Mfuwe is a small town in northern Zambia (pronounced Muh-foo-way). For us it is the jump-off point to visit Luanga National Park, perhaps one of the most gorgeous and impressive of Africa’s national wildlife preserves.

We flew here from Lusaka, the capital city in southern Zambia. The airport isn’t much more than a quonset hut with a tiny gift shop attached. We are booked in for a three night safari stay at Lion Camp, located inside the boundaries of South Luanga National Park. But, really, we have no idea what to expect.

Outside the tiny terminal, a safari vehicle is waiting for us. A large jeep, extended with 3 benches that are higher than the driver’s seat, offering a good view. It’s a standard 38º C or more. Our bags are loaded and we climb onboard for a wind blown drive down a dusty red road. It turns out to be a 2 1/2 hour drive from the airport to the lodge. We drive through the village of Mfuwe with its clusters of straw huts and crooked wooden stalls offering wares for sale. The poorest of people, sitting in the shade of a few straggly trees, offer tomatoes for sale. Barefooted children wave at us. We notice open fires for cooking, some brick ovens for baking along the dusty road. Rusty, dangling signs announce 'beauty parlor' and ‘Good Tidings Fish Store'.

Crossing the long cement bridge over the Luangwa River, we reach the entrance gate to South Luangwa National Park. And that’s where our biggest surprise starts. Rather than just a ride from the airport to the lodge, it appears that this is where our safari starts already. Elephants lumber on the sandy banks of the almost dried up river; a huge group of hippos is half submerged in the river to escape the midday sun so they don’t get sunburn.

To our amazement we spot a pride of eight lions sleeping under a tree. Giraffes stride through the bushes. Buffaloes with their large black judge’s wigs on their heads track to the river. This is Africa! I’ll take an airport ride like this anytime! I’m beyond excited about this early show of Africa’s big game.

When we finally reach the lodge, it turns out to be a gorgeous building that blends into the environment with its straw roof and mud coloured walls. One hostess greets us with wet towels to wipe off the dust, the other serves us a cold drink. What a welcome in this 4 star resort.

Jutting out from the main lodge, are raised wooden walkways that lead to a small number of cottages. They are raised to separate us from the lions... Our chalet is the far one, the honeymoon suite. Never will I forget the moment we opened the door. We look across the kingsize bed, covered in a white mosquito net, and straight out of two large screened walls. A wooden porch surrounds our room, the view is of the river bank teeming with animals: a large herd of zebras, snorting hippos, a few giraffes and, to top it off, a small herd of elephants lumbering by - right outside our windows. Truly a jaw dropping view, from our bed!

We have ten minutes to wash hands, put on more sunscreen, have a cup of tea and we’re off again. This time on our first official safari drive. Our guide is Hendrix, a knowledgable wildlife guide. To our amazement our safari drives are almost always for just the two of us. I had imagined, before we came, that we’d be with a car load of other tourists. But it is just the two of us and sometimes one other person. We quickly learn that there are three game drive a day, if you want to go that often. And, being in Africa, of course you do. One is at 6 AM to see the savanna awaken and the sun rise. One is after lunch and a siesta and one is at night to see nocturnal animals on the prowl.

On this drive, we spot a large male lion devouring a piece of meat under a tree. Coming around a bend, there suddenly is a hyena showing its teeth at us. A large herd of elephants, with little ones, is lazily browsing on leaves.

Early the next morning we drive down the river bank, onto the white sand and find ourselves in the middle of a pride of 18 lions. Two little cubs are playing in the sun. Father Lion looks identical to the lion king, surveying his pride and his kingdom. The most astonishing thing is that we seem invisible to the animals. The lions do not even glance at us. “As long as you are in the vehicle,” our guide assures us, “As soon as you step out you become prey.” I’ll take his word for it. But it feels good that no animal even looks at us. They all totally ignore the vehicle.

Zebras abound. Hippos crowd the river so that it looks like you can walk across their backs to the other side. I have never seen such huge crocodiles, one staring up at me from below the river bank.

There is a stop for coffee/tea break on the morning drives, and for ‘sundowners’ during the afternoon/evening drives. The first night we stop at the river bank, during a brilliant red sunset where tables with beer and champagne and chicken wings await us. For once it’s nice to be spoiled in a 4 star hotel. In fact, the amount of wildlife we see in the first two days makes me realize that, if you are on a budget, it might be more economical to spend 2 days in a top notch resort with the best possible guide, then to spend 5 days in a cheaper place. We see everything we could possibly wish for in those first two days.

Dining in the lodge is at 8 PM by candlelight, with soft savannah sounds as background. The next few days we spend in a cheaper lodge but still with elephants roaming outside our door and hippos snorting into the fading evening light.

We see leopards: the first one has just killed an impala and hauled it into a tree. Then we spot one with two cubs. The fields are dotted with bush bucks, impala, waterbucks, kudu’s and more. I love the wart hogs who run with their tails straight up like a little flag pole. In the spot light at night we see mongoose, porcupine and curvets.

The array of animals is rounded out by endangered wild dogs, a hyena in the day time, lots of zebra and giraffes, birds of all shapes and sizes. It is survival of the fittest here: on the first day we saw wildlife officers trying to save 8 buffaloes who were stuck in the mud - it didn’t work because two days later we notice their carcasses being plundered by vultures. Even a pride of satisfied lions had their fill of buffalo meat.

Kees worked as park ranger for much of his life so he was very interested to find out what it takes to become a wildlife guide/park ranger in Zambia. He was able to find an operations manual for wildlife guides, the same type he used to write for park rangers in Kananaskis Provincial Park, Alberta many years ago. He was impressed with the amount guides have to learn here about wildlife, laws, resource management, history, constellations, and much more. There is no school for park rangers in Zambia, but they start as scout, assisting certified guides and over the years, through self study, have to memorize the entire manual of 165 pages. Then they have to sit for an oral and written exam and a practical exam in the field. That will provide them with the Guide I certificate and after a few years of more study and practise they can obtain a Guide II certificate which will allow them to conduct walking safaris.

Each guide also has to also be a car mechanic.. When we were surrounded by lions I wondered if the truck would start again. It did. But once it did not... Just before, we had stopped next to a leopard and would not have been able to get out. When the truck died, there were no animals and the two of us pushed it downhill to start!

An option to a game drive, is to take a walking safari. Walking appeals to us. But does a walking safari mean that you can run into lions? In a way, it does. But the guide takes us to an area where he feels it is unlikely to run into anything too big or dangerous. It is not a long, arduous hike but an interesting stroll through the African bush. The guide reads the ground like the pages of an open book. “Look,” he points, “ a hyena walked here. He was not in a rush because only the two middle claws show.”

He points out where baboons dined on the fiber of elephant droppings. We see gorgeous round clay pots, broken open. They are the large balls that a dung beetle rolls through the mud. He shows us intricately woven weaver bird weaves nests that always hang on the west side of a tree.

There’s even a taylor bird which stitches leaves together with real stitches. We follow trails made by elephants and hippos, see a large flock of bright green love birds that look like the leaves of a tree flying off… It’s like walking through a David Attenborough documentary.

One afternoon, we have lunch at Track & Trail River Camp. They’ve set a little table for us and when I look up I spot an elephant. Then three more. They come within meters. We have to retreat to the safety of the kitchen door and watch as they stroll passed, right next to the bar.

We visit Chipembele Wildlife Centre, an impressive visitors’ centre run by a British couple who were both police officers in England, obsessed by Africa. Seventeen years ago they moved here, built a house in the bush and now educate African children on the importance of wildlife. On the side, he catches poachers.

He tells us about one poacher who has just been released from prison. Because I wrote a book called The Elephant Keeper, about an elephant orphanage in Zambia, we’re interested to learn more. Through local contacts, we manage to make a date with the guy and spend an afternoon chatting with a poacher. What motivates a poacher? Money.

This (ex)poacher has nine children and no job. 70% unemployment in Zambia means no work, no income. So how does a father provide for his family? How does he put food on the table?

The easiest way is by poaching. Edwin tells us he built his own guns and would spend the night in the bush, hunting impala, buffalo, kudo and more. He ate the meat but mostly sold it.

He got caught. At some point he got offered a job but screwed up and went back to poaching. Ended up in jail. Jail in Zambia is not for the faint of heart. “1,500 men in one cell,” he says. People right next to him died of suffocation. One meal a day, a kind of uncooked porridge. It was a wonder that he survived the year. But now he swears he will never poach again. Only time will tell. We hope he will find a job. His skills as tracker are probably unparalleled. And he now seems to agree: wildlife needs to be protected. Wildlife brings tourists and tourists bring money.

We also understand the problems caused by free roaming wildlife. Herds of elephants trample and eat cultivated crops of corn. They brake into grain storage units. Governments try to help villagers by building stronger storage units. They supply villagers with ‘chili bombs’ and help them to plant chili hedges to discourage elephants. We end up paying for tracking devices to help catch other poachers. Hopefully every bit helps.

In Mfuwe people have lots of trouble with elephants. “They come through our village at night and eat all of the mangos,” our driver tells us, “but in the next village people can sleep outside without fear of being trampled.”

I think about this as I fall asleep to the music of cicadas and the snorting of hippos just outside our chalet along the river. That night we have the very first rain fall of the new rainy season - the first rain in 7 or 8 months. It will soon transform the region into a lush green forest with wide rivers and newborn animals.

Our trip to Zambia, including volunteering with The Book Bus and a visit to the Lilayi Elephant Orphanage, were arranged by the amazing people at Mambulu Safaris. I would book any next trip to Africa through them as they look after all details and are very knowledgable about local circumstances.

In South Luanga National Park we stayed at Lion Camp Lodge.

Nearby, but outside the National Park and less expensive, we stayed at Track and Trail River Camp.