Wednesday, Sep 24th, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe

Greetings!

Today, we were treated to two features of most of the Overseas Adventures Travels Tours.  The first is called "A Day in the Life", and it involved our whole group being invited to one of the villages in the area.  The Headman (Clive Machisi), and twenty members of his extended family were there or represented.  We first were guided to their community garden, which feeds up to 5,000 in the community with fruit, vegetables, corn, and wheat.  

The irrigation system was installed through a grant from U.S.AID, the same agency our government just abolished.  Our local guide indicated that there were dozens of other communities which have hopes to attract similar infrastructure investment 

Walking back to the village, we were greeted by Mr. Machisi and his wife (exchanging hellos in their native language), and guided to the several houses, animal enclosures, storage sheds, and open cooking pits.  The meal preparation had begun, and we were encouraged to participate.  It was particularly ironic for Pat to be one of those invited to stir a pot of polenta, given that task was assigned her regularly as a child.

One of the main strange ingredients of the meal was the fried larve of a butterfly which is cleaned and then stuffed with even more protein.  This substitute for meat actually tasted great, especially wrapped in polenta meal and vegetable mash.  Just before we left, we brought out the $210 worth of food we bought at a local market for the village.

Later in the day, we drove to one of larger local schools, partially supported by our tour company.  Almost a thousand 'learners" had just completed their final exams, and were eager to show us their classrooms.    Afterward, we were driven back to the National Park, and then in our safari vehicle back on the rough roads to our Camp for an late afternoon sundown drink and dinner.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Wednesday, Sep 24th, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe. 

 

  

Tuesday, Sep 23rd, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe

Greetings!

Both cautions I made yesterday were wrong.  First, we saw almost as many different kinds of wildlife in this morning's safari as we did on the Pre-trip (though not as close).  Second, none of them visited us during the night on the paths around our cabins. 

I'm amazed at how effectively and professionally our guides can locate and identify everything to be seen.  Their eyes and ears were so keenly tuned to everything within a quarter mile of our vehicle as we sped around thousands of dry trees and bushes.  With all of us trying to get great photos, and our targets not exactly posing, placing the vehicle in the right position for the shots was a real art.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Tuesday, Sep 23rd, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe 

Monday, Sep 22nd, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe

 

Greetings!

A long day of travel, leaving South Africa, with flying, driving, and riding for hours (in two ten-passenger open-air game vehicles) from the front gate of the national park to the Kashawe Camp where OAT operates one of its 3-day stays.  The Kashawe Camp is within the Hwange National Park, which has an area the size of Connecticut.. 

Therefore, the ease with which we saw animals in our previous private reserve is very different here.  Nevertheless, all eyes and senses are out as we bounce down the pot-holed filled dirt road looking for birds and plants and trees we’ve never seen before.  

Once at the Camp, we’re informed that we’ll have nightly visits on the paths between our cabins and the main buildings by all manner of visitors.  All movement at night is escorted. Being prepared to find elephants, buffalo, and other less-threatening residents was made clear  I can’t wait for the stories at breakfast tomorrow morning.  

It’s hard to describe the majesty of the night skies so far away from earthly ambient light.  It’s blacker and the stars are so much brighter.  We’re in the southern hemisphere so no Big Dipper, but we see the Southern Cross.  And the Milky Way looks like a bright white belt between horizons.

To see the photos at the airport and this evening at our camp, click on Monday, Sep 22nd, Kashawe Camp, Zimbabwe.

Sunday, Sep 21st, Hoedspruit, Soiuth Africa

Greetings!

Every travel has its day when you get sick.  Sunday, was one of them.  Saturday evening, we had a boma (South African for barbecue), and something I ate I shouldn't have.  In the morning, it was clear that the loss of sleep and general poor health had not prepared me for a 6:00am safari.  I stayed behind in our cabin, as the rest of the tour group had a wonderful last outing together.  At breakfast on the deck (where we saw plenty of animals across the river), they recounted sitings of one of the two painted wild dogs on the Reserve, as well as a huge rhino, baboons, and several new birds.  As we ate, we could see giraffes, zebras, and buffalo from our table. 

The rest of the day can be described as a traveling day.  We packed and boarded a van to be driven back to the Hoedspruit Airport.   At noon, we flew back to Johannesburg to the ANew Centurion Hotel where we previously stayed.   It was the first time that I made sure I had one hand close to the seat doggy bag, and took every opportunity to sit in chairs at the airports., and know where the bathroom was  After checking into a room at the hotel, and sleeping for a couple of hours, Pat and Barbara and I walked a short distance over to a large mall to have dinner at a seafood restaurant we had eaten at in 2014 during our second visit to Africa.  We were the only customers, and the owner attended to us personally.  As usual, we ordered too much food, and were given heaping portions.  I ate very little.

Returning to the hotel, we stayed up long enough to try to sleep through the night, and be ready for a 6:30am flight to our next location - a camp near Victoria Falls.  It will be another traveling day, so don't expect many animal photos.   To see the few photos taken today, click on Sunday, Sep 21st,  Hoedspruit, South Africa.

Saturday, Sep 20th, Hoedspruit, South Africa

Greetings!

This morning, at 6am, we went off in search of cheetahs.  Our guides drove us to a far edge of the Reserve, a location that three brothers often frequent  but had not been seen for many days.  Parking us while Patrick (our spotter) conducted a bushwalk, he radioed back the location.  Rifos, our driver, then found the right route to a nearby trailhead. 

Male Cheetahs learn their skills, and spend the first few years with their mothers.  When she kicks them out, and until they secure a mate, they hang out with other young males.  These three brothers are living that life.  Someday, the strongest of them will decide to challenge a nearby dominant male with a family.  Should he be victorious, his brothers will look for other males to form bonds.  Single female Cheetahs are always alone.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Saturday, Sep 20th, Hoedspruit, South Africa

 

Friday, Sep 19th, Hoedspruit, South Africa

 

Greetings!

I put this phot up first because it is an example of what Pat describes as the first time we've seen African animals being playful.  I missed posting yesterday as a result of not being familiar enought with a old digital camera we brought along because it was smaller than my old 35-millimeter Nikon with a variety of lens which I began my latest photography era.

So today's post combines Thursday and Friday's safaris on the first and second long days in Becks Safari Lodge in Hoedspruit, South Africa.  The pre-trip portion of the Overseas Adventure Travel's Ultimate Safari is a week in South Africa focusing on traveling to, staying at, and traveling from this great spot to eat, relax, and take twice-a-day 10-passenger truck trips through a private reserve containing lots of African Big-Five animals.  On the first two days, we've seen them all and more (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhino, and Buffalo).

Barbara and Pat have also checked off plenty of beautiful birds and mammals, and each meal is extraordinary.  The lectures are designedly controversial, and the cabins are the peak of luxury. 

We stay here for two more days, and than leave for another camp near Victoria Falls to begin the base tour with a few other explorers.  This start, however, featuring ten terrific companions could not have been better designed and executed.

To see all of the photos taken in the past two days, click on Friday, Sep 19th, Horedspruit, South Africa. 

Wednesday, Sep 17th, Pretoria, South Africa

Greetings!

Today, we left after breakfast at the hotel (great buffet with excellent scrambled eggs, orange juice, and sausage) for a day in Sowetto and downtown Johannesburg.  About an hour's drive from our hotel, we found a street with the homes of two Nobel prize winners - Nelson Mandela and Desmund Tutu.  Our guide (Reuben) led us through the main street that contained the locations where two crucial leaders of the South African political environment lived.

Clearly hosting many tour groups, Sowetto's Vilakazi Street answers the question of what is the current condition of its two million residents.  Reuben's assessment of the upgraded squalor and visitation area gave us a chance to see apartheid's evolution after thirty years.  

Stopping by the home that Nelson and Winnie lived in just after his release in 1990, an excellent young speaker walked us through a complete collection of their photos and documents displayed throughout every foot of the residence.  The story of the journey of father of South Africa and his family lives on in the town's highlight museum.

Two blocks away is the memoralizing plaza of Hector Pieterson honoring the 1976 Sowetto Uprising and Massacre where as many as 600 pupils were killed in the student protest of the introduction of the Afrikaans as the medium of instruction.

Finally, we drove to Kgosi Mampuru Prison to see what is referred to as Pretoria Prison, a number of separate prison buildings, each housing various divisions of prisoners based on racial classification and gender.  This was a national prison and reception centre where many prisoners staarted and ended their sentences.  It was the official site of capital punishment in South Africa.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Wednesday, Sep 17th, Pretoria, South Africa