DAY 18
We headed back to Karen camp where we enjoyed a
delicious buffet lunch just outside Nairobi. We chilled at camp and
caught up with the rest of the world with the available wifi. I sat on
George's laptop typing my blogs and posting them. We then played a few
rounds of cards which made me cherish the friendships made on this
memorable trip.
DAY 19
With an
early 6.30 wake up approaching New Year's Day, everyone making calls to
their families to wish them happy New Years (in case there's no wifi).
We departed camp at 8AM and started our scenic journey of a drive to the
border to cross into Tanzania. The border was quick and easy but
exciting. We then picked up A new addition to our Acacia Africa Truck
family- a South African gentleman. Sad to say goodbye to Kenya yet
saying hello to the new adventure is exciting . My highlight of today
was when George, our original Australian lady and myself briefly left
the group to venture to a place called The Tanzanite Experience. She had
done a lot of research about this place with her boyfriend (who's back
in Aus) and so she was going to choose the centre stone for her
engagement ring which her boyfriend will then have put together. Special
moments are endless on this trip.hilled at camp and caught up with the
rest of the world with the available wifi. I sat on George's laptop
typing my blogs and posting them. We then played a few rounds of cards
which made me cherish the friendships made on this memorable trip.
DAY 20
Sav woke up early to make pancakes, yum! We transferred
from Kavango into 3 smaller 4x4 vehicles that are more suitable for game
drives. Our vehicles name was Scott. While the guides organized our
entry passes we all had our delicious packed lunches. On our game drive
my main highlight was 3 lionesses and one male resting on large rocks.
The way the light shone on them was incredible. The Serengeti has
definitely reached and exceeded all expectations and stories! Arriving
to our tents already pitched at the Serengeti National Park Campsite was
amazing. This campsite has no fencing, so wild animals can roam freely
in amongst our tents and the facilities. While walking with Sav and the
two newer young Australian girls to the dining hall we even got a
glimpse of a hyena about 10m or so from our tents (we could see the
shape and eyes). Really cool! And really big and fast steps followed as
we walked very briskly to our dinner. Dinner involved the most
incredible vegetable soup I've ever had. It felt great not having to
cook! It rained a bit throughout the evening and after hearing stories
of large snakes we were all in closed shoes. Sleeping was almost
impossible as we were all too excited and hoping to hear anything that
came through camp.
Thursday 29 December 2016
Monday 26 December 2016
BLOG 8 - DAY 15, DAY 16 & DAY 17
DAY 15
The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust / Elephant Orphanage is only open to the public for an hour a day (11-12). We arrived at 10 to ensure we were part of the early arrivals - we weren't the first though. After standing around debating if it was jersey on or jersey off weather we were finally let in and lead towards a large roped area. We managed to secure great spots standing right behind the ropes. Originally 16 younger elephants were fed and sprayed with some mud and water. As they walked by we were allowed to touch them, and we did a couple times. The next group of 14 elephants were all a little older but they were very playful. As they were all busy eating, drinking or playing the one guard told us about all the individuals- many were orphaned due to poaching which is so sickening, one of the babies were even shot in the leg and they will always have a limp. It takes $900 per month to care for each elephant. I decided to sponsor an elephant, it's basically a $50 yearly donation and you get monthly updates on the one you choose as well as a brief overview of the rest. My elephants name is Tagwa, she is a year and two months old and was orphaned when her mom became a victim of poaching. If you have sponsored an elephant you are allowed to visit between 5 and 6 in the evening to see them being fed and put to bed. After the orphanage we went to the Giraffe Centre, apart from touching and feeding the giraffes I got kissed by one a couple times ( if you put a food pellet between your lips you get a sloppy kiss haha ). When we arrived back at the elephant orphanage later we watched all the little ellies run back in through the gate (they roam the national park daily to help them grow their natural instincts), they'd run past you less than a meter away. It was so amazing to watch. We could then walk around all the enclosures to see them all up close and touch or play with them if they were close enough to their gates. While walking around I got mock charged by a warthog- I barely noticed it at first, it was surprising- rather than showing fear and letting it ramp into me I took a loud step towards it and it ran away (phew). The warthogs were a bit aggressive as they are wild and some of the tourists had been feeding them. I got to meet Tagwa and touch her, she even put her trunk around my wrist and hand. I witnessed her stealing two branches , one from each neighbour haha. I guess the "grass is always green on the other side". At the orphanage there is also a year old giraffe who I got a few photos with and gave a few good chin scratches to. (Like a hug dog with an abnormally long neck haha). Once back at Karen camp we joined the others having dinner then packed our backpacks and enjoyed our Christmas Eve.
DAY 16
Waking up at 6 on Christmas morning is pretty normal but usually I wake up in a completely different environment with completely different people. Instead of spending the day with my family and having a big Christmas lunch at our house or at a friends house, I'll be with my new Acacia Africa Truck family meeting new additions to the family and then traveling to the Maasi Mara. My SA family managed to sneak in 2presents into my bag, 1 which was for Sav. Sav's parents also packed her a present. We sat on one of the outside couches and opened all our many presents haha. I was hoping for clean clothing - my wishes came true. I was gifted two tops, a bracelet and one of those eye masks. (Yay, clean clothes! And better sleep haha!) I even managed to whatsapp call my parents at 5:20 their time to wish them a Merry Christmas, thanks mom and dad for waking up very early! We left Karen Camp at 6:45 then drove in the truck to Hotel Boulevard (where we started our trip two weeks ago, I can't believe it's already been two weeks!). We then met our new group members and all transferred into two smaller vehicles that then drove us to Maasai Mara. The last leg of the trip was super bumpy, it felt like I was in one of those fancy massaging chairs. While climbing out of our car/van just after 2 at our new camp Enkolong Camp we were served lunch and told to meet back their before 4 as our gamedrive was at four. Sav, the New Zealand lady and myself are sharing a tent. Our tents are large canvas walls and a ceiling with netting windows that can be zipped over by canvas. We had a brief nap before our gamedrive. Once at the Maasi Mara National Reserve we were partially harassed by Maasi women all trying to sell this beaded jewelry while a few booked a balloon ride over the Serengeti for the morning. On the gamedrive we came across two lionesses with two cubs, another lioness on her own that walked right behind our vehicle, we saw many bucks and one buffalo and on our way towards the exit we watched 4 elephants cross the road. Sleeping in a real bed was incredible, our bathroom only a few steps away. Absolute bliss. I love how I now get so excited about this sort of smaller stuff. Today was a very strange Christmas, it didn't really feel like Christmas so I don't feel like I missed out on much even though I did miss my family a little (tiny) bit haha.
DAY 17
Olmalaika home is a sanctuary were young girls can seek refuge from the Maasi tribe if they are not wanting to be "sold". It is owned by Richard Brandson. The parents of young men are the choosers of their first wife, if the son did a great job at looking after his fathers cattle and livestock the parents would "buy" or pay more for an "expensive" (beautiful, smart, active) woman to become their sons wife. On our game drive we saw: 3 cheetah, one alone then another with a cub ( we even witnessed it trying to hunt), countless amounts of lion with their playful cubs (saw a lioness stalking her prey), a leopard and a large herd of elephants. We had lunch on the open plain of the Serengeti. We then went to the Maasi village were we were shown around while they sang and danced. They jumped extremely high, true to their culture. Such amazing people. We went back to the camp and had dinner and even celebrated the day with cake as dessert. Yum Yum
The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust / Elephant Orphanage is only open to the public for an hour a day (11-12). We arrived at 10 to ensure we were part of the early arrivals - we weren't the first though. After standing around debating if it was jersey on or jersey off weather we were finally let in and lead towards a large roped area. We managed to secure great spots standing right behind the ropes. Originally 16 younger elephants were fed and sprayed with some mud and water. As they walked by we were allowed to touch them, and we did a couple times. The next group of 14 elephants were all a little older but they were very playful. As they were all busy eating, drinking or playing the one guard told us about all the individuals- many were orphaned due to poaching which is so sickening, one of the babies were even shot in the leg and they will always have a limp. It takes $900 per month to care for each elephant. I decided to sponsor an elephant, it's basically a $50 yearly donation and you get monthly updates on the one you choose as well as a brief overview of the rest. My elephants name is Tagwa, she is a year and two months old and was orphaned when her mom became a victim of poaching. If you have sponsored an elephant you are allowed to visit between 5 and 6 in the evening to see them being fed and put to bed. After the orphanage we went to the Giraffe Centre, apart from touching and feeding the giraffes I got kissed by one a couple times ( if you put a food pellet between your lips you get a sloppy kiss haha ). When we arrived back at the elephant orphanage later we watched all the little ellies run back in through the gate (they roam the national park daily to help them grow their natural instincts), they'd run past you less than a meter away. It was so amazing to watch. We could then walk around all the enclosures to see them all up close and touch or play with them if they were close enough to their gates. While walking around I got mock charged by a warthog- I barely noticed it at first, it was surprising- rather than showing fear and letting it ramp into me I took a loud step towards it and it ran away (phew). The warthogs were a bit aggressive as they are wild and some of the tourists had been feeding them. I got to meet Tagwa and touch her, she even put her trunk around my wrist and hand. I witnessed her stealing two branches , one from each neighbour haha. I guess the "grass is always green on the other side". At the orphanage there is also a year old giraffe who I got a few photos with and gave a few good chin scratches to. (Like a hug dog with an abnormally long neck haha). Once back at Karen camp we joined the others having dinner then packed our backpacks and enjoyed our Christmas Eve.
DAY 16
Waking up at 6 on Christmas morning is pretty normal but usually I wake up in a completely different environment with completely different people. Instead of spending the day with my family and having a big Christmas lunch at our house or at a friends house, I'll be with my new Acacia Africa Truck family meeting new additions to the family and then traveling to the Maasi Mara. My SA family managed to sneak in 2presents into my bag, 1 which was for Sav. Sav's parents also packed her a present. We sat on one of the outside couches and opened all our many presents haha. I was hoping for clean clothing - my wishes came true. I was gifted two tops, a bracelet and one of those eye masks. (Yay, clean clothes! And better sleep haha!) I even managed to whatsapp call my parents at 5:20 their time to wish them a Merry Christmas, thanks mom and dad for waking up very early! We left Karen Camp at 6:45 then drove in the truck to Hotel Boulevard (where we started our trip two weeks ago, I can't believe it's already been two weeks!). We then met our new group members and all transferred into two smaller vehicles that then drove us to Maasai Mara. The last leg of the trip was super bumpy, it felt like I was in one of those fancy massaging chairs. While climbing out of our car/van just after 2 at our new camp Enkolong Camp we were served lunch and told to meet back their before 4 as our gamedrive was at four. Sav, the New Zealand lady and myself are sharing a tent. Our tents are large canvas walls and a ceiling with netting windows that can be zipped over by canvas. We had a brief nap before our gamedrive. Once at the Maasi Mara National Reserve we were partially harassed by Maasi women all trying to sell this beaded jewelry while a few booked a balloon ride over the Serengeti for the morning. On the gamedrive we came across two lionesses with two cubs, another lioness on her own that walked right behind our vehicle, we saw many bucks and one buffalo and on our way towards the exit we watched 4 elephants cross the road. Sleeping in a real bed was incredible, our bathroom only a few steps away. Absolute bliss. I love how I now get so excited about this sort of smaller stuff. Today was a very strange Christmas, it didn't really feel like Christmas so I don't feel like I missed out on much even though I did miss my family a little (tiny) bit haha.
DAY 17
Olmalaika home is a sanctuary were young girls can seek refuge from the Maasi tribe if they are not wanting to be "sold". It is owned by Richard Brandson. The parents of young men are the choosers of their first wife, if the son did a great job at looking after his fathers cattle and livestock the parents would "buy" or pay more for an "expensive" (beautiful, smart, active) woman to become their sons wife. On our game drive we saw: 3 cheetah, one alone then another with a cub ( we even witnessed it trying to hunt), countless amounts of lion with their playful cubs (saw a lioness stalking her prey), a leopard and a large herd of elephants. We had lunch on the open plain of the Serengeti. We then went to the Maasi village were we were shown around while they sang and danced. They jumped extremely high, true to their culture. Such amazing people. We went back to the camp and had dinner and even celebrated the day with cake as dessert. Yum Yum
Friday 23 December 2016
BLOG 7 - DAY 12, DAY 13 & DAY 14
DAY 12
We left campsite at 6. So many of us were hungover! Sore heads were abundant! It was not enjoyable.....at all. Although most of us slept in the truck for a couple more hours (thank goodness). Crossing the border back into Kenya at around 11 was short and sweet. Instead of going back to Naiberi we are going to Lake Naivasha (it just means a longer drive for Ben - [12/13 hours] - poor Ben) we arrived just after 7pm, set up tents and went to the little restaurant for dinner.
DAY 13
So Lake Naivasha is the place where Tomb Raider was shot, I must admit I haven't seen the movie. There were 3 options for the day. 1) walking through a game park 2) a boat ride to see the hippos 3) cycling or walking through hells gate. I couldn't do option 1 or 3 as my left ankle is still very swollen from hurting it while rafting and it can't fit into my hiking/closed shoes. I loved the boat trip. These "beasts" look so docile yet they are so dangerous! I spent the rest of my day re-re-sorting my lockers and just relaxing and using wifi. ( needed this time) In the late afternoon we had horses in the field where we were set up, they kept trying to drink our soapy detol dish water and eating from the large trash can. We took some pictures and fed them a few carrots (they later stole some chipatti's)
DAY 14
After leaving Crayfish camp early we arrived at Karen camp around midday. (still in Kenya) it was time to say goodbye to some of our new friends. The American couple- who are now flying to South Africa and traveling around for a couple weeks. One of the Australians - is flying to her home in Melbourne. Although we knew we were going to all be meeting up and going out for dinner that night it was weird seeing them leave. So now there is just Sav, the other Aussie from Perth, the New Zealander who lives in Aus and myself. After some exploring of a shopping mall - we had lunch at spur and ice cream at Cold Stone - we got back to camp and played a few games of spoons (another card game that involves a suit per person and one less spoon than the amount of people playing, once someone collects a full suit e.g. 4kings or 4 9s they grab a spoon. Whoever doesn't get a spoon has a gulp of their drink.). Showered, dressed up and even wearing makeup we climbed into our taxi. We later arrived at Carnivore - a place obviously well known for meat. The waiters carry around the meat on a huge skewer then cut pieces of meat off and onto your plate. The plates were cast iron and very hot. In the centre of the table we had many sauces (all with recommendations as to what meat they go best with ) as well as a few bowls of salads and coleslaw. The food was great- I not being a big meat eater tried both crocodile and ostrich. Weird but not bad. For dessert there were many options including pineapple pie and opera cake, I decided to try a Choc-chip Blondie -yeah yeah I'm a brunette I know. Our goodbyes were sad and arriving back at the campsite with only two little tents felt so wrong. My heart was sad as we had experienced so much yet so much still lies ahead.
We left campsite at 6. So many of us were hungover! Sore heads were abundant! It was not enjoyable.....at all. Although most of us slept in the truck for a couple more hours (thank goodness). Crossing the border back into Kenya at around 11 was short and sweet. Instead of going back to Naiberi we are going to Lake Naivasha (it just means a longer drive for Ben - [12/13 hours] - poor Ben) we arrived just after 7pm, set up tents and went to the little restaurant for dinner.
DAY 13
So Lake Naivasha is the place where Tomb Raider was shot, I must admit I haven't seen the movie. There were 3 options for the day. 1) walking through a game park 2) a boat ride to see the hippos 3) cycling or walking through hells gate. I couldn't do option 1 or 3 as my left ankle is still very swollen from hurting it while rafting and it can't fit into my hiking/closed shoes. I loved the boat trip. These "beasts" look so docile yet they are so dangerous! I spent the rest of my day re-re-sorting my lockers and just relaxing and using wifi. ( needed this time) In the late afternoon we had horses in the field where we were set up, they kept trying to drink our soapy detol dish water and eating from the large trash can. We took some pictures and fed them a few carrots (they later stole some chipatti's)
DAY 14
After leaving Crayfish camp early we arrived at Karen camp around midday. (still in Kenya) it was time to say goodbye to some of our new friends. The American couple- who are now flying to South Africa and traveling around for a couple weeks. One of the Australians - is flying to her home in Melbourne. Although we knew we were going to all be meeting up and going out for dinner that night it was weird seeing them leave. So now there is just Sav, the other Aussie from Perth, the New Zealander who lives in Aus and myself. After some exploring of a shopping mall - we had lunch at spur and ice cream at Cold Stone - we got back to camp and played a few games of spoons (another card game that involves a suit per person and one less spoon than the amount of people playing, once someone collects a full suit e.g. 4kings or 4 9s they grab a spoon. Whoever doesn't get a spoon has a gulp of their drink.). Showered, dressed up and even wearing makeup we climbed into our taxi. We later arrived at Carnivore - a place obviously well known for meat. The waiters carry around the meat on a huge skewer then cut pieces of meat off and onto your plate. The plates were cast iron and very hot. In the centre of the table we had many sauces (all with recommendations as to what meat they go best with ) as well as a few bowls of salads and coleslaw. The food was great- I not being a big meat eater tried both crocodile and ostrich. Weird but not bad. For dessert there were many options including pineapple pie and opera cake, I decided to try a Choc-chip Blondie -yeah yeah I'm a brunette I know. Our goodbyes were sad and arriving back at the campsite with only two little tents felt so wrong. My heart was sad as we had experienced so much yet so much still lies ahead.
Tuesday 20 December 2016
BLOG 6 - DAY 9, DAY 10 & DAY 11
DAY 9
An early start to our next destination Jinja. (Never woken up so early continuously!) After a long days drive we were greeted at The Nile River Explorers camp with a magnificent sunset and an extra cold Nile special. After setting up camp very quickly, we were spoken to by the evening manager about all the different activities that were available. I immediately booked the White water rafting excursion and then managed to convince Sav and the American couple to do it as well. We met another tour group full of South African Stellenbosch students. After teaching them how to play Presidents and Assholes the evening quickly slipped away. I climbed into bed at 2.30 and set my alarm for 7.30 to ensure I wasn't late for the rafting meet up. I managed to fall asleep quickly and never stirred until the ringing of my alarm.
DAY 10
Feeling a little sensitive on the drive to the official Rafting camp ( a few too many beers) this was soon replaced with butterflies in my stomach! Nerves are not supposed to be a bad thing! haha. We were then introduced to our rafting leader- Davey- who recognized me (I had absolutely no idea if I knew him or not, he was Scottish, how would I know him?). After the fitting of helmets and life jackets, the whole car ride and getting into the water I was still puzzled as to how Davey knew me. When I asked again he then explained that he met my sister when she did her trip through Africa (about 6 years ago) and that when he was in SA he came over to our house for a braai, (still didn't quite remember it but at least it settled my confusion). Sav and I were in the front compartment, the German couple and the American couple in the second compartment and then Davey in the last compartment. We did another quick safety drill before drifting towards our first rapid. The quiet was soon replaced with a rumble! Rapids are very noisy. More butterflies! While paddling fast Dave screamed: "Forget everything I've just taught you, we are going over a waterfall. !!! Hold on." Moving as fast as we could and holding on with white knuckles we fell down the waterfall managing not to flip. Phew. Later when we had our first flip it wasn't too bad. The majority of us managed to hold on (I held onto the rope along my side) with all my strength. After each of the first 4 rapids their would be large "pools" of flat water. The largest taking us about 40minutes to paddle. At the last rapid before our lunch break we flipped again. Sav and the American lady ended up far away from the raft, the American guy was hanging onto the opposite side of the raft from me and the German couple were both hanging on while the boyfriend was trying to calm his girlfriend who was panicked and crying. While trying to move along the rope towards the German couple (I thought she'd been hurt), I was sucked under the raft and became squished between the raft and a huge rock. (GOT HAVE GOTTA GO) Ouch. I let go of the raft and just floated down the rest of the rapids as my legs were numb. Once I was pulled into the newly righted raft. Davey checked my back out (it was sore but I was fine, my ankles were quite scratched up). He then told me that he wouldn't have believed I'd hit a rock if it wasn't for the algae left on my rashvest. Ha. :) Pineapple, biscuits, water and more sunscreen was then applied before we started our afternoon rapids. These were spaced closer together than the previous ones. I moved to the middle compartment and the German guy moved to the front (my back and ankle were pretty sore) plus I'd seen Sav and I getting flung around a lot worse than the others had been. At the end of the rapids we lifted the raft to the trailer and were greeted with beer and a proper lunch. Yum! After skoffing down a beer to reduce the taste of Nile water in my mouth I grabbed a plate full of food. Another beer and we were ready to go. The car full of semi dry people, life jackets and helmets as well as more drinks. I sound a bit like a drunk, oh well haha. Once we returned our life jackets and helmets to the rafting camp Davey then drove us back to our campsite (which happens to be where he lives too) I sat in the front while the others all stood in the gated back. After a good shower and some story telling we played a couple more card games before going to bed really early. What a great day :)!
Crazy dreams.
DAY 11
I had always planned on SUPing (StandUpPaddling) the Nile since I saw it on the activities list. One of the Australian girls and Sav decided to join me. It was incredible. Our arms were a bit stiff from yesterday's white water rafting haha. Jumping off the SUPs turned into mainly bellyflops as the board shot backwards, but the cool water was fantastic and refreshing to lie in. A trip to the market then followed. INTERESTING! Whole sections of the building (it was a huge building full of stalls) had live chickens (a loose turkey), small and big fish while other parts had handbags and clothing. After a while exploring the nearby roads we each bought a Fanta, (not Beers) sat on the pavement and watched everything happening around us.
Arriving back at camp and having a quick shower before dressing up slightly before getting on our booze cruise. SO much free alcohol. Many strong drinks, bad dance moves, titanic poses and shots soon followed. Walking back up to the campsite is quite steep, full of many stairs, so as you can imagine it was not easy and or fun (although it must have looked pretty funny?). Sav got quite sick while the rest of us were mostly fine, we even ate a whole bowl of Nachos (best nachos ever) and some chips. I ended up staying up a bit later chatting to a few of the other campers and our rafting leader Davey from yesterday.
An early start to our next destination Jinja. (Never woken up so early continuously!) After a long days drive we were greeted at The Nile River Explorers camp with a magnificent sunset and an extra cold Nile special. After setting up camp very quickly, we were spoken to by the evening manager about all the different activities that were available. I immediately booked the White water rafting excursion and then managed to convince Sav and the American couple to do it as well. We met another tour group full of South African Stellenbosch students. After teaching them how to play Presidents and Assholes the evening quickly slipped away. I climbed into bed at 2.30 and set my alarm for 7.30 to ensure I wasn't late for the rafting meet up. I managed to fall asleep quickly and never stirred until the ringing of my alarm.
DAY 10
Feeling a little sensitive on the drive to the official Rafting camp ( a few too many beers) this was soon replaced with butterflies in my stomach! Nerves are not supposed to be a bad thing! haha. We were then introduced to our rafting leader- Davey- who recognized me (I had absolutely no idea if I knew him or not, he was Scottish, how would I know him?). After the fitting of helmets and life jackets, the whole car ride and getting into the water I was still puzzled as to how Davey knew me. When I asked again he then explained that he met my sister when she did her trip through Africa (about 6 years ago) and that when he was in SA he came over to our house for a braai, (still didn't quite remember it but at least it settled my confusion). Sav and I were in the front compartment, the German couple and the American couple in the second compartment and then Davey in the last compartment. We did another quick safety drill before drifting towards our first rapid. The quiet was soon replaced with a rumble! Rapids are very noisy. More butterflies! While paddling fast Dave screamed: "Forget everything I've just taught you, we are going over a waterfall. !!! Hold on." Moving as fast as we could and holding on with white knuckles we fell down the waterfall managing not to flip. Phew. Later when we had our first flip it wasn't too bad. The majority of us managed to hold on (I held onto the rope along my side) with all my strength. After each of the first 4 rapids their would be large "pools" of flat water. The largest taking us about 40minutes to paddle. At the last rapid before our lunch break we flipped again. Sav and the American lady ended up far away from the raft, the American guy was hanging onto the opposite side of the raft from me and the German couple were both hanging on while the boyfriend was trying to calm his girlfriend who was panicked and crying. While trying to move along the rope towards the German couple (I thought she'd been hurt), I was sucked under the raft and became squished between the raft and a huge rock. (GOT HAVE GOTTA GO) Ouch. I let go of the raft and just floated down the rest of the rapids as my legs were numb. Once I was pulled into the newly righted raft. Davey checked my back out (it was sore but I was fine, my ankles were quite scratched up). He then told me that he wouldn't have believed I'd hit a rock if it wasn't for the algae left on my rashvest. Ha. :) Pineapple, biscuits, water and more sunscreen was then applied before we started our afternoon rapids. These were spaced closer together than the previous ones. I moved to the middle compartment and the German guy moved to the front (my back and ankle were pretty sore) plus I'd seen Sav and I getting flung around a lot worse than the others had been. At the end of the rapids we lifted the raft to the trailer and were greeted with beer and a proper lunch. Yum! After skoffing down a beer to reduce the taste of Nile water in my mouth I grabbed a plate full of food. Another beer and we were ready to go. The car full of semi dry people, life jackets and helmets as well as more drinks. I sound a bit like a drunk, oh well haha. Once we returned our life jackets and helmets to the rafting camp Davey then drove us back to our campsite (which happens to be where he lives too) I sat in the front while the others all stood in the gated back. After a good shower and some story telling we played a couple more card games before going to bed really early. What a great day :)!
Crazy dreams.
DAY 11
I had always planned on SUPing (StandUpPaddling) the Nile since I saw it on the activities list. One of the Australian girls and Sav decided to join me. It was incredible. Our arms were a bit stiff from yesterday's white water rafting haha. Jumping off the SUPs turned into mainly bellyflops as the board shot backwards, but the cool water was fantastic and refreshing to lie in. A trip to the market then followed. INTERESTING! Whole sections of the building (it was a huge building full of stalls) had live chickens (a loose turkey), small and big fish while other parts had handbags and clothing. After a while exploring the nearby roads we each bought a Fanta, (not Beers) sat on the pavement and watched everything happening around us.
Arriving back at camp and having a quick shower before dressing up slightly before getting on our booze cruise. SO much free alcohol. Many strong drinks, bad dance moves, titanic poses and shots soon followed. Walking back up to the campsite is quite steep, full of many stairs, so as you can imagine it was not easy and or fun (although it must have looked pretty funny?). Sav got quite sick while the rest of us were mostly fine, we even ate a whole bowl of Nachos (best nachos ever) and some chips. I ended up staying up a bit later chatting to a few of the other campers and our rafting leader Davey from yesterday.
Saturday 17 December 2016
BLOG 5 - DAY 7 & DAY 8
DAY 7
Our group was split into two groups. Group A- those who wanted a less difficult hike and Group B- those who didn't mind a more difficult hike. I chose group A as i'm not very fit and my ankle is still sore from falling at the chimpanzees. After a brief introduction and discussion about the rules- no flash photography and no loud talking being the main ones. Group B had to drive to their starting destination whereas we started right where we were. After about 45minutes of hiking we met up with the rangers that follow the gorillas, the gorillas were very close by. We left our bags with the porters (the 3 Finnish people in our group had hired them to carry their stuff), we just took our sticks (to balance) and our cameras. The first gorilla I saw was in a tree in the distance but then, ONLY 3 METERS AWAY, was a baby (bout 10 months old.) The baby was posing and playing around so we managed to get many great photos of it. What a highlight! In total there were two silverbacks, three females, two babies (the 10month old and a 4month old) and three black backed males. Honestly the whole experience was both numbing and surreal. At one stage we had a male walk straight at us as he wanted to pass, while stepping backwards a member of our group almost fell into a bush, it made us all laugh. While in the car on the way back to Lake Bunyonyi I almost cried as it was so MAGICAL. My heart feels full and fluttery. Group a (my group) arrived back around 2:30 and Group B returned at 18:30. Their hike seemed a lot more hectic (they all looked shattered). Another early night was in order as we are going to Rwanda in the morning for the day. I cannot even remember dreaming, I think I passed out as I was exhausted from all the excitement!
DAY 8
The morning was freezing, so much colder than I had prepared for! I could barely keep my eyes open during our drive. We arrived at the border Uganda / Ruanda border just after 8 and managed to get through pretty quickly. We drove along the windy roads all the way to the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre. At the museum we watched a short video giving us a brief description of the Tutsi Genocide. In the video survivors spoke about their experiences, even describing how their families died. It's heart wrenching hearing and seeing how cruel human beings can be to other human beings. In the museum their were many different rooms, some dedicated to explaining the time frame whereas others were filled with bones and pieces of clothing (many full of gashes or bulletholes). Photos hung all around another room followed by a room dedicated to a few of the many children that were killed, and below their photo it listed their favourite thing, their favourite food, their age, their last words and how they died. Honestly I wish I didn't walk into the room. I wish I could forget how horrifically these little souls died. Such sick people. Even though the museum is full of horrific truths of the past, it's a good reminder to ensure nothing that terrible will happen again to the Rwandan people. One room I haven't mentioned is the room that mentions all the other mass killings from around the world. Learning what I've learnt today makes me fear for the world/ and those in situations like this (Congo and Syria). Memorial grave sites are located around the museum. After the museum we went to the place where 12 soldiers lost their lives. The bullet holes still marking the walls of the building they took refuge in. Still feeling sad, sick and kweezy we drove to "Hotel Rwanda" (it's changed name since the movie was released). The interior was large and quite fancy. After lunch I needed a drink and once again sampled the local beer, Mintzburg. So far I've tried all the main local beers from the countries I've been in. While drawing money my card was "eaten" by the ATM (it was in the hotel) Instant panic. The hotel called the bank which happens to be nearby, luckily! Within the hour my card was back in my hands. So grateful to all involved. I then joined the rest of my group who had began shopping at the surrounding market. I've started a collection of memories by buying a leather beaded bracelet in each country I'm going to on this trip, so far I have two (from Rwanda and Uganda). (I still need a Kenyan one). After an emotionally bumpy day we arrived back at our campsite, had a drink at the bar, followed by climbing into our tents, tossing and turning with the memories of today.
Our group was split into two groups. Group A- those who wanted a less difficult hike and Group B- those who didn't mind a more difficult hike. I chose group A as i'm not very fit and my ankle is still sore from falling at the chimpanzees. After a brief introduction and discussion about the rules- no flash photography and no loud talking being the main ones. Group B had to drive to their starting destination whereas we started right where we were. After about 45minutes of hiking we met up with the rangers that follow the gorillas, the gorillas were very close by. We left our bags with the porters (the 3 Finnish people in our group had hired them to carry their stuff), we just took our sticks (to balance) and our cameras. The first gorilla I saw was in a tree in the distance but then, ONLY 3 METERS AWAY, was a baby (bout 10 months old.) The baby was posing and playing around so we managed to get many great photos of it. What a highlight! In total there were two silverbacks, three females, two babies (the 10month old and a 4month old) and three black backed males. Honestly the whole experience was both numbing and surreal. At one stage we had a male walk straight at us as he wanted to pass, while stepping backwards a member of our group almost fell into a bush, it made us all laugh. While in the car on the way back to Lake Bunyonyi I almost cried as it was so MAGICAL. My heart feels full and fluttery. Group a (my group) arrived back around 2:30 and Group B returned at 18:30. Their hike seemed a lot more hectic (they all looked shattered). Another early night was in order as we are going to Rwanda in the morning for the day. I cannot even remember dreaming, I think I passed out as I was exhausted from all the excitement!
DAY 8
The morning was freezing, so much colder than I had prepared for! I could barely keep my eyes open during our drive. We arrived at the border Uganda / Ruanda border just after 8 and managed to get through pretty quickly. We drove along the windy roads all the way to the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre. At the museum we watched a short video giving us a brief description of the Tutsi Genocide. In the video survivors spoke about their experiences, even describing how their families died. It's heart wrenching hearing and seeing how cruel human beings can be to other human beings. In the museum their were many different rooms, some dedicated to explaining the time frame whereas others were filled with bones and pieces of clothing (many full of gashes or bulletholes). Photos hung all around another room followed by a room dedicated to a few of the many children that were killed, and below their photo it listed their favourite thing, their favourite food, their age, their last words and how they died. Honestly I wish I didn't walk into the room. I wish I could forget how horrifically these little souls died. Such sick people. Even though the museum is full of horrific truths of the past, it's a good reminder to ensure nothing that terrible will happen again to the Rwandan people. One room I haven't mentioned is the room that mentions all the other mass killings from around the world. Learning what I've learnt today makes me fear for the world/ and those in situations like this (Congo and Syria). Memorial grave sites are located around the museum. After the museum we went to the place where 12 soldiers lost their lives. The bullet holes still marking the walls of the building they took refuge in. Still feeling sad, sick and kweezy we drove to "Hotel Rwanda" (it's changed name since the movie was released). The interior was large and quite fancy. After lunch I needed a drink and once again sampled the local beer, Mintzburg. So far I've tried all the main local beers from the countries I've been in. While drawing money my card was "eaten" by the ATM (it was in the hotel) Instant panic. The hotel called the bank which happens to be nearby, luckily! Within the hour my card was back in my hands. So grateful to all involved. I then joined the rest of my group who had began shopping at the surrounding market. I've started a collection of memories by buying a leather beaded bracelet in each country I'm going to on this trip, so far I have two (from Rwanda and Uganda). (I still need a Kenyan one). After an emotionally bumpy day we arrived back at our campsite, had a drink at the bar, followed by climbing into our tents, tossing and turning with the memories of today.
Thursday 15 December 2016
BLOG 4 - DAY 4, DAY 5 & DAY 6
DAY 4
Waking up to a wet pillow at 4:10 as my alarm went off, wasn't a great feeling, even though the rain sounded great around
1 in the morning. I'm not used to waking up / or sleeping and being warm , I like it. No breakfast, just a pack up and go morning. The whole truck was asleep till around 7 when we stopped at the EQUATOR. Millions of pictures later and maybe even purchasing a lame certificate saying I'd "stood astride in the court yard of Uganda @ 0degrees latitude, 032degrees Longitude East..." lame I know but I'll probably never be back here so I figured why not. We later pulled up along Queen Elizabeth National Park and 8 of us transferred into a smaller game viewing vehicle then drove towards the forests where the chimpanzees are found. We began walking through the grasslands into thicker bush and down the valley towards the river. The ground was dry and stable at the beginning but got more treacherous. Where we were walking was very steep. I was right behind the ranger and was following his positioning of his feet with great detail. We crossed a wooden bridge (no guardrails) and began exploring the other side of the river. The air was so thick and humid, sweating was a continuous process. Ducking and side stepping the numerous bugs flying around the green damp environment. The trees were roughly about 50metres tall and towered over us. It took us about an hour and a half to find them, trekking back and forth through the thick forestry. I slipped twice and landed on my butt both times haha clumsy me . I also got stuck in mud that was like quicksand, my one shoe got stuck but luckily it was saved by the American guy on the trip (thank goodness! I was so grateful) while stepping forward in my sock my other shoe got stuck but I managed to pull it out. Now walking with shoes filled with mud (oh well) we continued climbing up and down until we heard the chimp "screeching" (sounded like they were dying in my opinion) so we began a marathon trek in their direction. We saw two baby's playing as well as a bigger male, leading us to believe we had come across a small troop. The chimps moved so quickly and so majestically. They then began moving across the river so we doubled back and crossed the river again. Our guide then realized he had misinterpreted the size of the troop. We even got to watch the chimps attempt to hunt Black and White Colobus Monkeys. I'm not a big fan of watching animals kill other animals so I was relieved when the Colobus Monkeys managed to escape. Watching the chimps jumping from tree to tree above our heads was very surreal.
We even saw two young chimps tickling each other and making a big noise. The America (who saved my shoe) made noises similar to them and they responded which was amazing to hear and watch. After watching the Chimpanzees for just over two hours we walked/climbed back up the valley towards our vehicle. My shoes were caked in mud and so were my pants ( I looked absolutely delightful, we all had a good laugh). The vehicle then dropped us off at our campsite Simba Camp (driving with the roof up and windows wide open as we all smelt incredible haha, we also saw two elephants along the way ). We arrived to our tents already set up, the joy I felt was indescribable. All I wanted from life at that moment was a long shower. Although the water was not particularly warm it was heavenly. After dinner Sav and I were sweeping and mopping the inside of the truck which was full of red dust that was previously mud and we were rewarded with s'mores from the other guests. The s'mores where made of roasted marshmallows and Nutella in between two biscuits, absolutely delicious.
DAY 5
I woke up hot and sweaty at around 8. Posted my last couple blogs in the morning (wifi, yay!). The South African couple were doing their chimp trek today while 4/6 of the others went on a game drive. It is clear that my packing skills are terrible as I could barely find anything in my locker (messy me). A cleanup was needed! I emptied all my clothes and zip locks out then resorted all the clothes into one locker while putting my bag and the other stuff in my other locker. (Hallelujah for 2 lockers, I think I definitely overpacked). The others Came back with stories of seeing a male lion in a tree which apparently only happens in Northern Africa. While on a walk, another person from our tour group was turned around as it "was unsafe for her to walk around without protection" by Robert Mugabe (a police officer haha) she even got his cell number, too funny. Once we were all back at base camp we started playing "Presidents and Assholes" which ended with every rule involving alcohol or a sip of Waragi (the most famous/hectic Ugandan gin) it's definitely not one of my favourites, bleh. (although I believe gin tasting is becoming more popular in SA).The wifi was amazing once everyone was in bed, I had a long conversation with my parents and a really good friend which put me in a great mood. This was further enhanced as some big storms developed throughout the night. (As a little girl I loved sitting on our balcony at home with my dad and watching the storms. The intensity is magical.
DAY 6
An early wake up call allowed for a lot of reflection time while driving to a nearby local town who's name escapes me. After being in such a good mood and place in my life I've realized I want to focus on the positives surrounding me. We had a local buffet then continued onto Lake Bunyonyi. Once we were set up, a couple games of "Assholes and Presidents" took place.(basically the pack is split between players and you continually have to put down a higher card unless the person before you puts down an eight ,its eights below, until someone can clear the pack with a 2 or joker).|Tomorrow morning we have to wake up just after four to leave for the Gorillas. Eeeep, I CANNOT WAIT ! At one point I was concerned that I might get sick and that would mean no gorillas but luckily I am still feeling healthy.
Waking up to a wet pillow at 4:10 as my alarm went off, wasn't a great feeling, even though the rain sounded great around
1 in the morning. I'm not used to waking up / or sleeping and being warm , I like it. No breakfast, just a pack up and go morning. The whole truck was asleep till around 7 when we stopped at the EQUATOR. Millions of pictures later and maybe even purchasing a lame certificate saying I'd "stood astride in the court yard of Uganda @ 0degrees latitude, 032degrees Longitude East..." lame I know but I'll probably never be back here so I figured why not. We later pulled up along Queen Elizabeth National Park and 8 of us transferred into a smaller game viewing vehicle then drove towards the forests where the chimpanzees are found. We began walking through the grasslands into thicker bush and down the valley towards the river. The ground was dry and stable at the beginning but got more treacherous. Where we were walking was very steep. I was right behind the ranger and was following his positioning of his feet with great detail. We crossed a wooden bridge (no guardrails) and began exploring the other side of the river. The air was so thick and humid, sweating was a continuous process. Ducking and side stepping the numerous bugs flying around the green damp environment. The trees were roughly about 50metres tall and towered over us. It took us about an hour and a half to find them, trekking back and forth through the thick forestry. I slipped twice and landed on my butt both times haha clumsy me . I also got stuck in mud that was like quicksand, my one shoe got stuck but luckily it was saved by the American guy on the trip (thank goodness! I was so grateful) while stepping forward in my sock my other shoe got stuck but I managed to pull it out. Now walking with shoes filled with mud (oh well) we continued climbing up and down until we heard the chimp "screeching" (sounded like they were dying in my opinion) so we began a marathon trek in their direction. We saw two baby's playing as well as a bigger male, leading us to believe we had come across a small troop. The chimps moved so quickly and so majestically. They then began moving across the river so we doubled back and crossed the river again. Our guide then realized he had misinterpreted the size of the troop. We even got to watch the chimps attempt to hunt Black and White Colobus Monkeys. I'm not a big fan of watching animals kill other animals so I was relieved when the Colobus Monkeys managed to escape. Watching the chimps jumping from tree to tree above our heads was very surreal.
We even saw two young chimps tickling each other and making a big noise. The America (who saved my shoe) made noises similar to them and they responded which was amazing to hear and watch. After watching the Chimpanzees for just over two hours we walked/climbed back up the valley towards our vehicle. My shoes were caked in mud and so were my pants ( I looked absolutely delightful, we all had a good laugh). The vehicle then dropped us off at our campsite Simba Camp (driving with the roof up and windows wide open as we all smelt incredible haha, we also saw two elephants along the way ). We arrived to our tents already set up, the joy I felt was indescribable. All I wanted from life at that moment was a long shower. Although the water was not particularly warm it was heavenly. After dinner Sav and I were sweeping and mopping the inside of the truck which was full of red dust that was previously mud and we were rewarded with s'mores from the other guests. The s'mores where made of roasted marshmallows and Nutella in between two biscuits, absolutely delicious.
DAY 5
I woke up hot and sweaty at around 8. Posted my last couple blogs in the morning (wifi, yay!). The South African couple were doing their chimp trek today while 4/6 of the others went on a game drive. It is clear that my packing skills are terrible as I could barely find anything in my locker (messy me). A cleanup was needed! I emptied all my clothes and zip locks out then resorted all the clothes into one locker while putting my bag and the other stuff in my other locker. (Hallelujah for 2 lockers, I think I definitely overpacked). The others Came back with stories of seeing a male lion in a tree which apparently only happens in Northern Africa. While on a walk, another person from our tour group was turned around as it "was unsafe for her to walk around without protection" by Robert Mugabe (a police officer haha) she even got his cell number, too funny. Once we were all back at base camp we started playing "Presidents and Assholes" which ended with every rule involving alcohol or a sip of Waragi (the most famous/hectic Ugandan gin) it's definitely not one of my favourites, bleh. (although I believe gin tasting is becoming more popular in SA).The wifi was amazing once everyone was in bed, I had a long conversation with my parents and a really good friend which put me in a great mood. This was further enhanced as some big storms developed throughout the night. (As a little girl I loved sitting on our balcony at home with my dad and watching the storms. The intensity is magical.
DAY 6
An early wake up call allowed for a lot of reflection time while driving to a nearby local town who's name escapes me. After being in such a good mood and place in my life I've realized I want to focus on the positives surrounding me. We had a local buffet then continued onto Lake Bunyonyi. Once we were set up, a couple games of "Assholes and Presidents" took place.(basically the pack is split between players and you continually have to put down a higher card unless the person before you puts down an eight ,its eights below, until someone can clear the pack with a 2 or joker).|Tomorrow morning we have to wake up just after four to leave for the Gorillas. Eeeep, I CANNOT WAIT ! At one point I was concerned that I might get sick and that would mean no gorillas but luckily I am still feeling healthy.
Monday 12 December 2016
BLOG 3 - DAY 2 & DAY 3
DAY 2
A pretty cold but decent nights sleep, a quick pack up and left the campsite just after 8. Our tour leader George sat in the front with Ben so the truck was a bit quieter today. We stopped at a large supermarket in town to buy alcohol, snacks and whatever else we wanted (which meant we stopped at an ice cream store obviously). We arrived at our campsite Naiberi Overland Camp just after two, it was more like a resort than a camping grounds. The whole interior looked like a modern day cave with some glass and mats on the roofs. We were told we had a free afternoon which meant pool time, there was also a pool bar which we got very familiar with (as we were not allowed to drink our own alcohol on the property, bummer). There's also another overland 'bus' doing the same route as us and we've already got a bit of friendly competition going on (we think our truck is much better haha) especially since theirs is purple (not really suited for the natural environment). The only bummer was that there was no hot water and then soon after there was no water at all. For dinner I tried tilapia for the first time and it was good. Tomorrow morning we have an early start to make sure we get into Uganda quickly.
DAY 3
After a slightly late wake up call we packed our meals for the long drive. The border was quick and painless as we drove past 5km of waiting trucks. A few of us had to buy an East African Visa for $100. We also discussed crossing into Rwanda for a day so the visa covers that too. While waiting in the queue a guy pushed in front of me (I played it cool dispite being highly irritated) and then I watched him blatantly bribe the official, very interesting. Stopping at a garage while George went to get our gorilla permits I managed to use a restaurants wifi to give my family a quick call which included finding out my sisters phone had just been stolen in Cape Town. The forests in Uganda are breathtakingly beautiful, and incredibly different to the landscapes of Kenya. Red Chilli Camp was where we were spending the night. Their was a pool but rather than that we all practically ran to the bathroom to use the showers. I hadn't been that happy to have hot water in a very long time although brushing my hair was a terrible experience. We met our other tour mates soon after, another Australian and a couple from Johannesburg (yay more South Africans!). The group of us played uno on the benches by the pool while we tried the supposedly best Ugandan beer "the Nike Special" which I really enjoyed. After some of the girls painted their nails (some cheap nail polish from one of the supermarkets) we spoke about tomorrow's plans then went to bed/mat .
A pretty cold but decent nights sleep, a quick pack up and left the campsite just after 8. Our tour leader George sat in the front with Ben so the truck was a bit quieter today. We stopped at a large supermarket in town to buy alcohol, snacks and whatever else we wanted (which meant we stopped at an ice cream store obviously). We arrived at our campsite Naiberi Overland Camp just after two, it was more like a resort than a camping grounds. The whole interior looked like a modern day cave with some glass and mats on the roofs. We were told we had a free afternoon which meant pool time, there was also a pool bar which we got very familiar with (as we were not allowed to drink our own alcohol on the property, bummer). There's also another overland 'bus' doing the same route as us and we've already got a bit of friendly competition going on (we think our truck is much better haha) especially since theirs is purple (not really suited for the natural environment). The only bummer was that there was no hot water and then soon after there was no water at all. For dinner I tried tilapia for the first time and it was good. Tomorrow morning we have an early start to make sure we get into Uganda quickly.
DAY 3
After a slightly late wake up call we packed our meals for the long drive. The border was quick and painless as we drove past 5km of waiting trucks. A few of us had to buy an East African Visa for $100. We also discussed crossing into Rwanda for a day so the visa covers that too. While waiting in the queue a guy pushed in front of me (I played it cool dispite being highly irritated) and then I watched him blatantly bribe the official, very interesting. Stopping at a garage while George went to get our gorilla permits I managed to use a restaurants wifi to give my family a quick call which included finding out my sisters phone had just been stolen in Cape Town. The forests in Uganda are breathtakingly beautiful, and incredibly different to the landscapes of Kenya. Red Chilli Camp was where we were spending the night. Their was a pool but rather than that we all practically ran to the bathroom to use the showers. I hadn't been that happy to have hot water in a very long time although brushing my hair was a terrible experience. We met our other tour mates soon after, another Australian and a couple from Johannesburg (yay more South Africans!). The group of us played uno on the benches by the pool while we tried the supposedly best Ugandan beer "the Nike Special" which I really enjoyed. After some of the girls painted their nails (some cheap nail polish from one of the supermarkets) we spoke about tomorrow's plans then went to bed/mat .
Saturday 10 December 2016
BLOG 2 - DAY 1 OF ACACIA AFRICA TRIP
DAY 2
After an exhausting first day Sav and I decided sleep was sorely needed. We woke up just before 9 and swam in the hotel pool to cool off. We then repacked our bags to make things easier to find and organized our clothing for the evening and for tomorrow. Our pre-tour meeting began at six, there were only 4 of us at the meeting originally and another arrived a bit late. So far there are two Australians, a Kiwi and two South Africans (us). Another two guests arrive early tomorrow morning and then we pick up 3 more in Kampala (Uganda). Steve is our tour guide and our drivers name is Ben. Steve and Ben are both Kenyan. They have both worked for Acacia Africa for many years. So far our tour group seems very friendly but also a little shy. We were told to meet at reception at 7 and that we should be on the road in KAVANGO (our truck) at 8. Sav and I stayed afterwards to chat to George to discuss our blogs.
DAY 3/ REAL DAY ONE
A little sleepy from our 5:55 start to the day we packed up the last of our luggage from our hotel room. After breakfast we carried all our bags (super heavy) to our truck, KAVANGO. Our two other guests had arrived early this morning (an American couple) . We left Hotel Boulevard around 8:30 on our new mobile home and started our journey towards Lake Nukuru. Further along we stopped at a beautiful lookout spot of the Great African Rift Valley and had our first taste of the souvenir sellers whose items that were mainly made of wood were gorgeous and glossy. A while later we stopped at a garage/minimarket to purchase some more water and some snacks. The bathrooms there were chaos and absolute disgusting, literally a hole in the floor. Ew. Hand sanitizers were a win. We arrived at Lake Nukuru National Park and started setting up our lunch. A cheeky baboon ended up stealing one of our loaves of bread, luckily we had enough left for us. After lunch we all climbed into a smaller game viewing vehicle that kinda reminded me of a mini truck. The scenery was beautiful and quite different from South Africa as it was lovely and green. We saw many animals: Zebra, Impala, Water buck, Buffalo, Giraffe (a species of giraffe I'd never seen before, they were a lot smaller and darker in colouring), Silverbacked jackal, hyena, rock dassies and so much more. My highlights were seeing a pair of silverbacked jackals, a hyena, a tortoise and the amazement of our fellow travelers. It's strange to think that so many people have never seen zebras or impalas before, yet for us they are normal and also quite boring. After a long bumpy drive we finally arrived at our campsite Punda Milias. The showers were even better than the ones at Hotel Boulevard. George then taught us how to set up our tents (slightly complicated since the poles get so tangled). The tent arrangements were pretty quick to sort out, Sav and I sharing a tent. Dinner was really delicious especially since we were all very hungry. A big campfire had been set up so we all sat around it on tiny wooden stools. One of the men kept referring to the fire as being the "African TV" from when he was young. We were later joined by two sisters from the Netherlands. Sitting around the campfire was really enjoyable as we all began to bond a bit more and we even learnt a few peoples weaknesses (snakes and spiders). On my side of our tent was two mattresses (we were allowed 2 each as there is only 7 of us), my pillow, my sleeping bag inner and my sleeping bag. After climbing into my sleeping bag inner (basically a linen sack) then into my sleeping bag I felt very warm and snug (also kinda like a potato in a sack)
Oh yeah, when I put my head torch on earlier in the evening I ended up hitting myself pretty hard on the nose and I can already feel a bruise (oops).
After an exhausting first day Sav and I decided sleep was sorely needed. We woke up just before 9 and swam in the hotel pool to cool off. We then repacked our bags to make things easier to find and organized our clothing for the evening and for tomorrow. Our pre-tour meeting began at six, there were only 4 of us at the meeting originally and another arrived a bit late. So far there are two Australians, a Kiwi and two South Africans (us). Another two guests arrive early tomorrow morning and then we pick up 3 more in Kampala (Uganda). Steve is our tour guide and our drivers name is Ben. Steve and Ben are both Kenyan. They have both worked for Acacia Africa for many years. So far our tour group seems very friendly but also a little shy. We were told to meet at reception at 7 and that we should be on the road in KAVANGO (our truck) at 8. Sav and I stayed afterwards to chat to George to discuss our blogs.
DAY 3/ REAL DAY ONE
A little sleepy from our 5:55 start to the day we packed up the last of our luggage from our hotel room. After breakfast we carried all our bags (super heavy) to our truck, KAVANGO. Our two other guests had arrived early this morning (an American couple) . We left Hotel Boulevard around 8:30 on our new mobile home and started our journey towards Lake Nukuru. Further along we stopped at a beautiful lookout spot of the Great African Rift Valley and had our first taste of the souvenir sellers whose items that were mainly made of wood were gorgeous and glossy. A while later we stopped at a garage/minimarket to purchase some more water and some snacks. The bathrooms there were chaos and absolute disgusting, literally a hole in the floor. Ew. Hand sanitizers were a win. We arrived at Lake Nukuru National Park and started setting up our lunch. A cheeky baboon ended up stealing one of our loaves of bread, luckily we had enough left for us. After lunch we all climbed into a smaller game viewing vehicle that kinda reminded me of a mini truck. The scenery was beautiful and quite different from South Africa as it was lovely and green. We saw many animals: Zebra, Impala, Water buck, Buffalo, Giraffe (a species of giraffe I'd never seen before, they were a lot smaller and darker in colouring), Silverbacked jackal, hyena, rock dassies and so much more. My highlights were seeing a pair of silverbacked jackals, a hyena, a tortoise and the amazement of our fellow travelers. It's strange to think that so many people have never seen zebras or impalas before, yet for us they are normal and also quite boring. After a long bumpy drive we finally arrived at our campsite Punda Milias. The showers were even better than the ones at Hotel Boulevard. George then taught us how to set up our tents (slightly complicated since the poles get so tangled). The tent arrangements were pretty quick to sort out, Sav and I sharing a tent. Dinner was really delicious especially since we were all very hungry. A big campfire had been set up so we all sat around it on tiny wooden stools. One of the men kept referring to the fire as being the "African TV" from when he was young. We were later joined by two sisters from the Netherlands. Sitting around the campfire was really enjoyable as we all began to bond a bit more and we even learnt a few peoples weaknesses (snakes and spiders). On my side of our tent was two mattresses (we were allowed 2 each as there is only 7 of us), my pillow, my sleeping bag inner and my sleeping bag. After climbing into my sleeping bag inner (basically a linen sack) then into my sleeping bag I felt very warm and snug (also kinda like a potato in a sack)
Oh yeah, when I put my head torch on earlier in the evening I ended up hitting myself pretty hard on the nose and I can already feel a bruise (oops).
Thursday 8 December 2016
BLOG 1 - DAY ONE IN NAIROBI
Blog 1
Finally all the packing and preparing is done and our trip is about to begin. Saying goodbye to our families is always sad but the anticipation was overwhelming. Driving to the airport at 5am didn't even seem so bad due to all the excitement. After our tearful goodbye Savannah and I were off through security and towards our boarding gate. Our Durban-Joburg flight was short and sweet. Once in Joburg we trekked across the airport to international departures (cue butterflies in my stomach). Customs were quick and painless, and after deciding we were still hungry we stopped for breakfast at the closest restaurant to our boarding gate, Sav and I shared a grilled chicken sandwich, it was small and very overpriced but it filled our stomachs just enough. I received a call from my parents with their first question being "why can we call you? Your phone should be on roaming" this then led to me attempting to do so. No airtime. No airtime sold in any of the stores. More frantic calls. Airtime received, sent from one of my moms friends. Roam On. Lucky me, after that bit of chaos Sav and I stood waiting at the boarding gate for about 5 or so minutes until we heard a final call for our flight to Nairobi. Whoops. The huge lines of people were obviously just sitting where all our fellow passengers were previously. Another slight panic, the man operating the boarding gate made a joke about us having missed our flight (which was not the case) but alas there were other passengers that appeared also flying to Nairobi. After a very empty bus transfer we were finally on our way to Nairobi. The flight started off smoothly, with The devil wears Prada being the first movie, it's old and familiar and I hadn't seen in years so I didn't mind. I didn't pay attention to the second movie other than occasionally seeing Liam Hemsworth on the screen and listening to my own music while Sav did a crossword. There was a bit of turbulence towards the end of the flight and during the landing. We boarded another bus transfer to take us to the other side of the airport. The customs building was pretty basic but clean so we filled in our immigration forms while sitting on the floor (not many chairs available). We were in the front of the line when a huge number of passengers from Dubai filled the previously empty room (over 200people in the tiny room). Although we started off at the wrong carousel we soon found our luggage and followed the exit signs. After looking around for our taxi we were greeted by a lovely friendly lady who was the person organizing our taxi. The walk to our taxi was quick and entertaining as the trolley carrying our luggage didn't have brakes and there was a downhill slope. Our taxi was clean and comfortable. The roads are a bit of a new experience, I've seen Joburg traffic but this is on a whole new level. Buses, Trucks, Bikes, Cars EVERYWHERE. The roads are very chaotic. I've seen cars I had never seen before, such as a Toyota Voxy and Nissan Note. Driving through the areas on our way from the airport was an eye opener and gave us a better idea of Nairobi's infrastructure which ranges a lot. The city is colourful and full of busy people. Another realization I had was that Kenyan buses seem to be the equivalent of South African taxis ( pretty naughty). Just in that hour and a bit it was very noticeable how hot and dry Kenya is, feeling the strength of the sun through the taxis windows and struggling aircon. There are what seems like millions of Maribu birds which in my opinion look like Hadedas on steroids. Next up was a giant traffic circle with traffic lights that apparently don't work but one seemingly very capable policeman directing all the traffic perfectly. From what I've seen so far buildings range from gigantic skyscrapers to small shacks selling sweeties. So in total Hotel Boulevard was a two hour car ride from the airport. Our room is small and spunky but overall perfect for what we need it for. We have a garden view and there is even a large pool. A restaurant attached to the hotel was our dinner location this evening and the food exceeded expectations . So to sum up day one of our African adventure: it has been a bit stressful but completely overruled by laughter (nervous or otherwise).
I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next.
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