Tributes: Benjamin Parker & Aubrey Njobvu

TributesAubrey Njobvu Senior Guide Time + Tide

Aubrey’s words were poetry, spoken calmly and softly: ‘Life is like a spider’s web. We are all spun into the same web; if you cut one strand, you just end up destroying yourself...life is precious’. ‘The African bush is written in pencil, not pen. There is always an eraser close by to change it at any second’. ‘The thing is, a game drive is like looking at the pictures in a beautiful book; a bush walk is when you read the words’. It is with a heavy heart I write this tribute after our family recently lost a beloved friend— longtime guide and mentor in the South Luangwa, Aubrey Njobvu.

A member of our family since 1999, Aubrey was a gentle man with a poetic soul and a dry sense of humour. His deep-felt passion for the bush spilled over to his immediate family, his team and all those of you lucky enough to explore the South Luangwa Valley with him.

Many of our lives were touched by him and his passing leaves our Zambian homes quieter and less colourful places. I was incredibly moved, after sending out the news of Aubrey’s death, when I received dozens and dozens of emails from past guests and our own team, sharing their stories, photos and memories of Aubrey. Email after email described a legendary storyteller and a gentleman, who was wise and patient, with a wonderful sense of humour and a deep affinity for the bush and wildlife. These quotes are taken from some of the emails...

‘He made us search through the dust to find a black and white zebra hair; he loved sharing all that was big or small’.

‘Aubrey encapsulated the spirit of the Valley and the permanent legacies of Norman Carr’.

‘I write to you and my eyes are brimming with tears, for this man was a king in his kingdom. In my opinion he was the best guide, the best teacher and indeed a kind friend. With a sparkle in his eyes, he left you feeling you were his most important guest’.

‘He guided us on all six of our safaris with you and it was always a highlight of our trips to meet up with him’.

Abraham, a long-time friend of Aubrey’s and current Time + Tide senior guide/manager, shared this memory from Aubrey’s final weeks, ‘Though in pain, he was joking as always. He knew he was dying and openly talked about it in such a hilarious way, “My days to the fig tree are closing in.”’ Abraham explains, ‘He was referring to the sycamore fig tree which is a landmark at the graveyard in his village. He likened his situation to that of an old male lion ousted from his pride and being mocked and teased by prey grazing a few feet from him. I laughed and shed tears at the same time.’

I was lucky enough to work alongside Aubrey for almost 10 years and one of my favourite memories is a walk between the Sleepout and Time + Tide Kakuli. On the walk I asked Aubrey, ‘How likely is it to see porcupine on foot?’ to which he replied with his cheeky smile, ‘How else do you think you’ll see them, Mindy?’

Kind, compassionate and wise, Aubrey leaves a lasting legacy and an absence that will be sorely felt.

Benjamin Parker arrived in Zambia in 1986, making a powerful impression on the Livingstone locals by flying in on a microlight with floats. He had an adventurous streak which led him to drop out of university to hitchhike around Africa, and it was this trait which enabled Ben to change Zambian tourism forever.

Ben’s Zambian journey began with giving microlight flight instruction. He had a tendency to fly high above the spray of Victoria Falls as the sun was setting, then turn off the engine and float towards the ground, hardly bothering to let his passenger know that he had done it on purpose. Whilst this was ‘great fun’, Ben and a friend, Will Ruck Keene, hatched plans to run safaris in Zambia. They fell in love with a stretch along the Zambezi River and, inspired by the local people and by the river itself, they named their project Tongabezi and started to build a camp.

Tongabezi opened in 1990 as five tented chalets and a bunch of bucket showers. It grew to encompass Sindabezi Island Camp and the Livingstone Island Tours. Despite the tragic loss of Will in a car accident in 1997, Ben stayed committed to their dream and worked to bring Zambia to the world. In 2018 Tongabezi was one of Condé Nast’s Top 20 Hotels in the World.

Ben’s personal life also grew. Vanessa Saunders initially came to Zambia as a volunteer mathematics teacher, but Ben put in a lot of effort (as well as romantic camping trips along the river and many, many sunset flights) into convincing her to stay in the capacity of his wife. The two were married on Sindabezi Island under a sausage tree. Vanessa arrived in a banana boat strewn with bougainvillea and Ben in a canoe with his brother, Stephen; Ben and Stephen even stopped to catch a fish on the way to the wedding.

With Vanessa on board, Ben and Tongabezi turned towards promoting sustainability, especially for the Tongabezi staff and local community. Vanessa opened a trust school and before long she and Ben had three girls of their own: Natasha, Acacia and Tamara. The girls grew and so did Tongabezi and the Tongabezi School, which now supports over 250 local children. It became clear that the Parkers were only a small, vital part of a very large and happy family.

Tragically, Ben lost a furious fight against cancer earlier this year. Hundreds of people poured in from around Zambia in order to pay their respects to a man who had changed their lives, and ‘the face of Zambia’, forever. Chief Mukuni spoke, and it was said of Benjamin Parker that, ‘He had a British passport, but an African heart’.

Tongabezi has passed into the very capable hands of Vanessa Parker who understands the heart of this special place. It will continue to be managed by Rudy Boribon, as it has for the last 12 years. Ben’s daughter, Natasha, is Tongabezi’s marketing manager. Please contact her with any messages for the Tongabezi Family.

TributesA Tribute to Benjamin Parker