We have returned from our trip to south eastern Africa (Mozambique, Victoria Falls, Lesotho, Swaziland, and the eastern half of South Africa).
The highlight for us was Mozambique. It's still relative untouristed, especially in the north. Supposedly the middle area around Tofo is busy with beach-going South Africans, but we didn't go there so can't really say. We loved Mozambique Island and Coral Lodge. To give an idea of how untouristed Mozambique Island is, there is only one store selling souvenirs on the whole island. The whole island is a UNESCO Heritage Site and the centuries old buildings are being quickly restored. There was hardly any hassling of tourists, for the most part nobody gave us a second glance. Maputo was also amazing, with a unique architectural style in the core, great food, and artsy feel.
Victoria Falls was cool to see, and the last of the big four waterfalls on my list (Iguazu, Angel Falls, and Niagara being the other three). I would put Victoria Falls 3rd on the list, if only because it's hard to get a big picture view of its size. Maybe in high flow season if I took a helicopter I might have a different opinion.
The safaris were good with lots of game. We both liked the remoteness of Kidepo in northern Uganda better than any of the safaris on this trip, with maybe the exception of Mountain Zebra NP because of the interesting landscape. We saw the big five on this trip, which wasn't really a goal, but cool anyways. One thing we realized about safaris this time around is to stick to the highlights for each game reserve. For example, Mkhaya is known for its rhinos -- so it's better to focus on the rhinos there, and not try to find the one hyena (I made that up) in the park.
Lesotho was a contrast to the rest of South Africa. It reminded us of Bolivia, as both are at an altitude and people wear distinctive clothing that's somewhat similar. Lesotho had the least-developed infrastructure out of the places we visited this trip. It would be better with a 4WD.
This was one of the few times I've rented a car on vacation. It's really the only way to see South Africa / Swaziland / Lesotho, as it's all very car-centric. It was interesting as we got to see parts of the country that we wouldn't normally if we just flew from place to place. In particular we loved the Karoo region around Cradock.
Our next vacation is hopefully to North Korea. Depending on how long we have, we may try to tack on Cambodia while we're half way around the world.
Saturday, December 31, 2016
Thursday, December 29, 2016
Johannesburg, South Africa
It was a nice sunny day when we woke up in Maliba Lodge. We had breakfast and were packed up and ready to go by 9am. It's a five hour drive from Maliba to Johannesburg, although we were planning to take our time and not just drive for five hours straight.
The drive from Maliba to Butha Buthe is really scenic. I stopped in a bunch of places to take pics of the villages and rondavels that dot the valley. There were a few groups of people in the fields (couldn't tell if they were harvesting or planting or something else).
In Butha Buthe we tried to find the craft shop. We drove down some really pot-holed side streets looking for it, but had no luck. Gave up before the car got stuck in one of the giant potholes and headed for the border.
The border crossing at Calendspoort was quicker leaving Lesotho than entering. It was also one of the easiest land crossings we had this trip. We parked at the Lesotho exit and walked in to get our exit stamp (which had the wrong date -- Dec 28 instead of Dec 27). Then drove through, where they stamped our passports again. I guess if you leave by car, you don't need to park -- you can get your exit stamp at the drive-through.
So now we had two exit stamps from Lesotho, one for today and one for tomorrow. Hopefully this wouldn't cause problems entering South Africa! They didn't even bother to look at the stamps at the entrance though, just took our passports and gave us a stamp for entering South Africa. They asked us to pop open the trunk at the gate, saw a bunch of backpacks, and sent us on our way. Very easy, and no attempts to bribe unlike most other border crossings we went through this trip.
Our route to Johannesburg was not on the main highways which was good, as they sounded backed up based on the radio traffic reports. Around noon we left the highway in Frankfurt to look for a little cafe or restaurant. The town looked like it had seen better days. Most of the store and restaurants were closed and boarded up. The busiest (and only open) restaurant, based on cars parked outside, had no windows, never a good sign. Instead we went to the grocery store we had seen on the way in. This also had seen better times -- half the shelves were empty. We bought some cheese and crackers to tide us over and left Frankfurt in a hurry.
The GPS was really helpful at getting us to 33 Melville. We drove through downtown Johannesburg along the way, our only view of the downtown core, which looked just as car-centric as the rest of the country. We arrived at the b&b around 3pm, the end of our long road trip. We drove 4,500km over 21 days, covering a good chunk of the eastern half of South Africa.
We had earlier emailed the b&b to arrange to have dinner. We both chose fish options (sea bass for Heather, salmon for me) which were cooked properly. We ate outside because we figured it was one of our last chances to do so before we flew back to Toronto. It was a bit chilly but okay with our jackets.
...
The next morning we had a pleasant breakfast, seated in the kitchen. We both asked for french toast to break up the monotony of eggs, eggs, and more eggs that have been on offer the entire trip.
It was drizzling as we drove to the Apartheid Museum. The GPS proved very handy again. We parked and ran over the ticket booth to escape the rain. Then we realized half the museum was outdoors, so Heather ran back to get our umbrellas. The entrance to the museum is separated for blacks and whites, just like during apartheid. The tickets alternate between a "white" and "black" ticket, and depending on which one you get, that's the entrance you use. The first displays are separate -- you only get to see the half you're in. After about 5-10 minutes, they group up again. It really emphasizes partially what it was like during apartheid.
There's lots of details in the museum. We took about 3.5 hours to get through, skipping over the temporary exhibits as they aren't necessarily apartheid related.
We decided to eat at the on-site café because usually cafés at museums and art galleries are pretty good. Except for this one. Both our dishes were bland. Oh well.
On the way back home we called into a couple craft stores for our final look at souvenirs, Art Africa on Tyrone, and Kim Sacks Gallery. In particular we were looking at the african bed that's made from a single piece of wood, and is used by westerners as coffee tables. We took some pics and dimensions and will decide when we get back home. Our favourite was 79" x 29", so I think it might be too big for our house.
We had debated eating out at a restaurant just to check out the scene, but most places were closed over the Christmas holidays. We just ate at the hotel again, we had ordered lamb, which was amazing.
...
Our flight departed at 11:59pm so we had the full day in Johannesburg. I had booked 33 Melville for a 1/2 day so that we could shower and relax before we got on the flight.
In the morning we visited Liliesleaf Farm, which is where the underground movement was arrested at the height of apartheid. All the reviews we had read said that it was very underrated. They were right! It was an excellent museum, with lots of interactive displays and explanations. Their café was excellent too. It's a good complement to the Apartheid Museum that we had visited the day before.
After lunch we returned back to the b&b and packed up our bags for the flights home. Surprisingly all of our stuff fit into our two backpacks and one carry-on suitcase. We were planning to check the suitcase because it had the sculptures from Mozambique that were made from old gun parts. We didn't want the hassle of trying to take it as carry-on.
We had a light dinner, a repeat of the fish we had the other night. I still had to drive the rental car back to the airport so didn't have anything to drink. Also didn't want to be dehydrated getting on the flight.
So followed the GPS to the airport. I was a little nervous as the route took us through the city streets at night. At some of the red lights, the other cars used them as stop signs so I followed suit (it's to prevent possible carjackings at red lights while you're stopped). We made it without issue to the airport, dropped off the car, and checked in. We browsed around the souvenir shops while waiting. There's an Art Africa in departures, and the quality and variety was really good. We could have just waited and bought all our souvenirs here!
Our flight left about 30 minutes late, and then we were on our way back home!
The drive from Maliba to Butha Buthe is really scenic. I stopped in a bunch of places to take pics of the villages and rondavels that dot the valley. There were a few groups of people in the fields (couldn't tell if they were harvesting or planting or something else).
In Butha Buthe we tried to find the craft shop. We drove down some really pot-holed side streets looking for it, but had no luck. Gave up before the car got stuck in one of the giant potholes and headed for the border.
The border crossing at Calendspoort was quicker leaving Lesotho than entering. It was also one of the easiest land crossings we had this trip. We parked at the Lesotho exit and walked in to get our exit stamp (which had the wrong date -- Dec 28 instead of Dec 27). Then drove through, where they stamped our passports again. I guess if you leave by car, you don't need to park -- you can get your exit stamp at the drive-through.
So now we had two exit stamps from Lesotho, one for today and one for tomorrow. Hopefully this wouldn't cause problems entering South Africa! They didn't even bother to look at the stamps at the entrance though, just took our passports and gave us a stamp for entering South Africa. They asked us to pop open the trunk at the gate, saw a bunch of backpacks, and sent us on our way. Very easy, and no attempts to bribe unlike most other border crossings we went through this trip.
Our route to Johannesburg was not on the main highways which was good, as they sounded backed up based on the radio traffic reports. Around noon we left the highway in Frankfurt to look for a little cafe or restaurant. The town looked like it had seen better days. Most of the store and restaurants were closed and boarded up. The busiest (and only open) restaurant, based on cars parked outside, had no windows, never a good sign. Instead we went to the grocery store we had seen on the way in. This also had seen better times -- half the shelves were empty. We bought some cheese and crackers to tide us over and left Frankfurt in a hurry.
The GPS was really helpful at getting us to 33 Melville. We drove through downtown Johannesburg along the way, our only view of the downtown core, which looked just as car-centric as the rest of the country. We arrived at the b&b around 3pm, the end of our long road trip. We drove 4,500km over 21 days, covering a good chunk of the eastern half of South Africa.
We had earlier emailed the b&b to arrange to have dinner. We both chose fish options (sea bass for Heather, salmon for me) which were cooked properly. We ate outside because we figured it was one of our last chances to do so before we flew back to Toronto. It was a bit chilly but okay with our jackets.
...
The next morning we had a pleasant breakfast, seated in the kitchen. We both asked for french toast to break up the monotony of eggs, eggs, and more eggs that have been on offer the entire trip.
It was drizzling as we drove to the Apartheid Museum. The GPS proved very handy again. We parked and ran over the ticket booth to escape the rain. Then we realized half the museum was outdoors, so Heather ran back to get our umbrellas. The entrance to the museum is separated for blacks and whites, just like during apartheid. The tickets alternate between a "white" and "black" ticket, and depending on which one you get, that's the entrance you use. The first displays are separate -- you only get to see the half you're in. After about 5-10 minutes, they group up again. It really emphasizes partially what it was like during apartheid.
There's lots of details in the museum. We took about 3.5 hours to get through, skipping over the temporary exhibits as they aren't necessarily apartheid related.
We decided to eat at the on-site café because usually cafés at museums and art galleries are pretty good. Except for this one. Both our dishes were bland. Oh well.
On the way back home we called into a couple craft stores for our final look at souvenirs, Art Africa on Tyrone, and Kim Sacks Gallery. In particular we were looking at the african bed that's made from a single piece of wood, and is used by westerners as coffee tables. We took some pics and dimensions and will decide when we get back home. Our favourite was 79" x 29", so I think it might be too big for our house.
We had debated eating out at a restaurant just to check out the scene, but most places were closed over the Christmas holidays. We just ate at the hotel again, we had ordered lamb, which was amazing.
...
Our flight departed at 11:59pm so we had the full day in Johannesburg. I had booked 33 Melville for a 1/2 day so that we could shower and relax before we got on the flight.
In the morning we visited Liliesleaf Farm, which is where the underground movement was arrested at the height of apartheid. All the reviews we had read said that it was very underrated. They were right! It was an excellent museum, with lots of interactive displays and explanations. Their café was excellent too. It's a good complement to the Apartheid Museum that we had visited the day before.
After lunch we returned back to the b&b and packed up our bags for the flights home. Surprisingly all of our stuff fit into our two backpacks and one carry-on suitcase. We were planning to check the suitcase because it had the sculptures from Mozambique that were made from old gun parts. We didn't want the hassle of trying to take it as carry-on.
We had a light dinner, a repeat of the fish we had the other night. I still had to drive the rental car back to the airport so didn't have anything to drink. Also didn't want to be dehydrated getting on the flight.
So followed the GPS to the airport. I was a little nervous as the route took us through the city streets at night. At some of the red lights, the other cars used them as stop signs so I followed suit (it's to prevent possible carjackings at red lights while you're stopped). We made it without issue to the airport, dropped off the car, and checked in. We browsed around the souvenir shops while waiting. There's an Art Africa in departures, and the quality and variety was really good. We could have just waited and bought all our souvenirs here!
Our flight left about 30 minutes late, and then we were on our way back home!
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Ts'ehlanyane NP, Lesotho
We were up by 7am on a nice Christmas morning. We were the first down for breakfast, outside on the patio.
Maliba has detailed maps of various treks in the area. We chose a shorter walk for today, a circular route to Black Pool, about 6.5km round trip.
We were on the trail by 9:15am, starting with the Upper Trail. It ascended to about 2300m, through a well-marked trail. There were hundreds of butterflies flitting about as we walked. The temperature fluctuated almost 10C depending on the sun/clouds and side of the valley. There were a handful of streams to cross with rocks, nothing too difficult.
We reached Black Pool in just over an hour, slightly ahead of the map timings. (We were comparing our times for reference in case we decided to do a longer trek tomorrow).
We rested for 10 minutes then header back on the Lower Trail. This was easy until we passed a sign that said "Cross at own risk". Hmm. A few metres on was a stream that had rocks to cross, but only if you had some speed. So mapped our route and hopped across.
Still dry, we walked on and then there was another stream, this one we would have to take off our shoes and socks. Picked the place where the stream was shallow and slow enough, and got across with water up to our knees.
After crossing we realized there was a family watching us as they were trying to cross the other way.
The rest of the walk was easy. We walked down by the self-serve cottages and saw the start of a different trail that we were interested in. However it started with fjording the river, which made it less interesting to us.
We walked back up to our chalet, showered, and went to the main lodge for lunch. The lodge put on their big Christmas spread for lunch - roast beef, roast pork with crackling, chicken, and lots of sides. The crackling was my favourite, although I was a bit concerned about chipping a tooth. We felt justified in eating so much cause we had just done an 8km trek.
It was a gorgeous day, perfect temperature. Our chalet doors opened up fully (four door widths), and so it was like the entire chalet was open to the view.
We were still full when we went down for dinner. There were lots of day-trippers at the restaurant, and the staff were really busy. Dinner was mostly leftovers from lunch. Just like Christmas at home :)
...
We had planned to go hiking again but Heather had a big bruise on the back of her heel, we think from yesterday's river crossing. It was too sore for shoes so instead we made plans for a cultural visit of a nearby village.
Our guide was one of the staff from who we had been trying to learn how to say "thanks" in Sesotho.
We drove about 15 minutes to a local bar, and tried some home brewed beer. It was slightly sweet. Next was a visit to a house / rondavel, and then to a traditional "doctor". People nowadays go to a real doctor (we saw mobile clinics on the road) and use the traditional doctor more for conflict resolution, like family fights.
Anyways the cultural visit was something to do.
Lunch was my favourite at the lodge, pan-fried lamb chops. It came with a half plate full of seasonal vegetables. It was very similar to what we might have for dinner at home!
The rest of the day was uneventful. We were still full from lunch when we went down for dinner, and didn't eat much. A typical Boxing Day :)
Maliba has detailed maps of various treks in the area. We chose a shorter walk for today, a circular route to Black Pool, about 6.5km round trip.
We were on the trail by 9:15am, starting with the Upper Trail. It ascended to about 2300m, through a well-marked trail. There were hundreds of butterflies flitting about as we walked. The temperature fluctuated almost 10C depending on the sun/clouds and side of the valley. There were a handful of streams to cross with rocks, nothing too difficult.
We reached Black Pool in just over an hour, slightly ahead of the map timings. (We were comparing our times for reference in case we decided to do a longer trek tomorrow).
We rested for 10 minutes then header back on the Lower Trail. This was easy until we passed a sign that said "Cross at own risk". Hmm. A few metres on was a stream that had rocks to cross, but only if you had some speed. So mapped our route and hopped across.
Still dry, we walked on and then there was another stream, this one we would have to take off our shoes and socks. Picked the place where the stream was shallow and slow enough, and got across with water up to our knees.
After crossing we realized there was a family watching us as they were trying to cross the other way.
The rest of the walk was easy. We walked down by the self-serve cottages and saw the start of a different trail that we were interested in. However it started with fjording the river, which made it less interesting to us.
We walked back up to our chalet, showered, and went to the main lodge for lunch. The lodge put on their big Christmas spread for lunch - roast beef, roast pork with crackling, chicken, and lots of sides. The crackling was my favourite, although I was a bit concerned about chipping a tooth. We felt justified in eating so much cause we had just done an 8km trek.
It was a gorgeous day, perfect temperature. Our chalet doors opened up fully (four door widths), and so it was like the entire chalet was open to the view.
We were still full when we went down for dinner. There were lots of day-trippers at the restaurant, and the staff were really busy. Dinner was mostly leftovers from lunch. Just like Christmas at home :)
...
We had planned to go hiking again but Heather had a big bruise on the back of her heel, we think from yesterday's river crossing. It was too sore for shoes so instead we made plans for a cultural visit of a nearby village.
Our guide was one of the staff from who we had been trying to learn how to say "thanks" in Sesotho.
We drove about 15 minutes to a local bar, and tried some home brewed beer. It was slightly sweet. Next was a visit to a house / rondavel, and then to a traditional "doctor". People nowadays go to a real doctor (we saw mobile clinics on the road) and use the traditional doctor more for conflict resolution, like family fights.
Anyways the cultural visit was something to do.
Lunch was my favourite at the lodge, pan-fried lamb chops. It came with a half plate full of seasonal vegetables. It was very similar to what we might have for dinner at home!
The rest of the day was uneventful. We were still full from lunch when we went down for dinner, and didn't eat much. A typical Boxing Day :)
Sunday, December 25, 2016
Ts'ehlanyane NP, Lesotho
We were the only guests staying at Patcham Place in Clarens so had our choice of tables for breakfast.
I had booked for two nights in Clarens because all the guest houses in Clarens had a two-night minimum for booking over a weekend. However the owners didn't hold us to the 2nd night and only charged us for the one.
Clarens was a nice enough town to visit for the afternoon but there wasn't too much keeping us beyond that.
So onto Lesotho, the 75th country for me, three-quarters of the way to my goal of 100.
It was a 45 minute drive to the border town of Caledonspoort. There were a couple police checks along the way as we got closer to the border, as well as a check for drinking and driving (similar to the RIDE stops in Toronto).
At the border, we parked the car at the South African side and stood in line for about 10 minutes to receive our exit stamp. It was busier than normal because of Christmas.
There was another lineup on the Lesotho side. Non-regional visitors have to fill out a form; the helpful staff also gave us a few tourism pamphlets. Heather got held up for a bit as the border official was asking her for a visa. Canadians don't need a visa and it didn't look like an attempt at a bribe so we're not sure what was going on. Anyways he called over another person and then let Heather through.
There was a cursory check of our trunk, and then we were on our way.
It was still early in the day (about 10:30am) so we decided to head first to Hlotse for craft shopping, adding about an hour to the drive.
I wasn't sure where the craft shops would be so followed the signs to the town centre. It was the local centre, which looked very similar to some of the smaller towns we drove through in the Eastern Cape, south of Lesotho.
I pulled over and we looked up in google maps (I had offlined the area earlier) the craft shop mentioned in the pamphlet we received at the border. It was just around the corner from us.
We drove in and parked. There was a sign on the door to call a cell number if the door was closed. We didn't have a data plan so walked around, and found the lady who ran the shop in her home next door. She came by and opened the shop.
They had good quality mohair crafts per Heather who's more particular about woven goods. Bought a few items, and then got back on the road.
The way to Maliba Lodge in Ts'ehlanyane NP was clearly marked. The road wound through the river valley and through small villages with speed bumps. Lots of gear shifting!
The people reminded us of Bolivia, with distinctive hats and ponchos/blankets for the cold. Lesotho is mostly at an altitude between 2-3000m, a very different climate from South Africa.
After 45 minutes we reached the gate to the national park, and the road turned to gravel. Another five minutes and we were there!
I had booked Maliba over Dec 24-25-26 as it offers full board, and we've found restaurants and stores hit-and-miss for being open over Christmas. There's lots of hiking opportunities, so seemed like a good fit for Christmas. Plus it would keep us off the roads, the DUI rate is very high in South Africa, and I figured more so over the holidays.
Anyways it was still before noon and our room wasn't ready yet. We had a very nice 3-course lunch (the restaurant at Maliba is one of the better ones in Lesotho according to the Lonely Planet).
Maliba has only six chalets (as well as some self-catering cottages) and I had booked back in April to make sure we got in. I guess cause we were first to book they gave us the "honeymoon" chalet, more secluded from the rest of the complex. We had a really nice view down the valley from our room and large balcony.
We relaxed until dinner. They had some cultural dancing that started at 6:30pm, we're not big fans as usually it ends up with audience participation, so only went down to the main lodge for dinner at 7pm.
Heather had the winner for her main, duck breast with a red wine sauce.
We were tired (I think we've been on safari time the entire trip) and went to bed around 9am. Our room had a fireplace, the first time in years that we've had a chance for Santa to drop by.
I had booked for two nights in Clarens because all the guest houses in Clarens had a two-night minimum for booking over a weekend. However the owners didn't hold us to the 2nd night and only charged us for the one.
Clarens was a nice enough town to visit for the afternoon but there wasn't too much keeping us beyond that.
So onto Lesotho, the 75th country for me, three-quarters of the way to my goal of 100.
It was a 45 minute drive to the border town of Caledonspoort. There were a couple police checks along the way as we got closer to the border, as well as a check for drinking and driving (similar to the RIDE stops in Toronto).
At the border, we parked the car at the South African side and stood in line for about 10 minutes to receive our exit stamp. It was busier than normal because of Christmas.
There was another lineup on the Lesotho side. Non-regional visitors have to fill out a form; the helpful staff also gave us a few tourism pamphlets. Heather got held up for a bit as the border official was asking her for a visa. Canadians don't need a visa and it didn't look like an attempt at a bribe so we're not sure what was going on. Anyways he called over another person and then let Heather through.
There was a cursory check of our trunk, and then we were on our way.
It was still early in the day (about 10:30am) so we decided to head first to Hlotse for craft shopping, adding about an hour to the drive.
I wasn't sure where the craft shops would be so followed the signs to the town centre. It was the local centre, which looked very similar to some of the smaller towns we drove through in the Eastern Cape, south of Lesotho.
I pulled over and we looked up in google maps (I had offlined the area earlier) the craft shop mentioned in the pamphlet we received at the border. It was just around the corner from us.
We drove in and parked. There was a sign on the door to call a cell number if the door was closed. We didn't have a data plan so walked around, and found the lady who ran the shop in her home next door. She came by and opened the shop.
They had good quality mohair crafts per Heather who's more particular about woven goods. Bought a few items, and then got back on the road.
The way to Maliba Lodge in Ts'ehlanyane NP was clearly marked. The road wound through the river valley and through small villages with speed bumps. Lots of gear shifting!
The people reminded us of Bolivia, with distinctive hats and ponchos/blankets for the cold. Lesotho is mostly at an altitude between 2-3000m, a very different climate from South Africa.
After 45 minutes we reached the gate to the national park, and the road turned to gravel. Another five minutes and we were there!
I had booked Maliba over Dec 24-25-26 as it offers full board, and we've found restaurants and stores hit-and-miss for being open over Christmas. There's lots of hiking opportunities, so seemed like a good fit for Christmas. Plus it would keep us off the roads, the DUI rate is very high in South Africa, and I figured more so over the holidays.
Anyways it was still before noon and our room wasn't ready yet. We had a very nice 3-course lunch (the restaurant at Maliba is one of the better ones in Lesotho according to the Lonely Planet).
Maliba has only six chalets (as well as some self-catering cottages) and I had booked back in April to make sure we got in. I guess cause we were first to book they gave us the "honeymoon" chalet, more secluded from the rest of the complex. We had a really nice view down the valley from our room and large balcony.
We relaxed until dinner. They had some cultural dancing that started at 6:30pm, we're not big fans as usually it ends up with audience participation, so only went down to the main lodge for dinner at 7pm.
Heather had the winner for her main, duck breast with a red wine sauce.
We were tired (I think we've been on safari time the entire trip) and went to bed around 9am. Our room had a fireplace, the first time in years that we've had a chance for Santa to drop by.
Saturday, December 24, 2016
Clarens, South Africa
It was much nicer in Bloemfontein in the morning. The temperature was cooler, there was no wind or dust storms. The "view" in Franklin's View (the hotel name) made more sense now.
Loaded up the car and took off for Clarens. This was a straightforward 3h drive along major highways. We actually paid attention to the traffic reports on the radio as it was for the highways around Jo'burg.
Passed through Bethlehem on the way. I had looked into staying there when I was doing the planning but everything was already booked over Christmas. Haha.
We arrived in Clarens just after 11am. It was still early to check in so we parked our car and walked down the street for lunch.
It was unusually hot for Clarens, about 31C. None of the hotel rooms have a/c as that's never been an issue here. It was also very windy, and dusty due to the drought.
Clarens is a small town (pop. 800) that reminded us of Banff or other small resort places. The motorcycle guys we met in Barkly's Pass said Clarens is full of yuppies who drive up in their BMWs and sit on patios drinking their cappuccinos and craft beers. I resemble that remark!
We had lunch at Mosaic Pizza and tried a craft beer. Both were good, although I found the pizza too cheesy.
Walked back to the hotel and checked in. Then back out to the square and Main St (that's all there is to this town) to browse through the boutique stores. It was mostly kitschy generic stuff, of average quality, so the browsing didn't last long. Had a cappuccino at a little café.
About 3pm we called into the Clarens Brewery which was packed with tourists. We had a voucher for a free beer each. Tried the free samplers of nine beers, and made our choices. Unfortunately the keg was too fizzy for my choice so I had Heather's pick too.
It started raining and looked like it could downpour so moved inside. Just in time too, as the skies opened up and then everyone moved inside. We had a little hightable in the corner, overlooking the whole bar.
It was still raining when I finished my free beer so ordered another one. It briefly hailed marble-sized hail, nothing big enough to damage our car.
The skies cleared so we ventured home, showered, and then back out for dinner. Our hotel had recommended Gosto (which they also owned, but it did get good reviews on TripAdvisor and had great atmosphere when we stopped in earlier to check the menu and make a reservation).
The weather was perfect for outdoor seating (under a covered patio, in case of rain). I had the ribeye (first time I had seen this cut) and Heather had the lamb. Both were rather large portions. It went well with the red wine recommended by the waitstaff.
It started pouring rain towards the end of dinner, but after about 10 minutes it stopped long enough for us to walk home.
Loaded up the car and took off for Clarens. This was a straightforward 3h drive along major highways. We actually paid attention to the traffic reports on the radio as it was for the highways around Jo'burg.
Passed through Bethlehem on the way. I had looked into staying there when I was doing the planning but everything was already booked over Christmas. Haha.
We arrived in Clarens just after 11am. It was still early to check in so we parked our car and walked down the street for lunch.
It was unusually hot for Clarens, about 31C. None of the hotel rooms have a/c as that's never been an issue here. It was also very windy, and dusty due to the drought.
Clarens is a small town (pop. 800) that reminded us of Banff or other small resort places. The motorcycle guys we met in Barkly's Pass said Clarens is full of yuppies who drive up in their BMWs and sit on patios drinking their cappuccinos and craft beers. I resemble that remark!
We had lunch at Mosaic Pizza and tried a craft beer. Both were good, although I found the pizza too cheesy.
Walked back to the hotel and checked in. Then back out to the square and Main St (that's all there is to this town) to browse through the boutique stores. It was mostly kitschy generic stuff, of average quality, so the browsing didn't last long. Had a cappuccino at a little café.
About 3pm we called into the Clarens Brewery which was packed with tourists. We had a voucher for a free beer each. Tried the free samplers of nine beers, and made our choices. Unfortunately the keg was too fizzy for my choice so I had Heather's pick too.
It started raining and looked like it could downpour so moved inside. Just in time too, as the skies opened up and then everyone moved inside. We had a little hightable in the corner, overlooking the whole bar.
It was still raining when I finished my free beer so ordered another one. It briefly hailed marble-sized hail, nothing big enough to damage our car.
The skies cleared so we ventured home, showered, and then back out for dinner. Our hotel had recommended Gosto (which they also owned, but it did get good reviews on TripAdvisor and had great atmosphere when we stopped in earlier to check the menu and make a reservation).
The weather was perfect for outdoor seating (under a covered patio, in case of rain). I had the ribeye (first time I had seen this cut) and Heather had the lamb. Both were rather large portions. It went well with the red wine recommended by the waitstaff.
It started pouring rain towards the end of dinner, but after about 10 minutes it stopped long enough for us to walk home.
Friday, December 23, 2016
Bloemfontein, South Africa
Breakfast was confusing at the Victoria Manor in Cradock as to what was served vs self-serve.
Back at our cottage, packed up, and made some cheese sandwiches for lunch with bread and cheese we had bought yesterday at True Living.
It's a 4.5 hour drive to Bloemfontein and we took it slowly, stopping to stretch at one of the picnic stops found every few km along the highway. Our route took us on the N1, the main highway between Cape Town and Jo'burg. The opposing traffic was packed with people leaving Jo'burg for their Christmas holidays, mostly to the coast.
It was very windy and dusty due to the extended drought in southeastern Africa. We stopped for lunch and ate our cheese sandwiches.
We arrived at the Franklin View about 3pm. There wasn't much time to get to museums or art galleries (they close at 4pm) so Bloemfontein turned more into a transit stop, even though it's possible to spend a day or two.
Gustav (the owner) made us reservations at Margaritas. It's rated #6 of about 80 in Bloemfontein and was only a ten minute walk. Gustav assured us it was safe to walk to the restaurant (there are safe spots in South Africa, but you need to get local advice).
A huge dust storm blew up on the distance around 4pm, but by 7pm it was calm and we walked over to Margarita's.
It's both a steak and seafood place, we went for the steak. The steak was okay, cooked perfectly, but nowhere near the excellent steaks we had in Argentina and Chile.
Walked back home without issue, and went to bed.
Back at our cottage, packed up, and made some cheese sandwiches for lunch with bread and cheese we had bought yesterday at True Living.
It's a 4.5 hour drive to Bloemfontein and we took it slowly, stopping to stretch at one of the picnic stops found every few km along the highway. Our route took us on the N1, the main highway between Cape Town and Jo'burg. The opposing traffic was packed with people leaving Jo'burg for their Christmas holidays, mostly to the coast.
It was very windy and dusty due to the extended drought in southeastern Africa. We stopped for lunch and ate our cheese sandwiches.
We arrived at the Franklin View about 3pm. There wasn't much time to get to museums or art galleries (they close at 4pm) so Bloemfontein turned more into a transit stop, even though it's possible to spend a day or two.
Gustav (the owner) made us reservations at Margaritas. It's rated #6 of about 80 in Bloemfontein and was only a ten minute walk. Gustav assured us it was safe to walk to the restaurant (there are safe spots in South Africa, but you need to get local advice).
A huge dust storm blew up on the distance around 4pm, but by 7pm it was calm and we walked over to Margarita's.
It's both a steak and seafood place, we went for the steak. The steak was okay, cooked perfectly, but nowhere near the excellent steaks we had in Argentina and Chile.
Walked back home without issue, and went to bed.
Thursday, December 22, 2016
Cradock, South Africa
We were up early at 6am to get ready for the cheetah tracking excursion at Mountain Zebra NP. The hotel had packed breakfasts for us, and we were on our way by 6:45am. It's only 12 minutes to the park gates (the excursion started at 7:30) but we weren't sure how far we had to go to after the gates.
We arrived at the entrance at 7am, just a couple minutes before it opened. We were amazed at how close it was to Cradock. It was then about 15 minutes drive on gravel to the reception, where we paid, and parked our car.
The reception person was pleased that all eight of us were on time. The cheetah tracking is limited to 8 per day - I had booked back in July. They track the cheetahs with GPS, and then you get out on foot to get even closer. We were lucky to have seen a cheetah in Sabi Sands so it was already checked off the list, but I didn't count on that back in July.
Paid about $100 CAD between the two of us, which included both the park fee and excursion. They even took credit card.
We piled into the safari vehicle. The ranger had a very short intro while putting together his tracking antennae, mentioning something about seeing a family of lions. Wait, lions? I hadn't read anything about lions!
First we ascended to a high point in the park, so that the ranger could try to get a signal. He waved his antennae about for a few minutes. All I heard was static but he seemed pleased to have a sense of where both the lions and cheetah were. Lions??
Lions were the last of the big five for us on this trip. We had seen lions when we were in Uganda, so had the career big five, but it would be nice to see them on the same trip.
We drove for a couple more minutes and then the ranger stopped and waved the antennae. This time I heard a beep beep beep!
A car drove past us in the other direction and chatted with our ranger, saying they had seen the lions about 200m around the bend. The ranger listened politely, and then drove 5m forward and then off-roaded around a large bush to our left. There were two male lions!!
We stopped and watched them. Then two females walked by to a tree about 50m away. While we were busy taking pics, the cubs strolled out from under the same bush. It was really cool.
The cubs posed for pics while the adults watched from the shade under trees.
Finally it was time to move on to find the cheetahs. The ranger said very dryly, that wasn't a bad start to the day. (We were only about 15 minutes in).
We drove slowly through the park to a slight depression. There laying by a watering hole were two cheetah!
The ranger gave a very short safety spiel, loaded his rifle, and then we got out of the vehicle and walked closer to the cheetah, to within 10m. The cheetah looked over at us with a bored glance.
Another couple cars pulled up (it's possible to do self-driving safaris, but you have to stay on the road and in your car). The ranger hoped they didn't join us down by the cheetah. Apparently some don't realize it's an organized excursion with a ranger with a loaded shotgun.
As it was they got out of their cars to take pics. We walked back to our vehicle and the ranger asked the other tourists if they were concerned about lions, black rhinos, or even the cheetahs? I don't know if they understood the danger they were in but they got back in their cars.
We had only been on safari for 1:15h and had checked off both the highlights! We drove around some more, saw some more game, but nothing as exciting as the three lion cubs.
The safari was 2.5h in total. We had breakfast in the restaurant at reception, then drove back to Cradock.
It was well worth the effort to get out to Cradock to do the cheetah tracking excursion. It's the 2nd time we've signed up for a GPS tracking and both were excellent. It's easy to find the game, and you can off-road while other tourists peer through the bushes.
Had lunch at True Living again. I had the Karoo lamb chops, grilled perfectly.
It was getting hot (high near 36C) and we had little motivation to see museums. Caught up on reading, edited and uploaded some pics, napped.
Had dinner again at the hotel, with three different Karoo mains. We were tired with the early start, and wanted to get on the road early tomorrow, and so were in bed by 9:30pm, still on safari time.
We arrived at the entrance at 7am, just a couple minutes before it opened. We were amazed at how close it was to Cradock. It was then about 15 minutes drive on gravel to the reception, where we paid, and parked our car.
The reception person was pleased that all eight of us were on time. The cheetah tracking is limited to 8 per day - I had booked back in July. They track the cheetahs with GPS, and then you get out on foot to get even closer. We were lucky to have seen a cheetah in Sabi Sands so it was already checked off the list, but I didn't count on that back in July.
Paid about $100 CAD between the two of us, which included both the park fee and excursion. They even took credit card.
We piled into the safari vehicle. The ranger had a very short intro while putting together his tracking antennae, mentioning something about seeing a family of lions. Wait, lions? I hadn't read anything about lions!
First we ascended to a high point in the park, so that the ranger could try to get a signal. He waved his antennae about for a few minutes. All I heard was static but he seemed pleased to have a sense of where both the lions and cheetah were. Lions??
Lions were the last of the big five for us on this trip. We had seen lions when we were in Uganda, so had the career big five, but it would be nice to see them on the same trip.
We drove for a couple more minutes and then the ranger stopped and waved the antennae. This time I heard a beep beep beep!
A car drove past us in the other direction and chatted with our ranger, saying they had seen the lions about 200m around the bend. The ranger listened politely, and then drove 5m forward and then off-roaded around a large bush to our left. There were two male lions!!
We stopped and watched them. Then two females walked by to a tree about 50m away. While we were busy taking pics, the cubs strolled out from under the same bush. It was really cool.
The cubs posed for pics while the adults watched from the shade under trees.
Finally it was time to move on to find the cheetahs. The ranger said very dryly, that wasn't a bad start to the day. (We were only about 15 minutes in).
We drove slowly through the park to a slight depression. There laying by a watering hole were two cheetah!
The ranger gave a very short safety spiel, loaded his rifle, and then we got out of the vehicle and walked closer to the cheetah, to within 10m. The cheetah looked over at us with a bored glance.
Another couple cars pulled up (it's possible to do self-driving safaris, but you have to stay on the road and in your car). The ranger hoped they didn't join us down by the cheetah. Apparently some don't realize it's an organized excursion with a ranger with a loaded shotgun.
As it was they got out of their cars to take pics. We walked back to our vehicle and the ranger asked the other tourists if they were concerned about lions, black rhinos, or even the cheetahs? I don't know if they understood the danger they were in but they got back in their cars.
We had only been on safari for 1:15h and had checked off both the highlights! We drove around some more, saw some more game, but nothing as exciting as the three lion cubs.
The safari was 2.5h in total. We had breakfast in the restaurant at reception, then drove back to Cradock.
It was well worth the effort to get out to Cradock to do the cheetah tracking excursion. It's the 2nd time we've signed up for a GPS tracking and both were excellent. It's easy to find the game, and you can off-road while other tourists peer through the bushes.
Had lunch at True Living again. I had the Karoo lamb chops, grilled perfectly.
It was getting hot (high near 36C) and we had little motivation to see museums. Caught up on reading, edited and uploaded some pics, napped.
Had dinner again at the hotel, with three different Karoo mains. We were tired with the early start, and wanted to get on the road early tomorrow, and so were in bed by 9:30pm, still on safari time.
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
Cradock, South Africa
It was very misty at Barkly's Pass when I woke up at 6am, so there was not to be any early morning pics.
The power was back up and I could get a wifi signal. I thought it would be stronger inside the main lodge, but there was no signal at all there. The best connection was outside our cottage so I sat on the curb, a little cold at 18C.
Heather woke up a bit later and we went for breakfast. It was the first place that served canned fruit on this trip.
So we drove down from the pass, dropping enough to get under the clouds and out of the fog. The temperature was still in the low 20s. It was supposed to reach 35C at Cradock, our destination, so we were constantly checking the temperature readout on the car's dash to see when it would rise.
Today's drive was very different from yesterday's. There were long straight stretches, again with hardly any cars. The roads were mostly recently resurfaced. I had wondered why the roads looked great but there was no construction delays, until last night when the motorcycle guys said that all the construction crews were on vacation for the holidays. That worked out great for us, as we got great roads and no construction.
The drive was through an ancient sea bed, broken up by hills every 10kms or so. Every time we got to the top I expected a change in landscape but it was always another flat plain, and you could see the road rising at the far end through another hill.
Anyways it was a very scenic drive.
We reached Cradock in 3.5h, just as the GPS had predicted. We stayed in one of the cottages at the Victoria Manor. The owners have bought up the old Victorian cottages on Market St, beside the hotel, and restored them as part of the hotel. So we had our own house: kitchen, bathroom, 2 bedrooms and a living room. They had antiques from the 1900's all about. It was like living in a museum (the 2nd time this trip we've had this experience).
We checked in and then went for lunch down the main street at True Living. Sat on their backyard patio and had a refreshing ginger beer and then lunch.
We did some touristing on the way back to the hotel, and even stopped in at the town's Info center. They recommended a couple museums. It was too hot today and I was tired from driving so we put it off until tomorrow after our safari.
Organized ourselves for the Cheetah tracking tomorrow and later went back to the main lodge for a drink at their bar. The hotel reminds me of staying at one of the old CN railway hotels in Canada - there's lots of history to the place.
Dinner was a buffet, but one of the best buffet we've ever had. The appetizers and desserts were served to the table; the three mains were buffet. It was all local Karoo dishes, very authentic. It was mmm good.
The power was back up and I could get a wifi signal. I thought it would be stronger inside the main lodge, but there was no signal at all there. The best connection was outside our cottage so I sat on the curb, a little cold at 18C.
Heather woke up a bit later and we went for breakfast. It was the first place that served canned fruit on this trip.
So we drove down from the pass, dropping enough to get under the clouds and out of the fog. The temperature was still in the low 20s. It was supposed to reach 35C at Cradock, our destination, so we were constantly checking the temperature readout on the car's dash to see when it would rise.
Today's drive was very different from yesterday's. There were long straight stretches, again with hardly any cars. The roads were mostly recently resurfaced. I had wondered why the roads looked great but there was no construction delays, until last night when the motorcycle guys said that all the construction crews were on vacation for the holidays. That worked out great for us, as we got great roads and no construction.
The drive was through an ancient sea bed, broken up by hills every 10kms or so. Every time we got to the top I expected a change in landscape but it was always another flat plain, and you could see the road rising at the far end through another hill.
Anyways it was a very scenic drive.
We reached Cradock in 3.5h, just as the GPS had predicted. We stayed in one of the cottages at the Victoria Manor. The owners have bought up the old Victorian cottages on Market St, beside the hotel, and restored them as part of the hotel. So we had our own house: kitchen, bathroom, 2 bedrooms and a living room. They had antiques from the 1900's all about. It was like living in a museum (the 2nd time this trip we've had this experience).
We checked in and then went for lunch down the main street at True Living. Sat on their backyard patio and had a refreshing ginger beer and then lunch.
We did some touristing on the way back to the hotel, and even stopped in at the town's Info center. They recommended a couple museums. It was too hot today and I was tired from driving so we put it off until tomorrow after our safari.
Organized ourselves for the Cheetah tracking tomorrow and later went back to the main lodge for a drink at their bar. The hotel reminds me of staying at one of the old CN railway hotels in Canada - there's lots of history to the place.
Dinner was a buffet, but one of the best buffet we've ever had. The appetizers and desserts were served to the table; the three mains were buffet. It was all local Karoo dishes, very authentic. It was mmm good.
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
Elliot, South Africa
The Malachite Manor has lots of natural light and once we opened the curtains and blinds the room was really bright. We had breakfast and packed up, on the road by 8:45.
It was supposed to a 4.5 hour drive to our next stop, but we got caught up in local traffic in towns. There were really nice views of the Drakensberg on our right as we drove.
The driving was really fun. The road didn't have a flat or straight section - I was constantly shifting gears. It's the type of road they shoot car commercials on.
At about 2:30 we were an hour out from Elliot, and I was getting physically tired from driving, what with all the changing of gears. (Unlike most driving in Canada where I eventually get mentally fatigued). We pulled into a small little bakery for a tea and snacks just outside Ugie. Their baked goods all looked very yummy. We had some scones with butter and apricot jam, and a Five Roses. (Black tea is referred to by the brand here).
I felt much better for the last stretch into Elliot. The hotel we were staying at was 20km outside Elliot, at the top of Barkly's Pass. The rock formations were amazing. Luckily there were no other cars or trucks (as there was nowhere to pass) and so it was a fun drive to the top in our little Toyota Corolla.
You would think at 1990m the temperature would be lower, but it was still 35C as we pulled into Mountain Shadow Inn. It was unusually hot.
There's no air conditioning as the issue is usually cold. But at night the temperature drops to 17C so it wasn't really needed.
The power went out around 5pm, a common occurrence at the Inn, and they were well prepared. We showered while it was still light outside, and then went to the main lodge for a drink.
The Inn has a warm British-style pub, complete with other travelers having a boisterous conversation. The ringleaders were four old friends from university that were now retired and got together once a year to adventure motorbike in different parts of the country.
We were quickly welcomed into the group and had some drinks. They were quite intrigued to find tourists in this part of the country - I guess mostly tourists hit the highlights of safaris and coast.
Dinner was excellent, South African comfort food - sliced beef, lamb chop, beets, pumpkin (which here has a tea leaf flavour when cooked), creamed beans.
The four guys had insisted we join them back in the bar area for a drink after dinner on them (or a nightcap as it's called). So we had another drink, Heather tried a amarula, a South African cream liqueur somewhat like Bailey's.
The power was still out when we went to bed, it was so dark (it was raining so there were no stars or moon) that we couldn't see our hand in front of our face.
It was supposed to a 4.5 hour drive to our next stop, but we got caught up in local traffic in towns. There were really nice views of the Drakensberg on our right as we drove.
The driving was really fun. The road didn't have a flat or straight section - I was constantly shifting gears. It's the type of road they shoot car commercials on.
At about 2:30 we were an hour out from Elliot, and I was getting physically tired from driving, what with all the changing of gears. (Unlike most driving in Canada where I eventually get mentally fatigued). We pulled into a small little bakery for a tea and snacks just outside Ugie. Their baked goods all looked very yummy. We had some scones with butter and apricot jam, and a Five Roses. (Black tea is referred to by the brand here).
I felt much better for the last stretch into Elliot. The hotel we were staying at was 20km outside Elliot, at the top of Barkly's Pass. The rock formations were amazing. Luckily there were no other cars or trucks (as there was nowhere to pass) and so it was a fun drive to the top in our little Toyota Corolla.
You would think at 1990m the temperature would be lower, but it was still 35C as we pulled into Mountain Shadow Inn. It was unusually hot.
There's no air conditioning as the issue is usually cold. But at night the temperature drops to 17C so it wasn't really needed.
The power went out around 5pm, a common occurrence at the Inn, and they were well prepared. We showered while it was still light outside, and then went to the main lodge for a drink.
The Inn has a warm British-style pub, complete with other travelers having a boisterous conversation. The ringleaders were four old friends from university that were now retired and got together once a year to adventure motorbike in different parts of the country.
We were quickly welcomed into the group and had some drinks. They were quite intrigued to find tourists in this part of the country - I guess mostly tourists hit the highlights of safaris and coast.
Dinner was excellent, South African comfort food - sliced beef, lamb chop, beets, pumpkin (which here has a tea leaf flavour when cooked), creamed beans.
The four guys had insisted we join them back in the bar area for a drink after dinner on them (or a nightcap as it's called). So we had another drink, Heather tried a amarula, a South African cream liqueur somewhat like Bailey's.
The power was still out when we went to bed, it was so dark (it was raining so there were no stars or moon) that we couldn't see our hand in front of our face.
Monday, December 19, 2016
Underberg, South Africa
We made it down for breakfast around 7:30 at the Benjamin in Durban, and had checked out and on the road by 8:30.
Our goal was to get to our hotel on Underberg with enough time to go for a little trek in the afternoon.
The GPS was good and took us straight to the Malachite Manor, arriving well before noon. The roads were in excellent shape the whole way.
The Malachite is 4km outside Underberg, very close to the Drakensberg, a popular place for hikes. The access road was like driving to a fancy cottage. The lodge is just a year old, built by the owners who took great care with all the details.
We were met by the owner, Carrin. I had emailed her a couple days ago about half day hikes and she had printouts all ready for us! First was a quick lunch. We also placed our orders for dinner, steak for me and lamb for Heather.
Then we looked at the hiking options, and decided just to walk down the marked trail by the river near the hotel instead of driving to a starting point.
It was hotter than normal for Underberg, about 33C, but after 40+C in Sabi Sands it didn't feel so bad.
It was a nice little walk, with views of the Drakensberg in the distance, and lots of bird life by the river. We walked for about 4km and then turned around. It was good to get out walking after sitting around in safari vehicles the past couple weeks.
We cleaned up and relaxed in the common area. Had a drink near sunset, and then moved over to the dining area for dinner. There's lots of cattle raised in the area and so the meat was really good. I preferred the lamb and will probably order lamb the rest of the way. The steak was tasty, however the most common cut we've seen is rump steak which is not my favourite.
Another couple returned to the lodge (they had had dinner out in town). We chatted with them for a few minutes and then went to bed.
Our goal was to get to our hotel on Underberg with enough time to go for a little trek in the afternoon.
The GPS was good and took us straight to the Malachite Manor, arriving well before noon. The roads were in excellent shape the whole way.
The Malachite is 4km outside Underberg, very close to the Drakensberg, a popular place for hikes. The access road was like driving to a fancy cottage. The lodge is just a year old, built by the owners who took great care with all the details.
We were met by the owner, Carrin. I had emailed her a couple days ago about half day hikes and she had printouts all ready for us! First was a quick lunch. We also placed our orders for dinner, steak for me and lamb for Heather.
Then we looked at the hiking options, and decided just to walk down the marked trail by the river near the hotel instead of driving to a starting point.
It was hotter than normal for Underberg, about 33C, but after 40+C in Sabi Sands it didn't feel so bad.
It was a nice little walk, with views of the Drakensberg in the distance, and lots of bird life by the river. We walked for about 4km and then turned around. It was good to get out walking after sitting around in safari vehicles the past couple weeks.
We cleaned up and relaxed in the common area. Had a drink near sunset, and then moved over to the dining area for dinner. There's lots of cattle raised in the area and so the meat was really good. I preferred the lamb and will probably order lamb the rest of the way. The steak was tasty, however the most common cut we've seen is rump steak which is not my favourite.
Another couple returned to the lodge (they had had dinner out in town). We chatted with them for a few minutes and then went to bed.
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Durban, South Africa
We had the full day in Durban. It hadn't made any plans in advance. When we read the LP yesterday nothing really jumped out. Which was just as well, as I was sick in the morning and we only got going at noon.
Heather and I walked down Florida Rd in search of thin crust pizza. Sat down at ?? which had a nice patio (as did most places on the strip). Our pizza was very good. We stayed for cappuccinos and took in the scene.
Our car was looking sketchy after two weeks of driving on dirt roads to safari lodges, so we went to a car wash. It was a hand wash and full vacuum, which took six people over 30 minutes, for a grand total of $4 CAD. Everyone keeps their cars looking clean so we felt better that ours was clean now too.
On the drive back we heard what sounded like gunshots for the 2nd time today. Both times the locals flinched and ducked for cover, so I don't think it's uncommon.
Parked back in our secure lot at the hotel, and then relaxed in our room. Saw Marissa and Nancy off around 3:30pm (they only had two weeks and were headed back home).
Heather and I went to MoZamBiq for dinner, having made reservations while out for lunch. It was a hopping place, busy even at 8pm with groups of friends having dinner on a Saturday night. The shrimp was better than expected. We wanted to have an early start so just split a bottle of white.
Heather and I walked down Florida Rd in search of thin crust pizza. Sat down at ?? which had a nice patio (as did most places on the strip). Our pizza was very good. We stayed for cappuccinos and took in the scene.
Our car was looking sketchy after two weeks of driving on dirt roads to safari lodges, so we went to a car wash. It was a hand wash and full vacuum, which took six people over 30 minutes, for a grand total of $4 CAD. Everyone keeps their cars looking clean so we felt better that ours was clean now too.
On the drive back we heard what sounded like gunshots for the 2nd time today. Both times the locals flinched and ducked for cover, so I don't think it's uncommon.
Parked back in our secure lot at the hotel, and then relaxed in our room. Saw Marissa and Nancy off around 3:30pm (they only had two weeks and were headed back home).
Heather and I went to MoZamBiq for dinner, having made reservations while out for lunch. It was a hopping place, busy even at 8pm with groups of friends having dinner on a Saturday night. The shrimp was better than expected. We wanted to have an early start so just split a bottle of white.
Saturday, December 17, 2016
Durban, South Africa
We actually went on the early morning game drive this time because the ranger (Michael) was so good. Usually I've been skipping the early morning safaris when I have to drive but it was only three hours to Durban.
It rained heavily at some point overnight, but had stopped by 4:30am when we got up. (Yes, 4:30am). At 5am we left to find the elephant herd we had seen yesterday. Michael had tracked them to a grove of eucalyptus trees, and sure enough, they were still there. There's no nutritional value in eucalyptus trees to the elephants - they use them as scratching posts. It also made an interesting background for pics.
We went down to the docks and saw a rhino on the beach, as well as lots of birds. We finished at a viewpoint over the Narrows.
Breakfast was waiting for us when we returned at 8am. We packed up the car, which was quite full with all the souvenirs we bought in Swaziland. Heather and I had handed in half our packs to be laundered, it was good to have mostly clean clothes again.
We saw lots of game on the drive out of the park, including a white rhino! They've cut off the horns on all the rhinos in iSimangaliso to protect them from poachers. The horns are made of keratin, it's the same as cutting your fingernails. The downside is the rhinos don't look as good in pics.
It was three hours to Durban, pretty much just following the N2. It was a toll road on the latter half, which was a nicer highway, two lanes each direction and divided. We ran low on gas (there's no gas stations on the toll roads) but Garmin led us to the nearest one, a few kms off the N2. (Actually, the first one we went to had lost power (or "no lights" as they posted) so we had to find another one).
The GPS was much more useful in the city. We had booked at The Benjamin on Florida Rd, a hip street with lots of cafes and restaurants. Parked in the secure lot around back, and checked in.
I was starving and it was after 2pm so we just went to the KFC next door for an quick bite.
The rest of the afternoon we relaxed. At 7pm we went out for drinks on Florida Rd. It's patrolled by private security and safe for walking. Marissa wanted to try a different place from dinner, we ended up at a club called the Velvet. It was empty so the bartender had some time to chat with us. Apparently it gets busy from 11pm - 5am. We looked very unhip showing up at 7pm.
We had made reservations for 8pm at Butcher Boys, a steak house rated highly on TripAdvisor. Heather and I had the ribeye, which was pretty good. (Not Argentinian good, but not bad). We also split two sides, a dessert, and the most expensive wine bottle on the menu. Total cost for us including tip was $66 CAD.
After we continued our bar hopping at another restaurant, where I had a tipped (= draft) Castle Light, nice and cold. The street life was picking up as it was after 10pm.
Our hotel was right across the street so we bumbled home and called it a night.
It rained heavily at some point overnight, but had stopped by 4:30am when we got up. (Yes, 4:30am). At 5am we left to find the elephant herd we had seen yesterday. Michael had tracked them to a grove of eucalyptus trees, and sure enough, they were still there. There's no nutritional value in eucalyptus trees to the elephants - they use them as scratching posts. It also made an interesting background for pics.
We went down to the docks and saw a rhino on the beach, as well as lots of birds. We finished at a viewpoint over the Narrows.
Breakfast was waiting for us when we returned at 8am. We packed up the car, which was quite full with all the souvenirs we bought in Swaziland. Heather and I had handed in half our packs to be laundered, it was good to have mostly clean clothes again.
We saw lots of game on the drive out of the park, including a white rhino! They've cut off the horns on all the rhinos in iSimangaliso to protect them from poachers. The horns are made of keratin, it's the same as cutting your fingernails. The downside is the rhinos don't look as good in pics.
It was three hours to Durban, pretty much just following the N2. It was a toll road on the latter half, which was a nicer highway, two lanes each direction and divided. We ran low on gas (there's no gas stations on the toll roads) but Garmin led us to the nearest one, a few kms off the N2. (Actually, the first one we went to had lost power (or "no lights" as they posted) so we had to find another one).
The GPS was much more useful in the city. We had booked at The Benjamin on Florida Rd, a hip street with lots of cafes and restaurants. Parked in the secure lot around back, and checked in.
I was starving and it was after 2pm so we just went to the KFC next door for an quick bite.
The rest of the afternoon we relaxed. At 7pm we went out for drinks on Florida Rd. It's patrolled by private security and safe for walking. Marissa wanted to try a different place from dinner, we ended up at a club called the Velvet. It was empty so the bartender had some time to chat with us. Apparently it gets busy from 11pm - 5am. We looked very unhip showing up at 7pm.
We had made reservations for 8pm at Butcher Boys, a steak house rated highly on TripAdvisor. Heather and I had the ribeye, which was pretty good. (Not Argentinian good, but not bad). We also split two sides, a dessert, and the most expensive wine bottle on the menu. Total cost for us including tip was $66 CAD.
After we continued our bar hopping at another restaurant, where I had a tipped (= draft) Castle Light, nice and cold. The street life was picking up as it was after 10pm.
Our hotel was right across the street so we bumbled home and called it a night.
Friday, December 16, 2016
iSimangaliso Wetland Park, South Africa
Instead of an early morning and then evening game drive, we had a full day boat safari from 9am - 3pm which meant we could sleep in.
Heather and I had the morning planned out, which then went out the window when Michael (our ranger) came back from the early morning game drive (with other guests). Michael had seen a herd of 30 elephants and was hoping to show them to us before the boat safari.
So we bundled into the safari vehicle and drove off to where the elephants had been. We found a few stragglers, but not the full herd. One elephant stood in the road and held us up, so we were a little late getting to the boat. Yep, late due to elephant.
On the drive over a rather large dung beetle smacked me in my shoulder and fell stunned in my seat. I was concerned that it would start flying about my face so moved over to Heather. Tristan rescued it and kept it up front until it regained its senses. Dung beetles are very important to the ecosystem and if they put the dung beetle back out while it was stunned, it could be eaten by ants.
The boat was captained by an older gentleman, Warwick. He was really nice and knew the water systems like the back of his hand. Michael and Tristan (a new hire at the lodge, tagging along for training) joined us on the boat.
Unfortunately due to recent rains and water management, they had yesterday opened some dams and so the water level was two feet higher and very muddy. This impacted the favourite sand bars of the hippos as the sand bars were now much deeper.
We saw a few groupings of hippos, although none out of the water. I did get a pic of a baby hippo yawning!
There was lots of bird life. We got up close to the weavers and saw nests in progress. I tried tracking the big birds flying and was getting the hang of actually having the bird in the frame fully zoomed. I was in burst mode, without refocus, so I had to focus, then track within the same focal range. Luckily I got a few in frame and in focus.
We docked back on shore where we had a picnic lunch, as well as a couple craft beers that Michael had packed.
We were back at the lodge by 3pm, with lots of time to relax and lounge around the lodge. I caught up on my blog over tea and chocolate cake.
It had been a very hot day (over 35C) and so the boma was too hot with the fire. We had a drink at the bar inside while the evening cooled down.
Dinner was good. The owner dropped by our table to chat and then sat down for a beer, so we ordered another round. It was about 10pm by the time we headed off to bed.
Heather and I had the morning planned out, which then went out the window when Michael (our ranger) came back from the early morning game drive (with other guests). Michael had seen a herd of 30 elephants and was hoping to show them to us before the boat safari.
So we bundled into the safari vehicle and drove off to where the elephants had been. We found a few stragglers, but not the full herd. One elephant stood in the road and held us up, so we were a little late getting to the boat. Yep, late due to elephant.
On the drive over a rather large dung beetle smacked me in my shoulder and fell stunned in my seat. I was concerned that it would start flying about my face so moved over to Heather. Tristan rescued it and kept it up front until it regained its senses. Dung beetles are very important to the ecosystem and if they put the dung beetle back out while it was stunned, it could be eaten by ants.
The boat was captained by an older gentleman, Warwick. He was really nice and knew the water systems like the back of his hand. Michael and Tristan (a new hire at the lodge, tagging along for training) joined us on the boat.
Unfortunately due to recent rains and water management, they had yesterday opened some dams and so the water level was two feet higher and very muddy. This impacted the favourite sand bars of the hippos as the sand bars were now much deeper.
We saw a few groupings of hippos, although none out of the water. I did get a pic of a baby hippo yawning!
There was lots of bird life. We got up close to the weavers and saw nests in progress. I tried tracking the big birds flying and was getting the hang of actually having the bird in the frame fully zoomed. I was in burst mode, without refocus, so I had to focus, then track within the same focal range. Luckily I got a few in frame and in focus.
We docked back on shore where we had a picnic lunch, as well as a couple craft beers that Michael had packed.
We were back at the lodge by 3pm, with lots of time to relax and lounge around the lodge. I caught up on my blog over tea and chocolate cake.
It had been a very hot day (over 35C) and so the boma was too hot with the fire. We had a drink at the bar inside while the evening cooled down.
Dinner was good. The owner dropped by our table to chat and then sat down for a beer, so we ordered another round. It was about 10pm by the time we headed off to bed.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
iSimangaliso Wetland Park, South Africa
Heather and I skipped the morning game drive at Stone Camp as we'd already seen everything we wanted to see in park (the baby black rhino yesterday was the last item on the list), plus I wanted to be rested for driving.
A family of nyalas wandered right by our lodge again and a couple younger males were playing around butting heads.
Breakfast was at 8am and we were loaded up in the safari vehicle by 9am for the drive to the park gate.
A little delay at the secure parking lot because the ranger forgot the key to the lot; he called on his cell and someone drove up on a motorcycle 10 minutes later and we were off.
Next stop was iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa, a three hour drive. Half way through we crossed the border. Another attempt at bribes entering South Africa (the border official said we needed a permit to bring masks into the country) but I just played it dumb and eventually he gave up and waved us through.
The GPS was accurate this time (we've been going to a lot of address-less places reached by dirt roads, which Garmin had trouble with).
At the park gate I asked how to pronounce iSimangaliso, so now I could at least say where we where going. (It's phonetic but I wasn't putting the stress on the right syllable).
The drive into Makakatana was like driving into a cottage. The trees created a tunnel around the single-lane sand road. There was a slight decline to get to the lodge, and I was worried about eventually driving out uphill in sand. But that was for another day.
The staff was waiting to greet us at reception. There's only eight lodges at Makakatana and on the day we arrived the was only one other lodge occupied.
We sorted out the luggage by room, and I parked the car in the shaded carport. I still find reversing strange, as you have to look over your left shoulder.
We had a welcome drink and the manager went through our program for the next couple days. Game drive this evening; full day boat safari tomorrow; and an early morning game drive on our last day.
We had arrived with enough time to shower before the evening game drive. It was an outdoor shower, one of the best I've seen. (We didn't want to shower after the game drive in case of bugs at night). We took our soap and shampoo back into the lodge to keep away from vervet monkeys and bushbabies.
We met our ranger, Michael, and then headed out. Michael was one of our favourite rangers we've had. He was really knowledgeable, providing new facts and info that other rangers hadn't.
I had booked Makakatana for the wetlands safari, but they also have decent grasslands game too. Saw lots of giraffes, including seven eating from the same tree.
The sundowner was right by the lake, with a group of hippos about 30m away, and the sun at the perfect angle. At first the hippos had to establish their dominance by some fake charges. Once they started ignoring us, Michael set up a small table with snacks and we got out of the safari vehicle for our sundowner. It was our favourite sundowner location to date.
Michael used the hippo tracks as a guide to get back to the dirt roads. Back at Makakatana, we quickly washed up and then met at the boma for dinner. The setting was really nice - a central fire pit, hip lighting around the perimeter. We enjoyed our 4-course dinner and then crashed for the night. It was hard to believe our day had started at Stone Camp in Swaziland.
A family of nyalas wandered right by our lodge again and a couple younger males were playing around butting heads.
Breakfast was at 8am and we were loaded up in the safari vehicle by 9am for the drive to the park gate.
A little delay at the secure parking lot because the ranger forgot the key to the lot; he called on his cell and someone drove up on a motorcycle 10 minutes later and we were off.
Next stop was iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa, a three hour drive. Half way through we crossed the border. Another attempt at bribes entering South Africa (the border official said we needed a permit to bring masks into the country) but I just played it dumb and eventually he gave up and waved us through.
The GPS was accurate this time (we've been going to a lot of address-less places reached by dirt roads, which Garmin had trouble with).
At the park gate I asked how to pronounce iSimangaliso, so now I could at least say where we where going. (It's phonetic but I wasn't putting the stress on the right syllable).
The drive into Makakatana was like driving into a cottage. The trees created a tunnel around the single-lane sand road. There was a slight decline to get to the lodge, and I was worried about eventually driving out uphill in sand. But that was for another day.
The staff was waiting to greet us at reception. There's only eight lodges at Makakatana and on the day we arrived the was only one other lodge occupied.
We sorted out the luggage by room, and I parked the car in the shaded carport. I still find reversing strange, as you have to look over your left shoulder.
We had a welcome drink and the manager went through our program for the next couple days. Game drive this evening; full day boat safari tomorrow; and an early morning game drive on our last day.
We had arrived with enough time to shower before the evening game drive. It was an outdoor shower, one of the best I've seen. (We didn't want to shower after the game drive in case of bugs at night). We took our soap and shampoo back into the lodge to keep away from vervet monkeys and bushbabies.
We met our ranger, Michael, and then headed out. Michael was one of our favourite rangers we've had. He was really knowledgeable, providing new facts and info that other rangers hadn't.
I had booked Makakatana for the wetlands safari, but they also have decent grasslands game too. Saw lots of giraffes, including seven eating from the same tree.
The sundowner was right by the lake, with a group of hippos about 30m away, and the sun at the perfect angle. At first the hippos had to establish their dominance by some fake charges. Once they started ignoring us, Michael set up a small table with snacks and we got out of the safari vehicle for our sundowner. It was our favourite sundowner location to date.
Michael used the hippo tracks as a guide to get back to the dirt roads. Back at Makakatana, we quickly washed up and then met at the boma for dinner. The setting was really nice - a central fire pit, hip lighting around the perimeter. We enjoyed our 4-course dinner and then crashed for the night. It was hard to believe our day had started at Stone Camp in Swaziland.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Mkhaya Game Reserve, Swaziland
I woke up around 5am as it was already bright outside. It wasn't too noisy sleeping *outdoors*, about the same as camping.
At 5:30am the camp staff came by with a tray of coffee, tea and freshly-baked muffins. It was especially tasty. We ate outside our cottage so we didn't leave crumbs for ants.
The morning safari started at 6am. We saw about 15-20 rhinos, all white. Then just before the end of the drive, we spotted a black rhino! Now that we know the difference, it's easy to spot the different nose, back and neck arch.
We returned to camp at 8am for breakfast. It was a full breakfast, fruit and yoghurt, and eggs and bacon made to order. The staff made toast over the coals from yesterday's campfire.
There wasn't much time to rest before our waking safari at 10:30am. The day was starting to get hot (I think it went up to 35C). It was a small group - me, Heather, Marissa, and a couple who also happened to be from Ontario.
We drove out with our guide, Africa, to a grasslands area which was our starting point. As usual the walking safari started off slowly, with explanations about various plants and insects. I'm pretty sure the guides also use this as a chance to evaluate the group. Outside of the safari vehicle, we're no longer the top of the food chain.
Anyways we gained enough trust of the guide to get into denser bush. We walked from wallow to wallow in search of rhinos, but weren't having much luck.
Towards the two hour mark, we headed to one last wallow. Suddenly Africa put up his hand, the signal to stop. In the distance I heard a low rumble. Then about 20 metres away I saw dust and shadows of Cape buffalo as a group of over twenty stampeded by us. Our guide said they had picked up our scent and got afraid, and so stampeded. Lucky for us they couldn't tell our direction.
We took a more circuitous route to get to the last wallow. Sure enough, there was a white rhino and her son! The white rhinos are calmer compared to the black rhino; and this particular rhino had been hand-raised and familiar with humans. If anything the danger was from the rhino getting curious and following us.
We observed the rhinos from about 20m away, until the mother noticed us and started wandering over to say hello. Our guide backed us up into the bush to get away; and then we hiked back to the safari vehicle.
Walking through waist-high grasses and through thick underbrush with animals all about was really cool, one of the highlights of the trip so far.
We arrived back at Stone Camp around 1pm. It didn't seem like we had been walking in the heat for 2.5 hours!
Had lunch and then showered. I also washed my shirt, it dried in about an hour.
At 4pm we went out for the evening game drive. Africa was our ranger again (we had a different ranger for the morning drive, who was tracking the black rhino but sped around a lot. We preferred Africa's driving). We saw another black rhino, this time a mother and baby.
After dinner there was another song and dance show by the staff. (I forgot to mention we did this last night too). It's traditional Zulu songs, a little bit touristy for me, although authentic.
We were exhausted after three safaris in the day and fell asleep quickly.
At 5:30am the camp staff came by with a tray of coffee, tea and freshly-baked muffins. It was especially tasty. We ate outside our cottage so we didn't leave crumbs for ants.
The morning safari started at 6am. We saw about 15-20 rhinos, all white. Then just before the end of the drive, we spotted a black rhino! Now that we know the difference, it's easy to spot the different nose, back and neck arch.
We returned to camp at 8am for breakfast. It was a full breakfast, fruit and yoghurt, and eggs and bacon made to order. The staff made toast over the coals from yesterday's campfire.
There wasn't much time to rest before our waking safari at 10:30am. The day was starting to get hot (I think it went up to 35C). It was a small group - me, Heather, Marissa, and a couple who also happened to be from Ontario.
We drove out with our guide, Africa, to a grasslands area which was our starting point. As usual the walking safari started off slowly, with explanations about various plants and insects. I'm pretty sure the guides also use this as a chance to evaluate the group. Outside of the safari vehicle, we're no longer the top of the food chain.
Anyways we gained enough trust of the guide to get into denser bush. We walked from wallow to wallow in search of rhinos, but weren't having much luck.
Towards the two hour mark, we headed to one last wallow. Suddenly Africa put up his hand, the signal to stop. In the distance I heard a low rumble. Then about 20 metres away I saw dust and shadows of Cape buffalo as a group of over twenty stampeded by us. Our guide said they had picked up our scent and got afraid, and so stampeded. Lucky for us they couldn't tell our direction.
We took a more circuitous route to get to the last wallow. Sure enough, there was a white rhino and her son! The white rhinos are calmer compared to the black rhino; and this particular rhino had been hand-raised and familiar with humans. If anything the danger was from the rhino getting curious and following us.
We observed the rhinos from about 20m away, until the mother noticed us and started wandering over to say hello. Our guide backed us up into the bush to get away; and then we hiked back to the safari vehicle.
Walking through waist-high grasses and through thick underbrush with animals all about was really cool, one of the highlights of the trip so far.
We arrived back at Stone Camp around 1pm. It didn't seem like we had been walking in the heat for 2.5 hours!
Had lunch and then showered. I also washed my shirt, it dried in about an hour.
At 4pm we went out for the evening game drive. Africa was our ranger again (we had a different ranger for the morning drive, who was tracking the black rhino but sped around a lot. We preferred Africa's driving). We saw another black rhino, this time a mother and baby.
After dinner there was another song and dance show by the staff. (I forgot to mention we did this last night too). It's traditional Zulu songs, a little bit touristy for me, although authentic.
We were exhausted after three safaris in the day and fell asleep quickly.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Mkhaya Game Reserve, Swaziland
Next on our itinerary was Stone Camp in Mkhaya Game Reserve. It's the best place to see rhinos in all of Africa.
Rangers pick you up from the park gates at either 10am or 4pm. We had booked 48 hours starting at 10am, so left Ezulwini Valley at 8am just to be safe (our hotel said it was a 90 minute drive).
We followed the GPS most of the way and then the directions from Stone Camp to get to entrance gate by 9:40am. Another car with tourists pulled up shortly after, so we figured we were in the right spot. It was slightly drizzling as we waited.
At 10:04am the ranger arrived in an open safari vehicle. We followed him to a secure parking place, and transferred our packs. We had been warned that we could only bring a small overnight bag, as there wasn't much room for luggage in the safari vehicle. Heather and I travel fairly light (about 15kg each) so we were okay with our regular packs.
The drive in is also a game drive, and we saw lots of giraffes, and some rhinos! The park is fenced off for breeding purposes, where the ranger would stop, open the gate, drive through, close the gate. It was like being on a TTC streetcar when the driver has to change the switching to turn.
It had stopped raining halfway through the two hour game drive, and was getting hot in the sun when we arrived in camp.
I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew there was no electricity (Heather and I arrived with our devices and cameras fully charged), but wasn't sure about plumbing.
The cottages turned out to be much better than I hoped! They are open-concept, with a only a two-foot stone wall between us and the wilderness. They had running potable water (hot and cold), showers, and comfortable beds with mosquito nets. Due to the drought there were hardly any bugs. It was almost better than Inyati!
We had another evening game drive at 4pm, so didn't have much time after lunch to relax and enjoy the place.
As advertised, we saw plenty of rhinos on the game drive, about 20-30 in different groupings. Today we saw only the more common white rhino. The name had nothing to do with the color of the rhino, but was a lost-in-translation thing from way back when.
Dinner was excellent around a fire. They even had cold beer! I had a Sibebe, the local Swazi beer. Heather had a chilled Sauv Blanc from South Africa. As Marissa said, this is our kind of camping.
Walked back to our cottages along paths lit with paraffin lights. Our cottage was similarly lit, looking very pretty. There were hardly any bugs which made getting into bed easier.
Rangers pick you up from the park gates at either 10am or 4pm. We had booked 48 hours starting at 10am, so left Ezulwini Valley at 8am just to be safe (our hotel said it was a 90 minute drive).
We followed the GPS most of the way and then the directions from Stone Camp to get to entrance gate by 9:40am. Another car with tourists pulled up shortly after, so we figured we were in the right spot. It was slightly drizzling as we waited.
At 10:04am the ranger arrived in an open safari vehicle. We followed him to a secure parking place, and transferred our packs. We had been warned that we could only bring a small overnight bag, as there wasn't much room for luggage in the safari vehicle. Heather and I travel fairly light (about 15kg each) so we were okay with our regular packs.
The drive in is also a game drive, and we saw lots of giraffes, and some rhinos! The park is fenced off for breeding purposes, where the ranger would stop, open the gate, drive through, close the gate. It was like being on a TTC streetcar when the driver has to change the switching to turn.
It had stopped raining halfway through the two hour game drive, and was getting hot in the sun when we arrived in camp.
I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew there was no electricity (Heather and I arrived with our devices and cameras fully charged), but wasn't sure about plumbing.
The cottages turned out to be much better than I hoped! They are open-concept, with a only a two-foot stone wall between us and the wilderness. They had running potable water (hot and cold), showers, and comfortable beds with mosquito nets. Due to the drought there were hardly any bugs. It was almost better than Inyati!
We had another evening game drive at 4pm, so didn't have much time after lunch to relax and enjoy the place.
As advertised, we saw plenty of rhinos on the game drive, about 20-30 in different groupings. Today we saw only the more common white rhino. The name had nothing to do with the color of the rhino, but was a lost-in-translation thing from way back when.
Dinner was excellent around a fire. They even had cold beer! I had a Sibebe, the local Swazi beer. Heather had a chilled Sauv Blanc from South Africa. As Marissa said, this is our kind of camping.
Walked back to our cottages along paths lit with paraffin lights. Our cottage was similarly lit, looking very pretty. There were hardly any bugs which made getting into bed easier.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Ezulwini Valley, Swaziland
Heather and I were still on safari time and were up at 6am, so got ready and went for breakfast when it opened at 7am.
The manager, an eccentric old lady, came over to find out what our plans were for the day, and then gave us a Swaziland tourism magazine and suggested we take a day trip to nearby Malkern Valley, which had all sorts of arts and crafts shops, and a nice pub for lunch.
So we waited for Marissa and Nancy to wake up, and headed out. Having a car was coming in very handy!
First stop was Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, so that Marissa could check out horseback riding for later in the afternoon. At Mlilwane it's possible to do a self-drive and self-walking safari, as there's no predators in the park. We were more interested in souvenirs so carried on.
Malkern was another 15 minutes down the MR103. There's occasional speed bumps at shared taxi stops and school crossings, otherwise the limit was mostly 80km.
We drove to Swazi Candles, which had the famous Swazi candle-making shop, as well as a number of other little craft shops. One-stop shopping :).
The candles were actually pretty cool. We bought some, as well as a bunch of other souvenirs. It was our only chance for souvenir shopping in Swaziland so we stocked up.
Had lunch at Malandela's, where they had large draft beers, that tasted like Coors Light according to Marissa. I thought it had a little more taste, and hardly any alcohol, but anyways they were pretty refreshing in the heat.
We later stopped in at Mantenga's Cultural Village, and then called it a day.
Had dinner at the same restaurant as yesterday as we weren't very motivated to find another place.
The manager, an eccentric old lady, came over to find out what our plans were for the day, and then gave us a Swaziland tourism magazine and suggested we take a day trip to nearby Malkern Valley, which had all sorts of arts and crafts shops, and a nice pub for lunch.
So we waited for Marissa and Nancy to wake up, and headed out. Having a car was coming in very handy!
First stop was Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, so that Marissa could check out horseback riding for later in the afternoon. At Mlilwane it's possible to do a self-drive and self-walking safari, as there's no predators in the park. We were more interested in souvenirs so carried on.
Malkern was another 15 minutes down the MR103. There's occasional speed bumps at shared taxi stops and school crossings, otherwise the limit was mostly 80km.
We drove to Swazi Candles, which had the famous Swazi candle-making shop, as well as a number of other little craft shops. One-stop shopping :).
The candles were actually pretty cool. We bought some, as well as a bunch of other souvenirs. It was our only chance for souvenir shopping in Swaziland so we stocked up.
Had lunch at Malandela's, where they had large draft beers, that tasted like Coors Light according to Marissa. I thought it had a little more taste, and hardly any alcohol, but anyways they were pretty refreshing in the heat.
We later stopped in at Mantenga's Cultural Village, and then called it a day.
Had dinner at the same restaurant as yesterday as we weren't very motivated to find another place.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Ezulwini Valley, Swaziland
I skipped the morning game drive at Inyati because we had a five hour drive today and I didn't want to be tired.
We were on the road by 10:30, Marissa navigating with Garmin, Google maps offlined on my iPhone, and the directions that Marissa had printed off before the trip. We decided to take a shortcut through a nature reserve on the border. The South African side had great views as we climbed to the pass. We stopped at a little interpretive site roadside for pics.
Exiting South Africa was easy, although the border officials seemed surprised to see us. Entering Swaziland was also easy - no fees for Canadians, and just a $5 fee for the car. They didn't ask to see the document from Avis allowing us to take the car into Swaziland.
A few hundred metres down the road there was a police check, all they did was note our license plate number. We were only the 6th car through.
Then we found out why. The next 18km was a pretty rough gravel road. There were other little cars like Citroëns meeting us the other way so we figured it was possible in our little Toyota Corolla. It was slow going though, it took about 45 minutes to get to pavement. So much for our shortcut! It did have nice views though.
The rest of the drive in Swaziland was on good roads. They even have a short stretch of highway where the limit is 120km, it's the road between the main city and the Royal Residence.
It's a very hilly country. I was trying to use the engine to brake on downhills but the little engine couldn't handle the weight. Hopefully the brakes will last our trip!
We reached Mogi Boutique Hotel around 5pm, well before sunset. It's a nice location on the side of Ezulwini Valley. The views would be nice if it wasn't rainy :)
The Mogi doesn't have an onsite restaurant but they recommended a place just down the road. We were told it's dangerous to walk so we piled into the car and drove.
The restaurant had wifi so we all checked our email. (Lightning the previous night had knocked out the router at Mogi). The food was okay, a little touristy, but it was reasonably priced and had vegetarian options for Marissa.
We were on the road by 10:30, Marissa navigating with Garmin, Google maps offlined on my iPhone, and the directions that Marissa had printed off before the trip. We decided to take a shortcut through a nature reserve on the border. The South African side had great views as we climbed to the pass. We stopped at a little interpretive site roadside for pics.
Exiting South Africa was easy, although the border officials seemed surprised to see us. Entering Swaziland was also easy - no fees for Canadians, and just a $5 fee for the car. They didn't ask to see the document from Avis allowing us to take the car into Swaziland.
A few hundred metres down the road there was a police check, all they did was note our license plate number. We were only the 6th car through.
Then we found out why. The next 18km was a pretty rough gravel road. There were other little cars like Citroëns meeting us the other way so we figured it was possible in our little Toyota Corolla. It was slow going though, it took about 45 minutes to get to pavement. So much for our shortcut! It did have nice views though.
The rest of the drive in Swaziland was on good roads. They even have a short stretch of highway where the limit is 120km, it's the road between the main city and the Royal Residence.
It's a very hilly country. I was trying to use the engine to brake on downhills but the little engine couldn't handle the weight. Hopefully the brakes will last our trip!
We reached Mogi Boutique Hotel around 5pm, well before sunset. It's a nice location on the side of Ezulwini Valley. The views would be nice if it wasn't rainy :)
The Mogi doesn't have an onsite restaurant but they recommended a place just down the road. We were told it's dangerous to walk so we piled into the car and drove.
The restaurant had wifi so we all checked our email. (Lightning the previous night had knocked out the router at Mogi). The food was okay, a little touristy, but it was reasonably priced and had vegetarian options for Marissa.
Saturday, December 10, 2016
Sabi Sand Game Reserve, South Africa
I forgot to mention that while in Zimbabwe I bought some trillion dollar bills. The million and billion bills were fairly cheap; the trillion dollar bills started at $5 and the 100 trillion was over $50.
The two full days at Inyati went like this:
5:00am wake up knock at door
5:30am tea / coffee/ snacks
6:00am game drive
9:30am breakfast / brunch
4:00pm high tea
4:30pm game drive
7:30pm wash up
8:00pm dinner
10:00pm sleep
The game drives lasted over three hours each, which was much longer than we were used to. We found it a bit long to be sitting around, and also with the heat we were guzzling water without a washroom break. Woe is us.
The highlights included a cheetah resting on a termite hill, many leopards (the main reason we were here), elephants grazing within inches of us, a pack of wild dogs catching and eating a baby impala.
It was amazing how fast the dogs ate the impala. The dogs were laying about in the shade when a group of impalas accidentally walked up on them. We were parked by the dogs observing them, as wild dogs are a rare sighting. One dog noticed the impalas and they gave chase. Our driver followed them for about 200m where they caught the baby impala. Then they all surrounded and pulled bites, just 10' from the vehicle. In less than five minutes the impala was gone, bones and all.
The 2nd day was stinking hot, over 40C. Thank goodness the lodges were air conditioned.
The food was okay, matched nicely with mostly South African wines. (They have a walk-in cellar from the dining room. This was not the GAP Adventures safari I did when I was in my 20s).
We met a nice family from Singapore, as well as a number of other couples. Most of them were well-traveled.
Inyati doesn't overcrowd the safari vehicles, the most we had was six, plus the driver, and the tracker. So there was lots of space to spread out camera bags and water bottles and sunscreen etc.
It was a great safari experience at Inyati, we saw leopards, and plenty other animals as a bonus.
The two full days at Inyati went like this:
5:00am wake up knock at door
5:30am tea / coffee/ snacks
6:00am game drive
9:30am breakfast / brunch
4:00pm high tea
4:30pm game drive
7:30pm wash up
8:00pm dinner
10:00pm sleep
The game drives lasted over three hours each, which was much longer than we were used to. We found it a bit long to be sitting around, and also with the heat we were guzzling water without a washroom break. Woe is us.
The highlights included a cheetah resting on a termite hill, many leopards (the main reason we were here), elephants grazing within inches of us, a pack of wild dogs catching and eating a baby impala.
It was amazing how fast the dogs ate the impala. The dogs were laying about in the shade when a group of impalas accidentally walked up on them. We were parked by the dogs observing them, as wild dogs are a rare sighting. One dog noticed the impalas and they gave chase. Our driver followed them for about 200m where they caught the baby impala. Then they all surrounded and pulled bites, just 10' from the vehicle. In less than five minutes the impala was gone, bones and all.
The 2nd day was stinking hot, over 40C. Thank goodness the lodges were air conditioned.
The food was okay, matched nicely with mostly South African wines. (They have a walk-in cellar from the dining room. This was not the GAP Adventures safari I did when I was in my 20s).
We met a nice family from Singapore, as well as a number of other couples. Most of them were well-traveled.
Inyati doesn't overcrowd the safari vehicles, the most we had was six, plus the driver, and the tracker. So there was lots of space to spread out camera bags and water bottles and sunscreen etc.
It was a great safari experience at Inyati, we saw leopards, and plenty other animals as a bonus.
Thursday, December 08, 2016
Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa
It took a couple days in transit to get from Victoria Falls and to Inyati Game Lodge, one of the lodges in the private game reserve of Sabi Sands.
First was getting out of Victoria Falls. The check-in at the airport was really slow, as they only had one counter open. We were able to take both the large masks as carry-on without any issue.
We actually got served a hot meal on the 90 minute flight to Johannesburg. I hadn't booked a vegetarian meal for Marissa cause I figured it would just be cheese sandwiches but oh well.
We had no problems getting through immigration. Picked up our bags and found our way to Avis to pick up our cars. Nancy had messed up her reservation and got a stick shift. They only had a van remaining for automatic, so we ended up squishing into our car. Heather and I had booked a compact because we wanted a non-descript car because of concerns over car theft and car jackings, more so in Johannesburg.
Anyways we had trouble with the GPS because it switched to a simulated mode inside the airport, and didn't switch back automatically once we exited the parking lot. So we spent about an hour circling the airport down some small streets before we figured it out.
We hit some construction about 75km from Nelspruit, with only a single lane shared. We waited about 20 minutes at a time for the light to change for our direction.
We reached Jorn's guesthouse in Nelspruit around 10pm. The night watch opened the gate to let us in, and then showed us to our rooms.
...
At breakfast we could see the grounds at Jorn's. it was a pretty nice place, if we had had a morning flight it would have been cool to hang out at the bar.
Packed up our stuff into the car and then onto Inyati! It took a while to figure out how to use the Garmin, which seems decades behind Google maps. Marissa became our Garmin expert, and was comparing between the Garmin directions, Google maps which she had printed off at home, and Inyati's directions. We missed a turnoff after getting gas, but other than that things went smoothly. The roads were in great shape, and I was starting to figure out the various road markings and signs. Driving a stick on the right side was pretty easy (the pedals are the same), I didn't stall at all.
We reached our entrance to Sabi Sand Reserve right on schedule. The Garmin kept on trying to take us a different way, so we switched the voice to James because it was less annoying.
Paid the entrance fees for us and the car. The onto Inyati! It was about 10 minutes over dirt roads to reach the lodge. They were well organized, the person greeted us by name and our bags disappeared off to our rooms.
It was hot, about 33C. We had lunch at the main lodge, then went to our rooms to get ready for our first game drive that evening.
At 4pm we met up in the main lodge again for high tea. Met our guide (Omega) and tracker (Rodger). It was the four of us plus a French couple in our safari vehicle.
At 4:30pm we started off on the game drive. It was still a bit hot, we had layers of sunscreen and bug repellent. The two main animals on our checklist here were leopards and wild dogs (this was Marissa's addition to the list).
Almpst immediately we saw our first leopard(s)! It was a mother and son, trotting along. They stopped to drink at a small watering hole, and then the mother led the son to a baby impala she had killed earlier and hid in a tree.
We watched for almost 30 minutes as the son leopard ate the impala. We were very lucky to see this, even the guides were taking pictures.
We left in search of other game, also to give other safari vehicles a chance to view the leopards. The lodges coordinate to limit sightings to two vehicles, so that you don't end up with 10 vehicles looking at a lion like in Kruger.
We saw rhinos, giraffes, elephants, hippos, just to name the bigger ones. The wildlife is very plentiful here.
It was a long game drive, ending around 7:30pm. We were escorted by a guard to our chalets (the animals roam freely through the lodge grounds). At 8:15pm we were picked up to walk back to the main lodge for dinner.
Dinner was served to everyone at the same time, which I guess allows the guests to meet and talk over dinner. I had the kudu for my main, which wasn't as gamey as I had hoped.
We were in bed around 10pm, excited about the game drive, but not looking forward to the 5am wake-up call.
...
FYI I've added pics to the Victoria Falls album and the South Africa album. Links are in the right nav bar
First was getting out of Victoria Falls. The check-in at the airport was really slow, as they only had one counter open. We were able to take both the large masks as carry-on without any issue.
We actually got served a hot meal on the 90 minute flight to Johannesburg. I hadn't booked a vegetarian meal for Marissa cause I figured it would just be cheese sandwiches but oh well.
We had no problems getting through immigration. Picked up our bags and found our way to Avis to pick up our cars. Nancy had messed up her reservation and got a stick shift. They only had a van remaining for automatic, so we ended up squishing into our car. Heather and I had booked a compact because we wanted a non-descript car because of concerns over car theft and car jackings, more so in Johannesburg.
Anyways we had trouble with the GPS because it switched to a simulated mode inside the airport, and didn't switch back automatically once we exited the parking lot. So we spent about an hour circling the airport down some small streets before we figured it out.
We hit some construction about 75km from Nelspruit, with only a single lane shared. We waited about 20 minutes at a time for the light to change for our direction.
We reached Jorn's guesthouse in Nelspruit around 10pm. The night watch opened the gate to let us in, and then showed us to our rooms.
...
At breakfast we could see the grounds at Jorn's. it was a pretty nice place, if we had had a morning flight it would have been cool to hang out at the bar.
Packed up our stuff into the car and then onto Inyati! It took a while to figure out how to use the Garmin, which seems decades behind Google maps. Marissa became our Garmin expert, and was comparing between the Garmin directions, Google maps which she had printed off at home, and Inyati's directions. We missed a turnoff after getting gas, but other than that things went smoothly. The roads were in great shape, and I was starting to figure out the various road markings and signs. Driving a stick on the right side was pretty easy (the pedals are the same), I didn't stall at all.
We reached our entrance to Sabi Sand Reserve right on schedule. The Garmin kept on trying to take us a different way, so we switched the voice to James because it was less annoying.
Paid the entrance fees for us and the car. The onto Inyati! It was about 10 minutes over dirt roads to reach the lodge. They were well organized, the person greeted us by name and our bags disappeared off to our rooms.
It was hot, about 33C. We had lunch at the main lodge, then went to our rooms to get ready for our first game drive that evening.
At 4pm we met up in the main lodge again for high tea. Met our guide (Omega) and tracker (Rodger). It was the four of us plus a French couple in our safari vehicle.
At 4:30pm we started off on the game drive. It was still a bit hot, we had layers of sunscreen and bug repellent. The two main animals on our checklist here were leopards and wild dogs (this was Marissa's addition to the list).
Almpst immediately we saw our first leopard(s)! It was a mother and son, trotting along. They stopped to drink at a small watering hole, and then the mother led the son to a baby impala she had killed earlier and hid in a tree.
We watched for almost 30 minutes as the son leopard ate the impala. We were very lucky to see this, even the guides were taking pictures.
We left in search of other game, also to give other safari vehicles a chance to view the leopards. The lodges coordinate to limit sightings to two vehicles, so that you don't end up with 10 vehicles looking at a lion like in Kruger.
We saw rhinos, giraffes, elephants, hippos, just to name the bigger ones. The wildlife is very plentiful here.
It was a long game drive, ending around 7:30pm. We were escorted by a guard to our chalets (the animals roam freely through the lodge grounds). At 8:15pm we were picked up to walk back to the main lodge for dinner.
Dinner was served to everyone at the same time, which I guess allows the guests to meet and talk over dinner. I had the kudu for my main, which wasn't as gamey as I had hoped.
We were in bed around 10pm, excited about the game drive, but not looking forward to the 5am wake-up call.
...
FYI I've added pics to the Victoria Falls album and the South Africa album. Links are in the right nav bar
Tuesday, December 06, 2016
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
Heather and I were up at 6am (we went to bed at 8:30pm, so that's actually a long time to sleep!) so went down to the main lodge for breakfast at 7am. Mornings have been the best time of the day so far, before the sun heats up the day.
Our taxi picked us up just before 9am to go to the curio markets. According to the Lonely Planet, it's one of better places for souvenirs.
Our driver gave us an extra cell phone so we could call him to pick us up when we were done. We thought it was a great idea, as the driver basically doubles his business. Although we did feel like we were a character on The Wire carrying a burner.
There were both shops with marked prices that accepted credit cards, and a curio market which was the opposite. We went through the priced stores first to get ballpark prices, and then checked out the stalls. It's low season and so we spent more time trying to fend off vendors than actually looking at the stuff for sale. We were more interested in the stuff in the real stores, so went back. Ended up buying a couple large-ish masks that we have to get through our flight tomorrow.
We couldn't figure out how to turn on the burner phone (we would make terrible drug dealers). We took another taxi back to the hotel and had them call our driver to explain. We needed another drive at 3pm so we could get return his phone then.
Had grilled cheese again cause we liked it so much. We lazed about until 3pm, and then headed out into heat.
Our driver dropped us off at the park entrance. (We made sure we knew how to use the burner this time). We started off at the Lookout Cafe, overlooking a bend in the gorge. We had Malawi shandies, a mix of bitters, ginger beer and lemonade. Very refreshing.
At 4pm we paid our $30 USD entrance fee and toured the Falls, this time from the Zimbabwe side. The pathway was in excellent shape and well marked. There's 16 lookout points spread across the width of the Falls. The mist blows towards the Zimbabwe side and the humidity and fauna was very different from our first day on the Zambia side. I had to wipe my camera lens every time I took off the cap - there was a constant fine mist. In high flow months you get soaked and can only use waterproof cameras. You probably couldn't see much either.
There's a 1.2km walk back to the entrance gate after the last lookout. It winds through the rainforest and was like a mini safari - we saw guinea fowls, bush backs, vervet monkeys, and a few others.
We had now visited the Falls for three days straight and hadn't got out-waterfalled. The Zim and Zam sides were very different views at low flow, and the swim in Devils Pool a different experience. I preferred the Zambia side because you can see right down the gorge. From the Zimbabwe side for the most part you don't get a view of the full drop. Heather liked them equally.
Compared to other waterfalls, Angel Falls is my favourite just because it's sooo tall (980m). (By comparison Victoria Falls is about 108m). I also liked Iguazu Falls better because you can get a fuller view. Maybe if I saw Victoria Falls at high flow I might re-rank but right now it's 3rd on my waterfall list.
We didn't do the helicopter ride because at low flow it would just look like an extension of the gorge. At high flow I would definitively go up in either a helicopter or ultralight.
Our taxi picked us up just before 9am to go to the curio markets. According to the Lonely Planet, it's one of better places for souvenirs.
Our driver gave us an extra cell phone so we could call him to pick us up when we were done. We thought it was a great idea, as the driver basically doubles his business. Although we did feel like we were a character on The Wire carrying a burner.
There were both shops with marked prices that accepted credit cards, and a curio market which was the opposite. We went through the priced stores first to get ballpark prices, and then checked out the stalls. It's low season and so we spent more time trying to fend off vendors than actually looking at the stuff for sale. We were more interested in the stuff in the real stores, so went back. Ended up buying a couple large-ish masks that we have to get through our flight tomorrow.
We couldn't figure out how to turn on the burner phone (we would make terrible drug dealers). We took another taxi back to the hotel and had them call our driver to explain. We needed another drive at 3pm so we could get return his phone then.
Had grilled cheese again cause we liked it so much. We lazed about until 3pm, and then headed out into heat.
Our driver dropped us off at the park entrance. (We made sure we knew how to use the burner this time). We started off at the Lookout Cafe, overlooking a bend in the gorge. We had Malawi shandies, a mix of bitters, ginger beer and lemonade. Very refreshing.
At 4pm we paid our $30 USD entrance fee and toured the Falls, this time from the Zimbabwe side. The pathway was in excellent shape and well marked. There's 16 lookout points spread across the width of the Falls. The mist blows towards the Zimbabwe side and the humidity and fauna was very different from our first day on the Zambia side. I had to wipe my camera lens every time I took off the cap - there was a constant fine mist. In high flow months you get soaked and can only use waterproof cameras. You probably couldn't see much either.
There's a 1.2km walk back to the entrance gate after the last lookout. It winds through the rainforest and was like a mini safari - we saw guinea fowls, bush backs, vervet monkeys, and a few others.
We had now visited the Falls for three days straight and hadn't got out-waterfalled. The Zim and Zam sides were very different views at low flow, and the swim in Devils Pool a different experience. I preferred the Zambia side because you can see right down the gorge. From the Zimbabwe side for the most part you don't get a view of the full drop. Heather liked them equally.
Compared to other waterfalls, Angel Falls is my favourite just because it's sooo tall (980m). (By comparison Victoria Falls is about 108m). I also liked Iguazu Falls better because you can get a fuller view. Maybe if I saw Victoria Falls at high flow I might re-rank but right now it's 3rd on my waterfall list.
We didn't do the helicopter ride because at low flow it would just look like an extension of the gorge. At high flow I would definitively go up in either a helicopter or ultralight.
Monday, December 05, 2016
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
We woke up from a not very good sleep. The power cut out around 3am and so we had no a/c or fans. Ripe fruit dropped on our corrugated metal roof with a loud bang-thud-thud every so often.
The temperature was pleasant at 7am when me and Heather woke up to have breakfast. At 8:25am we were picked up by taxi to get to the Livingstone Lodge, the jumping off point for Devil's Pool. Paid $98 each (luckily the credit card POS had a connection so we didn't have to use up US cash). At 9am, right on schedule, a motor boat picked us up for a five minute ride through the Zambezi and small rapids to Livingstone Island. We then walked about five minutes, with close up views over into the gorge. (I think these were the tourists that were in my pics yesterday).
We then swam about 15m to the rocks from which you enter Devils Pool. It wasn't deep (probably could have touched the bottom the whole way) but the current was strong. There were a couple ropes for those who weren't strong swimmers.
We waited for our turn to enter Devils Pool. The guides allow only four people at a time so that they can watch over the group. Another guide had taken one camera per group as the official photographer, and was busy snapping away. They run a tight ship here!
We bum-stepped into Devils Pool and the current immediately took us across. The infinity-pool-like wall stops you from going over, but it can be unnerving for some. It's possible to look over the edge all the way down. I took some pics with my underwater camera.
The official photographer had us in all kinds of poses. He took his job very seriously, getting upset when our arms weren't in the perfect position.
After a few minutes our time was up, and we went back to Livingstone Island, where we were served a fancy breakfast including eggs benedict (!) all made fresh in a kitchen tent on the island. I wasn't aware that breakfast was included as we ate at the hotel prior to the excursion. I didn't think I was hungry but still managed to finish it. There was no time to sip and enjoy our coffee as the guides had us lined up for the motor boat back to the mainland.
Our taxi driver drove us back to the Green Tree Lodge and waited while we changed and finished packing.
Next up was the border crossing to Zimbabwe. Land crossings are generally more complicated especially if there's a no-man's land in between.
Exiting Zambia was straightforward. Got our passports stamped (no forms to fill out). In the meantime our driver had arranged with a no-man's land taxi driver for the 1km drive to the Zimbabwe entry. It's possible to walk but it was hot and the ride was just $5 between the four of us.
Entering Zimbabwe was a little more confusing as there were lots of people milling about. But it was also straightforward - paid $75 USD each and gave our passports at one window (again, no forms to fill out) and then a couple minutes later handed back to us through the next window. The visa is a full page sticker, very nice.
Once again in the meantime our driver had passed us off to our next taxi, this one on the Zimbabwe side, to take us to our hotel. We had to run our bags through an X-ray machine at the border, which I think was just procedural as I didn't see anyone monitoring what was inside (I'm sure their process just says to X-ray the bags).
Victoria Falls (the town on the Zimbabwe side is named after the Falls) is right beside the Falls, as opposed to Livingstone which is about 10km away, so it was a short taxi ride to Bayete Guest Lodge.
Bayete was much nicer than our last place in Livingstone. Tourist infrastructure is more developed in Zimbabwe and there was more choice between mid-range hotels.
It was just after noon and we already had had a full day. So we planned out excursions for tomorrow (Marissa's going horseback riding; Heather and I are shopping for curios) and then relaxed in the main lodge.
Had a few Zambezi's (the local beer) to celebrate going to Devils Pool. Went off-menu and ordered grill cheese with tomato for a snack - we weren't too hungry as we'd had two breakfasts already. Based on the great grilled cheese and nice atmosphere in the main lodge, decided to have dinner there as well.
So later on we got back to the main lodge and had a tasty dinner of grilled chicken and nice sides. They made Marissa a vegetarian meal of rice and lentils, also very tasty. Heather ordered a bottle of white, as they just wrote her room number and kept it in the fridge for the next day. Overall another full day at Victoria Falls!
The temperature was pleasant at 7am when me and Heather woke up to have breakfast. At 8:25am we were picked up by taxi to get to the Livingstone Lodge, the jumping off point for Devil's Pool. Paid $98 each (luckily the credit card POS had a connection so we didn't have to use up US cash). At 9am, right on schedule, a motor boat picked us up for a five minute ride through the Zambezi and small rapids to Livingstone Island. We then walked about five minutes, with close up views over into the gorge. (I think these were the tourists that were in my pics yesterday).
We then swam about 15m to the rocks from which you enter Devils Pool. It wasn't deep (probably could have touched the bottom the whole way) but the current was strong. There were a couple ropes for those who weren't strong swimmers.
We waited for our turn to enter Devils Pool. The guides allow only four people at a time so that they can watch over the group. Another guide had taken one camera per group as the official photographer, and was busy snapping away. They run a tight ship here!
We bum-stepped into Devils Pool and the current immediately took us across. The infinity-pool-like wall stops you from going over, but it can be unnerving for some. It's possible to look over the edge all the way down. I took some pics with my underwater camera.
The official photographer had us in all kinds of poses. He took his job very seriously, getting upset when our arms weren't in the perfect position.
After a few minutes our time was up, and we went back to Livingstone Island, where we were served a fancy breakfast including eggs benedict (!) all made fresh in a kitchen tent on the island. I wasn't aware that breakfast was included as we ate at the hotel prior to the excursion. I didn't think I was hungry but still managed to finish it. There was no time to sip and enjoy our coffee as the guides had us lined up for the motor boat back to the mainland.
Our taxi driver drove us back to the Green Tree Lodge and waited while we changed and finished packing.
Next up was the border crossing to Zimbabwe. Land crossings are generally more complicated especially if there's a no-man's land in between.
Exiting Zambia was straightforward. Got our passports stamped (no forms to fill out). In the meantime our driver had arranged with a no-man's land taxi driver for the 1km drive to the Zimbabwe entry. It's possible to walk but it was hot and the ride was just $5 between the four of us.
Entering Zimbabwe was a little more confusing as there were lots of people milling about. But it was also straightforward - paid $75 USD each and gave our passports at one window (again, no forms to fill out) and then a couple minutes later handed back to us through the next window. The visa is a full page sticker, very nice.
Once again in the meantime our driver had passed us off to our next taxi, this one on the Zimbabwe side, to take us to our hotel. We had to run our bags through an X-ray machine at the border, which I think was just procedural as I didn't see anyone monitoring what was inside (I'm sure their process just says to X-ray the bags).
Victoria Falls (the town on the Zimbabwe side is named after the Falls) is right beside the Falls, as opposed to Livingstone which is about 10km away, so it was a short taxi ride to Bayete Guest Lodge.
Bayete was much nicer than our last place in Livingstone. Tourist infrastructure is more developed in Zimbabwe and there was more choice between mid-range hotels.
It was just after noon and we already had had a full day. So we planned out excursions for tomorrow (Marissa's going horseback riding; Heather and I are shopping for curios) and then relaxed in the main lodge.
Had a few Zambezi's (the local beer) to celebrate going to Devils Pool. Went off-menu and ordered grill cheese with tomato for a snack - we weren't too hungry as we'd had two breakfasts already. Based on the great grilled cheese and nice atmosphere in the main lodge, decided to have dinner there as well.
So later on we got back to the main lodge and had a tasty dinner of grilled chicken and nice sides. They made Marissa a vegetarian meal of rice and lentils, also very tasty. Heather ordered a bottle of white, as they just wrote her room number and kept it in the fridge for the next day. Overall another full day at Victoria Falls!
Sunday, December 04, 2016
Livingstone, Zambia
It was a busy day today. We were at OR Tambo at 9am to check in for our flight to Livingstone, on the Zambia side of Victoria Falls.
I had had a hard time keeping it straight when planning about which city was on which side, and what excursions were on each side. Canadians only get a single-entry on each side, ($50 USD for Zambia, $75 for Zimbabwe). The tour operators don't make it clear about which country they occur, as they just want to book everything for you. Anyways, we would find out if I booked it correctly over the next couple days :)
There was a long line up to check in, about. 45 minutes. It was quite a difference from two weeks ago when we flew through to Mozambique. December is the start of busy season, oh well.
The flight was 1:15h, plenty of time for a cheese sandwich and drinks to be served. It hit the spot.
Immigration took a while as the official had to fill out lots of paperwork for each person. We took 45m to get through, and there were at most 75 people on our flight.
Anyways our luggage was waiting st the carousel, as well as a taxi driver from the hotel. It was a bit confusing as it was a person with airport access who greeted us, and then handed us off to the taxi driver outside.
It was hot, about 35C. It was much more humid than Johannesburg. There had been a mix up with the reservation and so we were all in one family-sized chalet. I had originally booked the family chalet when it was just Marissa, as it was cheaper for her; but then when Nancy joined it was just as easy to have two chalets. The Green Tree Lodge either mixed it up or overbooked, it wasn't clear.
The manager was very good at going through our options for excursions. We had reserved Devils Pool in advance for tomorrow morning, which was good, because it's getting popular and you need to book at least a week in advance. Other people at our lodge had showed up expecting to book and couldn't get in :(
We arranged for a taxi to take us to the Falls at 4pm, when it would be (slightly) cooler. The sky darkened with storm clouds just as we left. We drove through heavy rains for the ten minute drive to the Falls, at which point the rain slowed to a light drizzle. The heat and humidity had broken, and it actually felt nice out!
Paid the $20 USD park entry fee and we were off to see Victoria Falls! It was still drizzling enough that I kept my camera on my pack. And then we were there! It's low flow at this time of year, and on the Zambia side there's not much water, but the plus side is that you can actually see the gorge. At high flow, all you see is a big mist.
There's different vantage points along the well maintained path. It's also possible to walk out on the dry river bed of the Zambezi, and peer over into the gorge. We didn't do this, although the tourists who did made great subjects in my pics.
It stopped drizzling after about 10 minutes. There were still dark clouds on the horizon which also worked well for pics, instead of a bright haze.
It was quite impressive to see the size of Victoria Falls, with some imagination for high flow season.
Bought a little knickknack for a souvenir from Zambia, as we were in the country for only 24 hours.
We decided to stop for dinner in town, at Olga's Italian restaurant. They have the best pizza in town. I think it's also the only pizza in town, so the claim of best is factual. We had a Mosi beer (the local name for the Falls is Mosi au Tonya, literally, smoke that thunders). Drove back to the lodge and called it a night.
I had had a hard time keeping it straight when planning about which city was on which side, and what excursions were on each side. Canadians only get a single-entry on each side, ($50 USD for Zambia, $75 for Zimbabwe). The tour operators don't make it clear about which country they occur, as they just want to book everything for you. Anyways, we would find out if I booked it correctly over the next couple days :)
There was a long line up to check in, about. 45 minutes. It was quite a difference from two weeks ago when we flew through to Mozambique. December is the start of busy season, oh well.
The flight was 1:15h, plenty of time for a cheese sandwich and drinks to be served. It hit the spot.
Immigration took a while as the official had to fill out lots of paperwork for each person. We took 45m to get through, and there were at most 75 people on our flight.
Anyways our luggage was waiting st the carousel, as well as a taxi driver from the hotel. It was a bit confusing as it was a person with airport access who greeted us, and then handed us off to the taxi driver outside.
It was hot, about 35C. It was much more humid than Johannesburg. There had been a mix up with the reservation and so we were all in one family-sized chalet. I had originally booked the family chalet when it was just Marissa, as it was cheaper for her; but then when Nancy joined it was just as easy to have two chalets. The Green Tree Lodge either mixed it up or overbooked, it wasn't clear.
The manager was very good at going through our options for excursions. We had reserved Devils Pool in advance for tomorrow morning, which was good, because it's getting popular and you need to book at least a week in advance. Other people at our lodge had showed up expecting to book and couldn't get in :(
We arranged for a taxi to take us to the Falls at 4pm, when it would be (slightly) cooler. The sky darkened with storm clouds just as we left. We drove through heavy rains for the ten minute drive to the Falls, at which point the rain slowed to a light drizzle. The heat and humidity had broken, and it actually felt nice out!
Paid the $20 USD park entry fee and we were off to see Victoria Falls! It was still drizzling enough that I kept my camera on my pack. And then we were there! It's low flow at this time of year, and on the Zambia side there's not much water, but the plus side is that you can actually see the gorge. At high flow, all you see is a big mist.
There's different vantage points along the well maintained path. It's also possible to walk out on the dry river bed of the Zambezi, and peer over into the gorge. We didn't do this, although the tourists who did made great subjects in my pics.
It stopped drizzling after about 10 minutes. There were still dark clouds on the horizon which also worked well for pics, instead of a bright haze.
It was quite impressive to see the size of Victoria Falls, with some imagination for high flow season.
Bought a little knickknack for a souvenir from Zambia, as we were in the country for only 24 hours.
We decided to stop for dinner in town, at Olga's Italian restaurant. They have the best pizza in town. I think it's also the only pizza in town, so the claim of best is factual. We had a Mosi beer (the local name for the Falls is Mosi au Tonya, literally, smoke that thunders). Drove back to the lodge and called it a night.
Saturday, December 03, 2016
Johannesburg, South Africa
We had breakfast in the kitchen just for a change of scenery. We ordered poached eggs for the main which were cooked perfectly but seemed to put the chef's talents to waste.
We had our chauffeur (that still sounds weird) drive us to CIRCA, a gallery about 1km away. It had an exhibit, The Dark City, which was really well done. It examined the lives of people living in a "bad building". The "bad buildings" were deemed so by city planners for demolition and replacement. This particular one had no electricity, no toilets, and only one water tap for 220 residents. Anyways it was an excellent exhibit.
Next onto a couple galleries with art that maybe we looked like we could buy, having rolled up in our 7-series, but was very expensive. It was interesting just to look at the art though.
We wandered through a couple more galleries, and then found a place that had authentic pieces from around Africa. Some we recognized like the large tent pegs from the Sahara, and crosses from Ethiopia. We particularly liked the Nigerian beds, made from a single piece of wood. We had seen one in our guest house, used as a coffee table, but didn't know what it was.
Our driver picked us up at 2pm as prearranged, and we were whisked back to the guest house for lunch. I tried the impala (?) carpaccio, which was good but not as gamey as I had hoped.
After lunch we were driven to our hotel near the airport, where we were meeting Marissa and Nancy, and then flying out the next morning to see Victoria Falls. Marissa and Nancy are joining us for the next two weeks for Victoria Falls and some safari.
Dinner was better than expected, roasted chicken and various vegetables. Marissa and Nancy didn't get in until 11pm, so I watched a couple bad movies that I wouldn't even watch on an airplane. We had a celebration beer when they arrived and then went to bed.
We had our chauffeur (that still sounds weird) drive us to CIRCA, a gallery about 1km away. It had an exhibit, The Dark City, which was really well done. It examined the lives of people living in a "bad building". The "bad buildings" were deemed so by city planners for demolition and replacement. This particular one had no electricity, no toilets, and only one water tap for 220 residents. Anyways it was an excellent exhibit.
Next onto a couple galleries with art that maybe we looked like we could buy, having rolled up in our 7-series, but was very expensive. It was interesting just to look at the art though.
We wandered through a couple more galleries, and then found a place that had authentic pieces from around Africa. Some we recognized like the large tent pegs from the Sahara, and crosses from Ethiopia. We particularly liked the Nigerian beds, made from a single piece of wood. We had seen one in our guest house, used as a coffee table, but didn't know what it was.
Our driver picked us up at 2pm as prearranged, and we were whisked back to the guest house for lunch. I tried the impala (?) carpaccio, which was good but not as gamey as I had hoped.
After lunch we were driven to our hotel near the airport, where we were meeting Marissa and Nancy, and then flying out the next morning to see Victoria Falls. Marissa and Nancy are joining us for the next two weeks for Victoria Falls and some safari.
Dinner was better than expected, roasted chicken and various vegetables. Marissa and Nancy didn't get in until 11pm, so I watched a couple bad movies that I wouldn't even watch on an airplane. We had a celebration beer when they arrived and then went to bed.
Friday, December 02, 2016
Johannesburg, South Africa
Our flight was at a decent time (11:25) (great planning if I might say so myself). We had plenty of time to have breakfast, pack up and catch a taxi to the airport.
I was a little concerned about the two sculptures, as they were made from gun parts and bullets. One had lots of bullets and seemed more durable so I packed that in my big pack which was checked baggage. The other was carry on, which even if they were useless as weapons, were still plenty of reason for officials to look for bribes.
So sure enough as we went through security they flagged my carry on. I was trying to explain what it was, and then Heather whipped out the official documentation that we had waited for the printer to be installed yesterday. The line up was starting to back up behind us and so the security guy just waved me on. Phew!
We then had to spend our remaining meticais. We had about $80 CAD equivalent. I was planning to use it to pay the outstanding balance at the hotel but they automatically deducted from our credit card on file. Bought some souvenirs to use it up.
It was less than an hour to Johannesburg, but we will got served a sandwich and drink! The customs official was very friendly, wishing us well on our trip. Our baggage was already touring around the conveyor. We were almost out of the airport when someone with a police vest pulled us over to look at our bags. He asked us some questions and then said he was going on lunch break and was wondering if we could help out. Heather said we didn't have any cash as we just arrived and needed to go to the ATM. So for the second time today we avoided a shakedown for bribes.
Our driver from 33 Melville was waiting outside arrivals. We walked to the parking garage and then got into a late model BMW 7-Series! I was quite surprised. We then listened to classical music on the 40 minute drive to the guest house (plus an interesting interview about supernovas).
Heather had found 33 Melville on agoda. The place is quite amazing for the price, they could easily charge double or triple. We had a host, butler, and chef on call at all time. I felt slightly like we had met the wrong driver at the airport and there was another Eric D'Souza going to a lesser place. We've paid more for a b&b in Owen Sound. But we were
In the right place. I'm not clear on how they make money; our theory is that the owners live in the other half of the house and by running a b&b they can then claim the expenses of the full staff.
Our room was bigger than a floor in our house. Everything was decorated with great taste - it was perfect for ideas. Anyways it was by far the best all-round service we've had, probably ever.
We had a mixed platter for lunch outside on the covered patio. Light jazz played over the speakers. Had a coffee, then debated dipping in the salt water pool but it looked like storm clouds so we didn't. I caught up on my blog and Heather read her book. Every so often the host popped by to see if we were okay.
We had ordered the special for dinner, chicken with harissa. We were seated at a long table, and then they brought out our dinner. The chef matched it with a local Sauvignon Blanc. The whole thing was still surreal to me.
I was a little concerned about the two sculptures, as they were made from gun parts and bullets. One had lots of bullets and seemed more durable so I packed that in my big pack which was checked baggage. The other was carry on, which even if they were useless as weapons, were still plenty of reason for officials to look for bribes.
So sure enough as we went through security they flagged my carry on. I was trying to explain what it was, and then Heather whipped out the official documentation that we had waited for the printer to be installed yesterday. The line up was starting to back up behind us and so the security guy just waved me on. Phew!
We then had to spend our remaining meticais. We had about $80 CAD equivalent. I was planning to use it to pay the outstanding balance at the hotel but they automatically deducted from our credit card on file. Bought some souvenirs to use it up.
It was less than an hour to Johannesburg, but we will got served a sandwich and drink! The customs official was very friendly, wishing us well on our trip. Our baggage was already touring around the conveyor. We were almost out of the airport when someone with a police vest pulled us over to look at our bags. He asked us some questions and then said he was going on lunch break and was wondering if we could help out. Heather said we didn't have any cash as we just arrived and needed to go to the ATM. So for the second time today we avoided a shakedown for bribes.
Our driver from 33 Melville was waiting outside arrivals. We walked to the parking garage and then got into a late model BMW 7-Series! I was quite surprised. We then listened to classical music on the 40 minute drive to the guest house (plus an interesting interview about supernovas).
Heather had found 33 Melville on agoda. The place is quite amazing for the price, they could easily charge double or triple. We had a host, butler, and chef on call at all time. I felt slightly like we had met the wrong driver at the airport and there was another Eric D'Souza going to a lesser place. We've paid more for a b&b in Owen Sound. But we were
In the right place. I'm not clear on how they make money; our theory is that the owners live in the other half of the house and by running a b&b they can then claim the expenses of the full staff.
Our room was bigger than a floor in our house. Everything was decorated with great taste - it was perfect for ideas. Anyways it was by far the best all-round service we've had, probably ever.
We had a mixed platter for lunch outside on the covered patio. Light jazz played over the speakers. Had a coffee, then debated dipping in the salt water pool but it looked like storm clouds so we didn't. I caught up on my blog and Heather read her book. Every so often the host popped by to see if we were okay.
We had ordered the special for dinner, chicken with harissa. We were seated at a long table, and then they brought out our dinner. The chef matched it with a local Sauvignon Blanc. The whole thing was still surreal to me.
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Maputo, Mozambique
We had a late start to the day, having had too much fun the night before. We did miss out on most of the heat so it wasn't too bad.
Took a taxi to the baixa area (lower escarpment part), where most of the classic Maputo buildings are found. Started at the train station, which makes lists of top railway stations in the world. Then zigzagged our way to Praça da Independéncia. Stopped in at the Info building near the plaza, and were met by a gregarious woman. We had beeen referred by both the good book (Lonely Planet) and our hotel in Ilha to call on Jane Flood, who runs walking tours of Maputo, with an architectural focus. Turns out the woman who welcomed us was indeed the one-and-only Jane Flood! She had loads of recommendations for us, and was very helpful.
It was getting late in the day, so we finished our tour of the plaza and then took a taxi home. Maputo is known for its king shrimp, so we headed over to Marna Brasa based on the recommendation from the guest house folks. It was excellent, with a vinho verde. (Most restaurants here have three categories for wine: red, white, and green. The green refers to the age of the wine - verdes are very young wines).
...
We were up at a more reasonable hour this morning. Had the same breakfast (scrambled eggs, buttered toast with the crust cut off, bacon, fruit salad, plain yogurt, and good tea/coffee). It's a standard breakfast served almost everywhere we go, but they do a good job of it here.
Started at the National Art Museum in the baixa. It was good, although half of it was under construction. Walked across to Txhapo Txhapo, a hip little restaurant recommended by Jane Flood. It was quite good, and their mixed fruit drinks were excellent. The air conditioning was a nice break from the heat.
Then onto a couple art galleries in search of souvenirs. First went to Núcleo de Arte, which had some very interesting paintings and sculptures in their showroom. Walked next to Tilandia, which was also good, although I found Núcleo to be more interesting. We went back and this time wandered through the back rooms beyond the bar, where the artists were at work, or at least in the process of getting inspired. (By that I mean drinking and smoking up). There were more pieces on display here, for lower prices. We ended up buying two paintings and two sculptures. It was a long process to pay, as they had to unpack a new printer to print off the document needed to take art out of the country.
By the time we were done it was almost 5pm so we took a taxi home. We had no energy to head out, plus the restaurant at the guest house was quite good and had great atmosphere. Their special of the day was grilled shrimp, so while in Maputo, eat as Maputans. Had another vinho verde, and called it a night.
Maputo was a really enjoyable city, with lots of arts and culture, and really cool architecture. The food was also really quite good. We were glad we tacked it onto our trip to Mozambique.
Took a taxi to the baixa area (lower escarpment part), where most of the classic Maputo buildings are found. Started at the train station, which makes lists of top railway stations in the world. Then zigzagged our way to Praça da Independéncia. Stopped in at the Info building near the plaza, and were met by a gregarious woman. We had beeen referred by both the good book (Lonely Planet) and our hotel in Ilha to call on Jane Flood, who runs walking tours of Maputo, with an architectural focus. Turns out the woman who welcomed us was indeed the one-and-only Jane Flood! She had loads of recommendations for us, and was very helpful.
It was getting late in the day, so we finished our tour of the plaza and then took a taxi home. Maputo is known for its king shrimp, so we headed over to Marna Brasa based on the recommendation from the guest house folks. It was excellent, with a vinho verde. (Most restaurants here have three categories for wine: red, white, and green. The green refers to the age of the wine - verdes are very young wines).
...
We were up at a more reasonable hour this morning. Had the same breakfast (scrambled eggs, buttered toast with the crust cut off, bacon, fruit salad, plain yogurt, and good tea/coffee). It's a standard breakfast served almost everywhere we go, but they do a good job of it here.
Started at the National Art Museum in the baixa. It was good, although half of it was under construction. Walked across to Txhapo Txhapo, a hip little restaurant recommended by Jane Flood. It was quite good, and their mixed fruit drinks were excellent. The air conditioning was a nice break from the heat.
Then onto a couple art galleries in search of souvenirs. First went to Núcleo de Arte, which had some very interesting paintings and sculptures in their showroom. Walked next to Tilandia, which was also good, although I found Núcleo to be more interesting. We went back and this time wandered through the back rooms beyond the bar, where the artists were at work, or at least in the process of getting inspired. (By that I mean drinking and smoking up). There were more pieces on display here, for lower prices. We ended up buying two paintings and two sculptures. It was a long process to pay, as they had to unpack a new printer to print off the document needed to take art out of the country.
By the time we were done it was almost 5pm so we took a taxi home. We had no energy to head out, plus the restaurant at the guest house was quite good and had great atmosphere. Their special of the day was grilled shrimp, so while in Maputo, eat as Maputans. Had another vinho verde, and called it a night.
Maputo was a really enjoyable city, with lots of arts and culture, and really cool architecture. The food was also really quite good. We were glad we tacked it onto our trip to Mozambique.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Maputo, Mozambique
Breakfast was dull at Hotel Milénio. We were still feeling full from the heavy curries at dinner, so I just had boiled eggs and a bun. The stuff labelled as butter was some sort of processed stuff so I didn't have any.
Anyways we packed up and took a taxi to the airport, a short 3km drive from the centre of town. This was our only internal flight in Mozambique and the only option was LAM, of which I read unpleasant things about their reliability and cancelled flights. We arrived two hours before our flight, and were promptly and efficiently checked in. We boarded on time, and left the gate on schedule. Maybe we were lucky, or maybe you just can't trust everything you read on the web. We scored with the emergency exit row seats and lots of leg room. Flipped open their in-flight magazine and saw a feature article on Jardim de Aloes, where we had just stayed! Overall we were quite pleased with our LAM flight.
In Maputo the guest house had arranged for a taxi to pick us up and sure enough there was a driver with an Sr Erick Da Sousa sign waiting. From the air, I hadn't seen much traffic and it was a quick ten minute drive on good roads to Sommerschield Guest House, in an upscale residential area. We were greeted by Rita and Sylvia, who were great at making us feel at home. They opened the guest house because they wanted people visiting Maputo to have a home away from home.
They have a little restaurant open all day and so we had some lunch, and then headed out to tourist for the afternoon. Walked all the way into town down Av Julius Nyerere, about 4km. The architecture in Maputo is really cool - mostly designed and influenced by Pancho Guedes. The architecture is very distinctive and if I saw a picture of a random building I could likely guess if it was from Maputo.
We stopped in at JN 281 to check out the menu (based on their high rating in tripadvisor), made reservations, and then took a taxi back home. Had some issues with the water (they were doing some work at the guest house to add another 5,000L tank, there have been water shortages in Maputo recently). But everything was fixed up and we were good to go. It was still a bit early so we had a beer on the patio, with a nice breeze blowing through.
Then onto JN 281. Their specialty is picanhna, a popular cut in Brasil but not so common back home in Toronto. We both ordered it. The owner, Pedro, came by to recommend wines. He was quite the character and wine connoisseur. We selected our wine, which he decanted and then came by every couple minutes to sniff to see if it had opened up yet. In the meantime, we were being served slices after slices of picanhna, cut super thin and medium rare. We were worried we would fill up before Pedro allowed us to drink the wine! Finally he gave up on the the bottle, and opened another pricier one (but for us, Pedro said, the same cost). Because this also had to breathe for five minutes, he suggested a caipirinha, to which we obliged. It took them almost five minutes to make the drinks, but never mind, it takes time to make a good drink from scratch. Eventually we had the wine with the picanhna, which went very well.
Somehow we still had room for dessert, a homemade chocolate mousse of a secret family recipe. It was excellent. We took a taxi home and rolled ourselves into bed, rather full from dinner.
Anyways we packed up and took a taxi to the airport, a short 3km drive from the centre of town. This was our only internal flight in Mozambique and the only option was LAM, of which I read unpleasant things about their reliability and cancelled flights. We arrived two hours before our flight, and were promptly and efficiently checked in. We boarded on time, and left the gate on schedule. Maybe we were lucky, or maybe you just can't trust everything you read on the web. We scored with the emergency exit row seats and lots of leg room. Flipped open their in-flight magazine and saw a feature article on Jardim de Aloes, where we had just stayed! Overall we were quite pleased with our LAM flight.
In Maputo the guest house had arranged for a taxi to pick us up and sure enough there was a driver with an Sr Erick Da Sousa sign waiting. From the air, I hadn't seen much traffic and it was a quick ten minute drive on good roads to Sommerschield Guest House, in an upscale residential area. We were greeted by Rita and Sylvia, who were great at making us feel at home. They opened the guest house because they wanted people visiting Maputo to have a home away from home.
They have a little restaurant open all day and so we had some lunch, and then headed out to tourist for the afternoon. Walked all the way into town down Av Julius Nyerere, about 4km. The architecture in Maputo is really cool - mostly designed and influenced by Pancho Guedes. The architecture is very distinctive and if I saw a picture of a random building I could likely guess if it was from Maputo.
We stopped in at JN 281 to check out the menu (based on their high rating in tripadvisor), made reservations, and then took a taxi back home. Had some issues with the water (they were doing some work at the guest house to add another 5,000L tank, there have been water shortages in Maputo recently). But everything was fixed up and we were good to go. It was still a bit early so we had a beer on the patio, with a nice breeze blowing through.
Then onto JN 281. Their specialty is picanhna, a popular cut in Brasil but not so common back home in Toronto. We both ordered it. The owner, Pedro, came by to recommend wines. He was quite the character and wine connoisseur. We selected our wine, which he decanted and then came by every couple minutes to sniff to see if it had opened up yet. In the meantime, we were being served slices after slices of picanhna, cut super thin and medium rare. We were worried we would fill up before Pedro allowed us to drink the wine! Finally he gave up on the the bottle, and opened another pricier one (but for us, Pedro said, the same cost). Because this also had to breathe for five minutes, he suggested a caipirinha, to which we obliged. It took them almost five minutes to make the drinks, but never mind, it takes time to make a good drink from scratch. Eventually we had the wine with the picanhna, which went very well.
Somehow we still had room for dessert, a homemade chocolate mousse of a secret family recipe. It was excellent. We took a taxi home and rolled ourselves into bed, rather full from dinner.
Monday, November 28, 2016
Nampula, Mozambique
We had another enjoyable breakfast at Jardim de Aloes wth Bruno and Judy. Judy gave us a tour of the other two rooms, which had cool antiques that she had collected over time. It's almost like they started the b&b to have somewhere to display all their art! They've also done a great job restoring the place - the old roof beams are hand-hewn from iron wood and are in great shape.
Our driver was waiting at 10am to drive us to Nampula, 2.5 hours from Ilha. We had arranged for him to drive us to see e highlights once in Nampula. We could have just walked around but it was the hottest part of the day.
We stopped first at the busy Sunday market, which had mostly local items for sale. There was a small area with souvenirs, but nothing special. We saw the Cathedral of Nossa Senhora de Fâtima from the outside. Then off to the National Ethnography museum. There was a small market behind the museum, which had better quality than the Sunday market. For a transit stop, it wasn't too bad of a town.
We arrived at Hotel Milénio about 3pm. I was a bit surprised that they had my reservation as they had been spotty with emails. We threw our stuff in our room and grabbed a snack in the hotel lobby (the main restaurant was only open until 3pm for lunch, we just a missed it). We then tried to have a beer, only to discover to our horror that the hotel was dry. This was not mentioned in the Lonely Planet.
So we just used the rather fast wifi to catch up on news.
It's a bit dangerous to walk around at night, so we had dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was mostly Indian food (there's a sizeable population of Indian descent in Nampula). Probably would have gone better with beer but as previously mentioned, the hotel is dry.
Our driver was waiting at 10am to drive us to Nampula, 2.5 hours from Ilha. We had arranged for him to drive us to see e highlights once in Nampula. We could have just walked around but it was the hottest part of the day.
We stopped first at the busy Sunday market, which had mostly local items for sale. There was a small area with souvenirs, but nothing special. We saw the Cathedral of Nossa Senhora de Fâtima from the outside. Then off to the National Ethnography museum. There was a small market behind the museum, which had better quality than the Sunday market. For a transit stop, it wasn't too bad of a town.
We arrived at Hotel Milénio about 3pm. I was a bit surprised that they had my reservation as they had been spotty with emails. We threw our stuff in our room and grabbed a snack in the hotel lobby (the main restaurant was only open until 3pm for lunch, we just a missed it). We then tried to have a beer, only to discover to our horror that the hotel was dry. This was not mentioned in the Lonely Planet.
So we just used the rather fast wifi to catch up on news.
It's a bit dangerous to walk around at night, so we had dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was mostly Indian food (there's a sizeable population of Indian descent in Nampula). Probably would have gone better with beer but as previously mentioned, the hotel is dry.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Mozambique Island, Mozambique
Breakfast at Jardim de Aloes was on the mid-roof terrace, shaded by the large leaves of an old almond tree. We chatted with Bruno and Judy about our trip, places to see in Ilha (Portuguese for island, and shorthand for Mozambique Island), and restaurants to try and those to just have a coffee.
It was just after 10am by the time we started touring around Stone Town. There was hardly anyone about - probably because it's the hottest part of the day. The old alleys and buildings are cool to see, half of them in states of reconstruction. In five years or so Stone Town will look very different.
We zigzagged through Stone Town, stopping in at the one souvenir store to browse. (I'm sure the number of stores will change too as tourism increases).
By noon we were tired from the heat, and stopped in at Anchor d'Ouro for pizza. Whiled away a couple hours sipping on lime drinks. We thought about a coffee but the power was out so they couldn't run the machine.
We walked back home to wait until 3pm for the cooler air to wander around the rest of Stone Town. There was a wedding somewhere in Ilha and we saw cars decked out in tissue paper flowers, and women in bright red dresses.
Had a beer in the hostel across the street from our hotel, and then went to our rooftop terrace to watch the sunset.
We debated trying another restaurant for dinner, but ended up at Karibu again. Had their tuna with sesame seeds which was the highlight, and a couple other dishes.
We watched the stars from our rooftop terrace after dinner. The wifi was finally working so I posted some pics.
It was just after 10am by the time we started touring around Stone Town. There was hardly anyone about - probably because it's the hottest part of the day. The old alleys and buildings are cool to see, half of them in states of reconstruction. In five years or so Stone Town will look very different.
We zigzagged through Stone Town, stopping in at the one souvenir store to browse. (I'm sure the number of stores will change too as tourism increases).
By noon we were tired from the heat, and stopped in at Anchor d'Ouro for pizza. Whiled away a couple hours sipping on lime drinks. We thought about a coffee but the power was out so they couldn't run the machine.
We walked back home to wait until 3pm for the cooler air to wander around the rest of Stone Town. There was a wedding somewhere in Ilha and we saw cars decked out in tissue paper flowers, and women in bright red dresses.
Had a beer in the hostel across the street from our hotel, and then went to our rooftop terrace to watch the sunset.
We debated trying another restaurant for dinner, but ended up at Karibu again. Had their tuna with sesame seeds which was the highlight, and a couple other dishes.
We watched the stars from our rooftop terrace after dinner. The wifi was finally working so I posted some pics.
Saturday, November 26, 2016
Mozambique Island, Mozambique
We had arranged for a dhow back to Mozambique Island at 2pm, so had a relaxing morning. Packed up our bags which had become more strewn about than normal cause we had had four nights here, plus there was lots of space to spread out. Had lunch, and then boarded the dhow. It was full tide so the dhow was able to come all the way up to the lagoon, and we didn't need to wade through water to board.
Our stay at Coral Lodge included a day trip to the Island, so we had a guide for the afternoon courtesy of Coral Lodge. We docked, and has our bags taken to Jardim de Aloes, owned by a friendly Italian named Bruno. A couple minutes later our guide (Eddie) arrived and we rushed off on our tour.
We quickly saw the Palace of São Paulo and the Fort of São Sebastião. Our guide explained the dark history of slavery with Mozambique Island. There's two colours of rocks used to build the fort - the black coral rock was cut out by slaves from the southern part of the island. That area (Makuti Town) is the poorer half, which floods during rainy season due to the digging out of all the rocks. The lighter coloured rocks were brought from Portugal as ballast for empty ships coming to pick up slaves.
After the Fort we walked through the alleys and streets of Stone Town, and then through Makuti Town. The contrast is quite obvious. We reached the southern point (the island is about 3km long) just in time for the sunset.
By the time we walked back to our hotel we were pretty much done for the day.
Our room at Jardim de Aloes was filled with really cool antiques. My end table was an old safe. It was almost like staying in a museum!
Bruno had recommended Karibu's for dinner, and gave directions - left, right, right, follow the road with the archways, take the fork to the right, pass through two pillars, and you're there.
It was a great little Portuguese restaurant, in a centuries old building with original floors and 20' ceilings. The food was excellent - we split two appetizers and two mains which was too much food but we wanted to try everything.
Walked back home (the alleys are really beautiful at night), and fell asleep.
Our stay at Coral Lodge included a day trip to the Island, so we had a guide for the afternoon courtesy of Coral Lodge. We docked, and has our bags taken to Jardim de Aloes, owned by a friendly Italian named Bruno. A couple minutes later our guide (Eddie) arrived and we rushed off on our tour.
We quickly saw the Palace of São Paulo and the Fort of São Sebastião. Our guide explained the dark history of slavery with Mozambique Island. There's two colours of rocks used to build the fort - the black coral rock was cut out by slaves from the southern part of the island. That area (Makuti Town) is the poorer half, which floods during rainy season due to the digging out of all the rocks. The lighter coloured rocks were brought from Portugal as ballast for empty ships coming to pick up slaves.
After the Fort we walked through the alleys and streets of Stone Town, and then through Makuti Town. The contrast is quite obvious. We reached the southern point (the island is about 3km long) just in time for the sunset.
By the time we walked back to our hotel we were pretty much done for the day.
Our room at Jardim de Aloes was filled with really cool antiques. My end table was an old safe. It was almost like staying in a museum!
Bruno had recommended Karibu's for dinner, and gave directions - left, right, right, follow the road with the archways, take the fork to the right, pass through two pillars, and you're there.
It was a great little Portuguese restaurant, in a centuries old building with original floors and 20' ceilings. The food was excellent - we split two appetizers and two mains which was too much food but we wanted to try everything.
Walked back home (the alleys are really beautiful at night), and fell asleep.
Friday, November 25, 2016
Cabaceira Pequena, Mozambique
The hottest part of the day is between breakfast and lunch so we relaxed in our villa, watching dhows pass by on the water, a nice breeze going through the open windows.
After lunch we were restless so decided to try to walk to the point closest to Mozambique Island, where we could see a big baobab tree. On google maps I could see a foot path the whole way so it didn't seem too complicated. We asked the manager if it was dangerous and she said it was okay, but preferred if we went with a guide from the lodge. She also provided aqua shoes as we had to cross the lagoon.
We started out at 3pm, feeling a little silly having a guide carrying water for us for what we figured was a 30 minute round trip. The guide set out at a quick pace, and we were at the 400-year old baobab tree in about 15 minutes. Then the guide continued on, more inland thorough grasses, then back to the shoreline. We passed by piles of rocks and wood which the locals use to dry out the white rocks, which are ground down and used for whitewashing walls.
We eventually arrived at the village of Cabaceira Pequena, pop. 1,600. Our guide (and most of the staff) are from the village. We walked down the main road, seeing village life as it has existed for centuries. Saw women getting water from the well just outside town. There were four mosques, a hospital, and a primary school. On the way back to the resort, we passed by a soccer game which half the village was watching from the sidelines. It was two teams from the village, teenagers, who were really good. We stopped to watch for a couple minutes, during which one team made a substitution and by the time they changed shirts (they only have 11 shirts for each team) we had left to get back before sunset.
It was really cool to see the village, and the two hour walk was much more than we had planned.
We cleaned up and went to the main lodge for dinner. We had the "Mozambique special" which was rice and five different curries. It was okay. They ran out of our favourite, the prawn curry. We had a last beer at Coral Lodge and then headed off to bed.
After lunch we were restless so decided to try to walk to the point closest to Mozambique Island, where we could see a big baobab tree. On google maps I could see a foot path the whole way so it didn't seem too complicated. We asked the manager if it was dangerous and she said it was okay, but preferred if we went with a guide from the lodge. She also provided aqua shoes as we had to cross the lagoon.
We started out at 3pm, feeling a little silly having a guide carrying water for us for what we figured was a 30 minute round trip. The guide set out at a quick pace, and we were at the 400-year old baobab tree in about 15 minutes. Then the guide continued on, more inland thorough grasses, then back to the shoreline. We passed by piles of rocks and wood which the locals use to dry out the white rocks, which are ground down and used for whitewashing walls.
We eventually arrived at the village of Cabaceira Pequena, pop. 1,600. Our guide (and most of the staff) are from the village. We walked down the main road, seeing village life as it has existed for centuries. Saw women getting water from the well just outside town. There were four mosques, a hospital, and a primary school. On the way back to the resort, we passed by a soccer game which half the village was watching from the sidelines. It was two teams from the village, teenagers, who were really good. We stopped to watch for a couple minutes, during which one team made a substitution and by the time they changed shirts (they only have 11 shirts for each team) we had left to get back before sunset.
It was really cool to see the village, and the two hour walk was much more than we had planned.
We cleaned up and went to the main lodge for dinner. We had the "Mozambique special" which was rice and five different curries. It was okay. They ran out of our favourite, the prawn curry. We had a last beer at Coral Lodge and then headed off to bed.
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Cabaceira Pequena, Mozambique
We woke up jetlagged at 4am, Heather wandered out to the deck facing the ocean to watch the sunrise at 4:30am. (We're at the eastern end of the time zone, the sun is up from 4:30am - 5:30pm). It was cloudy so it just got brighter but no colours. It was very surreal to watch in our tired state.
We fell back asleep until 8am or so and then went to the main lodge for breakfast. The food was great again, although the tea was disappointing, maybe cause our last trip was to Sri Lanka. Heather said the coffee was good though.
We didn't do much until lunch, adjusting to the heat and the time. Then more eating. It was a seafood stew, with lobster, calamari, shrimp, fish. Way too much food but very tasty. I added a little homemade piri piri sauce, which was too hot for me.
After lunch we tried snorkeling up the lagoon but the tide wasn't high enough and so we gave up. The snorkeling gear was brand new, the best I've ever used.
I walked down the beach and tried not to step into the crab holes. The holes are ginormous here, about 4" diameter. The crabs come out of their holes with sand, scoot sideways like in the cartoons, dump the sand, and then scoot back in. Very entertaining. There were also the most interesting shells I've ever seen. I'll have to post a pic of our collection.
Dinner was a choice between seafood and something else. We went with seafood, getting our fill while on the coast.
...
Today we had a little excursion to a nearby island. We tried more snorkeling near the island, but the visibility was bad, so didn't try for long. Had a pretty picnic lunch on the island. It's supposedly one of the highlights of a stay at Coral Lodge. The staff do a great job, but it's just not our thing. It was interesting enough though, and the shells on the beach were even cooler.
Came back home in the dhow, relaxed, cleaned up, and we're just having a cocktail before dinner. There's no wind today, and so a million mosquitoes. The hotel gave us bug spray which we used liberally. There's other guests that arrived today so we no longer have the place to ourselves, it's okay though, I tipped the maître d' so we have the best table :)
We fell back asleep until 8am or so and then went to the main lodge for breakfast. The food was great again, although the tea was disappointing, maybe cause our last trip was to Sri Lanka. Heather said the coffee was good though.
We didn't do much until lunch, adjusting to the heat and the time. Then more eating. It was a seafood stew, with lobster, calamari, shrimp, fish. Way too much food but very tasty. I added a little homemade piri piri sauce, which was too hot for me.
After lunch we tried snorkeling up the lagoon but the tide wasn't high enough and so we gave up. The snorkeling gear was brand new, the best I've ever used.
I walked down the beach and tried not to step into the crab holes. The holes are ginormous here, about 4" diameter. The crabs come out of their holes with sand, scoot sideways like in the cartoons, dump the sand, and then scoot back in. Very entertaining. There were also the most interesting shells I've ever seen. I'll have to post a pic of our collection.
Dinner was a choice between seafood and something else. We went with seafood, getting our fill while on the coast.
...
Today we had a little excursion to a nearby island. We tried more snorkeling near the island, but the visibility was bad, so didn't try for long. Had a pretty picnic lunch on the island. It's supposedly one of the highlights of a stay at Coral Lodge. The staff do a great job, but it's just not our thing. It was interesting enough though, and the shells on the beach were even cooler.
Came back home in the dhow, relaxed, cleaned up, and we're just having a cocktail before dinner. There's no wind today, and so a million mosquitoes. The hotel gave us bug spray which we used liberally. There's other guests that arrived today so we no longer have the place to ourselves, it's okay though, I tipped the maître d' so we have the best table :)
Tuesday, November 22, 2016
Cabaceira Pequena, Mozambique
We finally reached Coral Lodge in Mozambique, 39 hours after we left Toronto. We were trying to figure out if it's the most distant place (time-wise) of all the places we've visited. Without doing all the math, it's up there.
We flew Toronto- Amsterdam- Johannesburg on KLM. The first leg was on an older plane and it was funny to watch everyone trying to use touch gestures on a non-touch screen. There were auto-massage booths at Schipol (€2 for five minutes) that were great. I would have extended my massage but was trapped by the chair and couldn't reach to tap to pay with my iPhone in time.
We stayed overnight in Johannesburg at Sunrock Guesthouse near the airport. The next morning we were back at OR Tambo Intl to catch our flight to Nampula in northern Mozambique. The check-in and departure was really quick, and we were on our way!
The bureaucracy was very structured on arrival. We had to show our Yellow Fever certificate before even entering the airport. The immigration official very closely checked our facial features to make sure it matched our passport pics.
The Coral Lodge driver was waiting at arrivals for us. We tried to get meticals from the ATM but the machine wanted a 6-digit PIN so it didn't work. Oh well. We had USD and rand so we were okay for cash.
It's a tight schedule to get to Coral Lodge from Nampula in the same day as the plane arrives with just enough time to drive to Mozambique Island (2.5 hours) and then cross back to the mainland by dhow (30 minutes) before it gets dark.
The road from Nampula to Mozambique Island is the best paved road in the country. There was a little notebook in the car with the background of each town we drove through. Saw lots for sale along the roadside - grass bundles for thatched roofs, sacks of charcoal, cashew fruit.
The bridge to Mozambique Island is a single-lane road. Every 500m or so there's a place to pullover and allow opposing traffic to pass. The full Mozambique Island is a UNESCO heritage site and it looked really cool as we drove through. We have a couple days here later on to explore.
We reached the north end of the island where we transferred to a dhow. There's no pier or anything, we just rolled up our pants and waded through knee-deep water to board. The water was calm and the sun was just setting as we navigated the sand bars at low tide.
We reached Coral Lodge a few minutes after sunset. We waded into shore while the staff picked up our bags and carried them to our room. We're the only guests right now (there's 10 villas, so it's not busy even when full). We have the entire beach to ourselves which fades into the distance on both sides.
We cleaned up and went to the main lodge for dinner. It was a three-course meal, all very excellent. First was calamari, freshly caught that day. Then a half-lobster each, which was so big we didn't even finish it. Dessert was panacotta, wrapped in a thin shell of fresh mango. Mmm good. A very enjoyable start to our vacation!
We flew Toronto- Amsterdam- Johannesburg on KLM. The first leg was on an older plane and it was funny to watch everyone trying to use touch gestures on a non-touch screen. There were auto-massage booths at Schipol (€2 for five minutes) that were great. I would have extended my massage but was trapped by the chair and couldn't reach to tap to pay with my iPhone in time.
We stayed overnight in Johannesburg at Sunrock Guesthouse near the airport. The next morning we were back at OR Tambo Intl to catch our flight to Nampula in northern Mozambique. The check-in and departure was really quick, and we were on our way!
The bureaucracy was very structured on arrival. We had to show our Yellow Fever certificate before even entering the airport. The immigration official very closely checked our facial features to make sure it matched our passport pics.
The Coral Lodge driver was waiting at arrivals for us. We tried to get meticals from the ATM but the machine wanted a 6-digit PIN so it didn't work. Oh well. We had USD and rand so we were okay for cash.
It's a tight schedule to get to Coral Lodge from Nampula in the same day as the plane arrives with just enough time to drive to Mozambique Island (2.5 hours) and then cross back to the mainland by dhow (30 minutes) before it gets dark.
The road from Nampula to Mozambique Island is the best paved road in the country. There was a little notebook in the car with the background of each town we drove through. Saw lots for sale along the roadside - grass bundles for thatched roofs, sacks of charcoal, cashew fruit.
The bridge to Mozambique Island is a single-lane road. Every 500m or so there's a place to pullover and allow opposing traffic to pass. The full Mozambique Island is a UNESCO heritage site and it looked really cool as we drove through. We have a couple days here later on to explore.
We reached the north end of the island where we transferred to a dhow. There's no pier or anything, we just rolled up our pants and waded through knee-deep water to board. The water was calm and the sun was just setting as we navigated the sand bars at low tide.
We reached Coral Lodge a few minutes after sunset. We waded into shore while the staff picked up our bags and carried them to our room. We're the only guests right now (there's 10 villas, so it's not busy even when full). We have the entire beach to ourselves which fades into the distance on both sides.
We cleaned up and went to the main lodge for dinner. It was a three-course meal, all very excellent. First was calamari, freshly caught that day. Then a half-lobster each, which was so big we didn't even finish it. Dessert was panacotta, wrapped in a thin shell of fresh mango. Mmm good. A very enjoyable start to our vacation!
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Toronto, Canada
We're off to southeastern Africa for six weeks to see Mozambique, Victoria Falls, safaris, and trekking in Lesotho. We didn't think we'd be back on safari so soon (we were in Uganda three years ago), but on our last couple trips we've met a few people who have really liked Mozambique, and so the trip was planned around that.
The Mozambique visa was one of the more laborious visas that I've applied for. There's no consulate in Canada, so we had to FedEx our passports with return envelope (I would have said couriered, but the instructions specified FedEx) to the Mozambique embassy in Washington, with proof of flights, hotels, 2 photos, and a money order payable to the embassy. I wasn't sure how to declare the contents on the FedEx site (to send across the border) as there's a dropdown with dozens of options including a birth certificate, but no passport. I think I selected personal items. The embassy processed our request rather quickly, and within three days we had our passports back with a nice looking full-page visa sticker.
In South Africa we're renting a car for almost three weeks. Car rentals are pretty cheap there, about $20 / day. Almost half of that is for the GPS! It's left drive in South Africa, and I've rented a standard, so it will be a little different. I have driven stick in England for a couple days, and didn't run into anything, so we should be okay.
Our friend Marissa and her friend Nancy are joining us for a couple weeks for the safaris in South Africa and Swaziland. You may remember Marissa from some of our previous trips. In Swaziland we're hoping to see rhinos at Mkhaya Game Reserve. The accommodations are a little freaky -- the walls on the cottages are only about waist-high, with the rest open to the outside!
Victoria Falls is the last of the big four waterfalls that have been on my list forever (the others being Niagara, Angel Falls, and Iguazu). There's others that have added to list over time, such as Kaiteur Falls and Gullfoss, but it started with those four because they were marked on the world map I had at the time. Victoria Falls is at low-flow while we're there which means we can swim in Devil's Pool, overlooking the falls. We're staying in both the Zimbabwe and Zambia sides of the falls (or Zim and Zam, as the guide books call it), so we'll get to a total of six countries this trip.
The Mozambique visa was one of the more laborious visas that I've applied for. There's no consulate in Canada, so we had to FedEx our passports with return envelope (I would have said couriered, but the instructions specified FedEx) to the Mozambique embassy in Washington, with proof of flights, hotels, 2 photos, and a money order payable to the embassy. I wasn't sure how to declare the contents on the FedEx site (to send across the border) as there's a dropdown with dozens of options including a birth certificate, but no passport. I think I selected personal items. The embassy processed our request rather quickly, and within three days we had our passports back with a nice looking full-page visa sticker.
In South Africa we're renting a car for almost three weeks. Car rentals are pretty cheap there, about $20 / day. Almost half of that is for the GPS! It's left drive in South Africa, and I've rented a standard, so it will be a little different. I have driven stick in England for a couple days, and didn't run into anything, so we should be okay.
Our friend Marissa and her friend Nancy are joining us for a couple weeks for the safaris in South Africa and Swaziland. You may remember Marissa from some of our previous trips. In Swaziland we're hoping to see rhinos at Mkhaya Game Reserve. The accommodations are a little freaky -- the walls on the cottages are only about waist-high, with the rest open to the outside!
Victoria Falls is the last of the big four waterfalls that have been on my list forever (the others being Niagara, Angel Falls, and Iguazu). There's others that have added to list over time, such as Kaiteur Falls and Gullfoss, but it started with those four because they were marked on the world map I had at the time. Victoria Falls is at low-flow while we're there which means we can swim in Devil's Pool, overlooking the falls. We're staying in both the Zimbabwe and Zambia sides of the falls (or Zim and Zam, as the guide books call it), so we'll get to a total of six countries this trip.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)