Natural Beauty of Victoria Falls

After buffet breakfast on the open-air deck with view of the Zam-bezi River， our tour guide picked us up and off we headed to view the world famous falls. We first stopped at the biggest Baobab tree Ive seen. If we think that our 400 year old redwood cedars are， special， they are nothing compared to this giant with over 1000 years to its credit.

Our guide parked near the falls entrance and I immediately noticed the beautiful carved handrail on the steps. It reminded me of the herd we had seen at the waterhole， in Hwange. Although the park sign said domestic animals not allowed， I wonder if they count the fellow grazing on the fenced lawn. I took a number of photos of their signs showing the history of the indigenous peoples， the history of the falls before proceeding along the paved footpath towards the Livingstone statue：

The falls were created by a fault line and as such are very long. In the Zimbabwe winter the entire rock face is totally covered with water. At the time we visited one could see the face between the falls， however it was still impressive. So hard did the water pound that the heavy mist feltlike rain as we proceeded along the path.

Devils Canyon： We were high enough up that we could see the water before it cascaded down the precipice.

They had an interesting display of skulls of different animals. With the elephant skull outside the case one could stand behind it to get an idea of how truly large it was. We proceeded along the path taking photos at every opportunity. Park attendants kept the paths clean by using twigs bound to branch with duct tape.

I found the trees very interesting including this limb that remind-ed me of a rhino hom. The falls photo is not blurry or out of focus. Its just the mist！

A friend at table tennis told me about a pool at the top of the falls. One needs an entry and exit visa to cross a bndge to Zambia where one can be escorted into the pool. People photograph swimmers on the other side. We werent that daring and didnt want to bother to get a visa. Here the falls peter out and we headed back to the exit. African" Arts and Crafts

Although we or rather I， did most of the purchasing， I restrained myseif although there were some beautiful chairs but they just wouldnt fit in my carry-on and we have no room for them at home. Did the next best thing and took a photo！ I did however buy a bracelet of the big five for granddaughter Victoria in the Victoria Falls gift shop. It seemed the appropriate place to do that. We were taken to another market with a wide variety of things “African”. I bought two small wooden bowls. Next stop Victoria Falls Hotel for a view of the bridge， the only way in and out of Zambia. My table-tennis playing friend has actually bungee jumped from it！ Not me： Remember we didnt want to bother getting a visa. Ha Ha.

The vintage hotel was one Dr. Livingston and Stanley frequent-ed. Here I am relaxing with guide John， in front of Stanleys Room. The curved stairways were beautiful.

We went to Mama Africa for lunch. John ordered kudu. I tried a piece. It tasted like beef， was tender and not at all gamey

After lunch John took us to an interesting market with all manner of crafts from Big Five4 carvings， single giraffes， wooden bowls， jew- ellery and clothing. I bought two small bowls and couldnt resist takinga photo of the huge rhino made entirely of flattened beer cans！

Close Contact with Lions

John asked if there was anything else we would like to do for the aftemoon. We mentioned that we had wanted to go on the Lion Walk but the hotel had told us that there were no spots left for either the aftemoon or even the next day. He made a phone call and to our delight managed to get us the tour.

Lion Encounter is an active conservation program that is passionate about ensuring a secure future for the African Lion， Pan-ther Leo. In partnership with ALERT， Lion Encounter operates the African Lion Rehabilitation & Release into the Wild Program. If you want to know more just google： www.lionencounter.com. It is a very important program as in the last 30 years the African Lion population has declined a shocking 80% ～ 90%. Their facility only takes twenty-four visitors at one time， dividing them into two groups. They have 4 cubs which they have rescued， one pair going with each group.

Our female twins were 18 months old and were considerably larger than the 6-month-old male twins that we patted in New Zea-land last March. Soon they would be released into a controlled area with other lions who would teach them how to hunt. Without the human impnnt， their offspring would then be released into the wild， a National Park for instance where they are free to roam and hunt thus building up the lion population again. It is similar to the World Wildlife Federation. It was such an amazing privilege to be able to participate in this program. We are so indebted to John for finding space for us. limagine that he may have asked another couple if they were staying in the Victoria Falls area longer than we were to give up their seats and go another day. Had we known about this amazing opportunity before leaving Canada we certainly would have asked Safari Partners to prebook it for us！

Just like the four rangers， everyone was required to have a walking stick which they supplied. I imagine that the cubs associate it with an Alpha trainer. There is a photo at Miombo with Brad relaxing on the sofa where a black and white cat lies beside him. Now he is patting a real cat！

We have so many beautiful keepsake photos， because the guides have everyones camera and one guide takes the photo while another takes video. When the group returns from the walk， they have already made it up including a lot about their wonderful program. The $30 DVD and the $120 per person are used to support it. When I patted Giant Pandas at The Panda Research Station in Chengdu， China， the funds were used to support the World Wildlife program. Similarly participating in and supporting the African Program was so much more meaningful than simply writing a donation cheque！

维多利亚瀑布的自然美景

在露天甲板上，我们一边观看赞比西河的风景，一边享用自助早餐，之后，导游接上我们，直奔世界著名的瀑布。我们先驻足在一棵猴面包树下，这是我见过的最大的猴面包树。如果有着400年树龄的红木雪松已经够特别的话，那比起这个据载有着1000年树龄的“巨人”简直不值一提。

导游把车子停在瀑布入口附近，我立刻注意到台阶两旁漂亮的雕花扶手。它让我想起在万基国家公园的某处水潭看到的牛群。公园标示着家畜不得入内，我不知道。他们能否指望这“家伙”在有围栏的草地上放牧。我给讲述土著人和瀑布历史的展牌拍了许多照片，然后继续沿着铺设的小径，朝利文斯通石像走去。

瀑布由一条断层裂痕形成，因此很长。在津巴布韦的冬天，整个岩石表面都会完全被水覆盖。而我们参观的时候，水量没有那么充足，因此瀑布下的部分石面裸露了出来;尽管如此，它仍让人叹为观止。我们踏着小径继续前行，身旁的急流倾泻而下，腾起阵阵水雾，竟有烟雨朦胧的感觉。

魔鬼峡谷：我们站到高处，可以看到水飞泻悬崖前的情况。

当地人对不同动物的头骨的展示方式很有趣。他们把大象的头骨放在屋外，这样人们就能站在它后面，真切地了解它究竟有多大。我们继续沿着小径走，不放过每个拍照的机会。公园管理员们用强力防水胶带把树枝绑成扫把，用来打扫小径。

我发现这里的树很有意思，这个枝杈让我想起犀牛角。瀑布的照片不是照得模糊或焦距没对好，这是因为雾气！

一位乒乓球球友告诉我，瀑布顶部有个游泳池。人们需要办理出入签证，才能过桥进入赞比亚，在赞方护送下进入泳池。人们都忙着拍摄桥那边游泳的人。我们对此则没什么兴趣，不想再费周折办个签证。到这里，瀑布逐渐消失，我们就返回出口了。“非洲”工艺品我们，确切地说是我，买了不少东西，但我已经尽量克制了。我都没买那些漂亮的椅子，因为它们一不方便携带，二是我们家里也没有地方放。我能做的，就是拍张照片！不过，我还是在维多利亚大瀑布的礼品店给我孙女维多利亚买了个“非洲五霸”的手镯，在维多利亚大瀑布给维多利亚买礼物，似乎很合适嘛。我们又被带到另一个市场，那里有各种各样的“非洲”物件。我买了两个小木碗。下一站，到维多利亚瀑布酒店去看看那座通往赞比亚的桥，它也是通往赞比亚唯一的途径。我那位乒乓球球友在那里玩过蹦极！可不是我！记得吧，我们不想费事办什么签证。哈哈。

复古酒店是利文斯通博士和斯坦利经常光顾的一家酒店。在这儿，斯坦利住过的屋前，我跟导游约翰感觉很惬意。弧形楼梯很漂亮。

我们去“非洲妈妈”餐厅吃了午饭。约翰点了条纹羚羊肉。我尝了一块。它的味道像牛肉，不过很嫩，一点也不“重口味”。

午饭后，约翰把我们带到一个有趣的市场，从“非洲五霸”雕刻、长颈鹿、木碗、珠宝到服装，各类工艺品应有尽有。我买了两个小碗，并禁不住跟一个庞大的犀牛合了影，这头犀牛是用压扁的啤酒罐制成的！

与狮子的亲密接触

约翰问我们下午要做什么。我告诉他我们原本想去狮子园走走，但酒店告知当天下午和第二天都没有游览空额了。让我们惊喜的是，他打了一个电话就把行程安排妥了！

“走近狮子”是一项积极的保护计划，目的是确保非洲狮、豹狮有个安全的未来。“走近狮子”计划的合作伙伴是ALERT，这使该计划能按“非洲狮重归野生世界”项目实施。如果您想了解更多信息可以搜索：www.lionencounter.com。这是一个意义非常重要的项目，因为在过去30年中，非洲狮的总数已经骤降了80%一90%，着实让人震惊。他们的接待能力每次只有24名游客，并将游客分成两组。他们有四只幼崽，都是他们救助的，每组游客观看一对幼崽。

我们这组分到的是一对双胞胎姐妹，18个月大，它们要比我们去年3月在新西兰抚摸过的6个月大的雄性双胞胎个头大许多。这对小狮子很快将被放养到保护区，与其它狮子一起生活，学习如何狩猎。没有了人类的印记，它们的后代将回归野外，比如国家公园，在那里它们可以自由漫步，狩猎，从而再建狮子种群。这有点像世界野生动物协会。能够参与此计划真是极大的荣幸。我们非常感谢约翰，为我们找到这样的机会。我估计，他可能问过另一对夫妇，是否愿意在维多利亚瀑布区多逗留一下，这样就可以把今天的机会让给我们，他们隔天再去。如果离开加拿大前我们知道有這样难得的机会，我们肯定会要求“狩猎伙伴”提前为我们预订！

园区要求每人都像四个护林员一样拿着一根园区提供的拐杖。我想可能幼崽们把这拐杖跟阿尔法驯兽员联系起来。有张照片是我们在Miombo时，和Brad一起拍的。照片上我们轻松自在地坐在沙发上，他旁边有只黑白相间的猫。而现在他抚摸的可是一只真正的大猫！

我们有这么多有纪念意义的漂亮照片，要归功于导游。他们拿着大伙的摄影器材，一个导游拍照，另一个摄像。当一行人从园区返回，他们已经将照片合成好了，里面还加入了很多关于他们了不起的计划的内容。每位游客支付30美元的DVD费用和120美元的参观费，这笔钱用来支持他们的项目。我曾在中国成都大熊猫研究基地摸过大熊猫，那里的资金是用于支持世界野生动物项目的。以类似的方式参与并支持非洲计划也是如此有意义，这比简单地写张捐赠支票有意义得多！