Zambia / Zimbabwe

Well HELLO friends!
first thing's first.
Happy Belated Charlie bean
Happy Birthday yesterday Matty - great / epic b-day.

We DID celebrate Halloween in Malawi (they don't, and most of the people in our group don't... but Matt and I certainly did! ) we surprised the group by coming out in costumes! --- Matty in his Spidey costume (facebook photos to follow asap...) and me in a much more modest (but still entertaining) pirate costume!! HILARIOUS. It was extra fun !

We desperately try to get a party going every single day, but our group just doesn't have the UMPH that the two of us seem to have ahahahaha. that's okay we are still having a blast. Sooo it's hard for me to remember where I left off with you, I suppose I should have backtracked my blog a bit before starting but I didn't so sorry if I repeat myself!! Malawi was so so cool, I know I just wrote about it. We swam to that gorgeous island I told you about every single day -- such great exercise and so fun. It was 850 meters each way... so that's a good workout! (good thing too, because there's nowhere to run there).

I bought a few souvenirs in Malawi- there's lots of cool little wooden trinkets!! The coolest thing is that you can trade- if you have an old shirt, or pair of shoes, or products, or sunglasses or ANYTHING really they want it, and they will trade you the things from their shop for your western things. It's so wicked! I traded my sunglasses, a pair of shorts that are too big, a t-shirt ... they tried really really hard to get my flashlight (which I now call a head torch because everyone in our group is from England or Aussie and that's what they call it..) .

We ended up sleeping in Malawi for 3 nights before moving on and we even set up a makeshift movie screen using a white sheet up against the truck! it was really cool. we watched "out of Africa" and "blood diamond" ! <3 good movies. (both I've seen before but didn't mind watching again! )

After that we were on our way to Victoria Falls!!!!!! (in Zambia) (where I'm writing you from now) We had to sleep elsewhere two nights just on the way so that we weren't driving TOO much, so we leave the campsite around 6am and drive until sometime in the early afternoon and then we just have fun doing whatever (playing volleyball, swimming, tanning, reading, computing, conversing, drinking etc.) until supper time, we eat late around 7 or 8 and then most people GO TO BED because we have to get up at like 5 again the next day. hahahahaha It's actually to the point that the entire group is up and rockin at sunrise (which is around 5am). So that's been great. Actually, the English girls (Hannah, Sophie and Ruth) and Matt and I the 5 of us get up even earlier and go for a run each morning out on the road too!! (trying desperately to stay in shape but it's not working because our camp leaders are the BEST COOKS IN THE WORLD OMG and feed us GINORMOUS portions of AMAZING food covered in all the things you WANT to eat all the time but refrain from doing so normally). I thought for sure "oh Jessica, you're going to Africa you will definitely lose weight!!" ... WRONG ... DOH!!! hahahaha

So anyways.

Now I am writing you from Vic. Falls / Livingstone. This place is EPIC. It's incredible and you can literally do ANYTHING here. Matt went Bungie jumping (he actually did) yesterday. This is the second largest bungie in the world (don't quote me on that but I Think that's what someone said). It was amazing. he did it in his Spiderman costume. HAHAHA. Today I went white water rafting ... I thought my life was over a few times throughout the trip, but I'm alive and well (and tired and sore).... that was today. (i'll tell you more about that in a minute)

We are sleeping here for 4 nights (we have already slept here one night) in our tents. I thought that I would be tired of sleeping on the ground in my tent after weeks and weeks, but I just love it more and more each day. The more I am outside, the better it turns out! I can't get enough. I love feeling the cool outside air coming in the screens and actually being able to see the stars every night as I go to sleep . Listening to crickets, hearing the palm trees , and the weird and wonderful frogs all around us, smelling the grass.... all of these things I am love love loving every night when I fall asleep. I sleep so soundly too from my huge days and early mornings, fresh air, sweating, exercise and excitement!

Also, light rainy season has just begun, so it randomly storms for about 30 minutes all the time .. (like maybe once, twice or thrice a day)... we just had one too. I love the smell of the rain, it smells just the same as Thailand during rainy season. you can see giant black heavy clouds coming your way, and you can smell it, and it's huge heavy drops that actually SPLASH off of your skin when they land on you.

Yesterday on our way back from Matt's bungie jump, we pulled over. you'll never guess why ?

Because there was a huge heard of elephants right beside us. We got out of the car (but not to close for fear of charging), and took loads of pictures. I nearly burst into tears for sheer excitement of seeing such amazing creatures so close in the wild.

Umm so yeah, the white water rafting- it was CRAZY ... scariest/funnest/craziest thing I've ever done to date!!!! I got pulled under the water (after being violently thrown from the raft several times) and couldn't find my way to the surface (it was chaos, it was not only me experiencing this, it was about 20 people LOL!!!!) and then the boat like, runs over your face and you really think you may never find oxygen again. It was amazing. I was going to do the full day, but after 10 intense rapids, I decided to stop.

One of the rapids we had to walk around because it was a level 6- it was named "commercial suicide" meaning that the company cannot legally allow us to raft on that particular rapid due to the fact that the chances you won't make it are scary high. WOAH..... I took a picture/video of that one to show you.

Don't worry, I think that's enough extreme sports for me.

Tomorrow we are planning to go into town and just shop around and get some Indian food (YAY I am actually a silly amount of excited to eat curry.... mmmmmmm especially if it's coconut curry.. oh god.. mm) and then maybe catch a film at the theatre? I adore going to see movies in new countries.

OH btw, I also got to spend a little while in Zimbabwe --- just for Matt's bungie off the bridge. I have pictures of the bridge from all angles and lots of scenic photos. can't wait to show you!

anyways, internet is slowing and thunder is rolling in over the river (where, by the way, there are about 18 elephants crossing as I type... amazing...) So I better depart from the computer for fear it will shut down and I will lose all I've typed.

Sorry if it was scattered, just trying to get as many thoughts out, as quickly as possible. !!!

xoxoxoxoxox lots of love, miss you all take care !