Perhaps the most famous waterfalls in the world. Located in the southern part of Africa, I visited it in the country of Zimbabwe.
The Falls is fed by the Zambezi River and borders the countries of Zimbabwe and Zambia. It's massive at over a mile in length and a drop of over 350 feet. This is the largest waterfall in the world in terms of area of falling water (the width times the height). It is truly impressive, but I rank it below the Iguazu Falls in Argentina simply because of the access to Devil's Throat at Iguazu:
Victoria Falls
Upon approach to the Falls it's easy to see the rising mist from the thunderous waters.
This adds to the excitement of the anticipated Falls ahead.
It was David Livingstone , a Scottish missionary, who gave the Falls its name in 1855. It was named after the reigning queen at the time, Queen (wait for it!), yes, Victoria.
The cost to visit the Falls is $30 for an adult and $15 for children. Zimbabwe is currently on the US dollar after abandoning their currency as I explained in this post:
The natural surroundings of the falls is impressive. It is not commercialized to the point large hotels and condos are visible from this beautiful wonder.
The massive amount of waterfall in view is one of the most impressive parts of the Falls, but another equally impressive characteristic is the amount of mist that rises above the Falls. If you get anywhere close to the Falls you are going to get drenched!
I was sure to bring my raincoat!
More pictures as I walked along the width of the Falls:
A rainbow in the mist was a common sight. Although I did not visit by night, if the moon is full enough you can actually see a moonbow in the mist.
I did a self tour of the falls by taking a local taxi at a cost of about $5, then just paying the admission price and walking along the Falls. It is possible to take any number of tours or tour packages and spend 3 to 5 times more, but that's not for me. Who needs a guide to help you enjoy this wonder? I think their talking to "enhance" the experience would do the opposite.
As for precautions prior to arrival, although malaria is a concern, it was not for me. I didn't even apply mosquitoe repellent as they never bothered me. I've rarely had mosquito issues when traveling to these areas. Perhaps the mosquitoes don't like foreign blood?
But as I mentioned here:
I do carry antibiotics with me, just in case.
I spent a total of about 2 1/2 hours at this attraction. Of course you could spend more, but all of it can be taken in within this time period or less.
I have many more pictures to share that I'll do in a second part tomorrow.
Video time:
Wow, very powerful and very impressive. 😳
The force of the water is truly incredible. The mist is very prevident the pictures tell the story. I have never been to Niagara falls how dies it compare to that.