You may have heard that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle fell in love in a safari camp in Botswana and are now married.

I am heading off to Botswana to fall in love also—but not with a prince. I expect that I’ll be falling in love with the wildlife. The relationships will be at a distance and purely platonic.

Why Africa?

For years I have been receiving digital flyers from a woman called Deborah Stephens who leads customized trips that are designed specifically for small groups of people. She offers trips to various enchanting places where she has lived throughout her life. One of those enchanting places is Botswana where she stayed after falling in love with an English doctor that she met when one of her friends became ill while traveling with her.

Check out her enticing website. https://www.timelessbaja.com

When I received her flyer one year ago about her upcoming camping safari trip to Botswana, I signed up immediately. I told some of my friends and they signed up right away as well. The friends told their friends and within days the trip had nearly filled—a year ahead of time.

Many of the photos in this post are from her collection.

The Republic of Botswana

Some of you might have already been introduced to Botswana through Alexander McCall Smith’s charming and thoroughly engaging series of novels called “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.” The main character is Mma Ramotswe whose detective agency solves specific mysteries in each novel. The strength of the novels lies in the characters, the wisdom of Mma Ramotswe, and the glimpses into the country and its culture.

The name Botswana means “land of the Tswana,” referring to the dominant ethnic group in the country, the Tswana. Botswana is located in the southern part of Africa, bounded by Namibia to the west, South Africa to the south, Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) to the east, and Zambia (formerly Northern Rhodesia) and Angola to the north.

With just over two million people in a country roughly the size of Texas, Botswana is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Since it gained independence, Botswana has transformed itself from being one of the poorest countries in the world—with a GDP per capita of about US$70 per year in the late 1960s—to one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Mining, cattle, and tourism are the main sources of revenue.

Before Botswana became independent in 1966, it was a British protectorate, known as Bechuanaland. Since then Botswana has successfully maintained a stable democracy.

To get a taste of the history that preceded independence in Botswana, on Deborah’s recommendation I watched a fascinating and touching British film called “A United Kingdom,” released in 2016.

The film is based on a true story about the heir to the throne of Bechuanaland, Seretse Khama, who studied law in London after World War II. During his studies, he fell in love with a white woman, Ruth Williams, whom he married, in spite of the threatening protests by his family, as well as the British government. Together the two of them, side by side, transformed their country.

Even if you have no intention of going to Botswana, I think you will find this inspiring film well worth watching.

Itinerary

Our mobile safari will begin in the northern part of Botswana, in a town called Maun where Deborah used to live. We will spend a few days in the Okavango Delta, then continue on to Moremi, Chobe, and Savuti’s vast game reserves.

Deborah said that this area is “…one of the best places in the world to experience animals in their own habitat, up close and personal.” She described our customized trip as “…Hemingway-style—without the guns.”

We end our safari at Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. We’ll be staying at an historic colonial inn right above the falls. From there, most of the group will continue on to Cape Town, South Africa for a week.

I hope you will come with me—virtually—on this exciting adventure.