Botswana lies immediately to the north of South Africa.
It is bordered on the north and west by Namibia, on the north and east by
Zimbabwe,
and is connected by a narrow strip of land on the northern border to Zambia.
Its territory consists almost entirely of a broad, flat, arid subtropical plateau,
though there are hills in the eastern part of the country.
In the northwest, the Okavango River empties into the Kalahari sands, creating
the
largest inland river delta in the world.
While the Okavango Delta is home to relatively few large animals compared to
other areas of Botswana, its crystal clear waters and myriad small islands are
home
to a variety of birds, plants, and smaller species of animals, including Green
Mambas!
It is also home to the Tse-tse fly, a major cause of African sleeping sickness.
Nearby is Chobe National Park, a beautiful grassland reserve where you are almost
guaranteed to see 50 or more elephants, as well as lions, buffalo and monkeys.
Southeast of Chobe are Botswana's enormous Makgadikgadi salt pans,
home to large herds of blue wildebeest, several antelope species, and
flamingoes.
Almost the entire remaining portion of the country is covered by the Kalahari
Desert,
a varied environment of sand, savanna, and grassland.
Although this area of Botswana is only sparsely inhabited by humans, it is one of
the
richest wildlife regions in all of Africa.
Botswana's two
largest parks, the Central Kalahari wildlife reserve and
Gemsbok National Park, are found in this region.
The aboriginal inhabitants of Botswana, who have made the Kalahari their
home for
at least 30,000 years, are the San, or bushmen.
The San number about 60,000 today, constituting a small but fascinating
cultural minority in the country.
Almost two millennia ago, a Bantu people known as the Tswana arrived,
supplanting the San and now constituting the great majority of the population.
The Kalahari Bushmen are one of the nicest people you would ever wish to
meet.
They have been downtrodden by stronger tribes and white men for some time.
It is only recently that they are beginning to get some of their land, and their
dignity back again.
