On December 4 there was a total solar eclipse, the second in southern Africa in two years. This one went along the border between South Africa and Zimbabwe. It happened on the first day of the rainy season -- every day had been sunny in the morning until this one. We had to do lots of driving to outrun the clouds, and saw the eclipse near the edge of the zone of totality.

It's very difficult to photograph an eclipse. Not only is there an exceedingly wide dynamic range of light which is impossible for a camera to capture, one is often too swept up by the sheer beauty of the eclipse to think clearly about exposure and aperture.

Hours before the eclipse, this is how the sky looked.

We found some patches of blue sky, but there were always some clouds.

Ultimately we saw the eclipse, but we were very lucky. Astronomers in the official government viewing site on the centerline were completely clouded out. Here are some folks from Durban who saw it where we did.

Like any big event, there's always a huge traffic jam when it's over.

We waited out the traffic jam driving around in a baobab preserve south of Messina.

We weren't able to find a place to stay in the zone of totality, but we did stay at a very cute lodge with various trophies mounted in its dining room.

On to South Africa: Kruger National Park