Monday 5 July - Monze to Livingstone

We managed to make an early start.Today is Heroes Day in Zambia and tomorrow is Unity Day.We had a clear run south on a great road with very little traffic - possibly because of the holiday. There was a marked absence of trucks on the road so we had none of the angst of overtaking the heavies. The road deteriorated on the last 80km before Livingstone but unlike in the north they are actually working on the roads so there is hope.

Livingstone is a pretty place with a colonial feel about it. Unfortunately because of the holiday we couldn't change dollars to Pula for our trip to Botswana tomorrow but we had a great visit to the Falls. It's my first ever visit and it is an awesome sight. I can't believe how much water flows over the edge. We walked onto the bridge and watched a young girl do a bungi jump. Awesome but I'm glad I'm "too old" for that sort of thing. :-)

There were hundreds of people at the Falls and we enjoyed the cosmopolitan atmosphere. It really was worth the visit.

We also managed to book into a lovely campsite about 2km from the Falls at a place called Maramba Lodge. It's part of a lodge and although it's a long walk to the ablution block we're sure to have a peaceful and secure night in our tent - although there is a sign near our site saying, "Beware of the hippos". I don't think I'll be venturing to the facilities after dark - there's lots of shrubs near our tent and I do have my little stool with the hole in it. That has been used a lot on those long trips.

Our holiday definitely has a "winding down" feel about it but we still have tomorrow night in Botswana and Wednesday night somewhere in SA before we arrive back at Nicholas' house. Wednesday is our 37th wedding anniversary so we'll have to celebrate with a great meal somewhere - no tuna and couscous that night! A trip like this - a whole month in a confined space together all day every day has reminded us that we have a good marriage and a great friendship (except when Mark is telling me how to drive or I am tired and grumpy). We can appreciate one another for who we are and we are both grateful for our marriage. Thank you Lord!