Colloquially known as "Kasane Italy" this beautiful spot is a portion of the shoreline of the Chobe River in Kasane, Botswana, that is reserved for the locals to enjoy. The bank on the other side of the river from here is Namibia's Impalila Island.
It was nice to see sophisticated Africans engaged in recreation activity. I felt relaxed and comfortable here, more so than I might have been had we been allowed (which we were not) into those parts of the riverbank that are cordoned off for the exclusive enjoyment of the well-heeled clientele of the numerous expensive lodges in this part of town, mostly foreign tourists from places like Namibia and South Africa, (I observed the numberplates on their vehicles).
The racial hierarchy that has dominated the history of this part of our continent over the last two centuries is still very much at play. Even if more subtle, it is still observable, and it rubs me the wrong way. But that's just my point of view. Perhaps I might not be taking into account other factors that make this inevitable.
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| Here we're being denied access to a part of the riverbank |
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