headphones with mics, and we had a nice opportunity to chat and get to know one another. As we began to head off toward the airstrip, he asked if he could take a moment and pray for me. Of course I agreed.

He then asked God to look over me during my travels and to get me to my destinations safely. He also asked God to help me find my ultimate path that will bring me fulfillment and happiness. He had sensed that I am at a key transitional point in my life, and he prayed that I would find the right answer with His help.

It turns out Heiko is also a minister – he and his wife also run a church when he isn’t flying. He really touched me and I quietly cried in the back seat of that little set of angel’s wings.

Once we landed, I thanked Heiko so very much for a truly inspiring and beautiful experience. While I’ve been blessed to see and experience so many natural wonders, it’s the people that have really provided such a fulfilling journey of exploration.

 

Continue reading Boing! →

There is so much to do in Livingstone (and by extension Victoria Falls), that a three day planned visit has turned into a seven-plus day stay.

Mosi-Ao-Tunya is the local term for “the smoke that thunders”, and it describes the incredible natural phenomenon of the mist that rises above the falls.

The mist is created by the amount of water that is coming over the falls. The volume of water displaces the air in the gorge forcing the air (and the mist in the air) to shoot above the gorge. When the water is very high, the mist can rise over 4,000 feet above the top edge of the gorge.

Per Wikipedia: “While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is classified as the largest, based on its width of 1,708 metres (5,604 ft) and height of 108 metres (354 ft), resulting in the world’s largest sheet of falling water. Victoria Falls is roughly twice the height of North America’s Niagara Falls.”

We walked into the main park and explored a number of trails that wind around a point that sticks into a bend in the river (and thus the gorge). Once we came into view of the falls, I was awestruck. There’s a reason this beauty has been classified as a World Heritage Site.

It’s nearly impossible to stay dry when walking around the national park, given the amount of mist that is shot into the air. The dynamics are amazing – you can stand there looking at the falls and see water droplets suspended in the air, neither going up or down.

We crossed a pedestrian bridge and were met by a baboon coming in our direction. The only thing was, she was balancing on the hand rail, a hundred feet above the river below.

I went with three mates that I had met while at the backpacker hostel. Fantastic people. Marit is from Amsterdam, Matt from England and Malcolm from Malta. We had a great time on this day and for a few days afterward.

We then hiked down to the “Boiling Pot”, an area where the Zambezi River comes shooting down a straight and then hits a sharp 300 degree angle. The Boiling Pot is formed by the river hitting the rock wall straight ahead and then eats away the rock before moving on to that hard right turn. The resulting  water features whirlpools and eddies, thus the name the “Boiling Pots”.

The Boiling Pots has a great view of the Victoria Falls Bridge, a very high structure that connects Zambia and Zimbabwe. Marit was kind enough to join me in a picture of the bridge:

The bridge also features high-adventure experiences, including bungee jumping. We saw someone bungee jump while we were down at the water’s edge:

After seeing that person jump, I thought, “Adrenaline is a great rush….”