Tags
Big Cat Festival, Bradt Travel Guides, Bushbuck, Camp Nkwazi Lodge, Chacma baboon, finfoot, Fish eagle, Hadeda ibis, hippo, hooded vulture, Jonathan Truss, kudu, Lion in Trafalgar Square, quinine, Reed cormorant, Trumpeter hornbill, village weaver, Zambezi River, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Our final day ended with a ‘sunset cruise’, intended, we were told, less to look for wildlife than to just enjoy the experience of being on the (Zambezi) river for a couple of hours. As I stood beforehand on the terrace of the Camp Nkwazi Lodge…
As people started embarking, I held back to get this picture, and feared that I was therefore condemned to sitting in the full sun of the open top deck. But in fact, given the breeze created by the movement of the boat, it was lovely up there.
It was very pleasant along the river, and, uniquely, sundowners were offered – I had gin and orange, the quinine in tonic not being good for my tinnitus. (Sorry, sufferers.)
We hugged the Zambian bank. I wondered if we would come back that way as well, given that halfway across the river we would be in Zimbabwe.
My geopolitical query was answered when we went well over the invisible dividing line halfway across the river when we turned round. So perhaps this trip should have been advertised as ‘Namibia/Botswana/Zambia/ Zimbabwe’. Though truth to tell, we had only ventured a few miles even into Botswana and Zambia.
We drift back over to the Zambian side.
I tried, not very successfully, to capture photos of birds low-flying back to their roosts.
As we arrived at the lodge, the owners signalled that there was a Finfoot (‘Uncommon resident.. resemble ducks and cormorants but … unrelated to these groups’, and not yet seen by us) on a small island nearby, so we went in search. Some got a reasonable but fleeting view, I saw it for about half a second scrambling up a bank, and some didn’t see it at all. No question of my photographing it.
But we did hear and see some trumpeting Trumpeter hornbills, and saw some more Hadeda ibis.
And could this be bettered as a final view at the end of a most fantastic and privileged trip?
PS. I went, last Saturday, to a Big Cat Festival in London organised by Bradt Travel Guides. There were lots of wonderful photographs, alongside some hard-hitting conservation messages. In Africa, except when we were at sewage works (!), where it was possible to see some wonderful birds, we had been in national parks, which exclude permanent human habitation. I would not like to have given the impression that these three countries are teeming with wildlife. Our visit was only possible because their governments see the value of preserving what remains of the living treasures they house. At the same time they are having to deal with expanding human populations, and drought.
At the Big Cat Festival, I saw this large picture, by Jonathan Truss. He kindly allowed people to take photos of it. (Sadly I only had my tiny phone with me.) If those lions we saw a few weeks ago had been even half the size of this imaginary one, I think that our confidence around them, even protected by our vehicles, would have been somewhat diminished!
At the end of our walk was a tunnel, through which the levada continued, and along which we had been intended to walk, but I was glad that that thought had been abandoned – it would have meant uncomfortable bending over for 800 metres. 
I did venture a very little way into it, and if this photo is viewed on a big enough screen, the light at the end of the tunnel can just be seen.
My memory of this place in November 2016 was of a meal taken in a revolving restaurant. This time our stop was for coffee, and then for a very short exploration of the local geology. I nipped off at one point to buy some cherries from a stall, and when I rejoined the group they were all staring at the beach. I could see a tern or to. 
And I liked these contrasting grey textures. 
Only on looking more closely did I see that some of the stones were in fact terns, roseate terns I was informed. 
From here we were taken just a very short distance westwards, and deposited to walk along the old coastal road (closed to traffic) for about a mile.
Two of us were ahead of the others, so we were the first to venture in to this tunnel, which we could see was dripping wet for the first and last several metres. 
It was fun, once emerged from it, to see the others noticing the ‘hazard’ and then venturing in. 
From here we were taken via Seixal to Châo da Ribeira, where there were picnic benches. The sun had gone in again, and it was again a little chilly. We were joined by 5 feral cats and a kitten, all very wary, but won over by gifts of ham and cheese. 
From here we went for a short walk in the 
Lunch had been late, and we were running later. We made just one more stop on the way back to the hotel, to see the rare Madeiran saxifrage. Here it is: 
and here are some of us looking at it. 
Another lovely dinner in a Funchal restaurant, another fitness session back up to the hotel. Then watching a fireworks display taking place back down in the harbour, an event which the town of Funchal lays on every Saturday evening in June.
Perhaps it was my mood, certainly not helped by the dull weather, but I felt decidedly grumpy and unimpressed as I entered the cathedral, even if it was dedicated to St Cecilia, the modern-day patron saint of musicians. I knew that the ticket I had bought would get me in to the ‘Grand Choeur‘, but the high altar seemed to be to my left as I walked in, whereas the layout of the building would lead me think it should be to the right. No-one was checking my ticket either, which was puzzling. 
Anyway, I did like this modern altar and lectern. 
And I was impressed by the rood-screen behind me, of which this is just a segment. 
Once I had the audioguide all became clear. The west-facing worship is the result of the desire to save the very intricate and huge rood-screen, carved from a limestone which hardens over time. At the time when Catholic worship changed to include the congregation, not just the monks and priests, most rood-screens were destroyed. Here, however, they decided to turn worship round, and have the congregation facing west – most unusual. What I had seen already was not the Grand Choeur. My ticket was to get me into that – facing East – and the treasury, and supply the audioguide. I visited the treasury first. 
This window on the way up the steep spiral staircase to get to it is a reminder that churches were fortified in those turbulent days of the 
Then I moved into the Great Choir itself, which was very ornate, a great contrast with the outside of the basilica. 
On emerging from the cathedral into the wet again, 
I went back to the previous café for a bowl of soup, though on seeing the menu I had a very nice salad instead. Clever clogs then thought she would try another, seemingly more pleasant, route back to the car to feed the meter. And couldn’t find the car. Found herself outside the metered area, so knew she had gone too far. Felt very frustrated, not yet despairing, but really didn’t want to go all the way back to the centre and out again. Then….. I remembered that I had my satnav with me, and that I had registered on it where the car was parked! Only three minutes’ walk away but I would never have known.
This was established by T-L’s mother, after her son’s early death, in the 
Another audio-guide took me round. I did much enjoy this visit, and here’s just a small selection of pictures I saw.
I drove on
By now it was nearly lunchtime, so I looked out for either something to buy or somewhere to eat. Everything shut – it was Monday, as I explained to some Canadian (?) tourists who approached me to ask firstly if I spoke English and then if I had seen an open restaurant. I walked up to one of the two castles. Given the age of each, I was not sure whether this was the old one or the new one, but I took a few more photos up there. 
When I eventually found parking, I saw from my satnav that the interesting old town was pedestrianised, and a five- to ten-minute walk away. I didn’t get out of my car. 
A further long drive followed, and I was delighted that the satnav took me off the main roads and by some fields of wildflowers, and between rain showers. Sadly, I don’t think these photos do justice their prettiness.
As I was gasping by now for a drink, I just parked in the centre of 
It was of course a great pleasure to get to know the affectionate Coco and Bam, sister littermates.
Other attractions there included a collection of trains.
Then on briefly to see 
where we rang Geoff’s mother in the UK from the car, lost the signal, and picked it up shortly afterwards. As one not quite as familiar with technology as the next generation, I found this easy and clear contact all very weird – and it was free!
Thanks, Geoff, for a great day out!