Trip Summary
Astonishing beauty and consummate adventure await on this 18-day Southern Africa small group journey. Explore Johannesburg’s Soweto district, renowned for its anti-apartheid movement. Staying in a historic hotel near Zimbabwe’s spectacular Victoria Falls, admire the falls up close, meet local schoolchildren, and embark on a “Sundowner” Zambezi cruise. Take a rhino safari, then enjoy a full-day safari excursion to Botswana’s exceptional Chobe National Park. After touring Namibia’s Windhoek, encounter the vast Namib Desert and Sossusvlei’s immense dunes. Cruise on a catamaran along the storied Namibian coast and tour German-accented Swakopmund. With four final nights in beautiful Cape Town, sample the Winelands’ acclaimed offerings at a winery and visit lovely Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and the colorful Bo-Kaap neighborhood. Other highlights include a stunning Cape of Good Hope funicular ride, Boulders Beach’s penguins, and summiting Table Mountain via cable car. Experience the extraordinary Kruger region with an optional 4-day/3-night post-tour extension.
Event Itinerary
Day 1: Depart U.S. for Johannesburg, South Africa
Day 2: Arrive Johannesburg
Day 3: Johannesburg & Soweto
- Tour Soweto and learn about South Africa’s struggle against apartheid
- Visit the former homes of Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela
- Explore the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum and hear firsthand accounts of the 1976 Soweto uprising
Day 4: Johannesburg / Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
- Experience a guided walk at spectacular Victoria Falls, one of the world’s great natural wonders
- View the dramatic gorge and thundering cascades of the Zambezi River
Day 5: Victoria Falls
- Visit a local school and interact with students and teachers
- Explore the town of Victoria Falls
- Cruise the Zambezi River at sunset
Day 6: Victoria Falls
- Enjoy a rhino safari in open-top safari vehicles
- Learn about explorer David Livingstone and his travels through Africa
Day 7: Chobe National Park, Botswana
- Search for elephants, lions, hippos, giraffes, zebras, and other wildlife on a game drive
- Explore the park from the water during a wildlife-viewing cruise
- Visit one of Africa’s premier safari destinations, home to the world’s largest elephant population
Day 8: Victoria Falls / Windhoek, Namibia
Day 9: Windhoek / Namib Desert / Sossusvlei
- Tour Namibia’s capital city
- Journey through the vast landscapes of the Namib Desert
- Arrive in the heart of the world’s oldest desert
Day 10: Sossusvlei
- Witness the towering red-orange dunes of Sossusvlei at sunrise
- Opportunity to climb Big Mama, one of the region’s highest dunes
Day 11: Sossusvlei / Swakopmund
- Travel through the striking scenery of the Namib Desert
Day 12: Swakopmund / Walvis Bay
- Cruise along Namibia’s dramatic Atlantic coastline
- Observe Cape fur seals, seabirds, and coastal wildlife from the water
Day 13: Swakopmund / Cape Town, South Africa
Day 14: Cape Town & the Winelands
- Explore South Africa’s renowned Winelands region
- Visit a winery and enjoy tastings amid scenic vineyard landscapes
Day 15: Cape of Good Hope
- Visit the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve
- Ride a funicular for panoramic coastal views
- See African penguins at Boulders Beach
Day 16: Cape Town
- Discover the colorful Bo-Kaap neighborhood and Cape Malay culture
- Visit Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden
- Ride a cable car to the summit of Table Mountain for sweeping views of Cape Town
Day 17: Depart Cape Town for the U.S.
Day 18: Arrive in the U.S.
Meet Your Faculty Expert
Robert Baum
Robert Baum has written numerous articles on the history of Diola religion, field research, religious constructions of gender, indigenous religions and has recently completed a book on the history of Diola women's prophetic movements. His first book, Shrines of the Slave Trade: Diola Religion and Society in Pre-Colonial Senegambia won an American Academy of Religion award for the best first book in the history of religions (2000). He spent a year living in a Diola village in southern Senegal on a Watson Fellowship after completing his undergraduate degree from Wesleyan University. He would go on to learn the language and continue further field research for his Ph.D. from Yale University.
Professor Baum has played an extensive role in the Ford Foundation funded program "Difficult Dialogues" which trained faculty at the University of Missouri and in other Big Twelve universities in how to deal with controversial issues that have a religious dimension in the university classroom. He has conducted similar workshops for K-12 teachers.