I have all of five minutes before we are picked up to fly to Victoria Falls.


WE MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE - SINGITIA IS IT.

Wonderful properties, incredible rooms (could not see in a boulder room unforunately. Totally full. Took lots of pictures. The game driving here is so superior to Royal Malewane. It is different. The bush is repetitive in the Royal Malewane area, here the bush and terrain changes constantly. Last night saw so many different animals and it was windy which means bad game viewing. But we saw baboon, elephants, wilderbeast, leopard, lions, zebra, mongoose, kudu to name a few,

The property will do whateve we want. We can eat together every night if we want, in the bush in the restaurants, have all the combined cocktail parties, they will bring in local dancers, we can visit a village 250 rand if we wish with an emphasis on the kids or fmailys and all the money goes to help the village. They are VERY flexible whatever makes us ahppy. OH are we going to have a blast here. DINNER was great - 4 main course chocies 3 appetizer choices, will fix things anyway you wnat Marcie. There will be no problem in eating here.

Plunge pools will be heated by the time we get here.

Woops my ride is here sorry so short will be be back later.

tHANKS NGAIRE AND ALL FOR MAKING THIS HAPPEN.We are very excited.

I have GOT to see the photos of this place ...

Masaki

Ngaire, I just can't tell you how excited I am reading all your wonderful posts!! Thank Ken for taking all the photos for us!

Every report I read, I keep thinking "can we possibly only stay there for the length of time that we've planned?"

This is so exciting.

Can't wait to hear more and see the pictrues - can anyone make an audio or video tape of Ngaire when she does her presentation on MINT?
-----
Leslie

This is so exciting, I can't wait each day to read Ngaire's reports. Can only imagine the fun she is having. :D

All this sounds too good to be true. I love the excitement in Ngaire's voice, via her words. Will she ever come home? oh yes, she has MINT!!!!

Curious how the plane into the camp was...

Ngaire emailed a photo of her plane.....

Ngaire, Wow! This really sounds wonderful. Sorry we backed out.

Marcie, I didn't get an email with the plane photo, can you send it to me please?

My AOL suddenly decided that IT was going to pick and choose who I received mail from, not me. I have no idea how many emails I've lost because of this glitch, but I'm ticked off.

Oh funny gullible Pam!! LOL

Did you do it to me AGAIN???

Okay, I'm going to go paint that target on my forehead a little bit darker.

(Honestly, I'm finding all kinds of misdirected emails, so I just assumed that was another one)

I am on dial up in Zimbabwe and LCT will not load for sure. So I am asking Julie to post this and have to keep it short I am using the Hotel Managers private computer.

Singita was the RIGHT CHOICE no doubt in my mind. The bush is so far more appealing, green, neat waterholes with big boulders, hills and valley and far more animals. We LOVED the game drive here. Also the rooms at Ebony were truly incredible. I could not see one at Boulders as they were completely full and we had to leave at 7.00 am. I will post more on Singita but everything was perfect.

In the meantime check out this property. Today we
toured Victoria Falls and then Royal Livingston
(Zambia side)and Ker and Downey put us in a place
called Stanely and Livingston. This is a FANTASTIC place. I will need to check prices and have everyone think about this but I am in heaven here. It is situated in a game park as well but is a little slice of heaven. I just asked for the web site for this place and have typed it here. I ahve not been to the website. It can be taken on a room only or all inclusive basis. They will transfer to Victoria Falls and pick up again. It takes 10 - 15 minutes to get here.

www.Ipresumeonline.com

www.rani.com ( the main website for all properties)

Ken took pictures of Royal Livinstone, nice new hotel with nice rooms and then the Victoria Hotel, Beautiful classic hotel, great main rooms and grounds BUT The rooms were not neat at all. Maybe I am spoiled after Royal Malewane and Ebony and this place but they were almost depressing to me. They have a new wing so I
asked to see that but the rooms looked the same just slightly bigger. I highly suggest if we still stay with the Victoria Falls anyone planning on upgrading should save their money. Also twin beds (almost excusively in the new section) or doubles in the main hotel. Only a few kings so you cannot be sure of getting one of those.

You can all decide once I provide all the pictures and give my reviews. Whatever you decide is fine with me but I do recommend you consider this property. I am now about to go and sample their dinner. By the way for the wine lovers off the bar they have a big wine cellar - you can go in here and pick out your wine for the night. Ken took a picture of it.

Okay, I must go, Singita is going to knock your socks off both the rooms, the service, the food and ambiance and the game drives. WE can do as much together as we want they will be 100% flexible with us. It can be like we are all at one camp if we want. They have a wonderful attitude.

May not be able to post again, off to Botswana
tomorrow probably no access at all. Remember I cant even use a hairdryer. Sorry this is short but at least you are hearing from me.

I think I missed something. What did she mean by "no hairdryer" :eek:

Is the reason you cannot use a hairdryer because you never were able to get a converter?

Do you think that the order we are doing things makes sense now that you have been there...Cape Grace, Rovos Rail, Singinta? Is the rail experience worth it versus Victoria Falls? Any suggestions that way?

Thanks for all the great info and wish we could be with you to talk live on MINT, but no can do this year! You can send info home with Gil for us!

Have a safe journey. Andi and Doug

I noticed Karen's post came over the same time as mine. Notice what we focused on!!!! :ohmy:

I stayed in the Victora. It's ok, a nice place to sleep after touring that incredible place. So I take it Ngaire you didn't bungie jump off the bridge or do the raft trip, both of which about killed me. But I was trying to prove myself to a bunch of 20 year olds. I look forward to a much more sedated trip next time.

I checked the new hotel web site and it looks fabulous! I vote we book this instead of Royal Livingstone. :)
Hurry home!

The Royal Livingstone got rather mediocre reviews in the NYTimes 2 weeks ago. This hotel looks lovely. How are the safaris here? Or is this more of a "go to the falls trip"?

I think she means she won't be able to use a hairdryer when she gets to Botswana - I'm pretty sure she is staying in a tented camp there.

Andi, Victoria Falls is an "add on" for anyone interested beginning April 28th...Cape Town, Ravos Rail and Singita is ROAR that everyone is doing.

I'm with Suzie. The Stanley & Livingstone hotel looks a little more like "the style we've become accustomed to". :D

I believe Ngair meant for the second website
address:

www.raniafrica.com

The other site is for civil engineering, et.al.,
r/wes

Thanks.

I feel better knowing that it is a tented camp that won't allow for hair dryers. Though, from what I've heard, even the tented camps are nice.

Thanks, Marcie. I know the rail sounds wonderful, but why did we choose this (not that I want to change) as opposed to taking a plane? Was it the same price and a great experience? Do we stop and tour from the train? I noticed that was the option on some of the trips.

Andi,
Choosing the rail was a unanimous decision...the rail itself is the experience NOT just a means of getting from point A to point B as a plane would have been. Compare traveling on a cruise ship with stops as opposed to traveling on a plane. They both ultimately get you to the same final destination...but in a completely different way.

Andi,
The Rovos rail is a huge experience you wouldn't want to miss. We stop at a couple towns to explore on the way to Singita and all the reports I've researched have been A#1.
As for the hairdryers....thats it! I'm buying a wig! :D

Sounds absolutely wonderful. I love trains. Are you going for the room with a jacuzzi or just the regular room? I hate showers and loved the thought of taking a bath on a train!!

I am very excited about the train. It looks wonderful. Now that I'm going, I am just asking questions backwards as to why. Please understand that I think this is cool and all properties look wonderful.

Oh poor Ngaire!! Just what she didn't need!

Marcie, do you have a funny picture there that I can't see?

Andi,
We have the Royal Suite so you can use our jacuzzi!
Marcie,
All I see are little red x,s.

I see it....it's a picture of Ngaire in Botswana.

I wonder why I'm not able to see the pictures you put up Marcie. <img border="0" alt="[bang]" title="" src="graemlins/banghead.gif" />

Did Ulusaba get left off the itinerary, after all? I thought it was on the list.

I would rather stay with Royal Livingstone for two reasons. First, it is right at the falls. You can walk to and from the falls anytime you want. Second, I refuse to give any money to Mugabe. Third, I am more fearful for safety in Zimbabwe than Zambia (tied in with second reason).

I'm not up on my African politics..have not been keeping up with it since Political Science in College..I guess I have to brush up so I won't seem stupid around Marc. You already know I am ignorant now, but ...

Marc, When I read Ngaire's post this morning, I penned a response much like yours, and deleted it. Not that I wouldn't have eventually posted it, but thought it better to mull over the idea for more than 5 minutes, and the day went on, and I just got home from work! I for another prefer to stay on the Zambia side of the Falls, and when we were looking into places back at research time, my memory tells me that the Zambian side is flourishing with tourism, and a lot of it has to do with Mugabe. What that man has done to this former "bread basket" country is unspeakable. The lands are fallow, and what he has done to the wild life is enough to send any animal lover in the opposite direction. I do not want to perpetuate or prolong his policies in any way, including putting my dollars there.

Sedona, I'm not up on my African politics either, but if you will google Mugabe, I'm sure you will find more than enough reading to bring you up to date.

Years ago, due to world pressure and pressure from within, there was a transfer of power in South Africa, which had been an outcast country in the global community because of apartheid. SA would not be the tourism magnet it is today without this change. I applaud whatever coalition that was able to bring about this transition and I am happy to see this country one of the "hot spots" in the world that tourists want to visit. No, it is not perfect, and there is poverty still. Unfortunately, in Zimbabwe, another transition took place, and not in the positive direction South Africa took.

Okay, I am off my soabox now. I feel like Richard when he gets to feeling strongly about something!

Now that I have settled down from that soap box, I have decided to avail myself of Marcie's humor. Were you just kidding the rest of us (well, maybe just Andrea and me) like you did Pam with those "pictures" for which we said we got little red x's?

We had to deal with the Zimbabwe boarder people when going to bungie jump off the the bridge that crosses between the two countries. It was obvious that they didn't like Americans. That was the only hairy moment in our whole trip through Zambia, which I found to be a very friendly country.