Hi Dave,
As you can see I finally put the info from my last 2 weeks in South Africa on the blog. I know, I know, about time eh!, especially since I've been back in Chatham for at least 3 weeks now. Grammie doesn't have high speed internet at home so thanks to Michelle for letting me spend the afternoon using her computer.
I've downloaded 2000+ photos on Carol's computer so I'll have to go over there and add in the "best of" photos onto this blog so people can see more than the only 4 photos I had posted on this blog months ago.
And to Michelle, yes, I really do need to start looking for that 4 four letter dirty word, "WORK". Now that the blog is updated, maybe I can work on my resume. Now if I can only decide what I want to do with my life and where I want to live in Ontario. Should I look for the perfect job or look for the perfect place to live and just find any job that will pay the bills until a good job comes along. It feels like I did at 18 finishing high school and trying to decide what to do with my life. Maybe it's my mid-life crisis since I'm 45 (almost 46).
Monday, May 26, 2008
Say goodbye to South Africa and hello to home
I really enjoyed South Africa and Swaziland and would love to go back one day to visit again. I would totally be comfortable renting a car and driving around these 2 countries. When I was in the leisure travel business, we didn't sell South Africa due to all the travel restrictions so I really didn't know much about it. Since it opened up to tourists about 10 years ago or so I've been selling more corporate travel or travel within N.A. I was really surprised at how moutainous it is and there is just as much beautiful scenery to see inland than just along the coastal roads. The highway system is great and all the signs are in English. There's tonnes of good hotel chains, B&B, guesthouses and lodges of various prices. They have great supermarkets and modern shopping centres if that's your thing and I found it cheaper to eat out than back home. You can even find american fast food like McD and KFC if you want. Not my 2 favorite restaurants, but I did like being able to get a good pizza when I felt like it. Like any big cities around the world, you would need to have maps in advance and make sure you know which areas to avoid the high crime areas.
One big problem that S.A. needs to fix is the lack of electricity. The country doesn't have enough power for everyone. While I was there, just able every city or town has had to do power sharing to cut back on the usage. Three times a week for about 2-2 1/2 hours a day, power would be cut off. Sometimes it would be in the morning but other times I was trying to get ready to go for dinner at 7pm by candlelight in the bathroom. Most offices, hotels, restaurants now have back up generators. They say these power cuts will continue until a few years before new power plants can get built. I guess they are going to start to build a mass of windmills also like Cda is dowing. Hopefully this problem will be fixed by 2010 when they host the World Cup of soccer.
It seems like whites, mixed race and blacks got along well since the days of apartheid. I know they are now having some trouble with the poor blacks that are attacking poor black immigrants. In recent years, due to political problems in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, millions of people from those countries fled across the borders to make a better life for themselves & their families in South Africa. Now more than every, there are many poor uneducated blacks that are fighting for the menial jobs. The Zulus who have lived in S.A. for hundreds of years are saying that Moz. or Zim immigrants are taking away their jobs. Maybe the Zulus need to realize that they were once immigrants themselves many years ago coming from central Africa. I hope the S.A. gov't can fix this problem quickly before there are many more deaths and beatings. I would hate to have a country that relies heavily on tourist dollars have the news scaring away potential travelers. Kenya is a perfect example of that. Both of these countries need travelers from around the world.
Now for the journey home.....
I was really hoping that since it wasn't busy season, the plane would be half empty and I'd be able to stretch out for the long flight home. No luck in my favor. I'm on the aisle seat beside the window seat but it appears that all the inside aisle seats are full even though some of the middle seats are free so those people will have a bit of rooom.
It's about 9 hours from Jo'burg to Dakar Senegal for a refuelling stop. You are fed a dinner shortly after take off and I watched a movie before having short naps and walks around the aisles to stretch my legs. In Dakar, during the 1 hour layover, you are not allowed to get off the plane. Security does come onto the plane and you have to take all hand luggage out of the upper bins and hold it in your lap. I guess they just want to make sure that any of the approx 10 people who disembarked in Dakar didn't leave any bombs or something onboard the plane. From Dakar to Washington DC it's about another 9 hours. We are fed twice and I watch another couple of movies and again go through the have a nap, take a walk scenerio. For the most part, the plane ride was very smooth until about 1hour before landing. I guess there were thunderstorms along the eastern seaboard and mum said that Virginia had a tornado the previous evening.
The plane landed in DC around 630am and I was really hoping to get on the 8am flight to Toronto even though I had to clear U.S. customs, etc. No luck since the flight to T.O. was oversold, so I had to try to amuse myself till the next flight at 1230pm. I leisurely walked from one end of the terminal to the next and explored every shop along the way. Nowadays, airports don't want you to sleep on the seats so there are armrests between each seat so instead of sleeping I read for a while and watched CNN coverage of the tornado and called my mommy to use up the rest of my prepaid calling card.
At 1230pm, surprisingly, I don't feel tired and I'm ready to go but they haven't even called my plane yet. We finally get to board but still sit on the ground. It appears someone has checked in but didn't show up at the boarding gate so they have to look for the loser's luggage. It's just a quick flight to T.O. and I arrive safely but my luggage doesn't so I have to once again fill in lost luggage forms but also add another form for Canadian customs .
My brother Dave who was working in T.O. today was able to pick me up at the airport and drive me to his home in London. My sister Carol and my mum then met me in London to take me back to Chatham. Thanks to you both for taking the time to get me home so I didn't have to sit on the Robert Q Airbus all the way back to Chatham.
It's a long, long way from Johannesburg, South Africa to Chatham, Canada but I made it home safe and sound after being away for just over 3 months. My luggage arrived about 2 days later. The bag was ripped open and the lock had been cut off. Notes from both U.S. Security and Cdn customs noted that they inspected my bag. Here I had spent money on these new locks with special security codes that could be opened by U.S. security so a suitcase didn't have to be damaged if it had to be inspected. So, why was my bag ripped at the zipper and the lock cut off, eh! Luckily, I didn't notice anything missing from my bag.
One big problem that S.A. needs to fix is the lack of electricity. The country doesn't have enough power for everyone. While I was there, just able every city or town has had to do power sharing to cut back on the usage. Three times a week for about 2-2 1/2 hours a day, power would be cut off. Sometimes it would be in the morning but other times I was trying to get ready to go for dinner at 7pm by candlelight in the bathroom. Most offices, hotels, restaurants now have back up generators. They say these power cuts will continue until a few years before new power plants can get built. I guess they are going to start to build a mass of windmills also like Cda is dowing. Hopefully this problem will be fixed by 2010 when they host the World Cup of soccer.
It seems like whites, mixed race and blacks got along well since the days of apartheid. I know they are now having some trouble with the poor blacks that are attacking poor black immigrants. In recent years, due to political problems in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, millions of people from those countries fled across the borders to make a better life for themselves & their families in South Africa. Now more than every, there are many poor uneducated blacks that are fighting for the menial jobs. The Zulus who have lived in S.A. for hundreds of years are saying that Moz. or Zim immigrants are taking away their jobs. Maybe the Zulus need to realize that they were once immigrants themselves many years ago coming from central Africa. I hope the S.A. gov't can fix this problem quickly before there are many more deaths and beatings. I would hate to have a country that relies heavily on tourist dollars have the news scaring away potential travelers. Kenya is a perfect example of that. Both of these countries need travelers from around the world.
Now for the journey home.....
I was really hoping that since it wasn't busy season, the plane would be half empty and I'd be able to stretch out for the long flight home. No luck in my favor. I'm on the aisle seat beside the window seat but it appears that all the inside aisle seats are full even though some of the middle seats are free so those people will have a bit of rooom.
It's about 9 hours from Jo'burg to Dakar Senegal for a refuelling stop. You are fed a dinner shortly after take off and I watched a movie before having short naps and walks around the aisles to stretch my legs. In Dakar, during the 1 hour layover, you are not allowed to get off the plane. Security does come onto the plane and you have to take all hand luggage out of the upper bins and hold it in your lap. I guess they just want to make sure that any of the approx 10 people who disembarked in Dakar didn't leave any bombs or something onboard the plane. From Dakar to Washington DC it's about another 9 hours. We are fed twice and I watch another couple of movies and again go through the have a nap, take a walk scenerio. For the most part, the plane ride was very smooth until about 1hour before landing. I guess there were thunderstorms along the eastern seaboard and mum said that Virginia had a tornado the previous evening.
The plane landed in DC around 630am and I was really hoping to get on the 8am flight to Toronto even though I had to clear U.S. customs, etc. No luck since the flight to T.O. was oversold, so I had to try to amuse myself till the next flight at 1230pm. I leisurely walked from one end of the terminal to the next and explored every shop along the way. Nowadays, airports don't want you to sleep on the seats so there are armrests between each seat so instead of sleeping I read for a while and watched CNN coverage of the tornado and called my mommy to use up the rest of my prepaid calling card.
At 1230pm, surprisingly, I don't feel tired and I'm ready to go but they haven't even called my plane yet. We finally get to board but still sit on the ground. It appears someone has checked in but didn't show up at the boarding gate so they have to look for the loser's luggage. It's just a quick flight to T.O. and I arrive safely but my luggage doesn't so I have to once again fill in lost luggage forms but also add another form for Canadian customs .
My brother Dave who was working in T.O. today was able to pick me up at the airport and drive me to his home in London. My sister Carol and my mum then met me in London to take me back to Chatham. Thanks to you both for taking the time to get me home so I didn't have to sit on the Robert Q Airbus all the way back to Chatham.
It's a long, long way from Johannesburg, South Africa to Chatham, Canada but I made it home safe and sound after being away for just over 3 months. My luggage arrived about 2 days later. The bag was ripped open and the lock had been cut off. Notes from both U.S. Security and Cdn customs noted that they inspected my bag. Here I had spent money on these new locks with special security codes that could be opened by U.S. security so a suitcase didn't have to be damaged if it had to be inspected. So, why was my bag ripped at the zipper and the lock cut off, eh! Luckily, I didn't notice anything missing from my bag.
Kwazulu-Natal, Swaziland & Mpumalanga
For the next section of the tour, Barbara and I had to fly from Port Elizabeth to Durban. It's Sunday and we don't have to start the tour and meet our driver/guide until Tuesday morning. The flight wasn't till about 12:30pm so I could have a bit of a lay in since rain is still in the forecast. It's a very rough flight due to the high winds and rain but we land safely in Durban and are transferred to the highrise Southern Sun North Beach Hotel. All the rooms look out onto the ocean and I have a wonderful view from the 21st floor. At check-in I'm warned not to walk along the beach with a purse or camera. Durban is a large city and I has a problem with theft along the beachfront. It's still raining heavily so I watch the surfers from my room but manage to brave the rain to go to a pub/restaurant for dinner around the corner.
Today, was a free day in Durban to enjoy by yourself or take one of the optional tours. Both Barbara and I were interested in a full day tour that headed into Lesotho, to a mountainous area called Sani Pass. Since the forcast was very grim (snow at higher elevations) and some of the mountain roads are only accessable by 4x4 in good weather we both passed on spending about $200 for the day trip. Good thing we did pass on that day trip. The newspaper the next morning showed snow blanketing the northern park of Lesotho and the southern & central Drakensberg mountain range leaving adventure racers stranded and lots of road collisions. Durban didn't get any snow however at some times the rain did look like snowflakes from the 21st floor. I spent most of day watching movies or reading in my room but the rain finally looked like it was clearing late in the day so I did about an hour's walk along the beach path.
Tuesday morning it finally looked like nice weather was back. Linda our new driver/guide showed up in a new Toyota Corolla. Since there is only 2 of us the company uses a car instead of a mini-coach. It's nice to be able to sit up a bit higher in a coach but I understand the reasoning for using a car. Leaving Durban on the N2 we head east along the coast before turning to the north to Shakaland overlooking Lake Phobane. Shakaland is what a typical Zululand village would have looked like many years ago. It was built many years ago for a mini-series and is used as a museum today. A guided tour takes you through the time of the great warrior Shaka the King of the Zulus. You see small bits from the movie and then are shown around many of the huts to see weaving, making zulu beer. Workers are in traditional style clothes and then in the King's hut they put on a dance demonstration. Protea Hotels as even converted some of the huts into hotel rooms for people who want to experience that type of accommodation.
After a buffet lunch we continue driving through the the rolling countryside with orange groves and sugar cane fields to our hotel, the Protea Umfolozi River. It's an early start in the morning for a 6am game drive through Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park in an open 4x4 vehicle. Blankets keep us warm until the sun gets up a bit higher. The park is set in pretty countryside but it's quite thick with vegetation so it's difficult to see the animals. We spot warthogs, zebra, giraffe, wildebeest, cape buffalo and impala. Two near animals for my records, we see nyala a deer like animal and 4 white rhinos. I only saw black rhino in Tanzania. White rhinos are the same color as black ones, they are both grey in colour. Many years ago, english settlers misunderstood white for wide when asking about these rhinos. They really are wide mouth rhinos. White rhinos have squared wide mouths since they are grazers along the grass, where black rhino have a more pointed curved lip since they need to grasp and eat tree branches. The picnic stop for breakfast had lots of baboons on the cliff across the river and a plenty of birds flying and singing about.
Linda, met up with us at Memorial Gate at the end of the tour and we headed north passing many sugar fields or other game parks before entering Swaziland at the southeast corner. We have to get our passports stamped out of S.A. and into Swaziland at the border but it doesn't take long. Swaziland, like S.A. is still very poor but as younger people become more educated and start yearning money they seem to help their parents build modern cement homes. In the south part of the country you can still see a few of the traditional small round mud thatched huts left but Linda tells us she has really started to see a difference in her years as guiding tours in the area. Swaziland grows a lot of sugar cane and pinapple. The mountains get higher as you drive north and I'm surprised that the roads are in very good condition like the roads in S.A.
We drive by the old King's burial park and stop to see a candle factory that helps support some local workers. Many of the candles are hand made and sculpted into animal shapes. Nearby we spend the night at the Ezulwini Sun Hotel which is part of a large 3 hotel, casino, spa, golf resort. The next morning, the weather is great once again and we stop by a glass factory to see hand glass-blowing artistans at work. The Pigs Peak area is also know as Little Switzerland for it's beautiful mountain scenery.
Even though I could only stay 1 night in Swaziland, I was glad to be able to see a country that my Great Aunt Grace lived in for many years. She left England probably around 1915-1920 and was a missionary. At that time she taught some of the King's many children and definitely lived very basic surroundings since even the king lived in mud and grass huts back then. Not like today where the current kings spends his money on his private jets and seems more interested in buying mutiple Rolls Royces and picking out another 14yr old virgin every couple of years to add to his collection of wives. I always enjoyed the old family photos of Aunt Grace in Swaziland and especially enjoyed exploring the shoebox full of old beaded jewellry that mum has keep in her closet. I'll now have to have another look at all that family history.
Leaving the northwest corner of Swaziland, we drive into Mpumalanga and have only a short distance to go to the southern edge of Kruger National Park, one of the largest game and nature reserves. The Pestana Kruger Lodge is right along the river and I enjoyed watching the sunset and seeing crocs and hippos from the balcony.
Up at 5am for an early morning game drive at 6am. Once again it's cold in the morning so blankets need to keep us warm for a while. There was a beautiful sunrise but I was disappointed in the lack of animals that we saw in the early morning hours but lots of birds about. A picnic lunch stop showed photos that sometimes elephant or even leopards will wander into the picnic area but all we saw was birds. I was happy to finally get a good close up pic of the hornbills. After breakfast, back on the road and not far to go before we see a white rhino along the roadside and a herd of elephants. The other usual animals like zebra, giraffe were seem, but where are all the lions and leopards. Kruger is suppose to have lots of them but they were all a bit camera shy I guess. Back to the lodge by 2pm and time for a nap and quick dinner out on the balcony before going on a night drive. I enjoyed the night drive and was able to see a fair number of animals but still no big cats even with someone stopping us and telling us that a pride of lions had just crossed the road a few km's up. Around that spot, we only saw a spotted hyena running down the road towards us with a look of fright on his face and a constant check behind him. I guess he saw the lions that we missed and was frightened away since he wasn't with his pack. I was able to get a very quick glimpse of a bushbaby in a tree by the road and did see a few owls on the hunt.
On Sat. morning we needed to drive through one area of Kruger in order to head to our next destination. Linda did give us a nice scenic drive on some of the smaller dirt roads throughout the park hoping we would find the elusive lion or leopard to round out our Big 5 but saw just about everything else. We left Kruger seeing only 3 out of the Big 5, the buffalo, rhino and elephant. The weather continued to be beautiful as we traveled via a scenic panorama route to God's Window lookout and the Blyde River Canyon. As beautiful as this area is, much of the mountain scenery is taken up with clear cut areas for the logging industry. The logging industry plants rows upon rows of non-native Cdn Pine and Gum Trees so the natural thick native forests are almost gone. There's also been many recent forest fires blackening some of slopes. We stopped at a beautiful waterfall as the sun was setting which meant the last hour of the scenic drive was in the dark but we arrived safely at the very fancy Emnotweni Sun Resort in Nelspruit. There was a large casino and shopping mall across the road so I took a quick peek before picking up a pizza and heading back to my room.
Sunday morning, I overslept my alarm but luckily we didn't have to leave until 930 this morning. Heading west through farmland of mainly orchards like oranges, mango, nut trees and sugar cane but still very hilly area. The road climbs up to the top of a flat plateau to fields of corn and soyabeans. Looks a bit like Kent Country I think. We arrive into Jo'burg around 3pm. I was told by the tour company that the tour ended around 5pm so I didn't try to fly out tonight. If I knew I'd be in town by that time I could have easily flown out tonight and saved the money for room, dinner and airport transfer that I booked. Linda gave us a quick look at some of the Jo'burg suburbs and we passed by Nelson Mandela's current home before being dropped off at the Twickenham B&B in Auckland Park. It's in a nice area but still advised not to walk around at night. Jo'burg is a very crime ridden city, even in good neighbourhoods. I spend the next morning wandering the neighbourhood before heading off to the airport.
Today, was a free day in Durban to enjoy by yourself or take one of the optional tours. Both Barbara and I were interested in a full day tour that headed into Lesotho, to a mountainous area called Sani Pass. Since the forcast was very grim (snow at higher elevations) and some of the mountain roads are only accessable by 4x4 in good weather we both passed on spending about $200 for the day trip. Good thing we did pass on that day trip. The newspaper the next morning showed snow blanketing the northern park of Lesotho and the southern & central Drakensberg mountain range leaving adventure racers stranded and lots of road collisions. Durban didn't get any snow however at some times the rain did look like snowflakes from the 21st floor. I spent most of day watching movies or reading in my room but the rain finally looked like it was clearing late in the day so I did about an hour's walk along the beach path.
Tuesday morning it finally looked like nice weather was back. Linda our new driver/guide showed up in a new Toyota Corolla. Since there is only 2 of us the company uses a car instead of a mini-coach. It's nice to be able to sit up a bit higher in a coach but I understand the reasoning for using a car. Leaving Durban on the N2 we head east along the coast before turning to the north to Shakaland overlooking Lake Phobane. Shakaland is what a typical Zululand village would have looked like many years ago. It was built many years ago for a mini-series and is used as a museum today. A guided tour takes you through the time of the great warrior Shaka the King of the Zulus. You see small bits from the movie and then are shown around many of the huts to see weaving, making zulu beer. Workers are in traditional style clothes and then in the King's hut they put on a dance demonstration. Protea Hotels as even converted some of the huts into hotel rooms for people who want to experience that type of accommodation.
After a buffet lunch we continue driving through the the rolling countryside with orange groves and sugar cane fields to our hotel, the Protea Umfolozi River. It's an early start in the morning for a 6am game drive through Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park in an open 4x4 vehicle. Blankets keep us warm until the sun gets up a bit higher. The park is set in pretty countryside but it's quite thick with vegetation so it's difficult to see the animals. We spot warthogs, zebra, giraffe, wildebeest, cape buffalo and impala. Two near animals for my records, we see nyala a deer like animal and 4 white rhinos. I only saw black rhino in Tanzania. White rhinos are the same color as black ones, they are both grey in colour. Many years ago, english settlers misunderstood white for wide when asking about these rhinos. They really are wide mouth rhinos. White rhinos have squared wide mouths since they are grazers along the grass, where black rhino have a more pointed curved lip since they need to grasp and eat tree branches. The picnic stop for breakfast had lots of baboons on the cliff across the river and a plenty of birds flying and singing about.
Linda, met up with us at Memorial Gate at the end of the tour and we headed north passing many sugar fields or other game parks before entering Swaziland at the southeast corner. We have to get our passports stamped out of S.A. and into Swaziland at the border but it doesn't take long. Swaziland, like S.A. is still very poor but as younger people become more educated and start yearning money they seem to help their parents build modern cement homes. In the south part of the country you can still see a few of the traditional small round mud thatched huts left but Linda tells us she has really started to see a difference in her years as guiding tours in the area. Swaziland grows a lot of sugar cane and pinapple. The mountains get higher as you drive north and I'm surprised that the roads are in very good condition like the roads in S.A.
We drive by the old King's burial park and stop to see a candle factory that helps support some local workers. Many of the candles are hand made and sculpted into animal shapes. Nearby we spend the night at the Ezulwini Sun Hotel which is part of a large 3 hotel, casino, spa, golf resort. The next morning, the weather is great once again and we stop by a glass factory to see hand glass-blowing artistans at work. The Pigs Peak area is also know as Little Switzerland for it's beautiful mountain scenery.
Even though I could only stay 1 night in Swaziland, I was glad to be able to see a country that my Great Aunt Grace lived in for many years. She left England probably around 1915-1920 and was a missionary. At that time she taught some of the King's many children and definitely lived very basic surroundings since even the king lived in mud and grass huts back then. Not like today where the current kings spends his money on his private jets and seems more interested in buying mutiple Rolls Royces and picking out another 14yr old virgin every couple of years to add to his collection of wives. I always enjoyed the old family photos of Aunt Grace in Swaziland and especially enjoyed exploring the shoebox full of old beaded jewellry that mum has keep in her closet. I'll now have to have another look at all that family history.
Leaving the northwest corner of Swaziland, we drive into Mpumalanga and have only a short distance to go to the southern edge of Kruger National Park, one of the largest game and nature reserves. The Pestana Kruger Lodge is right along the river and I enjoyed watching the sunset and seeing crocs and hippos from the balcony.
Up at 5am for an early morning game drive at 6am. Once again it's cold in the morning so blankets need to keep us warm for a while. There was a beautiful sunrise but I was disappointed in the lack of animals that we saw in the early morning hours but lots of birds about. A picnic lunch stop showed photos that sometimes elephant or even leopards will wander into the picnic area but all we saw was birds. I was happy to finally get a good close up pic of the hornbills. After breakfast, back on the road and not far to go before we see a white rhino along the roadside and a herd of elephants. The other usual animals like zebra, giraffe were seem, but where are all the lions and leopards. Kruger is suppose to have lots of them but they were all a bit camera shy I guess. Back to the lodge by 2pm and time for a nap and quick dinner out on the balcony before going on a night drive. I enjoyed the night drive and was able to see a fair number of animals but still no big cats even with someone stopping us and telling us that a pride of lions had just crossed the road a few km's up. Around that spot, we only saw a spotted hyena running down the road towards us with a look of fright on his face and a constant check behind him. I guess he saw the lions that we missed and was frightened away since he wasn't with his pack. I was able to get a very quick glimpse of a bushbaby in a tree by the road and did see a few owls on the hunt.
On Sat. morning we needed to drive through one area of Kruger in order to head to our next destination. Linda did give us a nice scenic drive on some of the smaller dirt roads throughout the park hoping we would find the elusive lion or leopard to round out our Big 5 but saw just about everything else. We left Kruger seeing only 3 out of the Big 5, the buffalo, rhino and elephant. The weather continued to be beautiful as we traveled via a scenic panorama route to God's Window lookout and the Blyde River Canyon. As beautiful as this area is, much of the mountain scenery is taken up with clear cut areas for the logging industry. The logging industry plants rows upon rows of non-native Cdn Pine and Gum Trees so the natural thick native forests are almost gone. There's also been many recent forest fires blackening some of slopes. We stopped at a beautiful waterfall as the sun was setting which meant the last hour of the scenic drive was in the dark but we arrived safely at the very fancy Emnotweni Sun Resort in Nelspruit. There was a large casino and shopping mall across the road so I took a quick peek before picking up a pizza and heading back to my room.
Sunday morning, I overslept my alarm but luckily we didn't have to leave until 930 this morning. Heading west through farmland of mainly orchards like oranges, mango, nut trees and sugar cane but still very hilly area. The road climbs up to the top of a flat plateau to fields of corn and soyabeans. Looks a bit like Kent Country I think. We arrive into Jo'burg around 3pm. I was told by the tour company that the tour ended around 5pm so I didn't try to fly out tonight. If I knew I'd be in town by that time I could have easily flown out tonight and saved the money for room, dinner and airport transfer that I booked. Linda gave us a quick look at some of the Jo'burg suburbs and we passed by Nelson Mandela's current home before being dropped off at the Twickenham B&B in Auckland Park. It's in a nice area but still advised not to walk around at night. Jo'burg is a very crime ridden city, even in good neighbourhoods. I spend the next morning wandering the neighbourhood before heading off to the airport.
Springbok Atlas 12 day South African Highlights tour
In a 10 passenger mini-coach, I'm joined by a couple, Frank and Lana from Dublin, Simon and his mother Ada from the U.K., and Barbara from Amsterdam. Four of them are only on the 1st 4 days till Port Elizabeth, called the Garden Route tour. Barbara and myself will be the only 2 continuing on the rest of the way to Jo'burg. Lindy a very energetic and knowledgable lady is our driver/guide. The weather looks like it's going to be a perfect traveling day.
Heading north east out of Cape Town along the N1 highway it's a pretty drive around the winery area of Paarl and pass through the Hugenot Tunnel. The nearby towns are a mix of English or Dutch sounding names. I love all the whitewashed cottages with thatched roofs and it even reminds me a bit of the ones you see in Ireland. We continue to see many wineries but also other fruit growing areas for the dried fruit market. Our destination is Oudtshoorn the ostrich ranching community. The hotel tonight is a lovely historical property that is called the Queen's Hotel and Queen Elizabeth has even stayed there many years ago. I try ostrich for dinner and I'm surprised to find it's texture is more like beef steak than the chicken I thought it would be.
It's sunny and warm the next morning and the 1st stop is at an ostrich farm. We can see the fields full of ostrich of various sizes from young chicks to adults. A tour around the farm gives us a close up of the ostrichs but not too close since they can bite and love shiny thinks like jewellry. We can feel the weight of an egg and find out that one egg is the equivalent of about a 20 egg omlette. You can even put your body weight on top of an unhatched egg without it breaking. There's no eggs hatching in the hatchery at this time but we find out all the things ostrichs are breed for like their meat, feathers and skin for leather bags.
Next stop in the Klien Karoo area of S.A. is Cango Animal Park, a zoo like setting were we see many African animals up close but also get to see other animals like a white tiger and lemurs. Just down the road we have a guided tour through Canjo Caves. It's amazing to walk through only a small section of the caves that were formed 20 million yrs ago when acidic ground water eroded the limestone. There's many dramatic stalactites and stalagmites that were formed once the water drained away 3 million yrs ago. The caves were discovered in 1780 by Dutch colonists but showed evidence of being used by ancient man. The tour guide had an great singing voice and showed us how well the acoustics were in the cave.
Heading south on the N12 we drive through the Outenique Pass to the Indian Ocean and continue east on the N2 to the coastal town of Knysna for a 2 night stay at the waterfront Protea Knysna Quays Hotel. Lots of shops and restaurants along the quay.
Friday morning, I wake up to a beautiful blue sky and we cruise on the Knysna estuary (breeding area for sea horses) to Featherbed Nature Reserve which is on the western side of the Knysna Heads a small opening from the estuary out to the Indian Ocean. Once we land at the reserve we are shuttled by 4x4 trailer up a narrow path to the top of a hill. From there, we take a guided 2.2km hike down through the forest stopping at many coastal viewpoints, sea caves and follow the seashore back to the pier for a buffet lunch. The boat ride gets us back to the wharf around 2pm and the rest of the day is free so I explore the shops around town.
The weather is very cloudy this morning as we leave Knysna and head east along the coast. We stop at Plettenburg Bay and drive through the Tsitsikama Forest. At the Bloukrans River we stop to see brave hearted bungy jumpers leap off bridge. It's starting to rain and it poured for a short hike in the forest to see some of the native trees that are being protected by the lumber industry in the area. We cross over a few other bridges but the rain continues to destroy what should be a very scenic drive. It rains all the way into Port Elizabeth. Our hotel is only a block from the beach but the heavy rain stops me from enjoying a walk along the sand. Five of us have an enjoyable dinner tonight before Barbara and I start the next section of the tour.
Heading north east out of Cape Town along the N1 highway it's a pretty drive around the winery area of Paarl and pass through the Hugenot Tunnel. The nearby towns are a mix of English or Dutch sounding names. I love all the whitewashed cottages with thatched roofs and it even reminds me a bit of the ones you see in Ireland. We continue to see many wineries but also other fruit growing areas for the dried fruit market. Our destination is Oudtshoorn the ostrich ranching community. The hotel tonight is a lovely historical property that is called the Queen's Hotel and Queen Elizabeth has even stayed there many years ago. I try ostrich for dinner and I'm surprised to find it's texture is more like beef steak than the chicken I thought it would be.
It's sunny and warm the next morning and the 1st stop is at an ostrich farm. We can see the fields full of ostrich of various sizes from young chicks to adults. A tour around the farm gives us a close up of the ostrichs but not too close since they can bite and love shiny thinks like jewellry. We can feel the weight of an egg and find out that one egg is the equivalent of about a 20 egg omlette. You can even put your body weight on top of an unhatched egg without it breaking. There's no eggs hatching in the hatchery at this time but we find out all the things ostrichs are breed for like their meat, feathers and skin for leather bags.
Next stop in the Klien Karoo area of S.A. is Cango Animal Park, a zoo like setting were we see many African animals up close but also get to see other animals like a white tiger and lemurs. Just down the road we have a guided tour through Canjo Caves. It's amazing to walk through only a small section of the caves that were formed 20 million yrs ago when acidic ground water eroded the limestone. There's many dramatic stalactites and stalagmites that were formed once the water drained away 3 million yrs ago. The caves were discovered in 1780 by Dutch colonists but showed evidence of being used by ancient man. The tour guide had an great singing voice and showed us how well the acoustics were in the cave.
Heading south on the N12 we drive through the Outenique Pass to the Indian Ocean and continue east on the N2 to the coastal town of Knysna for a 2 night stay at the waterfront Protea Knysna Quays Hotel. Lots of shops and restaurants along the quay.
Friday morning, I wake up to a beautiful blue sky and we cruise on the Knysna estuary (breeding area for sea horses) to Featherbed Nature Reserve which is on the western side of the Knysna Heads a small opening from the estuary out to the Indian Ocean. Once we land at the reserve we are shuttled by 4x4 trailer up a narrow path to the top of a hill. From there, we take a guided 2.2km hike down through the forest stopping at many coastal viewpoints, sea caves and follow the seashore back to the pier for a buffet lunch. The boat ride gets us back to the wharf around 2pm and the rest of the day is free so I explore the shops around town.
The weather is very cloudy this morning as we leave Knysna and head east along the coast. We stop at Plettenburg Bay and drive through the Tsitsikama Forest. At the Bloukrans River we stop to see brave hearted bungy jumpers leap off bridge. It's starting to rain and it poured for a short hike in the forest to see some of the native trees that are being protected by the lumber industry in the area. We cross over a few other bridges but the rain continues to destroy what should be a very scenic drive. It rains all the way into Port Elizabeth. Our hotel is only a block from the beach but the heavy rain stops me from enjoying a walk along the sand. Five of us have an enjoyable dinner tonight before Barbara and I start the next section of the tour.
Next stop South Africa
My original hopes had been to go into Kenya to see a few of their national parks (like Amboseli and Mara) and then enjoy a few days exploring Stonetown and enjoying the beaches of Zanzibar before heading back to Canada. Kenya's still having some riot problems after 4 months so I've opted out of heading there. I still thought I'd head to Zanzibar but since it's rainy season, I've found out that quite a few of the hotels and restaurants close during April. I decide that I'll save Zanzibar for another time (maybe if I come back one day to climb Mt Kili) and South Africa will be a sunnier, better alternative (I hope).
I'm definitely not a morning person, especially if I have to get up at 3:30am. Unfortunately, I had to be up at that ungodly hour in order to get to the airport. Mama Lynn wasn't impressed that she had to be the one to take me to the airport at that time of day. About 10 to 4, we left with one of the guards to drive to the airport. Luckily it wasn't raining and the roads were mainly deserted so it only took about 40 min. to get to the airport. Arriving there, we found that it hadn't even opened yet. I'm on an international flight that leaves at 6am and your'e advised to arrive 2hrs early but I think 1 1/2 hrs would be plenty for Kili. I guess since it's a small airport (Kili) with only 1 plane leaving they don't think they need that much check-in time. There was a few other guys waiting for the airport to open so I said my goodbye to Mama Lynn and waited about 1/2 hour outside before the main door was unlocked to proceed to check-in.
Took off heading north from Kili airport to Nairobi Kenya, with the sun just rising. Unfortunately, I was on the west side of the plane so I only had a peek at sunrise over Mt. Kilimanjaro that the other side of the plane was enjoying. It's just a short 1hr flight to NBO before connecting to a longer flight heading south to Jo'burg. Once again on the wrong side to see Mt. Kili again but I did enjoy the view over northern Tanzania before we were high up in the clouds.
Once I arrived into Jo'burg, in order to lessen the chance of not seeing my suitcases (Jo'burg the place to loose your luggage), I claimed them, cleared customs, immigration before walking over to the domestic terminal to check in for my last flight from Jo'burg to Cape Town. Found that none of the airport currency exchange booths would take my leftover Tanzanian shillings (about $100 worth). Would have exchanged them at Kili airport but the booth wasn't open that early in the morning. Cloudy flight to Cape Town so I didn't see much of the landscape I was hoping to. The airport tourist desk helped me book a B&B since the tour company couldn't confirm the hotel I had requested a few days ago.
Took one of the airport shuttle companies into town and right away noticed how much Cape Town is a growing modern city. The country is still very poor and the highway passes by some shanty towns but the downtown area is full of skyscrapers, the road system is great and the streets appear to be clean and safe. I'm dropped off at my B&B called Nelson's Guesthouse. It's located on in the Sea Point area on High Level Rd. Barry Jones who worked and traveled many years on cruise ships now runs the B&B. It's got a beautiful view from the terrace looking over the Atlantic Ocean and Signal Hill part of the Table Mountains is just behind.
I'm told this neighbourhood is safe at night so I walk down to the ocean prommenade and enjoy the sunset along the pathway that is filled with other enjoying the warm evening breeze. I head a few blocks to Main St. and wander around before having a disappointing fish & chip take-away (too many bones). You'd think that Cape Town should have good fish & chips.
The next morning I had hoped to ride the cable car to the top of Table Moutain but it's foggy. I decide to walk down along the waterfront hoping that as I go the fog will eventually lift. I walk for a few miles and every once in a while when the fog isn't blowing in, I can see bits of the mountain top. I end up at the Victoria Wharf and spend a bit of time looking at the boats and many of the shops and craft stores before heading back to the B&B.
This afternoon I decide to take a 1/2 day tour to the Cape of Good Hope.
African Eagle Day Tours picked me up right at the B&B. We head south out of Cape Town along the coastal road through Sea Point and Clifton. Lots of million dollar seaview homes and stop for photos at Camps Bay a lovely sandy beach with huge bolders and a mountain backdrop of the Twelve Apostles. Head inland a bit to Hout Bay and stop high up on a cliff along Chapmans Peak Drive. Across the mountain range to False Bay, we stop just outside of Simonstown to see a Penquin Colony at Bolders Beach. We can get quite close to the little guys. Many of them are sitting on eggs but I do see one fuzzy little guy that doesn't have his adult black & white feathers yet. I'm too busy enjoying the penquins that the tour van just about leaves without me. Unfortunately, we didn't stop by the main view area so we didn't get to see any penquins heading out of the water along the beach.
Heading a bit south we enter Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. We only have time to take a quick hike up to the lighthouse since the electric tram is closed due to a power outage. I try to cover all the scenic outlooks for photo stops and also get close up to the deadly puff adder snake that is just beside the trail and the usually skittish rock hyrax poses for a photo. A few photos from the lighthouse before jogging back down to the parking lot. Cape of Good Hope is situated at the junction of 2 of earth's most contrasting water masses, the cold Benguela current on the west coast and the warm Agulhas current on the east coast. It's popularly perceived as the meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans but that's at Cape Agulhas national park further east. On the drive out of the park we see a troop of baboons along the road and ostrich, eland nearby. As we head back north to Cape Town, we are on the east side of the mountains so we don't see a great ocean sunset but it's still a pretty drive back to the city.
I'm definitely not a morning person, especially if I have to get up at 3:30am. Unfortunately, I had to be up at that ungodly hour in order to get to the airport. Mama Lynn wasn't impressed that she had to be the one to take me to the airport at that time of day. About 10 to 4, we left with one of the guards to drive to the airport. Luckily it wasn't raining and the roads were mainly deserted so it only took about 40 min. to get to the airport. Arriving there, we found that it hadn't even opened yet. I'm on an international flight that leaves at 6am and your'e advised to arrive 2hrs early but I think 1 1/2 hrs would be plenty for Kili. I guess since it's a small airport (Kili) with only 1 plane leaving they don't think they need that much check-in time. There was a few other guys waiting for the airport to open so I said my goodbye to Mama Lynn and waited about 1/2 hour outside before the main door was unlocked to proceed to check-in.
Took off heading north from Kili airport to Nairobi Kenya, with the sun just rising. Unfortunately, I was on the west side of the plane so I only had a peek at sunrise over Mt. Kilimanjaro that the other side of the plane was enjoying. It's just a short 1hr flight to NBO before connecting to a longer flight heading south to Jo'burg. Once again on the wrong side to see Mt. Kili again but I did enjoy the view over northern Tanzania before we were high up in the clouds.
Once I arrived into Jo'burg, in order to lessen the chance of not seeing my suitcases (Jo'burg the place to loose your luggage), I claimed them, cleared customs, immigration before walking over to the domestic terminal to check in for my last flight from Jo'burg to Cape Town. Found that none of the airport currency exchange booths would take my leftover Tanzanian shillings (about $100 worth). Would have exchanged them at Kili airport but the booth wasn't open that early in the morning. Cloudy flight to Cape Town so I didn't see much of the landscape I was hoping to. The airport tourist desk helped me book a B&B since the tour company couldn't confirm the hotel I had requested a few days ago.
Took one of the airport shuttle companies into town and right away noticed how much Cape Town is a growing modern city. The country is still very poor and the highway passes by some shanty towns but the downtown area is full of skyscrapers, the road system is great and the streets appear to be clean and safe. I'm dropped off at my B&B called Nelson's Guesthouse. It's located on in the Sea Point area on High Level Rd. Barry Jones who worked and traveled many years on cruise ships now runs the B&B. It's got a beautiful view from the terrace looking over the Atlantic Ocean and Signal Hill part of the Table Mountains is just behind.
I'm told this neighbourhood is safe at night so I walk down to the ocean prommenade and enjoy the sunset along the pathway that is filled with other enjoying the warm evening breeze. I head a few blocks to Main St. and wander around before having a disappointing fish & chip take-away (too many bones). You'd think that Cape Town should have good fish & chips.
The next morning I had hoped to ride the cable car to the top of Table Moutain but it's foggy. I decide to walk down along the waterfront hoping that as I go the fog will eventually lift. I walk for a few miles and every once in a while when the fog isn't blowing in, I can see bits of the mountain top. I end up at the Victoria Wharf and spend a bit of time looking at the boats and many of the shops and craft stores before heading back to the B&B.
This afternoon I decide to take a 1/2 day tour to the Cape of Good Hope.
African Eagle Day Tours picked me up right at the B&B. We head south out of Cape Town along the coastal road through Sea Point and Clifton. Lots of million dollar seaview homes and stop for photos at Camps Bay a lovely sandy beach with huge bolders and a mountain backdrop of the Twelve Apostles. Head inland a bit to Hout Bay and stop high up on a cliff along Chapmans Peak Drive. Across the mountain range to False Bay, we stop just outside of Simonstown to see a Penquin Colony at Bolders Beach. We can get quite close to the little guys. Many of them are sitting on eggs but I do see one fuzzy little guy that doesn't have his adult black & white feathers yet. I'm too busy enjoying the penquins that the tour van just about leaves without me. Unfortunately, we didn't stop by the main view area so we didn't get to see any penquins heading out of the water along the beach.
Heading a bit south we enter Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. We only have time to take a quick hike up to the lighthouse since the electric tram is closed due to a power outage. I try to cover all the scenic outlooks for photo stops and also get close up to the deadly puff adder snake that is just beside the trail and the usually skittish rock hyrax poses for a photo. A few photos from the lighthouse before jogging back down to the parking lot. Cape of Good Hope is situated at the junction of 2 of earth's most contrasting water masses, the cold Benguela current on the west coast and the warm Agulhas current on the east coast. It's popularly perceived as the meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans but that's at Cape Agulhas national park further east. On the drive out of the park we see a troop of baboons along the road and ostrich, eland nearby. As we head back north to Cape Town, we are on the east side of the mountains so we don't see a great ocean sunset but it's still a pretty drive back to the city.
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