After my harrowing departure from Uganda, I was more than
ready to settle into an easy, luxurious vacation in South Africa. And thanks to the meticulous planning of our
travel agent, that is exactly what was in store – down to bottles in champagne
in the room upon arrival. Nice touch, my
friend.
But more than anything…I was ready to see my parents. Although they do deserve effusive buttkissing
after this trip, I really do mean it. The
past few months of strangers and new customs left me ready to settle in with
the familiar -- even if that meant listening to bad jokes and repetitive
stories. ;)
JOHANNESBURG
This was really just a stopover en route to the game
parks. However, my parents were able to
pry me out of the shower and away from extravagant hotel buffet long enough to
visit Soweto – the township where thousands of black South Africans were forced
to relocate during apartheid. It is
famously where Nelson Mandela lived; although given that he went underground
and then was subsequently imprisoned, he actually didn’t spend much time there.
The township is absolutely sprawling. But to be honest, it was not as bad as I
expected. I had envisioned a shantytown
of corrugated metal and thatched roofs.
Instead the homes were built of brick with glass windows -- nicer than a
lot homes Uganda today!
To be fair, the area is being rejuvenated and spruced up in
the name of tourism (e.g., there is a strip of restaurants near the Mandela
home). And I am sure the emotional
aspects of being forced to live in segregation, under a slew of racist and
restrictive policies, created a different atmosphere then exists today. Perhaps in its day Soweto would have shocked
me, but today it simply didn’t.
SAFARI CAMPS:
The photos are really what you want from the safari, but unfortunately
the internet in Africa is non-cooperative at best. They are coming, I promise.
We stayed in two private game reserves on the outskirts of
Kruger National Park. We chose the
private reserves because there game trackers are allowed to drive off-road in
pursuit of the big five (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant and buffalo). In Kruger itself, you are restricted to the
paved roads but have the option of driving yourself. The park is not fenced so the animals pretty
much roam free all over the area.
Both camps were small and incredibly extravagant, with eight
or ten individual units housing two people max.
They were in the middle of the bush so it was not uncommon to see
animals on the grounds. At night, you needed
a flashlight-bearing escort to “protect” you from cantankerous rogue buffalo. At the first camp, I was warned about
entering the gym alone because they had recently found a leopard by the
treadmill. Patio doors had to be kept
locked, lest the baboons raid your mini-bar.
Although I would have sincerely enjoyed finding them sipping champagne
on my patio…
The schedule was about the same in both places:
5:15 am -- Wake up call/knock on the door
(Note: As I learned the hard way, do not be
showering when they knock. They will
call you three times and come to your door twice more to make sure you are
really awake)
5:30 am – Coffee
and tea on the patio
5:45 am – Morning game drive, complete with blankets and hot water
bottles because it gets COLD
8:00 am – Stop
for snacks and coffee/tea with Armarula (a Kahlua like liquor)
9:30 ish – Return
to camp for breakfast
(When
you arrive there will be a lavish buffet of fruit, yogurt, cereal, meat, cheese
and pastries already out. Do not be
fooled. This is pre-breakfast. You will also be expected to order something
hot. Plan accordingly).
10:30 am –
NAP! Or lay out on your patio by your
private pool. Whatever
1:30-3:00 – Lunch
(three-course with wine of course)
3:30 pm – High Tea
3:45 pm – Afternoon game drive
6:00 pm –
“sundowner” cocktails and snacks at sunset out in the bush
7:00 pm – Return
to camp, be greeted with a cocktail and a hot washcloth
7:45 pm –
Pre-dinner cocktails
8:00 pm – Dinner
either in the dining room at a “Boma” outdoor fire pit
You go out on the game drives in an open Land Rover with
three rows of seats, a driver, a tracker and a huge gun. We were fortunate enough to never have more
than 4-6 people total in our car. Trackers
were in constant communication about animal sightings or tracks and often
tag-teamed an area where they knew the animals were. On a few occasions, they even got out of the
truck to pursue animals on foot – slightly terrifying for us sitting ducks left
lost and gun-less.
These guys were fearless in their driving -- crashing
through brush and bulldozing small trees at will, just to get you a good
sighting. And by good sighting, I mean
within mere FEET on the animals. If it
didn’t mean certain death, you could reach out and touch them. They say as long as you don’t stand up and
alter the profile of the truck, the animals are used to the shape and do not
view it as a threat. I had lions look
me in the eye from feet away and then just yawn; a leopard brush up against the
truck tires.
You stay with the same group on the drives and actually have
dinner with them and your guide. While I
personally was a little tired of small talk, the steady flow of all inclusive
booze aided the conversation and we met some really interesting people. Of particular note was an Israeli family that
turned out to also be traveling to the second camp. They invited us to a private dinner by the
bonfire, and were a great addition to the trip.
Gave someone else for my Dad to regale with his stories J
Some highlights and notes from the two camps:
Leopard Hill’s – Sabi Sands
·
Sabi Sands has a year-round water source and was
considered the most lush of the two.
However it was still winter so things were not as green as I had
imagined, but that did make for easier game viewing (no pesky leaves)
·
This was the more luxurious of the camps. A little more modern in décor, with nice
touches like heated bathroom floors, free sun hats, bedtime animal stories and
a wider selection of snacks and booze.
·
The dining facility was set high on a hill
overlooking a watering hole. During
lunch, we actually watched several elephants come strolling through. Our rooms also had balconies with similar
views, which was amazing.
·
Some of the outstanding animal sightings here:
o
A leopard dragging an antelope into a clearing
o
Sitting in the middle of a herd of 30-50
elephants
o
Two male lions feasting on a cape buffalo
o
Two lionesses giving their cubs a bath
o
Four wild dogs (a rare sighting!) tearing apart
an antelope
King’s Camp – Timbavati
·
This camp was much more colonial in design,
featuring big chandeliers and ornate furniture.
The bathroom wall was also floor to ceiling one-way glass, so you could
watch the antelope and baboons from the can.
Plus, they ran you a hot bath a night.
Yes, please.
·
Here they did a “bush breakfast” where they set
up a big griddle and all the fixings in the middle of the safari bush. Our driver told us we were rushing to see two
rhinos fighting, but instead it was time for Armarula and a feast.
·
Some of the outstanding sightings:
o
Our first zebra!
o
A leopard with 2 one-month old cubs
o
Following a pack of male lions on a nighttime
hunt (unsuccessful)
o
Giraffes making a pathetic attempt to run across
a dry riverbed
Although I was sad to be leaving the animals, I was particularly
excited to see Cape Town. First up on
the agenda was a drive out to the Cape of Good Hope. This scenic route wrapped around the mountains
and offered sweeping views of the beaches below. We stopped for lunch at delicious fish
restaurant on the shore and even visited an ostrich farm…because why not! The afternoon concluded with a trip to
Boulder Beach to see the penguin colony (!!)
South Africa is well known for its wine regions, so on the
second day we set out for a taste. And
taste we did. I became a particular fan
of pintoage, a new type of grape I had not tasted before. I also had a wonderful chardonnay/ pinot noir
blend that I was wholly unprepared for.
Well stocked with bottles, we stopped off to view an elaborate private
car collection – an appeasement to my father.
Our travel agent, the organized man he was, had even made
reservations for us at some of the trendiest South African restaurants. A five-course gastropub with wine pairing, an
extravagant fresh seafood dinner on the harbor and finally a traditional South
African restaurant complete with face painting and hand washing. Not to mention some pizza snuck in for good
measure. It is official – my pants no longer button. So much for Africa skinny….
The final day we took a tour of Cape Town itself, concluding
with a trip to the launch station for the cable car to the top of Table
Mountain. Unfortunately, the cable car itself
was closed for maintenance but the views from the station were pretty great as
it was. People go parasailing right off
the cliff there, which looked both terrifying and awesome.=
All in all, South Africa was an amazing experience. I am sure much of that had to do with the
luxurious accommodations; I certainly didn’t see the native South Africa. But on a whole the country appeared much more
modern than the other places I have been.
Our tour guide in Johannesburg says much of that is due to the
investments made in advance of the 2010 World Cup. I am sure another large part of it comes from
the well-established tourist industry. Either way, it is certainly a place I
would come back to….perhaps even live?!
The best part of this trip: it got my parents to
Africa. A place they never thought of
traveling and a continent whose mere mention would induce cringes. And now, they are talking about where else
they’d like to go here (Kenya for the great migration? Even Uganda for the gorillas!) I tell ya…this place does have its appeal.
On to Cameroon!!!
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