Old friends, new friends and lots of animals

We are back in Gabs after 12 days of adventure. We've learned that expectations and reality do not always match up but in the end it doesn't matter because every experience is unique and in this case overwhelming and special.

So we arrived in Maun on October 31st and met up with Steve and his wife Maps. This was great, we all caught up from where we had left off, which was 2 years ago for me but 20 years ago for Rich. Steve is happily settled and Maps knew everyone in town so we had a real taste of Africa, with local food and some local night life.

After a a lovely night in a beautiful lodge, we set off with our guides and 2 support staff on safari. This is where the fun really started...some of it expected and some of it very unexpected and not always what we would have chosen. We visited 3 separate game reserves in the swamp area, Kwai, Savuti and Tchingapan. All were quite different and beautiful in their own way; Kwai had a variety of watery landscapes and some open areas, Savuti was less varied but we camped by the river which was lovely and Tchingapan was remote, very dry but lacking in other tourists, which was a treat.We were well looked after by the staff, who put up our tents, dug our loo and cooked delicious food on an open fire.Our guides were another story and by day 3 we had learned rather more about them than we had bargained for...professional boundaries were crossed quicker than we could say 'leopard at 3 o clock' and Rich and I found ourselves acting as both relationship counsellors and mental health practitioners as the situation unravelled- not helped by the quantities of gin, red wine and whisky consumed rapidly before our eyes.However as always this enhanced the overall experience, the non conventional approach to clients on safari meant that we saw far more than the average tourist and made the trip unique and more intimate ( perhaps sometimes too intimate. for comfort). A trip like this probably wouldn't be for everyone but it was probably the only trip Rich and I could have had.
So the wild life highlights were many and I have hundreds of photos and some rather nice footage of swimming elephants and mating lions. We saw loads of lions in all 3 locations, some we saw at night and then tracked them again in the morning, some were so close to our camp that we could hear them all night ( this was a positive experience!!). We saw  wild dogs, hyenas with a kill, jackals catching doves, millions of elephants and loads of different exotic birds and eagles galore.We fished in the river and ate the bream we caught-I really enjoyed this and might even fish again when I get home, we drove up a sheer rocky hill to watch the sunset,we saw some rock paintings and learned all about trees. It was GREAT.

We ended our trip in Victoria Falls Zimbabwe, which was surprisingly different from Botswana. The Falls were magical and well worth the $30 fee. People are very poor in Zim and so we got lots of hassle from people trying to sell us stuff, Rich found this harder to cope with than me and so I was charged to send them on their way with one of my big smiles. It worked well and we had a good time and some lovely local food at Mama Africa's- well worth a visit.

We're off again on Thursday. A night in Pretoria and then a week or so in the Drakensberg mountains-I need some exercise!!!

photos

Mochuda, Eid and down on the farm

We've been very busy since my last update, unfortunately I'm on a computer that won't let me upload photos  but the photographic evidence will be posted soon.

We visited the neighbouring town of Mochuda and learned all about the Bakatla tribe at the museum there. This was really interesting, lots of artefacts and photos to look at and a helpful guide, who was patient and helpful as Rich asked his usual number of questions. We went to the launch of a new diamond cut, the Swana at the posh shopping mall and have wangled a trip to see diamonds being cut, polished etc. Friday was Eid and Richard and I had to dress appropriately to visit the priest and his family ( not sure I should post this photo- we make very convincing muslims and I don't want to alarm anyone). We then had to spend the day feasting and meeting hundreds of Iqbal and Waheeda's relatives at various lunch and supper venues. I think I've got the family tree sorted now although confusingly Iqbal's youngest sister and his niece are very similar looking. The food was mazing but old greedy guts here was defeated and had to go home early with tummy ache!
Saturday morning we left bright and early for Iqbal's game far, about an hour and a half away. This was a fantastic experience and really got us in the mood for our safari proper next week. We spotted giraffes, impala, wilder beast, kourou, stern bok, gem bok and some exciting birds including a horn bill which is quite rare and a Kori bustard which was huge. The biggest highlight for me was getting on a horse after 35 years and cantering to my heart's content. I enjoyed it so much that I went back twice for more. I'm completely hooked and can't wait to get back into the saddle again. We're now back in Gabs and Richard and Iqbal are watching the Liverpool match, I'm hoping to catch a bit of Torres later too. Can't believe we have only been here a week, we have done so much already and we still have lots to look forwards to. We have a 4.30 start on Wednesday to get to Maun and then onto the Okavango Delta. I have no idea what internet access will be like but I'm hoping the first and last lodge will have some wi-fi. I will also try and upoad some photos.

Early days in Gabarone

The wi-fi seems stable at the moment so can just update on our movements since Sunday night. We have been very well looked after by Iqbal and Wahida, who have shown us around the game reserve in the city and taken us to the Livingstone Memorial just outside the city. Gabarone is very modern in places but is not like a European city with a dedicated town centre. There are lots of Western style shopping malls and Nandos is very big here.
Iqbal's  business is diagnostic testing and yesterday we went to his lab where we gave some of our blood to be tested. One of us found this a bit overwhelming and had to lie down on the floor, complaining of feeling faint. I'm not mentioning any names..but it wasn't me. We are celebrating Eid with the family on Friday which will involve a very early morning trip to the Mosque and then a huge family meal ( there is an extended family of over 100). We are spending the weekend at Iqbal's game farm, where we hope to see leopards  and cheetahs and then on Wednesday we travel to the north on safari-we're going firstly to the Okavang and then to Chobe...as well as a quick hop into Zimbabwe to see Victoria Falls.We will be back in Gabs on the 12th Nov. I can't believe I was ever on a ship, let alone in Antwerp for a week. Richard and I are still talking and now that we are staying at the house we have separate rooms at last bliss:)

Ship Shape

Days travelled-27
Ports visited -2
Miles travelled-5437
Equator crossed- October 9th but it was touch and go as the engine broke down and we just drifted     over.
Visits to Bridge- 80
Abandon Ship drills- 3 (only drills!!)
Wildlife sightings- dolphins, turtle, flying fish, shearwaters, seals
Imaginary bird sightings- 1
Polish words learned- 50.( including useful words like frog and net curtains)
Polish Grammar mastered- 0 (contrary to book purchased on Amazon Polish is not easy!)
Number of times teased about puchase of above book- 50
Number of Polish history facts learned- 50 (thanks to our helpful and knowledgable steward Mareck)
Time taken to learn that the answer to all Mareck's questions is Poland- 2 hours
Books read - 11 ( including David Copperfield which is very long)
Box sets consumed- 5 (also watched a few films, Richard LOVED Bad Ass)
Calories consumed- too many to mention. Polish food is filling and fattening
Parties attended -2, one on land and one Neptune Party on board. Richard leaves at 9.30 and Ali parties until 3.30.
Photos deleted after Neptune party - 5
Hangovers- 1 (see above)
Days spend wishing she was not on a ship- 1 (see above)
Attempts to blame hangover on seasickness- 10
People convinced by attempts - 0
Richard's obsessions- Man flu, iron deficiency,roughage intake, cement mixer (location of), horizon ( calculation of distance from ship) code word puzzles.
Arguments with Rich- 1/2 ( geography rather than obsession related)
Overall experience- 9/10
Likelihood of repeating the experience- 80%
Likelyhood of spelling likeli hood correctly- 0%

At its best the journey was relaxing, peaceful and full of laughs. It really is just you and the vast vast ocean. At its worst it could be boring, same old faces, same old routine and I underestimated how much I would miss my friends and family. But the worst moments were few and far between and in my case post Neptune Party related.It was a drag being stuck outside Walvis Bay for 4 days but it was better than being at work!

We are now in Botswana, after a brief stop over in Windhoek Namibia. We have experienced minibus travel Africa style which had its hairy moments, mainly due to some fellow passenger necking whisky and beer during the whole journey but the last 2 days have found us in the lapof luxury. Richard's friend Iqbal and his family have welcomed us with open arms and have planned an amazing trip for us while we are here. We feel very lucky.

Antwerp

I'm here, currently struggling with a weird keyboard in an internet cafe, unable to upload photographic evidence but here in Antwerp nevertheless. My journey from Birmingham was easy and Richard was waiting for me at Antwerp station, which is to quote Richard a 'magnificent edifice' ( he's said that quite a few times). We've decided to stay put here for a few days, there is plenty to do and we should be able to board the Amber Lagoon earlier than we thought on Friday. Today we're going to visit Rueben's house, eat fish and go and watch Chelsea play football in a bar ( when I say Chelsea I mean of course Torres). Last night we stumbled across an Irish bar showing football and I got to watch my favourite Portuguese manager celebrate Real Madrid's victory in style- sorry Jake but it was a great game and the bar was bizarrely full of Spaniards so it would have been impolite to support anyone else.
Don't suppose I'll be watching much football in the next 3 weeks so thought I'd make the most of it now. Next update may not be until Cape Town, although there may be a stop in Lisbon. I am fully stocked with sea sickness medication and ready to go!!

So near and yet so far

I am still in the country, admittedly I've left Brighton and said my sad farewells to all my lovely friends but as yet I am still in the UK. I've spent the last week celebrating my dad's 70th, organising my son for Uni, catching up with my family and enjoying the fact that I'm not at work. I finally leave on Tuesday 18th and all being well will meet up with Richard in Antwerp ( how glamorous).

My early predictions about the boat/ship were correct and we shall indeed be travelling on the Amber Lagoon - when we travel is however still not definite. If all goes according to plan then we should be onboard on the 23rd, leave on the 24th and arrive in Cape Town on the 16th of October. We await further news but we intend to make the most of our few days in Europe-22 days on a container ship is a long time, particularly for someone with my previous sea sickness history.