Table of Contents
Botswana
Introduction
PART ONE GENERAL INFORMATION
Chapter 1 History and Economy
History, Government and administration, Economy
Chapter 2 People and Culture
Population overview, Social groups or 'tribes,' Language, Religion, Education, Culture
Chapter 3 The Natural Environment
Physical environment, Flora and fauna, Conservation
Chapter 4 Planning and Preparation
Wehn to go and highlights, Organising and booking your trip, Red tape, Getting there and away, Money and budgeting, What to take, Getting around, Accommodation, Food and drink, What to buy, Communications and the media, Giving something back
Chapter 5 Health and Safety
Chapter 6 Into the Wilds
Driving, Bush camping, Walking in the bush, Boating, Minimum impact
PART TWO THE GUIDE
Chapter 7 Maun
Getting there and away, Orientation, Getting around, Where to stay, Where to eat and drink, NIghtlife, Shopping, Other practicalities, What to see and do, Beyond Maun: getting organised, The road north of Maun: to Moremi and Chobe
Chapter 8 Kasane and the Northeast
Kasane, Around Kasane, South of Kasane
Chapter 9 Chobe National Park and Forest Reserve
Background information, Getting organised, Chobe riverfront, Driving from Kasane to Savuti, Chobe Forest Reserve, Liambezi area, Ngwezumba Pans, Savuti, Driving south from Savuti, Linyanti
Chapter 10 Linyanti, Selinda and Kwando Reserves
Background information, Linyanti Concession (NG15), Selinda Concession (NG16), Kwando Concession (NG14)
Chapter 11 The Okavango Delta - Moremi Game Reserve
Background information, The Mopane Tongue, The private areas of Moremi (NG28)
Chapter 12 The Okavango Delta - Private Reserves around Moremi
Mapula and Gudigwa (NG12), Khwai Community Concessions (NG18 and NG19), Kwara (NG20), Xugana, Camp Okavango and Shinde (NG21), Vumbura and Duba Plains (NG22 and NG23), Community area (NG24), Jao, Kwetsani, Jacana and Tubu Tree (NG25), Abu, Seba and Macatoo (NG26), Pom Pom, Kanana and Nxabega (NG27A), Delta, Oddballs', Gunn's and Eagle Island (NG27B), Xigera, Mombo and Chief's Camp (NG28), Gubanare, Xudum, Xaranna and OHS (NG29 and NG30), Chitabe and Sandibe (NG31), Stanley's, Baines' and budget mokoro trips (NG32), Santawani Partnership (NG33), Sankuyo Tswaragano Community Trust and Moremi Tented Camp (NG34), Mababe (NG41), and Mankwe (NG43)
Chapter 13 The Okavango Panhandle and Northwest Kalahari
The Panhandle, The Delta's western fringes, The northwest Kalahari
Chapter 14 The Kalahari's Great Salt Pans
Background information, Getting organised, Nxai Pan National Park, Makgadikgadi Pans, Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, Towns around the pans
Chapter 15 The Central Kalahari
Background information, Practical information, What to see and do
Chapter 16 Livingstone and the Victoria Falls
History, Geology, Livingstone, What to see and do
Appendix I Wildlife Guide
Appendix 2 Language
Appendix 3 Further Reading
Index
Guidebook Updates
Notes from the Author
"It's tempting here, by way of introduction, to list the highlights of Botswana's main areas one by one, describing each to entice the reader. But to do this would be misleading, as Botswana has just three main attractions for me.
Firstly, it's the wildlife. Whether this is your first safari or your fiftieth, Botswana won't disappoint. The sheer variation of the country, from the arid Kalahari to lush, well-watered forest glades, ensures tremendous variety. Botswana is serious about its big game. It has spectacular herds of elephants and buffalo, and prolific populations of predators. Experienced safari enthusiasts can bounce across the bush following a pack of wild dogs; Botswana has probably the continent's best population of these highly endangered predators. Yet often it's the country's smaller residents that will keep you entertained, from tiny painted reed frogs and barking geckos, to troops of entertaining meerkats.
Secondly, and the underlying reason why many come here, is the feeling in Botswana that you're within an endless pristine wilderness, almost devoid of human imprint. For city-dwellers, such space seems to be the ultimate luxury. In Botswana, animals wander freely across vast reserves which are measured in thousands of square kilometres, not hectares. Exploring these wilder corners is invariably deeply liberating.
Thirdly, and missed by some, is Botswana's rich history. It's often barely hinted at but, veiled and mysterious, it's all the more enticing. It reveals itself in the paintings at Tsodilo, and the magic that seems to surround those hills. You'll catch a glimpse of it as you search for Stone-Age arrowheads on the Makgadikgadi Pans. And standing on an ancient river-bed, or the wave-washed hills around Savuti, it's hard not to think back and wonder what forces shaped this country, long before you, or any Europeans, first set eyes on it."
