Official Name: Republic of Botswana
Religions: Christianity 60%, indigenous beliefs 40%
Capital: Gabarone (population 175,000)
Per Capita GDP: $3,000
Languages: English (official), Setswana, Ikalanga
Currency: Pula
(~4.75 pula = $1.00 US)

Our Route:  We arrived in Botswana on our overland safari, which left by land from Johannesburg, South Africa on September 23, 2000.  Our first night was spent in Nata.  From there, we drove to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, where we got to experience whitewater rafting on the Zambezi and got our first taste of the famous African wildlife. From Vic Falls, we returned over the border to Botswana, where we began a sometimes grueling two week camping excursion through rough wilderness. We spent one night on an island in the Zambezi (which technically belongs to Zambia), then four nights in the Chobe National Park and Moreme Wildlife Reserve areas (great wildlife here) before heading to Maun (gateway to the Okavango Delta). After a brief overnight break in Maun, we headed out to the Okavango Delta for three nights of camping in the watery wonderland. Leaving the Delta, we stayed one more night in Maun. Then we drove to the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, where we spent one memorable night on the salt flats under the stars before returning to quiet Nata. From Nata, it was all downhill...we had only to endure the long 14-hour drive back to Johannesburg.

 

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