Chobe: A visitor in their home

by Bame Mogami (Botswana)

A leap into the unknown Botswana

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Heavy rains welcomed us to the park. The sky was pitch black and could not see anything, we could only hear occasional thunder, I cannot exactly pinpoint the time, since I had lost sense of time but it was nighttime, we had travelled since morning from Francistown to the Chobe District, leaving civilization behind to enter the Chobe National Park. It takes 45km from Kachikau, the last village before you enter the Park, to Ghoha Gate, the northern entrance gate to the Savuti area.The drive that usually takes 30 minutes or less on tarred roads takes an hour or more, due to the sandy road, where if you are not a seasoned driver, your car may get stuck. "Welcome to Ghoha Gate, for the next 2 weeks, you will be cut out from the modern world, no cellphones or television. You are visitor here and this is their home". Kedimotse Mr Kedimotse is the Park Manager of Chobe National Park. We set up camp, luckily the rain had stopped, just enough for us to get settled in. We all have experienced the serendipity of relevant information arriving just when we were not even expecting it; an old friend of mine posted a WhatsApp status advertising a trip to Linyanti. My plans for December holidays got canceled, and was free. I called him and asked for more information. He is a member of a society that concerned itself with Wildlife and Environmental Conservation. The trip was open to the public. I have never camped in my life before and had only experienced the Chobe from the town of Kasane, but Linyanti, Savuti, Ghoha are deep in the wilderness. I thought to myself, why not go out there and experience something new and an opportunity to learn more about wildlife and conservation in my country. An opportunity to also explore and experience Botswana tourism. The next morning, the sky had cleared,an expansive blue. The rain had come and left a fresh earthy smell, rain bugs and other insects that are a bit of wonder coupled with nuisance such as the rhinoceros beetle. A giant beetle that can fly, very scary for city folks. Our campsite is unfenced, providing a chance for us to view wild animals at all times. Elephants being constant visitors. Botswana hosts the largest number of African Elephants, that are still being threatened by poaching and have caused a controversy about what solutions should be taken to deal with their encroachment on human lives. But the later is a sensitive topic that even the Park Management does not engage in conversation about. However, their efforts against poaching are very commendable. Savuti boasts one of the largest concentration of animals in Southern Africa. Savuti also has some of the best sunsets, sky bathed in red and orange hues, with specks of light blue that disappears with the passing of time, giving a feeling of tranquillity and just absolutely gorgeous to witness. A game driver offers a golden opportunity to see the four out of five of the big five that Chobe offers, elephant, leopard, buffalo and the king of the jungle, lion and all other wild animals. My first time to see a lion. Prior to visiting Chobe National Park, I had only seen very few tourist destinations in Botswana, here I fell in love my backyard, a spiritual experience of being completely present, learning to respect all god's creations, understanding that we are in their home and all we can do is witness with childlike wonder. On our way back to our home, the city of Gaborone, that morning, It rained as well, what we as Batswana consider good fortune. The rain stopped before we left Chobe District, and few minutes later; the last sight and maybe what one can consider a parting gift from the Chobe was a sighting of a lion, out of the jungle came out a male lion, with luscious mane, standing tall and looking exactly like the king of the jungle, regal. And a few minutes later we were in the North East District.