Things to do in Botswana

Much of Botswana is Kalahari sand, a flat country of thornveld and grassland, yet in the north-west the Okavango River fans out into a great inland delta of channels, lagoons and papyrus. Maun, a dusty town on the delta's edge, is the starting point for light-aircraft flights and dugout-canoe trips among the islands, while Gaborone, the capital, lies in the south-east near the South African border.

In the far north, Kasane sits on the Chobe River, where large herds of elephants come to drink in the dry season, and Victoria Falls is a short drive away across the border. The Makgadikgadi salt pans stretch white and flat in the centre, Moremi Game Reserve takes in part of the delta, and the Tsodilo Hills in the north-west have thousands of rock paintings.

Seswaa, boiled and pounded beef, is served at weddings and celebrations with maize porridge and a relish of greens, and braai fires burn at lodges and homes alike. Game viewing is best in the dry winter months, when animals gather at rivers and waterholes and the flood from Angola peaks in the delta. Summer brings rain and green.