The 18-room Mfuwe Lodge, which overlooks two lagoons that are abundant with wildlife, has a large reception area particularly suited to wandering elephants. They see no reason why they shouldn’t walk straight through, eat their fill and walk out again.  They can be seen approaching, so guests and staff move out of the way behind railings and stay still wile the herd troops through. Sometimes the elephants stop and investigate the people or sniff things on the desk,  but have never threatened anyone. After all lunch is waiting!

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The Cherry on the Safari Cake

Just when I thought life on safari couldn’t get any better, it did.

It was my birthday and I was sitting in a bubbling hot spring on the edge of the Kafue River in Zambia. Fireflies were dancing around my head and a fellow journalist on this press trip - a rather tall, handsome fella - was giving my shoulders a massage (c’mon it was my birthday). I thought I’d died and gone to heaven.

Large boulders surrounded the hot springs, protecting it from an unannounced visit by hippos or crocodiles. There I sat with a glass of bubbly in hand and a big smile on my face. If this wasn’t enough, I was then informed that Hippo Lodge offer massages at this spot too. This information served to put the cherry on top of the safari cake for me and I mentally awarded Hippo Lodge in Zambia’s Kafue National Park, top honours in my safari lodge repertoire.

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