Life in the Okavango Delta

I am very happy to have done the luxury safari in Botswana. The food was excellent (not sure how our cook could have made all of the cuisine on a fire???), our accommodations were great, and our guide was the most amazing ever! We would have sundowners out in the bush and have hot water bottles in our beds at night.

Our second and third days in the Delta were spent on the water. We went on a mokoro trip on one day and a boat trip on the other. The mokoros are usually dug-out canoes, but the ones we went on were made out of fiberglass. Mokoros are very relaxing, and Oats had to yell at me to stay awake. He didn’t feel like going for a swim. ;-)

Amanda - we did see a bunch of painted-reed frogs!! :-)

I was really interested in seeing the hippos up close, but apparently hippos are very dangerous creatures, and more people die from hippos than from any other creature (ex. Lions). We saw a bunch of hippos from far away in the boat, although we cruised right by a croc that was not happy to see us. He opened his mouth at us, hissed (well, not really, but it looked like it), and then jumped into the water.

On our last night in the Delta, we did have a little scare. No worries, because as you can see, we are still alive. We were on our way back to camp when we had to stop to pick up some people that had gotten stuck in at one of the bridges. They happened to be the mechanics that were coming to fix on one of our vehicles. Well, we continued on our merry way when we stopped to check out something. When we tried to move on, our car wouldn’t start. The starter had been acting up all day, and of course, because it was getting dark and we needed to be in camp by 7PM, it decided to act up again. Luckily, we had 4 mechanics now in our vehicle. We set them to work. In the meantime, it was getting darker and darker, and we could hear the hippos off in the distance….well, actually just off right next to us. We could hear them with their deep laughter…heh, heh, heh. We had just left some lions recently (yes, the elusive lions were not so elusive anymore), but luckily they had just eaten a big dinner and were snoozing. Our guide could not find his flashlight, and of course my flashlight and headlamp were back at camp. Code did have his headlamp, and I had the light on my cellphone. Fast forward, the land cruise is still not starting, it is a 1 ½ hours later, dark, and no one is answering the radio. "Midume, Midume, Midume, do you copy?" Don’t worry, we are not freaking out yet….no time to freak out, just need to stay positive and not think about being stranded in the bush with meat-eaters all around you with no flashlight but a headlamp and a cellphone with no reception. Last resort, our guide and another got out of the car, and were going to walk the 1 km back to camp. We were to stay in the vehicle (remember, there are no doors or windows) and not get out even if elephants or anything come by. Armed with my Mini Griptilian and Code’s arsenal of knives, we wait it out. Luckily, 5 minutes later, we could hear the sound of an engine. Midume from camp was coming to look for us. We loaded in the other land cruiser and made our way back to camp. Lessons learned – always have your flashlights with you, matches, and all your survival stuff!! Also, make sure you have reinforcements coming to look for you.

Stay tuned for a guest blog from Courtney. :-)

Luxury in the Bush

It's been a little while since I had internet access, so I thought I'd better catch up a little. After the Chobe Safari Lodge (which I highly recommend...but save at least a couple of days here to enjoy the amenities!), Nicci, Cody, and I headed into the Okavango Delta for 3 nights. Let me tell you that they do not leave out even the smallest bit of detail. We were transfered from lodge to the Kasane Airstrip where we were met with our own charter flight! Well, it was our own for the first bit of the flight before picking up 2 others at another random airstrip. It took just a couple of hours to get to the Moremi Game Reserve, but we had some in-flight entertainment by flying over Chobe Nat'l Park and watching all the hippos and elephants down below.

It was here that we met our awesome guide, Oats (spelled Oaites). This guy was kick-ass!! We immediated went on a game drive on the way to our camp at Hatab.

This place is a mixed savannah with lots of grasslands and water all around us. For lunch, we stopped off by some water to watch the elephants all around us. We couldn't believe the spread that Oats pulled out for us in the bush. It was complete with tablecloth and all! We learned about all the birds around us, even the Gray Lourie called the "Go Away Bird". This bird makes a noise that warns all the animals around that there is danger. It was easy to start to immitate this bird, and pretty soon we kept making the call ourselves all the time. Here, though, we had a little encounter with the wildlife. One of the elephants that was hanging around decided to come closer for a look...that was all fine and dandy until our guide noticed the body language of the elephant change. Oats immediately got bigger and made noise to shoo away the elephant. Whew! That made us remember where we were.

We saw tons of animals like vervet monkeys, impalas, elephants, giraffe...and tons of birds like fish eagles and lilac-breasted rollers. Although were on the lookout, the lions were being elusive, and we didn't get to see any leopards here either. Luckily, Code was able to get a photo of the leopard we saw before we left Chobe.

Before we made it to camp, we had the fortune to see a couple of Wild Dogs!! Our guide said that there are few wild dogs left, so we were lucky! Nicci and Cody's luck is rubbing off on me now.

When we finally got to camp, we were greeted by our staff in style! Paraffin lamps were set out to create an ambiance plus there was a fire and our own bar in the bush!

My tent had a very comfy bed (complete with hot water bottle) and the bathroom that they created for each of us was even bigger than my tent! It had a pit toilet, shower, sink, etc. Not too shabby. ;-)

I was lulled to sleep the the deep laugh the the hippos off in the distance.

Chobe Safari Lodge

Today was my first day on the Wild Lifestyles safari. I took a transfer with Bushtracks from Fawlty Towers in Livingstone, Zambia, to the Chobe Safari Lodge in Botswana. Since I was by myself, I had to hook up with a day tripper to get the transfer. Of course, there were a bunch of laggers...so when I got to Chobe, I had already missed my morning game drive. I was extremely happy to meet up with Nicci and Cody, though. I got some lunch (with yummy Amarula ice cream) and headed out on the afternoon game drive - my first game drive ever!!



We were in an open air vehicle (no doors to block the animals out) and had the fresh air blowing through our hair. We saw tons of animals, even someof the Big 5. Tons of elephants, zebra, buffalo, hippos, giraffe, crocodiles, kudu, and impala. The impala is kind of funny because they have black markings on their butts that look like "M" for McDonalds. Oh yeah, I even got to see a leopard! Pretty cool.




Later we went on a dinner cruise up and down the Chobe River. Nicci, Cody, and I had the entire boat all to ourselves. After eating, we went up to the top of the boat and looked at all the stars. The sky looks totally different here in Africa.



Tomorrow I'm heading off to the Okavango Delta after a morning game drive. Maybe I'll get to see a lion?? I still need to figure out what I'm going to do on the 13th of June. It doesn't look like I'll be able to get to George on the 13th, so I'm most likely going to have to stay in Jo-burg that night. Why does Jo-burg keep making me stay?? I'm goign to have to fly down to George the next morning and then meet the other girls in Oudtshoorn. Sucks because it will give me only like an hour or two before having to drive to Cape Town for our first WC game. I better get to ride an ostrich!!!

"The Smoke that Thunders"

Finally made it to Victoria Falls in Livingstone, Zambia. Since I got there a day late, I didn't get to meet up with Nicci and Cody, and also Aneka wasn't planning to take a flight until the next day. That meant I had to do Vic Falls by myself an in a whirlwind. Pretty much, I only had a 1/2 day to do everything. I got there in the afternoon, booked a Microlight flight, and headed straight to the falls. I was told to forget the rain jacket, but just to wear anything quick drying and a pair of flip flops. I soon understood why. it was like I had just stepped into a shower. The spray from the falls drenched my entire body and then some. I couldn't see much of the falls because of the spray, but it was cool to just take it all in. Victoria Falls is 1.7 kilometers wide, or about 1 1/4 miles (don't quote me here...I didn't do the math). It is pretty much twice the size of Niagara Falls. It is also one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.

At the falls, there was some sort of craft market. You know me, I love to shop these things...but I only had a couple of minutes. I realized here that I wished I had brought a bunch of older t-shirts and other trinkets to barter with. The guy immediately asked if I had any hair bands I wanted to trade. Of course, I had one in my pocket, so I traded that plus some cash for a mask and a bowl. A guy at the hostel the night before had told me how he had taken all of his stuff to Victoria Falls and traded it for a couple of bags full of wooden crafts to take home. Man, why do I have all this REI stuff in my pack??? Why couldn't I just have a bunch of random old stuff to get rid of?

After walked around the falls for about 1 1/2 hours, I headed up to the shy for a Microlight flight. This was totally awesome!! Great views!! Too bad it only lasted 15 minutes.

I wish I could have done the Gorge Swing and also rafting down the Zambezi. Might just have to make another trip out here sometime. ;-)

How do you miss a flight when you are in front of the gate??

Well, the first part of the trip isn't going so smoothly. It's like, no matter how much you plan, things just have a way to get screwed up. I've spent the better part of the trip so far on the phone with the travel insurance and hanging around in airports. I've found out that there isn't really a good alternative to get to George on the 13th to meet up with Juli, Kimmie, Courtney, and Aneka. The best option so far is to fly into Port Elizabeth and then hopefully get a bus down to George...but I wouldn't get to Oudtshoorn until about 1:30 AM. But I'd still be able to do the ostriches before making the drive down to Cape Town. But all the connections are really close in time...so I'm not sure I'd even make all of them...and then I'd be screwed.

So when I've been dealing with all of this in between flights, I'm having other issues. I met up with Aneka last night and stayed at Gregor's, a friend of a friend. They were a few hours late - no biggie - got myself a cell phone in the meantime at the airport. Well, this morning we were supposed to go to Livingstone in Zambia to meet up with Nicci & Cody for fun at Victoria Falls. We had a boarding passes and were at the gate. They told us the flight was delayed. We waited around, checking often to see if the shuttle came or if there was any line. Nothing. We kept waiting and waiting, and then we noticed they closed the flight!!! We missed the flight, eventhough we were standing out front of the gate. How the heck did that happen? No freakin' idea. Aneka was pretty pissed, not to mention myself. The next few hours I've been dealing with travel insurance again (which they said they aren't going to cover...BOO), and checking out other options to Livingstone. No overnight busses, and no other flights today. There's like 1 flight a day for all these airlines. Finally got a flight for tomorrow for like $250 (the lady felt sorry for me and somehow got me a better price) and we found a place next to the airport to stay the night (thanks Nicci & Code). Now it's too late to do anything over here, so pretty much the whole day is shot. This is day 2 in Jo-burg and I've done nothing. I also missed meeting up with Nicci & Code in Victoria Falls. Boo. Only get 1/2 day tomorrow to see Vic Falls before heading off to safari.

I'm hoping tomorrow's flight goes smoothly! I'm going to make sure I stand right next to the gate this time.

Twelve hours to go and there's already drama!

t-12 hours

After about a year and a half of planning, I can't believe this trip is finally going to happen! You know, the trip to South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia for World Cup, Victoria Falls, and safaris. Most people think I've already gone. You'd think with all the time I've had to plan this thing that I'd be packed by now. Nope. Anyhow, I have some drama already. I just found out they cancelled my flight from Maun, Botswana, to Jo-burg, SA. That causes me to miss my connecting flight to George, the flight I'm meeting Kimmie, Juli, Aneka, and Courtney on. Can you see me pulling out my hair now? There isn't an earlier flight to Jo-burg, and there isn't a later flight to George. If I miss this, then I don't get to ride the ostriches!! And we all know how I want a photo of me riding an ostrich. Anyhow, time for me to go home and pack my stuff. It's going to be a late night.

Here are a couple of photos from WC 2006 in Germany to get you all in the mood!! Can't wait!

Germany vs. Argentina (quarter final in Berlin)

USA vs. Ghana