We’re back Zambia again, where we’ve checked in again at the homey ZigZag lodge on the edge of Livingstone.
Right across the street from the lodge compound we can see these beautifully restored passenger train cars.
This is the Royal Livingstone Express dinner train, one of the luxury treats we (OK, Kim) planned for us along the way.
Transfer from your hotel is included in the ticket price. It seemed like a practical idea when we were in Egypt but back then we didn’t know it would be right across the road.
Once the van got us all the way across the street, the porter ushered us onto the train and welcomed us with drinks in the lounge car.Appetizers were served as we got underway, and then we had a couple of hours to refill our glasses and enjoy the scenery.
The train moves very slowly – this excursion is all about the journey. It took almost two hours to travel the 10 kilometers along Cecil Rhodes’s “Cape to Cairo” mainline to Victoria Falls Bridge, where we stopped just short of the border sign in the middle.
The train stayed on the bridge for about 20 minutes so we could take pictures of the falls, the train, and each other.
There was ample opportunity to buy souvenirs from the very persistent Zimbabwean vendors.
As the sun set we got back on the train and proceeded to the dining car.
And two hours later we were back at the ZigZag, a bit overstuffed and happy with our new herd of aluminum-can zebras.