Zambia! Sunset! Currency Exchange! What?

I'm a sucker for a good sunset photo ... or two ... or three

We arrived in Zambia today.  

Okay ... How did we get here?  And where is Zambia?  We left Dakar Senegal early, early, Monday morning (Sunday night?), and flew to Johannesburg, South Africa.  

We spent last night in "Jo-burg" as they call it, and then left this Tuesday morning to fly to Livingstone, Zambia, the home of Victoria Falls, one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. 

Unfortunately, since we arrived this afternoon, there wasn't time to see it today and we leave for some other areas tomorrow, so we won't see it for a couple days yet.  (trust me, it will be there when we come back!)

But we did go on a sunset cruise on the Zambesi River, as shown on the sunset pictures displayed on this blogpost.  The Zambesi is one of Africa's great rivers, and eventually tumbles over the Falls downstream from where we are.

Zambia is located in South/Central Africa, next to Zimbabwe and Botswana, both of which we will visit in the next few days.  

On the boat trip tonight, we saw Hippos, and Crocodiles, and Baboons, and a bunch of cool African birds - such as an Open Bill Stork - how's that for a trivia question?

Anyway, we watched the sun go down while enjoying a Gin & Tonic on the boat, a very sublime experience. 

Okay, so how do we pay for all this travel?

Well, it doesn't cost as much as you think.   Admittedly, I don't know how much you think it cost, but it is surprisingly affordable. 

In fact, I wanted to explain a key factor in the cost of travel and how it gets paid for.  We pay for most things using American Dollars, which at the current time is at an all-time high.  The dollar has risen against almost all world currencies, so that means travel is on sale!

Let me expand on that.  First of all, despite what several politicos might say, the US economy is in pretty good condition, maybe even very good.  In fact, it is the envy of the rest of the world.  Without getting too technical, that means the value of other currencies goes down in comparison to the dollar. 

So when we order a steak and nice meal in South Africa, it can cost like $3.50 - and I'm not making this up, we had dinner there last night.  Almost everything else is way less expensive too - hotel rooms, taxi rides, bus tickets, clothing, travel excursions, etc. 

Across the board, everything costs less.  Now, I don't want to pretend that you travel the world to save money, but if you want to go to other countries, now is a very good time, financially.   Granted, Fiona and I have enough resources to travel, and we place a high priority on visiting unusual places.  

Let me give a final example:  We have come all the way to Senegal to do the good work of Andando in helping people - and once you're here, you can fly to Zambia for like $300 - why not do it?

All in all, most people might be surprised to find out how far they can go on a little money.