For the benefit of my international audience, who could or could not be South African expatriates living overseas, April 27 is Freedom Day in South Africa and marks the country's first non racial democratic election. In other countries this is called Independence Day.
In June, over another one of our many public holidays Youth Day, I will be in Zambia attending the inaugural Zambian Mining and Energy Conference. This will be my second trip to Zambia, which is one of my favorite places to visit.
The last time I was in Zambia was in 2009 and I stayed at the Intercontinental Lusaka. It was a excellent hotel with an awesome restaurant and a 'happening' bar. However, because Kwatcha's, Zambia's national currency, cant be purchased in South Africa before hand I had to rely on the exchange rates offered by the hotel.
As with all hotels all over the world, you wont get the best exchange rates. And as expected, the restaurants and bars within the hotel were significantly overpriced.
This time I am going to be staying in the Protea Hotel Arcades in Lusaka, which i am excited about because it has two things that the Intercontinental Lusaka didn't have: a reliable internet connection and a shopping center just behind the Hotel.
This means that I will have open lines of communication with people in South Africa and I wont have to pay 32 000 Kwatcha for a bottle of the second best beer in the world in my opinion, Mosi.
One of the biggest tips I can give international visitors coming to Africa is to do your research before hand. At the end of the post I will relate a rather irritating experience in Zimbabwe.
I am really excited at the prospect of having the Arcades Shopping Center just behind the Hotel because it means that during my personal time away from the conference I will be able to experience a bit of the Zambian culture. Something that I struggle to do when traveling in Africa on business.
Because I know that research is essential when traveling into Africa I tried to google the Arcades Shopping Center and get directed to a review site called:thebestofzambia.com
WHAT A CRAP SITE! Every info link you try to access brings up an error page, so now you would swear that there is nothing good about Zambia if you judge the country on that website alone! At least I know (from other review sites such as:tripadvisor.com) that there is a forex dealership in the center so I can maybe get a decent exchange rate.
African travel advise #2: ensure that you have a few US Dollars in your travel budget as Africa's second, unofficial, currency is the greenback. Nearly every country accepts it. And I live by the rule that if Dollars are accepted in the Democratic Republic of Congo, they will be accepted ANYWHERE in Africa. So closer to my travel dates, or even now when my salary gets deposited, I will be phoning my bank and ordering my Green Backs.
African travel advise #3a: Familiarise yourself with the exchange rate. Prices in Africa seem high but are low. Observe: in 2009 I had a steak at the Marlin Club in Lusaka which cost me ZMK 56 000, seems excessive doesnt it? but in reality this is only about R 78. which is alot cheaper then what you would pay in SA. So US$100 will get me ZMK 469 000 which is enough for three days.
African travel advise #3b: There is a saying in Africa which I swear by: 'Cash is King'. Don't trust the credit card facilities in Africa, especially in the smaller locals and don't assume that travelers cheques are freely usable in Africa. Remember a cheque is a promise, cash is guarantee and many African countries hold this view!
African travel advise #4: I'm sure this applies to every country in the world and not only those in Africa. Make sure of your P's and Q's. Keep accommodation confirmation E Mails this is more important to you then gold!
Now for my Zimbabwe story: On my first trip to Zimbabwe, also in in 2009, I checked with the company that was hosting me whether I would need journalist accreditation to enter into Zim. They said no you can freely tell them that you are journalist, you will have no trouble at the border. So I fill in this nice little green form on the plane and state that my occupation is a journalist. So at the immigration desk this police office, who was as dark as the night, starts asking me 101 questions about why I am coming to Zimbabwe, what I am going to write about, do I have a hidden agenda, and, and ,and! The next day I was to report to the ministry of information where I got asked the same questions. So on my next trip to Zim I said my occupation was a Mine Manager!
Cant wait to get involved with a few bottles of Mosi come June! Like Ian Poulter famously told me: WERE GETTING INVOLVED HERE MATE! WERE GETTING INVOLVED!
Footnote: I am a firm believer in the saying just because you traveled to one African country makes you an expert. And I can understand how people might question my credentials. My African travel list reads as such thus far:
Zambia (once but by June it will be a times 2)
Zimbabwe (twice)
Lesotho
Swaziland
Mozambique
Kenya
Democratic Republic of Congo
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