Francistown & Gaborone, Botswana

Traveling on to Francistown was a tricky proposition since we did not have our own vehicle. First we had to walk down to the intersection that passes for downtown Nata. And then we had to find a van heading south, waiting for quite a while in the van until we have a full compliment of passengers, something we call “achieving valence”. This should make sense if you took chemistry in school. This time we had to wait quite a while for the final two or three “electrons”!

**Above** and **Below**: Views on the way south. On this stretch we saw no wildlife just cattle, farms, and the odd store or business here and there.

Francistown was a bit of a disappointment, for me at least. If I may borrow and misuse Gertrud Stein’s comment on Oakland, California, I felt “there is no there there“. I mean the town has some history but they have managed to effectively obliterate most of it, covering it with malls and shabby-looking supermarkets. The most interesting place was the open air market right up against the bus terminal.

We also had trouble at first finding a good hotel. With a map app in hand we walked to where I thought was an affordable place. I finally found the place, opened the gate and knocked on the door. I was told, “This is not a hotel anymore. And you better leave the yard because there is a dog here that bites.”

This was now the second hotel off my list, the first being way too expensive just by looking at it. I was down to my last choice, the historical Diggers Inn. It was over $40 a night. I was going to settle for that and move on the next night but, luckily, I noticed just then another hotel just a block away that that was less than half that, City Inn. This place was perfectly suitable. End of a long travel day.

**Left**: The next day we explored the town starting with a small city park nearby. There were some interesting cultural exhibits here. I took some pictures and, strangely enough, a guard came up and told me that it was not allowed. I was told I could use a cellphone but not a camera! What a strange rule. And mine was not a really fancy camera.

**Right**: Pretty close to the hotel, on the edge of town was a steep, paved path that went right up Nyangabwe Hill, where you can get a good view of the city. Before we went up this lady (pictured) spoke to me, “*Hey, English!*” she said, “*We want to take a picture.* ” We obliged. And then we took their picture too.

Birds seen on our trek up the hill: **Left: Cut-throat Finch**, *Amadina fasciata*. (Not your usual prosaic bird name, don’t you think?) **Center: Southern Red Bishop**, *Euplectes orix*. **Right: African Gray Hornbill**, *Lophoceros nasutus*.

Photos **above** and **beow**: After two days we were ready to head down Highway A1 to the capitol city, Gaborone. We stopped in a few places, giving me a chance to take a few photos through the grimy tinted windows.

Finally made it to Gaborone. Everything we needed to see – and most of what I *wanted* to see – was in semi-easy walking distance. Like in many African cities, crossing the street was a bit dicey.

After a long walk to downtown we saw a cool, shady plaza where we sat down and rested. But a guard told us we were not allowed to be in the plaza because of Covid! This was in full view of street sweepers enjoying their lunch break under the shade nearby.

We were fortunate to get the affordable Gaborone Hotel (Below) right next to transportation, a market, and two shopping centers (Above).

**Left**: Botswanan stamps, **Top Right: Karoo Thrush**, *Turdus smithi* ,and **Frangipani Tree**. **Bottom Right**: **Speckled Mousebird**, *Colius striatus*.

Truck loaded with hay (?) at the Botswana-South Africa border checkpoint. We had to get out of the bus and walk quite a distance to the other side. I, without thinking, had my camera strapped around my neck. Because of this I had to fill out another form declaring the value of the camera, where I had bought it, and other pointless details. I should have left it in my backpack!

Welcome to South Africa!

Well… it was not really the kind of welcome that we wanted. But that is another story.

Trip to Nata, Botswana

The first half, maybe, of our road down to Nata from Kasane still had plenty of wildlife. But later – and especially when we approached Nata – the land became more agricultural and less wild. *Elephants, lions, zebras, and ostriches* gave way to *cattle* and rows upon rows of crops.
**Top**: The **Kasane Forest Reserve** stayed with us quite a ways as we headed south. I saw elephants and a zebra but, this time, I was not fast enough to get a good shot of them. Lower Left: The sign next to the picnic table reads: *“Disclaimer. This is a wild life area. You are stopping here at your own risk.”* **Lower Right**: As the land opened up more it was easier to see the ostriches.

**Left**: **Pandamatenga** grain silos. The weathered billboards on one of them reads “Financing Farmers to nurture and feed the nation”. **Right**: Entering a new district means getting out of the van and walking through the checkpoint. It felt good to stretch the legs.

**Top Left**: The common area of Eselbe Camp. We enjoyed staying here. We had a very affordable private room. Staying at this place was an unforgettable experience. **Right**: Germans friends we met at Eselbe Camp Backpackers, where we saw the Bush Babies. They were on the way up to Kasane. The very road we just came down in the van two days before. **Lower Left**: The stars of Eselbe Camp, **Bush Babies** (AKA **Southern Lesser** **Galago**, *Galago moholi*) performing nightly. They hide in the hollow beams of the common area you see in the first picture. When it gets dark they venture out tentatively from their hole – first looking around and staring at you for a few minutes . And then they spring into action. Spring is the word. It was incredible to see how quickly and high they were able to jump, like little furry grasshoppers. But very accurate in their leaps. We saw them jump five to ten feet from the platform on to the top of barbed wires, every time landing right *between* the points. *Amazing*.

**Left: Red-billed Firefinch**, *Lagonosticta senegala*. **Top Right**: **Meves’s Starling**, Lamprotornis mevesii. **Lower Right**: **Black-backed Puffback**, *Dryoscopus cubla*.

Canoeing is available at the camp. The **Nata River** is right behind the camp grounds.

A pleasant enough view but, truth be known, we already missed Kasane with all the Warthogs, elephants, hippos, and the rest. The bird life, too, was much more varied than here owing. Cattle have pretty much taken over the whole natural region around Nata, other wildlife being rather rare. There is a sizeable salt pan a few miles south of town. Being a protected area there would be good wildlife there, but it required private vehicle to get there. Or a willingness to walk further than we intended.

We spent two days in Nata and then walked the mile or so to the junction that pretends to be downtown Nata in order to get a van to take us to Francistown.

Nata has an importance way beyond its actual size. Although it is the 49th largest town in Botswana it is one that many travelers come to because it is on an important junction. For us, the main draw was seeing those Bush babies.

Next: Francistown (soon)

Kasane: Wildlife Paradise of Northeast Botswana

The next two posts are going to be about our recent trip through Botswana. Most of the better photos and memories are of this country are of the very first town we came to – Kasane. The town itself was remarkably unremarkable. The biggest interest of Kasane was not the buildings or streets but the animals that made the streets their home. When we first came to town we were told not to go out at night.

“Why? Muggers?”
“No, the elephants come down from the hills and come to town.”

Below: African Fish Eagle, Terathopius ecaudatus. We saw this magnificent bird towards the end of our stay in Kasane, but I thought it would be a good photo to start with. I was so glad I was looking in the right direction to get this shot.