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We arrived in Cape Town, South
Africa on December 14th showing serious signs of wear after
3,920 miles of gritty flyblown desert camping for 21 days
in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia. Travelling in a 12-ton
truck with ten Aussies, Brits, and Kiwis we learned a great
deal about the differences of English speaking folk and even
more about ourselves. At times we were left asking, "Are
we just a portable zoo on wheels, a circus of sorts, to entertain
the people through whose lives we passed?" A fair amount
of contrived tourist experiences and long hours of excruciating
boredom mixed with random moments of stunning beauty and awe
inspiring scenery.....(read
more)
We developed a new appreciation for the
authenticity of our EarthWatch experience as a rare encounter
with hyper-aggresive animals in Africa. The animals in the
southern part of the continent, for the most part, have become
habituated to human presence and are surprisingly passive.
But we too were surprisingly passive in the 104° F heat,
which forced us to arise at 4:30 AM to drive or walk in search
of animals scratching themselves, mating and feeding.
In moments of excruciating boredom the mind
can do some of its finest work. We imagined how our resumes
might reflect this period of our professional lives:
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Global
University, International Studies |
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- Lobbed chunks of fresh donkey meat
over a fence to hungry cheetahs in Namibia. Marveled
at their midair interceptions that would put an NFL
defensive end to shame.
- Remained awake most of the night
after guide warned not to pitch tents to close to
Chobe river in Botswana because crocodiles recently
dragged a tent, with occupant inside, into the river.
- Witnessed man's terrible injustice
to his fellow man in forced relocation townships in
Namibia and the incredible resilience of the human
spirit to forgive.
- Navigated 18 kilometers of the
mighty Zambezi River in Zimbabwe, at times while still
inside the rubber raft. Drank large quantities of
brownish green river water.
- Self taught "right hand drive"
driving skills on British road rules in downtown Cape
Town during Christmas shopping season.
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In Zimbabwe, a country whose people are
subjected to the tragic consequences of maniacal leadership
under Robert Mugabe, we tempted fate under the watchful eye
of Nyaminyami, the Zambezi River spirit, on a seven hour white
water rafting trip down one of the world's most intense runable
rivers. "It's not an adventure until things go sideways
on you.”, I told Lisa as the rescue kayak delivered her
safely back to the raft after taking a "long swim"
through several three meter rapids....(read
more)
We called Cape Town "home"
for Christmas and we departed on December 27th in search of
a nature preserve called Monkey Land at Plettenburg Bay along
the Garden Route as our first stop on a one week leisurely
pace back to Johannesburg. From there we will catch our flight
on Jan 5th to meet with our good friends Mr. Rourke and Tattoo
on the fantasy island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean until
the 10th of January. Then we're off to Kuala Lumpur for a
train ride north to Bangkok with side trips to several Thai
islands along the way..
We have posted more pictures
and journal writings
for Africa. Check them out!
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