Well we just got back from a 4 day vacation to Victoria Falls and Botswana, and I can honestly say I’ve never had that many near death experiences. After the last 3 days I have no energy or adrenaline or movement left in my body. We did so many crazy, fun, and terrifying things.
Early Sunday morning we got to Livingstone and went to a church there in town. It was a really nice church and the people were so welcoming and friendly. We did the normal service; singing, communion, sermon, Harding Chorus sings, and the greeting afterwards. When we were done we all packed into our bus and drove to Waterfront Lodge to eat lunch and get ready for our activities for the day! Lunch was great and before I knew it we were getting in a car and driving to the bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe. We got there, signed some papers, got some instructions and I was sent to the middle of the bridge…the place where people jump 111 meters to their death. I didn’t have time to think about what I was doing, which I guess is a good thing. I got to the bridge as soon as Cynda was about to bungee jump. She was the first one and watching her was scary, but before I knew it I was all harnessed up with my toes hanging off the edge of the bridge, the camera guy telling me not to worry because “there was life after bungee,” and a Zambian man counting down. I jumped and flew and bounced around and hung there for a while until finally a man came and got me and we were pulled back up to the bridge. It was so terrifying but so fun. I couldn’t believe I had just done that. I’ve never had such an adrenaline rush in my life. Little did I know, it was just going to get worse. I watched some more people bungee jump and then again, before I knew it, Cynda and I were harnessed together side by side getting ready to step off the bridge, this time feet first instead of head first. This Gorge Swing had us connected to a wire out from the bridge so when you stepped off you swung down until you were finally caught out under the wire. We swung, hit heads, my neck cracked about 10 times, and then we just hung there over the Boiling Pot of Victoria Falls until someone pulled us up. This wasn’t quite as scary as bungee jumping but it was much more painful. Still lots of fun though! After this we got to go watch the videos of us bungee jumping and swinging which was crazy, and then we went and did the zip line that goes over the Boiling Pot from Zambia to Zimbabwe. After everything we had just done, this was a relaxing little ride that was much more enjoyable. At the end of the day, our group was pretty in shock. We had jumped off a 111 meter high bridge over Victoria Falls in Zambia twice. My neck was sore, my adrenaline was gone and we were ready for rafting the next day!
Monday came and we woke up early, drove to Waterfont, got instructed on all the rafting rules, got put into groups, and loaded up to drive to Victoria Falls. I’ve never been rafting before so I was nervous and didn’t really know what to expect. However, I did expect this day to be not a scary as Sunday. Hah. Boy, was I wrong. I was in a raft with Ashley, Whitney, Abbie, Mackenzie, and Jared. We hiked down to the Boiling Pot and there were our guides getting our rafts ready. The Boiling Pot itself is just one big rapid so I was scared from the very beginning. We got in our raft with our guides Roger and Choonga and spent some time practicing before heading into the first rapid. We barely hit the first wave of the rapid and Mackenzie flew out, was swept under, and finally came out way down the river. She was shocked, as were we, but we got her back in the raft and headed for the rapid again. This time we made it almost to the very end when we hit a huge wave/rock and our whole raft flipped. Now you’re supposed to hold on to the rope that goes around the raft but this hit us so quickly that none of us were prepared to go flying into the Zambezi. I got sucked under the rapid and was literally under water for at least 30 seconds. I lost track of time. But I just know that I ran out of air and there was no sign of getting closer to the top of the water. Everything around me would start to get lighter and then it would get dark again. Eventually I came up above water and got a breath and then I saw Whitney in front of me. She was just right out of reach but we fought the rapids until we finally grabbed hands. Thankfully she was holding onto Abbie who was holding onto the raft, so we got back in and got Mackenzie back in, but Ashley and Jared were gone. They had been swept away somewhere and another raft picked them up. We finally got everyone back in our raft and the shock of what just happened started to wear off. I was in so much pain and I had just seen my life flash before my eyes; since I had never been rafting before, and since I thought this was just a little practice rapid I was convinced that this was going to be the worst day of my life. We were going through 25 rapids that day and I just knew that they were all going to be worse than that. Thankfully they weren’t or else I would’ve been dead. We found out that first rapid was a class 4 so it got better after that. We went through rapid after rapid and we were so excited when we would make it through without flipping. On rapid #8 our raft almost flipped so most of us went flying out. Thankfully this time I was able to grab hold of the rope so I wasn’t swept under the water. We quickly got back on the raft and kept rowing through the rapid until we picked up everyone else who had flown out. Rapid # 9 was a class 6 rapid called “Suicide” that we had to walk around…it was insane. We watched a kayaker go through it and our empty rafts, and now I understand why they don’t take people through that rapid. It literally would’ve been suicide. After rapid # 10 we stopped and had a picnic lunch before starting the rest of the day. The rapids after lunch seemed to be somewhat calmer. There were some that were 12 a,b, and c, so it was pretty important that we didn’t fall out on “a” or else we’d be swept under water for way too long of a time. Then we got to a rapid called “The Mother.” “If you don’t respect your mother then this rapid is going to get you”…that’s what our guides kept telling us. I think I respect my mother pretty well but this rapid killed me. At the very beginning of it I looked up and this huge wave was coming straight for us. I knew that we weren’t going to make it over. Sure enough, our raft flipped. I grabbed the rope this time but the rapid was so rough. I was holding onto that rope with everything in me…I was able to get tiny breaths every once in a while but the raft came down and hit me on the head twice pushing me back under water. Finally the force of the rapid tore me from the rope and I was pushed under the water. This wasn’t as bad as the first rapid in the Boiling Pot because I came up not too long after. The current took me into a little cove where I found Ashley and Mackenzie. Our raft was long gone but thankfully another raft came and got us and took us to ours. My head pounded for a good 30 minutes after and it took a while to catch my breath. We kept on going though and hit some more good rapids! I also got a really good Chaco tan J Our guides let us swim through rapid #24 which was a lot of fun and we finally finished on #25. By the end of the day my body was so sore but I was sad that it was over. That first rapid in the Boiling Pot made me think that I was about to have the worst day ever, but it was actually so fun. It was so much scarier than bungee jumping, but it was also so pretty and even relaxing at some points. In between rapids we would just get to float along the Zambezi, sometimes swim for a while, enjoy God’s creation around us, and even spot lots of crocodiles. Yes…we were rafting with the crocs. What an experience. There really were times where my life flashed before my eyes. I loved it though. It was a great bonding experience for the people in our raft…since we depended on them to save our lives J and it was a great opportunity to do something that most people don’t get to do. Monday night when I laid down to go to sleep I was in so much pain and I still couldn’t believe what we had done, but I was already missing it!
Tuesday we woke up and drove to Botswana to go on safari! It’s a good thing we weren’t doing anything active that day because all of us were basically dead. We were so grateful for a day just to sit and relax. We got to Chobe Lodge where we all loaded up onto a boat to do a river safari. We were on the boat for a couple hours looking at hippos, crocodiles, elephants, water buffalo, warthogs, and lots of birds. It was beautiful. We were living the life…floating through the Chobe river while getting within a couple feet of all these huge powerful animals. After the boat ride we went and ate a good lunch at the lodge and then loaded up onto safari cars to go out into the bush! Our guide, Six, drove us around for a couple hours and we saw a lot of elephants, giraffes, zebra, kudu, hippos, crocodiles, monkeys, and more birds. All the animals were incredible. We stopped at one point to have a little snack in the bush. On our way back we were driving along and an elephant showed up right next to our car. We stopped to watch it and then it started coming at us. Six had to floor it to get us away from the elephant…thankfully the elephant didn’t chase after us. Another escape from death! After safari, we went and ate dinner and then went back to our hotel. We were exhausted and ready for bed!
This morning (Wednesday) we woke up early to go to the Livingstone Museum and then drive back to Namwianga. Here the sickness began. So many of us woke up with nausea or diarrhea or just upset stomach. I would be embarrassed to be writing about this on my blog for everyone to see, but it’s just part of life in Africa. It’s not a matter of “if” you get diarrhea…it’s a matter of “when.” Same with throwing up. It’s just going to happen so there’s no point in hiding it. Our group went to the museum which was cool but it was hard to enjoy…it was more of just a party in the bathroom. Then the healthy part of the group went to the market while the sick part stayed in the bus. I got a nice nap in and felt a little better when I woke up. The ride home was the adventure of the day. A 2 hour bus ride on African roads isn’t a good thing for a bunch of people with nausea and upset stomach. It turned into a contest of who could throw up in a bag or out the window and who got the most cheers for it. It was quite a trip. Thankfully we have Ba Bingham to take care of us. We don’t really know if it’s parasites from the Zambezi water or something we ate, but it’s getting us pretty bad. So keep us in your prayers! Thankfully we’re back home at Namwianga instead of out on bumpy roads.
Our vacation was so good. It was fun and exciting and a good bonding experience, but it was also really eye opening. 6 weeks ago when we drove through Livingstone we thought “Wow look at the poverty in Africa. This town is so run down.” Today while we were driving through we kept thinking “This city is so nice. The stores are awesome. It looks just like America.” Namwianga still isn’t the poor part of Africa but we get to see a lot more than just the tourist parts of the continent. We’re so blessed to be getting to experience the rough parts of Zambia because that’s where we see places that really need help and really need God. It’s hard sometimes, but it’s such a blessing. But it’s also a blessing to get to have a break from school and “work” and get to enjoy ourselves. 9 years ago I hiked down to the Boiling Pot with my dad and sister and watched people bungee jump off the bridge…This week I hiked down there to raft the Zambezi and I was the one bungee jumping. It’s crazy where God is leading me and the opportunities He’s placing in my life.
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