Yep, it’s time for the biker chicks to saddle up. Thankfully, though, we have 3 days in Prague first, to recover from jet lag and to convince ourselves that after weeks of non-activity, seeing parts of Europe by bike is a GOOD idea.
These biker chicks decided to sit this trip out, but they will be with us in spirit. Marilyn wants us to drink the local beer, so we will hoist our glasses in a toast to all three of you…probably more than once…or twice…
Marilyn, Sally and Victoria, we will MISS you! Who is going to make sure I don’t lose my glasses???
BUT, we have added two new members. Denise and Karen are taking their first trip with VBT, joining us oh, so very cool bikers.
Karen P., Denise, Diane, Karen H and Beth. Jet lagged, but undaunted.
And we DEFINITELY will be cool, possibly even cold, and probably a bit damp, because the weather forecast for the next 10 days is rain, rain and more rain. Known as “pula” in Botswana, a rainy day is a joyous occasion. The Botswanians (if that is the correct term) like rain so much, the word “pula” means rain AND money AND is an all purpose greeting. So, if rain drops keep fallin on my head, as they did a couple of times this afternoon, I’ll just tell myself I’m still in Africa and rain is cause for celebration. (We’ll see how THAT works out!)
Yes, we were tired today, after flying all last night, but we managed to march ourselves thither and yon this afternoon, ducking into churches and a restaurant to avoid intermittent sprinkles.
Enough of my babbling. Time for more photos of this lovely city.
I kept looking UP. The tops of buildings are magnificent!I was also looking DOWN, at the wonderful sidewalks. That looks to me like the Star of David and a cross, peacefully sharing space on the sidewalk.
The statues are rather fascinating.
I’m guessing that the guy with the turban and curved sword hails from the Ottoman Empire. But why is he the only one with midriff bulge? Why does that stag have a gold cross growing out of his head? And what’s with the handcuffs, and the guy on the right with his hand on the other guy’s knee?
Oh SO many questions, and this isn’t even a quiz! ( Mainly because I don’t know the answers and I’m punchy because I can’t sleep, though I NEED to, except my body has NO bloody idea what time zone it is in. )
How about THIS one?
The details in the statues are intriguing.
I’m SOOOO glad I’m not biking tomorrow! Although, if the truth be told, ( which, on this blog, happens occasionally) these are not supposed to be very taxing bike rides. Here’s the map showing the ground we will cover.
Notice the red squiggly lines? THAT’S the biking part. Not so bad, eh.
One last photo and a good night to all. Aren’t you glad I kept looking up?
Well, you surprised me. I never thought you’d figure out this first one, but Sue, Lindy and Sandy know poop when they see it.
1. The can attached to the bumper of the jeep contained elephant dung. It is set on fire and acts as a VERY effective mosquito repellant. So glad we didn’t have to rub it on our skin!
Is there no end to the number of uses for elephant dung? With so much of it around, you might as well find a way to use it! I was continually impressed by the inventiveness and creativity of Africans.
2. This is the sink in the ladies’ room at Phalaborwa Airport. The water bubbles up from holes in the sink’s surface. All you have to do is turn that brown knob on the right to get the water going. WE probably never would have figured that out, except a local lady happened to be washing her hands while we were there.
And what a cute airport Phalaborwa is! A South Africa copper mining town, it appears to generate enough revenue so the government can afford to make the airport quite lovely and comfortable, with great animal sculptures.
Note that not ALL airports were like Phalaborwa.
Maureen and Jeanne at the “airport” on our way to the Okavango Delta, Botswana.
What you see in the photo above is what you get– a landing strip and a little shed with ax, fire extinguisher and stretcher. Oh yeah, and a few huge termite mounds. Did you notice the big one on the right?
The airport for Lufupa, the Zambian camp, was a bit larger–it had TWO structures.
The bathroom is the smaller structure on the far right.
3. The connections among these objects? The mopane worm feeds on those leaves, which are from (no surprise) the mopane tree. The worms are a delicacy, so much so that they are featured on the coins of Botswana.
Hey, before you get all judgmental on me, remember, we eat lobsters and crabs–and don’t even get me started on that rubbery stuff we call calamari!
But don’t think that we were just eating worms and warthogs. Check out this feast…I mean snack.
Our 3:30 PM “snack” before the afternoon game drive. Can we make it till our “sundowner” break at 6:00? What about dinner at 7:30?
4. The Nobel Peace Prize winners were Chief Luthulu, Archbishop Tutu, De Klerk, and Nelson Mandela.
At Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town
The long flights, plus time spent hanging in airports, gave me ample opportunity to read all 600+ pages of Nelson Mandela’s Autobiography, “Long Walk to Freedom”.
What an incredible man-to be imprisoned for 27 years and still be able to forgive his captors because he knew that was the only way for his country to heal and to move forward. He makes our red/blue, right/left, Democratic/Republican disagreements look so very petty and silly.
Travel is such a broadening experience. Seeing how far South Africa has come since apartheid and comparing it to Zimbabwe under Mugabe further underscores Mandela’s greatness and the power of forgiveness. We could learn so much from Mandela.
Tutu in front of a photo of Mandela, at St. George’s Cathedral. Cape Town.
5. Cecil Rhodes managed to accomplish so much during a rather short life time.
Although he died before his 49th birthday, Rhodes amassed quite a fortune from his success mining diamonds. Some noteworthy accomplishments: He bequeathed the land that became the Kirstenbosch Gardens to South Africa, he got the bridge over Victoria Falls built, he established a trust that funds Rhodes Scholars, oh yeah, and he did manage to get a country named after himself (Or was that TWO countries? What is now Zambia was Northern Rhodesia, and Zimbabwe was known as Rhodesia.)
Time to take a break from Africa and move to another continent. Hope you’ll come along!
Our bodies may have been back in the USA for a week and a half now, but my mind is still basking in the afterglow of Africa.
Full disclosure–although the trip was amazing, magnificent, exciting, it was definitely not for the faint of heart, or the stiff of joints.
We didn’t get much exercise, because we spent most of our days riding around in jeeps, but climbing into that last row required some agility. The steps up were pretty high!
Connie and Jeanne
The roads provided what our guides called “the African Massage”. Ruts and holes in the road? No problem. Just grab a bunch of rocks, throw them into the holes and you are good to go!
For those that saw the movie Urban Cowboy, oh so many years ago, imagine riding the mechanical bull at Gilly’s and you’ll have a good idea of what traveling in the jeep was like.
Bridges? Who needs them? There were MANY reasons I was glad we were not traveling during the rainy season, and here’s one of them. Bet the water is a whole lot deeper during the rainy season.
We had some experiences that, depending on your point of view, could be called mishaps or adventures. We decided to go with adventures.
At Karongwe, our first camp, we had been chasing a leopard off road, through fields of acacia trees and thorn bushes when our guide got a radio message telling him “nagalas are in the area”. At least that’s what it sounded like to me. Immediately we were in hot pursuit of this mysterious animal. Although I questioned him, Setepi wouldn’t tell me a nagala was his language’s word for lion, because he was afraid the lions might leave before we got there, and we’d be disappointed. No worries. There were SEVEN nagalas, feasting on a kill.
How close were we? THIS close.But why is the jeep at such an odd angle?
Our wild leopard chase resulted in a slow leak that turned into a flat, right by the lions. If we had gotten out of the jeep, the lions might have attacked, so there we sat while Setepi and Sondi changed the tire. Another jeep pulled between them and the lions, blocking the lions’ view of the activity, just in case they decided to look up from their kill.
One of the group wondered what might happen if you got more than one flat tire while out in the bush. We soon found out, because our leopard chase resulted in not one, not two, but THREE punctures. Fortunately we had a resourceful guide, who used radio and good ol’ foot-power to borrow spares from other jeeps.
Running to another jeep to make the exchange.
Our second camp was in Chobe National Park, Botswana. Once again, we were lucky enough to encounter lions. Because this is a national park, we weren’t able to go off road, so couldn’t get quite as close as we did in Karongwe, which was a South African private reserve. Still, we were able to get some good shots. But just because we didn’t go tearing off road didn’t mean that we were adventure-free.
Why are we milling about, outside our jeep, with lions close by?We are getting ready to try to push our stuck jeep. No action photos–I stopped photographing to help push.
Although we were mired down, the bigger problem was that the shift was stuck, so we had to wait for help to arrive from camp, over an hour away.
It was a beautiful day, we had sufficient water, the company was great, so it was not tough to take.
We left our stuck and disabled jeep for the mechanic to fix, while we rode back in his jeep.
Onward to the Okavango Delta. Here we watched the King of the Bush, and he was regal indeed.
I suspected that he was posing for us. In fact, when he turned to show his good side, I was CERTAIN he was posing. He also has a playful side, which he demonstrated.
Of course, before we got to him, we had to experience the “curse of the lions. Yep, another jeep adventure.
If you didn’t like rocky roads, then the Okavango was your kind of place. Take a look.Well, at least it wasn’t mud! But we did manage to get stuck.
Mike tried to problem solve, but ultimately a tow from another jeep was needed to get us out of the sand.My grandmother was right: “things come in threes”, and in Africa, they did. No more lion curse, no more adventure/mishaps with our vehicles after this third incident.
And now, in Grammy’s honor, I figure we should have a THIRD, and final Africa quiz. You ready?
1. Do you know what this is? Extra points if you know what it is used for.
2. What about this?
3. What are these objects, and why are they grouped together?
4. Four South Africans received the Nobel Peace Prize. Who were they?
5. A famous South African founded De Beers diamonds, had a country named after him, left a ton of money for charitable endeavors when he died at an early age. Who was he?
What an amazing trip! I couldn’t possibly include ALL of the adventures in one post, so here are some of the highlights, which, coincidentally happen to be the answers to Africa Quiz #3.
1. Bungee jump? No way! Even after Jeanne and I were offered two for the price of one, we declined. Did the vendor want to show that insanity knows no age limit?
2. Zip line across the gorge…you bet! And it was GRAND! Fortunately, my friend Jeanne was up for it as well. And no, that is NOT a tattoo on my arm. It is a special code– so if the rope broke, the divers would know who was who. (Only kidding–it was our weight, in kilograms, and other secret stuff). You are probably going to want more than just a photo of us leaning against a sign, aren’t you? Well, Jeanne went first, so she was able to take these photos of my transit.
Did I enjoy the experience? See for yourself.
3. Yes, we did play netball, a type of basketball, with six very pregnant young women. The staff at the health center encourages them to exercise, so after their checkup they go to the school playground for a fun game of hoops. And yes, I WAS tossing the ball to a member of the other team. She’s PREGNANT, for crying out loud! I didn’t want her to have to run TOO far.
4. All 8 of the women in our group were taught the many uses of the chitenge by lovely Doris. Here we are, rockin’ our new look. 5. Friends and family will be shocked, because I am known as a picky eater, but I DID consume a mopane worm. Despite the look on my face after that first bite, I actually DID finish it. Jeanne was equally enthusiastic. 6. On the other hand, I did NOT finish the beer. One mouthful was more than enough– enough to convince me that it tasted exactly like dirty gym socks. Not that I have ever tasted dirty gym socks before, but if I had, that is exactly how I imagined they would have tasted. 7. Since I am sharing the contents of my overactive imagination with you, I might as well admit that wallowing in the mud with the hippos was indeed an imaginary activity. The only mud wallowing was done by this fine fellow. What’s he doing? Why, he’s asking the others if two tones makes his butt look smaller. I think their body language indicates their answer. 8. Mike and I loved the helicopter ride over Victoria Falls. The views were spectacular! 9. Yes, I did trade my tevas, and fortunately had flip flops in my backpack so I didn’t have to walk back to the hotel barefoot. Same for the tee shirt. Us former girl scouts are ALWAYS prepared. No photos of the transaction exist, fortunately.
10. Although I climbed more than one tree, I never made it to the TOP of a baobab (sorry Sammy). This one was growing through the lobby of the Moremi Wilderness Camp. I made it as high as the ceiling allowed. 11. We had a fantastic dinner at Savoy Cabbage. Mike gave me a taste of his warthog, and I sampled the “other” Mike’s kudu, but stuck with rack of lamb for my entree. Neither of us had our cameras with us, so sorry–no visuals exist.
12. I never missed a chance to sing and dance with the camp staff. They were incredibly talented. We were willing and enthusiastic. That blue arm on the left belongs to me. 13. The kids were sweet, beautiful and curious. When one asked about snow, I ran back to the bus to fetch my ipad. 14. I did not grind millet, but Connie and Marisa (mother and daughter) did. 15. We all had our Ringo Starr moments in the Boma, an outdoor meeting place, where we would gather around the fire the last evening at each camp for a great dinner and entertainment. Check out my very own rock star! Remember I said I did 10 of the 15 activities? Well, I was in such a hurry to upload the post before I ran out of time and MBs that I miscounted. I actually did 11 out of 15. The only ones I DIDN’T do were: bungee jump, wallow in the mud with the hippos, climb to the top of the baobab and swing down, and grind millet.
Our Africa trip is over, we are back home, but if I get inspired, I might be able to come up with one last Africa quiz. Thanks to those who played! I loved seeing the answers and the logic behind the choices.
During our trip, we had so many wonderful opportunities for what Arthur, our wonderful guide termed “learning and discovery –and I took advantage of MANY of them.
Are you ready for another quiz? My sisters, cousins and friends MIGHT have an unfair advantage with this quiz. But maybe not. Let’s see who does the best determining just how much of a spirit of adventure I have.
Which of these activities do you think I did? I’ll give you a hint: I did 10 out of the following 15, and a couple of the activities are figments of my imagination.
1. Bungee jump from the Victoria Falls Bridge
2. Zip line across the gorge
3. Play netball against a barefoot and pregnant team
4. Model a chitenge
5. Eat mopane worms
6. Drink local beer
7. Wallow in the mud with the hippos
8. Ride a helicopter over Victoria Falls
9. Trade the shoes I was wearing for bracelets and my tee shirt for a carved hippo
10. Climb to the top of an Baobab tree and do my Tarzan imitation to get down
11. Taste kudu and warthog, but pass on the zebra.
12. Sing and shake my booty with the camp staff
13. Play with the children at a village school
14. Grind millet in a village hut
15. Play the drums in the Boma
Answers when we return to the USA and I can upload photos, because I know you’ll want visual proof!
August 3, 2014
Today will be a travel day. We leave Victoria Falls, change planes in Johannesburg, and end up in Cape Town tonight.
I loved YOUR answers to Quiz #2 — and you definitely get points for creativity!
Here are MY answers.
1. Yes, deer have antlers and antelopes have horns. The horns are actually part of the animal’s skull. Antlers are shed every year.
We didn’t see any deer during our safari. Guess I’ll just have to wait till I get home and look on my back yard for one of them!
2. That is a termite mound! Africans use it to build their homes. Termites are edible, but our guide, Sondy chose not to demonstrate. He just dug into the mound with that stick and pulled a couple out for show and tell.
3. The two names are Wildebeest or Gnu hanging out with his buddies, the impalas.
4. Can you see the eagle peeking out of his nest?
5. The impala was dragged up the tree by a leopard who wanted to keep his dinner safe from other predators.
6. There are two correct answers for this one: lower jaw of a hippo, or African bush toilet.
Just flip it over, prop the back up with a stick, and you’re in business!
That’s all for today. Thanks to all who have been playing along. I hope it’s been as good for you as it was for me!
Remember that standard issue duffel bag? The one that all OAT travelers get? I decided I didn’t want to waste time at baggage areas determining which of the identical bags belonged to me, so I did a bit of “bag enhancement”.I know, I know…I probably should have given it some thought BEFORE I went wild with the sharpie markers, but hey, I figured I dramatically decreased the odds that this bag will be stolen. What self respecting thief would want to be seen dragging this along? Besides, a smart thief would suspect the bag’s contents would be equally jumbled and lacking in style.
I very thoughtfully had a “go” at Mike’s bag. A bit less exuberantly, but enough to provide the afore mentioned advantages.
We will be flying almost 8,000 miles. To put that into perspective, it is the equivalent of 2.5 flights from NJ to California, and it will take about the same length of time–15 hours.
We spend the night in Johannesburg then leave the following morning for Karongwe, a game reserve close to Kruger National Park. For all the map lovers, here’s a visual.
Three nights later, we return to Johannesburg. If I’m lucky, I’ll have wildlife photos to post.
OAT’s (Overseas Adventure Travel’s) wonderfully helpful website is loaded with lots of hints from those that have gone before. Thanks to them, I have a good idea of what to pack, and equally important, what NOT to pack.
I need to be prepared for cold mornings and evenings, high mid-day temperatures, and a school visit. Then after the tour ends, Mike and I are on our own in Cape Town for several days.
Suggestions for what to bring for the school visit included uninflated soccer balls and flip-flops plus the usual books, crayons, paper, pens and pencils. I also like to bring along a few frivolous things, like small stuffed animals.
The camps do our laundry every night, so 3 changes of clothes will do the trick, but I also needed a warm jacket, a hat, gloves, plus shorts and tee shirts and a bathing suit. Dressing in layers is key. I also need to plan for our time in Cape Town when we will be without daily laundry service.
I found jumbo zip lock bags at the supermarket and am using them to organize my wardrobe. But will all this, plus toiletries, fit into the duffel bag?
Fortunately, it doesn’t have to. One traveler suggested putting the duffel inside a much bigger bag, then packing everything into that one large suitcase. I tried that, but I easily exceeded the 50 pound weight limit. THEN I decided to check out South African Air’s luggage rules and was very excited to learn that in addition to my carry on, I can have TWO checked bags!!! I’m so used to the United Airlines restrictions, it didn’t occur to me that another airline’s checked baggage policy could be more liberal.
Being able to bring that second bag meant another trip to the Dollar Store for toothbrushes, combs and LOTS more school supplies, plus any odds and ends that I thought might be useful. I packed it all in an old suitcase that I plan to leave in Africa.
So, now my duffel will only contain MY stuff–plus another small duffel that I will use to bring back any purchases I make–good news for sisters, hermana preferida, cousins and other loved ones!
OAT, like Road Scholar, provides an excellent package of preparatory materials. These include everything you need to know about visa requirements, immunizations, climate, what to pack, how much money to bring, plus a reading list for people like me.
I haven’t read ALL of the books on the list, but I have made my way through almost half. Many were available from my local library, others I ordered from Amazon. Here’s a visual of the ones that haven’t been returned to the library yet. (Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m a bit obsessive, but I figure if I am lucky enough to be able to spend time in another country, I should at least expend the effort to learn about it before I go.)
Much too much for one post, so I’ll start with the book that is a bit dense, but is crammed with fascinating information–much of it news to me.
Africa, A Biography of the Continent by John Reader In its 800 pages, this weighty tome covers a little bit of just about everything: genetics, linguistics, anthropology, history, archaeology, geology, geography, economics, agriculture–from the beginning of time right up to the 1990’s. And if THAT isn’t enough, you can delve into footnotes and bibliography for more on the various subjects. The best part? Each of its 55 chapters starts with a short summary of what will follow, which makes it easy to decide whether or not you want to read further.
Here are just a few of the interesting tidbits I picked up from skimming through:
I knew Africa is big, but didn’t know HOW big. China, the USA, India, Europe, Argentina and New Zealand could all fit into its 18.9 million square miles! Hard to believe, but take a look.
Pretty cool, huh? Here’s another one–showing Pangaea before the continents drifted.
Although I knew about plate tectonics from my days of hanging out with geology professors while selling them college textbooks, I couldn’t tell you the difference between Pangaea and Gondwana. But now I can. And I had never heard of Laurasia, from which North America was eventually formed.
But wait, there’s more…
The earliest evidence of life on earth was found in Africa. Fossilized microscopic organisms from 3.6 billion years ago were discovered in the Barberton Mountain region of South Africa.
Geneticists, analyzing DNA mutations, have concluded that our entire modern population descended from a relatively small group of people who left Africa about 100,000 years ago (roughly 10,000 generations ).
The DNA of chimpanzees and humans is 99% identical. Here’s a little visual courtesy of the Auckland Zoo. What a difference 1% can make!
Linguists have shown that the most ancient languages originated in Africa.
I could go on and on, but I won’t. For anyone anticipating a trip to Africa, this book is definitely worth a trip to your local library. Remember, you don’t have to read it ALL–just the chapters that interest you. And there is something for just about everyone!
Geography was never a favorite subject of mine. Memorizing capitals and products was excruciatingly mind numbing. At the time, knowing where to plop countries on a mimeographed map didn’t appear to be knowledge I’d ever find useful. Back when I considered a one hour trip to Boston a thrilling excursion, it was hard to imagine that I would ever be lucky enough to set foot any place outside of the continental USA.
I’ll admit that I wasn’t disappointed when Sister Pauline explained that there was no point in studying the geography of Africa, because everything was changing. How sad that statement is one of the few things I remember from my geography studies!
Fast forward a half a century. I will soon be filling that gaping hole in my knowledge of the world with a trip to that continent I didn’t have to learn about in elementary school. Well, only the southern part of Africa. But you gotta start somewhere.
This will be the first trip that Mike and I take with Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT). Although we have had wonderful experiences with Road Scholar, and RS has a similar trip, we decided to go with OAT for the following reasons:
If you pay the full amount in cash a year in advance, you get a 10% discount (and I SO love a bargain)!
If you take another trip with them within the next 12 months, you get a 5% credit.
They have an amazing website, with very informative reviews and an incredibly helpful forum in which travelers share information and helpful hints.
They offer options: you can do only the trip, or you can add pre and/or post trip excursions.
There is a maximum of 16 participants
Mike and I figured if we were going to shell out the money for airfare, and subject our bodies to a total of 30 hours (round trip) in the air, we might as well stay a while, so we are doing the pre and then visiting Cape Town on our own. Who knows if we will ever be able to get back to this part of the globe?
We start in Johannesburg, then fly to Karongwe Game Reserve for the pre-trip. Four days later, we return to Johannesburg for the main trip, going first to two camps in Botswana, then one in Zambia, one in Zimbabwe, ending with a few days in Victoria Falls, before we fly back to Johannesburg. At that point, Mike and I will leave the tour and fly to Cape Town for a few days on our own, before returning to Johannesburg for a flight home. All told, we will be gone for 26 days.
Oat created this very helpful map, with the trip extensions in the insert.
While on safari, we will be staying in tents in the national parks. WiFi will therefore be limited to the few times we are in cities. (So, sisters and cousins, when you don’t see a post, it will not be because I have met with foul play…it will just mean I am still off the grid).
We will be flying in very small planes, which limits both the weight and the type of luggage allowed. One duffel bag each, without an internal frame, weighing no more than 44 pounds, plus one carry on. Here’s a visual of my duffel bag, supplied by OAT, and my new (larger) back pack. Previous travelers had experienced problems with the duffel splitting open (I told you the forum was helpful), but fortunately that appears to be old news. Nevertheless, I’m packing some duct tape…just in case.
Years of business travel trained me to travel light, but we will be visiting a school, so once I assemble the minimum amount of clothing and supplies needed, I’ll be cramming books, pencils, crayons and other odds and ends into the remaining space up to the weight limit.
M
Destination NOW 