When you think of the must-do places to visit in Africa the list for most people is fairly short.  The game parks of East Africa comes to mind, as do the sphinx and pyramids of Egypt.  But also on this short list has to be magnificent Victoria Falls, the largest waterfall of the world, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, an awe-inspiring phenomenon that leaves visitors soaking wet and totally speechless.  And after about six weeks in Africa Julie and I had finally arrived.

Known by the locals as Mosi-oa-Tunya, or The Smoke that Thunders, because of the huge mist it throws up and the thunderous noise it makes, Victoria Falls was first seen by a white man in 1855 when the famous African explorer David Livingstone came by canoe based on a tip from locals.  Over the millennium the mighty Zambezi River has carved a series of gorges through the basalt that formed a 100 metre waterfall. In peak season the falls disgorge about 1 million litres of water per second.  And to see it, even before its peak, is something the visitor will never forget.

Julie and I visited the falls first from the Zambian side by paying our money into the small national park and walking along the paths that follow the ridge in front of the falls.  The first view of the falls takes your breath away, overwhelming in size and noise set in such a beautiful rainforest jungle, a rainbow arching in front of it. 

We followed the path across Knife Edge Bridge to enjoy the full effect, including getting soaking wet from the mist that turns to heavy rain as it finally drops from the sky just above you.  But the falls itself is about 1.7 kilometres, about a mile, wide and the more you walk out on the point the better the view.  And off to your left is the historic Victoria Falls Bridge, built in 1905 to allow rail travel from Cape Town to Cairo and today a major artery for all travel through this part of the continent. 

Julie and I wanted to walk across this bridge but it forms the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.  No problem, we left one passport at the Zambian Immigration office and walked across the bridge into Zimbabwe.  The views from the top of the bridge were very cool but the sensation of crossing the Zambezi at such a height in such a magnificent setting was very special.

We then went back and collected Tramp, repeating the process officially so we could drive across the bridge and into Zimbabwe, the 49^th country of our Follow the Sun journey.  Our clothes were almost dry from our walk along the falls in Zambia and we parked the car again and did a similar walk on the Zimbabwe side. 

Again, magnificent views, probably even better than from Zambia if that was possible, and again we got soaking wet, like falling in a swimming pool.  Oh but what an experience, the sound, the sight, the heavy rain under perfectly blue skies, Victoria Falls is one of the most spectacular travel experiences Julie and I have ever had.  It was that good.

Our day at Victoria Falls was memorable, that’s for sure, and we knew we were privileged to have seen it.  But now we were in Zimbabwe, a country racked with problems, and we were keen to see what it had to offer.