Mood status: Attracted
Location: Waterfront Resort Livingstone, Zambia
After a day of doing absolutely jack all yesterday (unless lying by the
pool counts as doing something?), it was time to get back into the spirit of
vacation by taking on white water rafting down the mighty Zambezi. I was told
that the category 5 rapids, eek, would help the stiffness in my neck. I’m not
sure about anything at the moment so the AfriCat believed it.
As I decided to only do a half-day of rafting, I was the only one to
join the other boats half way down the river, which meant that I was privately
escorted by safari truck to rapid #10. There was something really, really
unnerving about sitting in a truck with 3 random Zambians and being driven deep
into the bush. Literally the bush. I can honestly say that I was as terrified
on this truck as I was just before jumping off a bridge. In my head I was
devising a plan on what to do if they decided to attack me but there was
absolutely nowhere to go. We finally pulled up at a spot on top of the gorges
that looked relatively legit and from there, made our descent down to the
river.
The trip down was torturous. They call this the “African Ladder” which
I’m not meaning to be racist or anything, most likely means the “use-at-your-own-risk
ladder”. There have been just a few too many moments in the past few days that
have threatened my life, so I was almost use to this one adding another notch
onto my near-death belt.
Not much to say about the rafting itself that would be overly
interesting for you guys. The water was rough, the boats got flipped and the
crocodiles swam freely around us while we were in the water. I will tell you though of the man who followed the boats in a canoe as
part of the safety crew. He was so rugged, and ripped, and just beautiful to
look at. He looked like Seal without the lupus I swear, only more black and
more Zambian. He battles rapids as a job. Everyday.
I’m sure he caught me looking at him a few times as we were
walking back to the trucks, as he had decided to sit next to me on the safari
truck and strike up a conversation about marriage and kids. This is nothing out
of the ordinary though, as every African man seems to want to marry all foreign
women, most likely for visa purposes but I like to think that some standards apply.
If you squint, you may be able to spot him in the first photo.
Anyway, as we were driving back, we went through one of the traditional
villages where the chief lives. Zambian Seal points to a small hut and tells me
the story of a village leader who lives in there with his multiple wives. I
then ask him whether having many wives is normal and if he himself had many
wives. He said that yes, it’s normal for multiple wives but no, he’s only 25
and doesn’t date the Zambian women as they cheat all the time and are only
after your money. Was it strange that I enjoyed his answer a little bit too
much? He then asked me out on a date that night, and having reluctantly declined,
I retreated to my tent and found a new and very deep appreciation for the men
of Zambia, ahhhh.
