Got up at 6.30 so we could be at the bus station by 8.00 comfortably. When we arrived at the minibus place to get into town there was a huge queue for them. Fortunately Kathy and Diane were there so the K200 for the taxi was reasonable between four of us.
At the bus station there was the usual confusion that usually arises when Africans do anything. Some were queueing orderly inside and others were just hanging around the bus waiting to be let on.
The four of us managed to get seats together because, while Diane and I waited to put our rucksacks in the luggage hold, Olly and Kathy reserved our seats on the coach.
The journey from Lusaka took seven hours, but it seemed as nothing in comparison to the one between Dar es Salaam and Lusaka.
Our first move in Livingstone was to find accommodation. According to the girls' guide book, the Government Rest House was the cheapest place to stay. When we got there we were directed to the reception, where we met the most stupid person I have ever encountered. He really was astoundingly stupid. Eventually we managed to ascertain that there were no rooms left; after that the flow of information was not even anywhere near a trickle. Question: "Are there any other cheap places in town?" Answer: "This is the cheapest." Several other similar exchanges left me in a mood to kick him. After a very painful interrogation we had a vague idea of where we could stay for a reasonable price.
We walked along the road a few hundred metres and found the Tulye-To-Nje Restaurant and Rest House. It was basic but clean and cost only K600 for a double room. They also served cold beer at K65, which we drank in a pleasant beer garden on their premises. After a few beers with the girls, we all headed into town to try and find somewhere to eat. We found a place where all they had to offer was Beef and Nshima and met two locals called Ray and Bright, who tried to sell us currency and nickel of all things. On finding out that nshima was the same as the semolina stuff that Godwin used to eat, we allowed the two locals to guide us to a place where we had a reasonable plate of chicken and rice. We discovered that the proprietor had been confined to his shop for two weeks after killing four people whose political beliefs differed from his own.
Beers at the Tulye-To-Nje Restaurant and Rest House.
After being led to the Fairmont Hotel and not being impressed, we got a taxi home. On the way to the taxi, one of the local guys produced some condoms from his pocket when Olly and I were walking ahead, and asked the Americans if they had ever gone with an African before.
Local kids outside the rest house.
Didn't sleep too well, due to an extremely uncomfortable (hard) bed and noisy coons in the corridor.
At the bus station there was the usual confusion that usually arises when Africans do anything. Some were queueing orderly inside and others were just hanging around the bus waiting to be let on.
The four of us managed to get seats together because, while Diane and I waited to put our rucksacks in the luggage hold, Olly and Kathy reserved our seats on the coach.
The journey from Lusaka took seven hours, but it seemed as nothing in comparison to the one between Dar es Salaam and Lusaka.
Our first move in Livingstone was to find accommodation. According to the girls' guide book, the Government Rest House was the cheapest place to stay. When we got there we were directed to the reception, where we met the most stupid person I have ever encountered. He really was astoundingly stupid. Eventually we managed to ascertain that there were no rooms left; after that the flow of information was not even anywhere near a trickle. Question: "Are there any other cheap places in town?" Answer: "This is the cheapest." Several other similar exchanges left me in a mood to kick him. After a very painful interrogation we had a vague idea of where we could stay for a reasonable price.
We walked along the road a few hundred metres and found the Tulye-To-Nje Restaurant and Rest House. It was basic but clean and cost only K600 for a double room. They also served cold beer at K65, which we drank in a pleasant beer garden on their premises. After a few beers with the girls, we all headed into town to try and find somewhere to eat. We found a place where all they had to offer was Beef and Nshima and met two locals called Ray and Bright, who tried to sell us currency and nickel of all things. On finding out that nshima was the same as the semolina stuff that Godwin used to eat, we allowed the two locals to guide us to a place where we had a reasonable plate of chicken and rice. We discovered that the proprietor had been confined to his shop for two weeks after killing four people whose political beliefs differed from his own.
Beers at the Tulye-To-Nje Restaurant and Rest House.After being led to the Fairmont Hotel and not being impressed, we got a taxi home. On the way to the taxi, one of the local guys produced some condoms from his pocket when Olly and I were walking ahead, and asked the Americans if they had ever gone with an African before.
Local kids outside the rest house.Didn't sleep too well, due to an extremely uncomfortable (hard) bed and noisy coons in the corridor.
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