An Ongoing Journey through Africa & The Middle East [PIC HEAVY!]
So it's been quite a while since I have had an ongoing thread on here and my last trip to Puerto Rico and the Dominican never even made it up! I got quite a few complaints about that so this time I've decided to try and do it right. Of course uploading pictures from Africa is not always that easy so we'll see how this goes!
We started with a flight from Anchorage to Seattle and then a nonstop to Durban. Which was a little intimidating at first but flying with Emirates Airlines is excellent. They have tons of free movies and tv as well as games with a screen at every seat. It's the first time I've actually gotten off an airline and had more to watch!
We rented a car for our whole trip there and the first thing we found was that Dubai's traffic is about as bad as it gets. It took us hours to find our hotel.
The next day we decided to visit the Dubai mall. After all we had heard there was ski resort in the mall and that was a curiosity. It also boasts being the biggest mall in the world.
It is indeed huge. They don't take things lightly here. This is the worlds largest indoor freestanding aquarium or something like that...either way it was amazing.
And we were introduced to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. They seem to have a lot of that, "in the world" going on here.
I need a bigger lens for that...
We also made sure to catch the water fountain in front of the mall. Very similar to the fountain at the Bellagio only with arabic music!
We went bowling...I won by one point.
One thing I noticed right away is that everyone seemed to have a job. The government really seemed to hire as many as they could for anyone one job. Look how many people were just getting this park set up!
This was the view from our hotel, the Al Sharq Hotel in Sharjah($55 us per night)
This is a clock at the Islamic museum in Sharjah.
Which also had excellent architecture.
There are mosques everywhere! There are also prayer rooms next to nearly every restroom.
This is a mix of old a new. Although its more of old and new design. The buildings could have been made at the same time as they are constantly using the old design to make new buildings which lends for a really unique and beautiful city design.
We took a trip into the desert on a tour since we figured out little rental car wouldn't make it 2 seconds on a sand dune (we almost tested this later). This trip, while generally enjoyable, was really just a tourist trap as expected. There was even a monkey tied up and looking not just a little sad and crazy.
This slightly inappropriate image shows his crazy side as he attacks a donkeys tail.
It is hard to see these animals tied up like this.
The next part of the tour was called dune bashing. Which was actually pretty fun. They guys push those toyotas to their tipping limit. Moving over the top of dunes and sliding down the sides at full speed sideways. Pretty sure there's nothing living out there, if there was, but it's fun for the dune junkie!
After that it was off to a tented city with falcon holding and crazy dancing which was topped off with a belly dancer, a two person camel, and the weirdest costumes I've seen. But dinner was good and the trip was overall enjoyable.
That was the first leg of our trip through Dubai and the UAE, sorry it's pretty much all the normal touristy things. We then hopped in the car for a totally different type of sights in Oman where we found sand beaches and beautiful mountains. That post is next. Oh and we have 3 months left of this trip....so this post is going to quite long!
We started with a flight from Anchorage to Seattle and then a nonstop to Durban. Which was a little intimidating at first but flying with Emirates Airlines is excellent. They have tons of free movies and tv as well as games with a screen at every seat. It's the first time I've actually gotten off an airline and had more to watch!
We rented a car for our whole trip there and the first thing we found was that Dubai's traffic is about as bad as it gets. It took us hours to find our hotel.
The next day we decided to visit the Dubai mall. After all we had heard there was ski resort in the mall and that was a curiosity. It also boasts being the biggest mall in the world.
It is indeed huge. They don't take things lightly here. This is the worlds largest indoor freestanding aquarium or something like that...either way it was amazing.
And we were introduced to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. They seem to have a lot of that, "in the world" going on here.
I need a bigger lens for that...
We also made sure to catch the water fountain in front of the mall. Very similar to the fountain at the Bellagio only with arabic music!
We went bowling...I won by one point.
One thing I noticed right away is that everyone seemed to have a job. The government really seemed to hire as many as they could for anyone one job. Look how many people were just getting this park set up!
This was the view from our hotel, the Al Sharq Hotel in Sharjah($55 us per night)
This is a clock at the Islamic museum in Sharjah.
Which also had excellent architecture.
There are mosques everywhere! There are also prayer rooms next to nearly every restroom.
This is a mix of old a new. Although its more of old and new design. The buildings could have been made at the same time as they are constantly using the old design to make new buildings which lends for a really unique and beautiful city design.
We took a trip into the desert on a tour since we figured out little rental car wouldn't make it 2 seconds on a sand dune (we almost tested this later). This trip, while generally enjoyable, was really just a tourist trap as expected. There was even a monkey tied up and looking not just a little sad and crazy.
This slightly inappropriate image shows his crazy side as he attacks a donkeys tail.
It is hard to see these animals tied up like this.
The next part of the tour was called dune bashing. Which was actually pretty fun. They guys push those toyotas to their tipping limit. Moving over the top of dunes and sliding down the sides at full speed sideways. Pretty sure there's nothing living out there, if there was, but it's fun for the dune junkie!
After that it was off to a tented city with falcon holding and crazy dancing which was topped off with a belly dancer, a two person camel, and the weirdest costumes I've seen. But dinner was good and the trip was overall enjoyable.
That was the first leg of our trip through Dubai and the UAE, sorry it's pretty much all the normal touristy things. We then hopped in the car for a totally different type of sights in Oman where we found sand beaches and beautiful mountains. That post is next. Oh and we have 3 months left of this trip....so this post is going to quite long!
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I am so proud to have contributed heavily to this.
Awesome photos so far, I look forward to many more! Oh, and don't close your eyes without your camera tied to your hand. 'Cause it sucks when it's stolen. For all of us.
www.morffed.com
Will do! I've been a little nervous with my camera and gear so far. Were in Durban now and it's always somewhat of a question as to whether or not I should take out the camera!
On another note, we went to the emirates with all the warnings from others about how dangerous the area can be. We get there and the first thing we read is that Dubai has one of the lowest crime rates in the world...American paranoia strikes again. Omanis are very generous and nice and you can essentially sleep on beaches all over the entire country. Its easier to sleep there then Texas.
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
Oh and that monkey was a baboon. Picky, picky. I know but there is a difference.
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
We spent our first night on the beach in a small town called As Sifah which surprised us. We had heard that everyone in these countries was going to try and kill us constantly! Being Alaskans we get an even greater dose of paranoia then they get in the lower 48. We stayed in the car because we hadn't yet bought a tent. Because of the humidity and heat it was probably the most uncomfortable night of sleeping I've had in years…but the sights were amazing in the morning.
I just barely caught a crab.
Shasta in the morning with our car which we named Pinto Bean.
As Sifah is a beautiful town with miles of empty beaches that is gearing up for a future of tourism. With mountains behind and a crystal clear sea in front it is worth a visit for sure!
We took a little hike down the beach, you can put a tent down anywhere and going around the corners just lead to more beautiful beaches.
A view of Shasta with the beach of As Sifah in the background without a single person on it.
Unfortunately the rocks are pretty sandy and these on the beach were not very good to climb.
Empty beaches, mountains, and Pinto Bean.
There making the effort to keep it clean…unfortunately it's not working yet. But they did have lots of people out cleaning.
Goats.
Spiders
We pulled off the road and took a small hike to top of a peak which gave us a view of the their mountains and it also gave me my first snake interaction of the week.
Here is a picture of its tail. I didn't take any more pictures of it because it had viper like flanks on its head and I decided to leave it alone.
More beautiful scenery.
And windy roads.
We assumed they filled in this area for some type of industrial area. When we looked closer we noticed it was for a soccer field.
Their ketchup was decent but had an odd taste to it, too sweet.
But their food was delicious.
Their boats are called Dhows and look like viking ships of past.
Their canyons usually include watery areas called Wadi's although not all Wadi's have water. I'm still not sure what actually constitutes a Wadi.
Our trip took us to Hoota Cave. We were basically just driving and following the signs that looked fun. Unfortunately the cave was closed but they didn't feel like posting it until we arrived at the front gate!
But it had already lead us into the mountains so we headed further into the beautiful peaks to see what we could find. The roads reminded me a lot of the deserts in the US.
The peaks in the area are incredible and have some crazy canyons. None of which little Pinto Bean was going to make it to.
The road were treacherous in areas, so much so I didn't drive down them, which is unusual for me!
With small cities accessible only by a 4x4.
On the way back we also stopped by a fort and took pictures. The hillsides are filled with forts of all different types and ages but we only stopped at this one, which was closed. Doh.
We drove on afterword toward Emirates.
After a wonderful few days we decided to drive back to Emirates for our flight of Dubai. It didn't leave for another day or two but we wanted to make sure we were back and able to find a place to stay. We drove the rest of the day and ended up about an hour outside of Dubai and slept on the side of the road. I just didn't have the energy to drive into town. The next morning I woke up and felt instantly sad about leaving Oman. I really wanted to be back in Oman in the quiet country with the less crazy drivers and the more beautiful countryside. So much so that I actually turned the car north and drove right through Dubai and toward the Musundam Peninsula, which is part of Oman. We drove back through an Omani Checkpoint for the third time in two days and into a small town where we found a small tour group doing Dhow rides and snorkeling trips. Since the trip was pretty affordable we hopped on and found ourselves riding one of these very stable and comfortable ships. They obviously know how to travel!
When you get on the boat it is just a bunch of pillows and carpets, quite a comfortable ride where they bring you delicious tea.
The waters were crystal clear with an adequate amount of sea life. Nothing over abundant but some nice sights for sure.
Now thats cushy living….
Sea life…
The sights of the Musundam Peninsula and the Straight of Hormuz are incredible. The mountain peaks rise directly from the sea to thousands of feet hight. It is such an impressive sight that it is often called Norway of Arabia.
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On our way back we saw dolphins which capped off a beautiful and relaxing day in Oman.
Impressive driving by our captain.
One last impressive mountain guarded by a castle.
We drove back that night finally happy and the next morning we were on a plane bound for Durban, South Africa. I have to admit to being nervous, I have friends that won't touch foot down in South Africa because they are afraid of being instantly murdered or robbed. I honestly have no idea what to expect….and that is exciting.
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update: a few hours later I receive an email from KLM with cheap flights to Oman book today only travel in the next year - it MUST be fate!
Jase // www.stonesque.com
Looks like an awesome, awesome trip!
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Enjoying the trip! Keep it coming...
Ansteys is on a different beach 20 minutes from Downtown Durban and much quieter. It is also an excellent price especially for camping.
The city has much to due, unless you lose your king.
We continued the path of a real tourist and went to the large mall called Gateway to try and find some sandals. Instead we found a wave machine! I had always wanted to ride on one and found it to hard to pass up. We got an hour of just Shasta and I, it is a lot like snowboarding!
We finally drove on to our main reason for the trip. A wedding in Cintsa of some of our friends from Alaska. They were from South Africa and had been in the area before. The first thing we did was go to a Inkenkwezi Private Game Reserve and pet a full grown Cheetah. The loud purrrrrr sounded like a cat inflicted with the tones of Barry White.
Despite their friendliness they still looked fierce.
There were also many other animals milling about, such as Warthogs.
We then headed to a place called the Lion Park. Everything in South Africa is a game reserve of some kind so its pretty hard not to tourist into it. Might as well dive in head first.
I suppose if you've pet a Cheetah, you need to pet a lion cub.
The cuteness is nearly unbearable.
I look over my shoulder and see that I am being watched...
They have a few other animals, which probably should be set free in their native lands as they appear a little more caged the comfortable. But i still wouldn't want to walk in their with them.
I think they are watching me, not as friend or foe...but more as a snack before the Impala entree.
This one looks innocent enough...
And then theres those teeth....
Then the party began. There was something like 15 Alaskan's who flew down for this and their family from NZ and South Africa, it was one of many Braai nights!
There is lots to do around Cintsa, which is near East London. We stopped randomly by a game reserve called Areena and there was a tame Giraffe walking around. You can get pretty close to these guys although its best to keep your distance.
And I mean you can get realllly close.
They also have some other animals such as the one that this prehistoric looking foot belongs too.
One of our friends, Tara, decided she wanted a nice Ostrich Coat. Unfortunately it just wasn't big enough.
That is one ugly bird.
While we stayed at the Cintsa houses we had plenty of fun surfing and swimming. In fact there was a 5 meter great white spotted off this beach the week we were swimming, yikes! Thats a first for me, swimming with great whites around.
We then got another day at Inkenkwezi for the wedding lunch and our first time seeing Elephants in Africa. They are amazing.
These little brothers were also enjoying the elephants.
There were also many birds
There was a short trip to Nahoon Dam that we stopped by on a random drive around South Africa. Mmmm...drinking water....
On this drive we found an elephant sanctuary where they let you ride them. Shasta was pretty excited so off we went!
All of the trainers had been formally trained and certified as handlers / trainers in Zimbabwe where they were from. The unemployment rate in Zimbabwe is over 80%!!
You then get to feed them a bucket of food which is like eating one M&M to an elephant.
Feeding an elephant is a really interesting experience. They have trunks that work as vacuums and their mouths are strange.
You can actually put your hand right inside of their mouths and feel their strange tounges pull at the food.
Elephants are pretty wonderfull
But there not always happy when you are out of food!
So we said our goodbyes they went off to eat a real meal.
Kwantu Elephant Sanctuary had another spot called Kwantu Game Lodge so we headed over there too to see some more lions.
Then it was back to the Cintsa house...for some monkeys.
Okay thats all I have for now that are uploaded. There are still tons to upload that I just won't get a chance to unless I can find some fast internet. I'll keep on that hunt! Thanks everyone for your awesome replies too! I enjoy posting this trips but its not as much fun to post them when nobodys looking!
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
My last post ended with a monkey...so this one shall start the same. Here are the same monkeys!
Inbetween the fun stuff there was plenty of this to be had...We have finished quite a few books.
I read an African guide book once where the guy made fun of birders then eventually became one. I could see how one would be a birder in Africa.
Mike, Shasta, and I decided we needed to pull out our climbing gear and get it on the rock! So we found a place that was nearby in a town called East London. It recommended bringing a machete for snakes...and people. Basic African advice. We headed to the trail and finally found our place to park, after a short crossing of the Nahoon River we found the crag.
We got on a few routes and I braved taking out the camera in such an area.
Shasta always seems to be climbing with a smile...
We climbed only a few routes, I got about 7 laps in and we found out how out of climbing shape we really are! We packed up the gear with sad faces knowing we wouldn't get to take it out again until Namibia and then headed back to meet with everyone else. The next day we drove toward Sodwana Bay for some diving and on the way we stopped at Shakaland which is a representation of a Zulu town that was made for the movie King Shaka. It was interesting and had a bit of history as well.
We then went into this hut where we watched them do a traditional zulu dance. The interesting part was that there were girls in the dancing of around age 14 or so and they had no tops on. The adult women did though, so it was quite interesting and I decided that I felt to weird taking photos and skipped it on the camera. After this we would do a short stop in Sodwana Bay and then to the amazing wildlife that is Kruger Park!
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John once said "Why is everything in the desert trying to kill me?" and thats just what it seems like sometimes!
Once we left Shakaland we headed toward Sodwana Bay where we did some amazing diving! ...my gopro2 won't focus underwater for some reason (any ideas?) so despite tons of photos and video underwater...I got nothing. Oh well. It was a fun adventure with the Alaskan's getting into our wetsuites was the best part.
It required a very delicate dance followed by a triple lutz into warrior pose.
This is the first wild mongoose I think I had ever seen!
After Sodwana bay we decided to head to Kruger. We were going to get a slightly later start then the rest of the group and then we got really smart and decided to take a short cut. We left before 5am and drove toward a town called Jozini...or something like that, we certainly never made it there. After a few miles the pavement disappeared to decent road with some tar on it. Then that left and we were on a decent dirt road. That soon turned to some massive potholes and dips which I proceeded to take at about 60mph. Needless to say, or necessary to say, we hit something hard and got a flat tire somewhere along this dirt road...in the dark....in the middle of nowhere. We changed the tire in record time, although we lost a hub cap somewhere, and turned around to get back to the main road. That was about all he of the adventure I wanted before sunrise. The rest of the drive was long and uneventful, taking a total of over 12 hours. We finally arrived at Kruger Park, and if you don't like animals then the rest of this post is going to really suck for you!
Within our first hour in the park, after we found out that our booking company forgot to book us and that everything was full, we found a Rhino right on the side of the road. I have to say its the first time in my life I've heard Shasta shout "RHINOOOO!!!"
He proceeded to lumber across the road right in front of us!
What an introduction to Kruger! So now theres going to be lots of photos and much less commentary. So...enjoy!
The deer of South Africa (Impala)
The Blue Wildebeast
A very injured looking Greater Galago (Bushbaby)
The animal that kills more people than any other in Africa.
Greater Hornbill
Warthogs (Pumba)
Biggest peekaboo game ever.
Mmm....crocodiles...
There you are!
Greater Heron
Malachite Kingfisher!
I now have about 1000 pictures of elephants, and every day I still take more!
Considered by many to be one of the most beautiful birds in southern Africa. The lilac breasted roller.
The Ptarmigan of Africa. The Spurfowl.
Most of the days we drove in our little blue car nicknamed Blue Bear and the other groups went in the vans. One day we were driving along and ran into them where they were excited to tell us about two cheetahs, probably the rarest animal in the park. We quickly drove in that direction only to stumble upon some rhinos as well! How could we resist the opportunity?
Wide load coming through!
Now those are some big horns!
We then were lucky enough to see the Cheetah! They had been walking on the road and posted for just a few photos in the fading light.
After petting the cheetahs we had to remind ourselves these animals are quite wild.
Beautiful.
It was time to head back, you have to be inside the camp gate by sunset our else you get a huge fine. But there was still enough time to take a picture of this fine gentleman.
And so far this may be my favorite bird from Africa. The Martial Eagle.
So that is it for this post...the rest of the posts are going to be quite similar but with many more animals and some really neat ones! Very awesome!
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Chacma Baboons
I really don't think I even want to know what lives in that bundle.
So we are driving along through Kruger National Park, still in South Africa, with the windows down and Shasta at the wheel when she stops and says "What is that?" Just outside of my window, directly facing me is a puff adder. We have heard these can strike a balloon twice before it pops! So I quietly ask Shasta to continue driving so that it is not looking me square in the eye. We figured it must be full of food because it looked quite fat. Turns out that they puff up when threatened.....
This big elephant walked right to us when Shasta was driving. She was getting pretty nervous but it walked right around us.
Then decided to get dirty (it keeps the horseflies from biting).
Caught these two doing a pretty cool dance!
There were buffalo everywhere.
And Zebra.
We were treated to finding a Hyena with babies right off the road!
Time to get back before sunset!
We saw just a glimpse of Honey Badgers!
We went on a night drive and we felt really lucky to se a Serval. These are beautiful cats!
Oh and these arent bad either.
We were in our open game vehicle when a pride of 7 females and one male came walking driving at us. Then layed down right next to the vehicle. It was crazy thinking about a lion being right next to us and there we are taking pictures with a flash right in their eyes.
These are wild lions, they are not tame!
Does she look hungry?
This guy sure did, but he got some impala!
I don't like that look you're giving me.
Waterbuck.
a bird.
A vervet monkey with some colorful.....eyes.
The landscape along with Shasta, Tara, and Sarah.
Water Monitors are awesome.
Lilac Breasted Roller, thats probably a tarantula in its mouth!
Cool Owls.
Some hunters dream waterbuck.
A hungry hungry hippo.
A thoughtful baboon.
Morning mist.
Steenbock?
Some poachers shot a rhino but it didn't die. So they followed it for a few weeks and then shot it and the rangers cut the horn so poachers wouldn't get it. It is a sad common story here. The lions found the rhino and laid claim.
Not cool.
An endangered hornbill.
Our last night we spent near some buffalo that were camped on the road. It was nice to shoot them in the sunset.
After that night we said our goodbyes to the Alaskan's and then headed onto the next portion of the journey. We stopped at a massive baobab tree along the way.
This is my favorite photo of the tree, and shasta took it! Except theres a monkey in it.
Our last night in South Africa would be spent at a place called Camp Africa at Louis Trichart. Kind of an odd little town but the forest surrounding the camping area was beautiful!
And that is it for South Africa....whew. I'd be surprised if anyone actually looked at all of those! And now I'm going to say there is another place if anyone wants to see them without all my chatter. That is here:
http://www.kelseygrayphotography.com/Africa/South-Africa-May-2013/
Now i am going to start writing about Botswana...which will just be a ton more animals but at least they will often be doing new and exciting things! Like elephants swimming!
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Botswana was our first experience with Pans which are old lakes that no longer hold water, except at rainy season. They are wide open expanses often full of life. Pretty cool. This is Nata Bird Sanctuary.
Shasta looking cool with our trusty rental, Blue Bear, on the only dirt road we could drive in Botswana without a 4x4.
Wildebeast
Pelicans
We camped at a place called Pelican Lodge that did a really good job of taking care of us! Each campsite had its own "Ablution" blocks. Which is just a fancy term for bathroom. Our's came complete with two resident black widows. For some reason I had some bad dreams.
After Nata sanctuary we headed toward the northern border area and a park called Chobe which has a migrating heard of 40,000 elephants. The park lists a total of about 130,000 elephants as its inhabitants!
We stayed at a lodge called Togo Lodge. Not bad camping but they neglected to mention the night club that would have obnoxiously loud music every night we were there. Oh well, it was a beautiful place to spend the day.
On a daily outing around the town of Kasane we found some African Skimmers which are endangered birds. They are quite odd as their top beak is much shorter then the bottom.
We took a single day trip into Chobe by game drive, we couldn't bring our own car because the entire park is 4x4 only. There were more buffalo to be seen.
And the ever common Giraffe.
And the always cunning Vervet Monkey.
The Jackels caught a Steenbock!
Gross alert!
Do not screw with a honey badger.
I had hoped to see a sable but this was the best I could do!
Those balloons stuck in the mud are Hippos.
I was told this is the largest bird in the world that can truly hover. The pied kingfisher. It was cool to watch them hunt!
African Darter
Okay thats good for now! Hopefully the pictures are enjoyed. I've been having a blast taking them!
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And yes, people do look at all your photos.
www.morffed.com
Less true for the H3's than the H2's. The 'port' on the H2 is what causes the problem. On the H3, it's flat resulting in better UW performance.
And everyone looks at your pictures & reads your writings Kelsey
:dgrin (only kidding, Ian!)
Just awesome.
The only things missing from your photos are Leopards, which aren't the easiest to spot, especially up close. Great variety, though!
Jase // www.stonesque.com
So I will continue one. The last post we were halfway through our boat ride. We stumbled on a nice collection of Nile Monitors
It looks like these two had just finished up doing some lizard business, poor guys fast asleep.
Everyone you talk to here tells you not to swim in the water. Then they point out why.
66 razor sharp teeth...oh and they can be 150 years old.
There were so many amazing elephants.
We pulled our boat into a channel between a small island called Sedudu and the shoreline of Botswana. The small island of Sedudu is almost like a floating patch of grass but it is so concentrated with wildlife that Botswana and Namibia like to say they almost went to war over it. Every evening the elephants swim from the shore to eat on the island.
Ok there are a lot of elephant photos, but how can you blame me? They are amazing!
Here the babies just hold onto the tails of the parents and try to stay attached.
Ally oop
Elephant Fight!!!
I really liked this image, it made me feel as though I was in the grass with them.
The island is also covered in some very cool birds. Anyone know what kind of bird this is?
The bird version of "What the heck?"
And then, "oh its just you."
Disappointed he didn't eat the bird? Ya, I was too.
These were some of my favorite elephant photos.
They use the dirt to keep the flies off.
Their skin is so sensitive that it hurts when the flies bite. Yet they can eat camel thorns. Weird.
Dragonflies
In a list of photographic opportunities, elephants at sunset rule supreme.
This effect is not photoshopped. It was just that good of a sunset to get in camera!
And that is the end of our Botswana boat ride. Although it seems like we didn't see much I feel like we got a nice taste of Botswana. Next time we are coming back with a 4x4 for sure! Now it's off to Zambia.
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We drove up to the Pontoon area where a guy came up to us asking to help us, he was followed by a group of men doing the same. I talked briefly with the first guy who came up and he said he would help us get through customs. I had heard this border post was fraught with difficulties so I considered it, but I also have travelled enough to know the drill. I asked him what he expected for doing so. He gave me a cost of 100 pula, or about $10 us. I've never actually accepted this type of risky endeavor but I figured I'd give him a chance. We tried several unsuccessful attempts at getting Zambian Kwatcha in Botswana but they seem to avoid it like the plague, it turns out you need either that and US dollars for all the different fees. At this point we didn't have any US money. At first we had to pay the pontoon man who accepted only Kwatcha which of course I had to "borrow" from the guy who I accepted the help from. At this moment I've already decided it was a bad idea but was low on options since I didn't have any Zambian Currency. We then go to the customs counter where the price to enter the country is $50 per person. This is not 50 US$ or an equal amount in Kwatcha, no this is $50... The guy helping me says "Here, I have $100 US, you use it and pay me back." I say fine and accept my fate of being overly screwed at this point. We walk out of that office and toward the next where we need to pay road taxes and other annoying traveller fines when a man walks up to me demanding I pay him back for lending me money. Up to this point I actually assumed that it was just going to be the current guy I was working with that was going to try and screw me, I didn't know he had borrowed the money as well. Should have known. The guy demands $180, $100 to pay him back and $80 as his fee. We are slowly being surrounded by several other guys who should be worrying me, but I'm quickly becoming to overly frustrated at their aggressiveness. We settle on a much lower number where he still makes off with $10 or $15 US extra just so I can get the heck out of there. At this point I'm becoming very agitated as I do not like to be pushed around in such a way. I need to go into the road tax office and pay for that fine as well when another man who's been following us around and trying to "help" tries to take our passports and walk toward the office. I quickly have to rip them from his hands and find myself having to become more agressive then the agressors. I go in and get a fresh breath while the genuinely nice guy helps me get everything there sorted. When I go back out they are waiting for me, there is still one more place to go and spend more money that I do not have. You also need to buy insurance for your vehicle, another some odd $30 US for our stay. We go in and it looks like a broken shack, the bureau de change is next door (where I could have exchanged my pula to kwatcha) but it looks like it's never been open and would collapse if they opened the main beam supporting door. I leave Shasta in the car with the doors locked nearby, knowing she would hit the horn if things got interesting out there and at least I could see what the commotion was before the seemingly hundreds of people just milling about pulled me down. That seems a bit dramatic, and probably was, but at that point I was feeling robbed while I still had my belongings on me. I need to borrow more Kwatcha, I tell the guy if he gives me this money he is getting exactly that amount back, no more and no less. He agrees and I finish getting the insurance. Outside I am walking to my car and a guy comes up angry asking for his money that I borrowed from him. I gave a quick glance to the man helping me but I shouldn't have been surprised. This was par for the course. So now we are arguing as I am opening the door and getting into the car, they are trying to reach in and who knows where they are reaching around to as I bat arms away. They want another $50 US extra for leading me $30. It's getting ridiculous and I finally snap, I tell him he is getting exactly what I said I was going to give him and then I would pay back what I borrowed and that was it. I'm raising my voice as about as loud as I ever have travelling, which is probably more of a struggled through my teeth kind of berating. I push the money into his hands, tell the guy who was supposed to be helping me that he was fine but everyone around him sucks, also knowing that he obviously is in on their business as well. We drive off nearly running over those who almost refuse to get out of the way while demanding money. The rest of the drive is a tense, frustrated, and loud music calming hour to Livingstone with a sour Zambian first impression in our minds.
After a night at Jollyboys Backpackers Camp we were relaxed enough to check out the place. Since we heard that Victoria Falls was amazing we went right to it and got our first good taste of the expensive country that is Zambia. Seriously, this place is pricey! We rode elephants in South Africa for $40 per person. A nearly identical trip in Zambia is $150! It was $20 per person just to get in to the park for the falls. I feel it was worth it however, the falls are pretty amazing with an absolutely incredible amount of water falling at all times.
I only brought my gopro since any other type of camera would have been soaked. I looked as though I had just taken a shower. Shasta looked happy as well. As you can see it was a beautiful sunny day. It was strange standing in a downpour under perfectly blue skies.
It is quite the experience to stare right into the falls.
The mighty Zambezi River snakes it's way through the canyon.
I contemplated doing my first ever bungee jump off of the Victoria falls bridge but once again the expense made us reconsider. Now I think we are going to try it at the taller one in South Africa.
But the view would have been amazing from the middle.
Shasta trying to get the good shots.
Some of the local wildlife around the falls. They may look pretty harmless here but when we were walking up one of the trails we started hearing some of the baboons screaming and going crazy. As we got further up the trail we came to an older man and his two daughters hugging and frozen in place by an angry baboon. They were very frightened and calling for help. Thankfully I'd been in Africa for a month already and had this part down. I walked up and made normal "get out of here" and waving motions while stomping my foot. It worked well and the baboon let everyone by but not without some serious hissing.
This bridge leads from Zambia to Zimbabwe. Alas, we didn't want to pay for an extra visa to return so we didn't make it to Zimbabwe. Next time we will head over though!
A funny looking rock dassie or hyrax.
Heres some more pictures of the falls and bridge because it was a really amazing experience.
After another night at Jollyboys we managed to get out to Bovu island, which was our favorite part of Zambia. It is an island run for the last 30 years as a camp / lodge type. It's all help yourself type stuff and there is no power except that which the solar panel produces. It is usually just enough to power the radio at night. The rest of the time you are navigating by candles and watching the Zambezi flow by. You also pay a $25 fee that includes activities such as Fishing, which we did for 3 days.
The fishing was done in a dugout canoe. It was interesting being in this canoe and seeing hippos and crocodiles! One of the guys who worked the boats had recently had his canoe bit into 3 pieces by an angry hippo. He then had to swim to shore.
Sunset on the Zambezi. Zambia on the right and Zimbabwe on the left.
Everyone was fishing.
We were fishing for tiger fish but only caught juveniles so we didn't get to keep any. But you should see the teeth on those things! Shasta got some pictures and hopefully she'll get them up some time as well.
A fish eagle.
Local fishermen
And then after 3 nights it was time to head back to Livingstone. A short canoe right and then around and hour long drive.
After another nights stay at Jollyboys we happily headed toward Namibia, our experience at Bovu made Zambia worthwhile. We would like to come back and experience much more of this country in the future.
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When we left Livingstone we drove through Zambia on the way to the Namibian border. There was something we read that warned of more potholes then pavement in the Zambian roads and we were experiencing that! It was terrible. I was scared of going over 60km/hr at times because of the massive car swallowing holes that would appear. We finally made it to Namibia and cruised through the border. Once in Namibia there was a nice change of pace as the scenery opened up and the country seemed vast and relatively unpopulated.
The first night we stayed on the banks of the Okavango River, which was a beautiful place. I have pictures...there not up yet and frankly I'm not sure where my edits went! Oh well, I don't have many of that area so I'll find them later and upload them. Until then...
We continued on to a place that we were told we should go. The worlds largest meteorite just happened to be sitting on a farm somewhere in Namibia. We headed that direction and stumbled on the Hoba Meteorite.
That is ony big hunk of space metal! Do you see the peanut? (Joe Dirt reference)
After that quick stop we continued to our main destination, the Etosha Pan. This area had been highly recommended by everyone, including friends in Alaska who had been to Namibia. So we were excited to see it for ourselves. The first night we stayed just outside the park gate at a wonderful lodge called Onguma. Camping in these countries is really amazing. For $12 per person we got to sit in their really nice fancy lodge and use all their amenities. We definitely feel spoiled at times. This lodge also had a water hole that you could sit and watch while eating dinner.
Whenever we were at the lodge, this is where we would spend our time.
The next morning we woke at a brisk 5:40am so we could be in the gate right when it opened. After just a few hundred yards through the gate we saw our first Black Rhino of the trip. This is Africa's most endangered.
We quickly realized that much of the park has very open territory. This seemed a bit different then Kruger National Park in South Africa, where much of the park had taller bushes or trees (at least the parts we visited).
Also instead of a million Impala, we would now be seeing tons of Springbok. Which, I think look a bit more colorful anyhow.
Jackels are a constant fixture in these areas. Its the american version of a Coyote. So there will be plenty of pictures that I post of them from time to time.
And then we finally saw our first leopard. We had visited all these parks and done all of the game drives and had still never seen a leopard! Unfortunately the moment was fleeting. The leopard crossed the road in front of me and when I finally got to where it was it was walking away. Still it was great to finally see one!
Portions of the pan itself.
A Kori Bustard drinking, the largest bird in the world that can still fly.
A new animal for us to gaze upon, the Gemsbock or Oryx. This is an incredible animal that is also quite dangerous when driving around. Apparently at night, instead of the usual deer in the headlights look, they will actually put their horns down and charge your car head on....not good.
And as my last image for this post, there will be tons of pictures of these guys!
Alright thats it for my battery life!
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