On the Detective's Trail

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Fans of Precious Ramotswe, "the only lady private detective in Botswana," can now walk in the "traditionally built" woman's footprints through the capital of Gaborone and the surrounding countryside. The Mma Ramotswe's Botswana tours are based on the best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books by Zimbabwe-born Scottish author Alexander McCall Smith, and are run by local safari company Africa Insight (www.africainsight.com).

The tours, which have been personally tested by McCall Smith, started two years ago, but are expected to get a boost when director Anthony Minghella's television series based on the fictional detective eventually airs. On the first tour, travelers visit the traditional village of Mochudi, Ramotswe's ancestral home. A school-turned-museum provides local history and background to Ramotswe's childhood world. Then, after lunch — chicken or beef, rice, maize pap and salads — at a local restaurant, it's on to the spot where McCall Smith met the woman who inspired his feisty heroine. Back in Gaborone, fans can see some of the most memorable places featured in the books, including Zebra Drive, where Ramotswe lives, and the garage that inspired Speedy Motors, the company owned by her husband-to-be J.L.B Matekoni.

For those who want more, a second tour goes out to the "edge of the Kalahari" where some of Ramotswe's most intrepid investigations have unfolded. Later, on a visit to the Mokolodi Nature Reserve, tour operator Tim Race, an old family friend of McCall Smith, offers a preview of future plot twists. "Anyone who has read about a place gets a lot more out of seeing it," says Race. "People always say, 'Oh, now I'm going to have to reread that part.'" Tour One costs $75 (plus tax); Tour Two $125 (plus tax)