A half century later, Colin Johnstone still loves a part of Africa he’d known as a boy For several years between 1959 and 1963, my sisters and I commuted between boarding school in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) and home in Namibia (then South West Africa) by light aircraft piloted by our father Tony Johnstone. The halfway point of the journey was Maun, where we refuelled. Fuel was provided by the local garage and delivered in a drum on a bakkie by a gentleman called Kenny Kayes, who we all came to know quite well.Kenny worked for a hunting safari company operating in the Okavango delta. We managed to do several trips into the swamps with him during this period before the Moremi Game Reserve was established. The final one was over Christmas 1963, when my eldest sister and I had finished school and were about to fly the family nest. A trip was arranged for our family of six, with children ranging from five to 17, two teenage friends, another hunter from the safari company with his wife and six-year-old son and, of course, Kenny.story_article_left1It took two trips in the six-seater Cessna Centurion to get the whole team from Windhoek to Maun. The first night was spent at the renowned Riley's Hotel. Post-dinner entertainment included spring hare hunting on the airfield - in those days the airfield was a gravel strip in a wide grassed area with one tiny hut used to store odds and ends. The chaotic scene had two people on the front mudguards of the Land Rover, Kenny driving with beer in hand, and lots of noisy people on the back. The idea was to get as close as possible to the spring hare for one of the people on the front to dive off and catch it. This strenuous action was followed by returning to the bar where geckos climbing the curtains were fed gin and induced to smoke cigarettes. We also played poker dice with the local people for five cents a throw.The next morning we headed off to our camp on the Khwai River. Because it was the off season for hunting, we had full use of the hunting safari unit and travelled in two Bedford trucks, a Land Rover and a Ford F 250. The unit had tents with beds and bedding, a kitchen tent, a dining tent, and a shower comprising a bucket hung from a tree. There were also several staff, including a full-time cook.Memorable events over the next few days included catching bream for breakfast (20 or 30 fish in half an hour), and all 15 people, only three with guns, walking through the bush after buffalo and watching while one was shot - there was a licence for one buffalo and for game birds. Watching the buffalo being skinned and the meat distributed so that there was not a lot left for the vultures proved fairly educational.We were visited at the camp by two teachers from England who drove out from Maun for the day. They left our camp late in the evening, very cheerful by then, only to return on foot much later having got stuck and spending a not unsubstantial time up a tree while lions walked underneath. Kenny drove them to their vehicle the next morning and returned with an impala - his story was that it had jumped in front of his vehicle.In those days there were many interesting characters in Maun and the Okavango. On an earlier trip we met a couple who were involved in trying to establish the game reserve, but were faced with opposition from the hunting fraternity.mini_story_image_hright1They had an amphibious truck and in their camp was a tame vulture and a constipated lion who was being given an enema while we were there - not easy as it kept sitting down. When not in the swamps, they lived in a Bulawayo suburb and received frequent complaints about the lion's noise.When we left on the next stage of our holiday to the Victoria Falls - again in two flights - Kenny argued with my father that there was no way a low-flying aircraft could make him start digging. After the first flight took off, my father did a circuit over the airfield to where we were standing and dived towards us - he flew Typhoons for the RAF in the war. It is quite disconcerting having an aircraft head straight for you - and Kenny very nearly started digging! His language was certainly interesting.A family holiday 50 years later showed us that this part of Africa is still as wonderful as it was then.Share your travel experiences with us in 'Readers' World' and you could win R1,000Send your high-res photos - at least 500KB in size - and a story of no more than 800 words. ALL winners receive R1000. Only winning entrants will be contacted. E-mail travelmag@sundaytimes.co.za..