Botswana is home to one of the world's great natural phenomena: the tranquil Okavango Delta, a 15,000-sq.-km (5,850-sq.-mile) inland flood plain that fans out in the northwestern corner of the country, creating a paradise of palms, papyrus, and crystal-clear channels and deep lagoons. Set in a massive sea of desert sand, this fragile wonderland of waterways, islands, and forests is an oasis for wildlife drawn to its life-giving waters from the surrounding thirstlands. Here, the evening air is filled with the sounds of birds calling, frogs trilling, and antelope rustling in the reeds. Wildebeest, hartebeest, buffalo, and zebra roam the islands; elephants wade across channels guarded by hippos and crocs; and predators rule the night.

 

But there is more to Botswana than the delta. To the northeast lies the Chobe National Park, a 12,000-sq.-km (4,680-sq.-mile) home to some 100,000 elephants. To the southeast is the Kalahari Desert and its spectacular Makgadikgadi and Nxai pans, where the space is so vast that, it is said, you can hear the stars sing. Most safari companies include the Chobe area on their itineraries, and some venture south into the endless horizons of the Kalahari pans. <<Read More>>