My chosen mode of transport between Lusaka and the extreme sports centre that is Livingstone is the bus. This time I've done my research and picked a reputable operator running a reliable, clean, comfortable coach service for the three hour journey. I'm sat next to a lady called Mutita who is on her way to Livingstone to meet her fiancé. We chat and the journey seems surprisingly short.

My home for the next four nights is the 16 person dorm at the Jollyboys Hostel. I've gone for a dorm to save some money as private single rooms are expensive. The hostel is super-friendly, very informative, helpful and I meet loads of great people.

The undeniable number one draw of Livingstone is Victoria Falls, so day one I head up to the Falls to take a walk around and snap some pics. Imagine how gutted I was when I saw that the Zambezi River was half full (it is the end of the dry season) and the Falls on the Zambia side of the river are little more than a trickle. Tantalizingly I can hear the roar and see spray emanating from the Zimbabwe side of the Falls, just around a bend in them (the Falls are angular. I didn't travel all this way to see a trickle of water so resolve that I just have to get closer somehow. Whilst at the Falls I meet Liam and Nick from Australia and we become drinking buddies for the next few days.

After our initial visit to the Falls we join a group headed to a local orphanage for a game of football. Notwithstanding their difficult introduction to life the orphans are friendly, lively, proud, well-behaved, polite and a great deal better at football than we are. After a shorts "malfunction" I have to call time on football. It's been a thought-provoking afternoon.

Second day and it's time to get up close and personal with Victoria Falls. Today I'm walking to Livingstone Island (it is an island during the wet season, but just part of the bank during dry season) to jump into Devil's Pool, a naturally formed pool of water right on the business end of the Falls. There is a shelf and a wall that protect you from being swept over the Falls, but jump far into the pool and you'll get swept into the river and over the edge, don't jump far enough and you'll be dashed on the rocks! It was a good day for our group and nobody died jumping into the pool, although one of the guides had a penchant for dancing on the slippery wall of the pool which made us all feel decidedly uncomfortable. I celebrate another day of life with brightly coloured cocktails at the rather swanky Royal Livingstone hotel with Liam and Nick. The hotel has a fantastic view of the river and the Falls, the crocs and hippos in the river and even has its own Zebras. In the evening we have a few more drinks in the hostel then hit the local Zambian nightclub where a horde of Zambian ladies of the night hit on us. We leave.

Livingstone is an extreme sport town and thus far I have hardly engaged. It's my final day and I decide to do a bungee jump and to spend the afternoon white water rafting down the Zambezi River. Liam and Nick can't make the bungee jump as they have Mastercard issues (they'll be there for the rafting later) so fearlessly and alone I head to the railway bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe to bungee. I've never done a bungee jump before and I am pensive to say the least, especially as this jump is billed as the third largest in the World. I am the first punter of the day and to my relief the bungee is tested by a member of the crew before it is my turn. The alcohol from the evening before is still lurking in my system causing me to quiver whilst getting kitted up. Keeping my eyes on the horizon the countdown begins, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BUNGEEE!!!!! Without even thinking I launch out into a dive over the edge of the bridge and enjoy the most adrenaline-filled 10 seconds of my life. The initial fall is exhilarating, and then you feel the elastic bite, you bounce up, becoming weightless for a moment before falling to Earth again and getting another mini bungee jump. It was absolutely superb although I know some people back home were not impressed by my antics. So impressed am I with the bungee jump that I buy the photos and the DVD before hurrying along to white water rafting.

Another activity that I have missed out on so far in life is white water rafting. We start with a 200m death climb down to the river. This climb involves a rather shoddy homemade ladder (nailed together) at an almost vertical angle, the wearing of flip flops and the carrying of a paddle and life jacket. This just to get down to the river! We get into our raft and meet our oarsman, a guy called Boyd, who, it turns out, is a little crazy. This becomes evident after the third rapid when we are urged to jump out of the raft, climb a 10m cliff and jump into the river. Boyd assures us that the river is 95m deep at this point, and that the crocodiles (who do live in the river and were visible at points) don't like this part of the river. We oblige and for the second time in the day I hurtle towards Earth at high speed. As the rafting goes on we spend more time out of the raft than in it: going down some rapids just in out lifejackets (I thought I was going to drown) and standing on the inflatable rim of the raft for a rapid (guess what happened). It was an unbelievable day, the river is great and there are a number of class 4 rapids (only one class 5 which was in the morning session).I can't wait to do it again.

Our day finishes around 7pm and Liam, Nick and I hit the celebratory beers until 4am in a final flourish as we are all leaving Livingstone the next day. I'm moving on to Cape Town and they start a long safari trip. The evening is memorable as we visit the Waterfront Hotel when the booze cruise disembarks (very messy affair!) and there is a massive and dramatic electrical storm over the river which illuminates the sky. We visit the same Zambian nightclub, this time under the protective gaze of the Major and all is good!!