Debby"s Take

This trip has been more than I hoped for so far.  Where to start?

I am in awe of the pride people have in their country, something I have never seen.  The inspiration of Nelson Mandela, the hope he has given the people.  It has been enlightening and inspiring to visit two of his homes during the 27 years of his imprisonment.  To see the literal road he walked to freedom helps me to understand the struggles and what you can make of the future.

Cape Town is a clean modern city, not what I expected.  Then there are the shanty towns that stretch for miles and miles and miles along the highway.  That in itself is disturbing and then you realize it also goes for similar distance away from the highway.  You understand what apartheid might have been and why there is still so much further to go.

Kapama Game reserve just outside of Kruger National Park is nothing but magical.  Within 17 hours we had witnessed things I had only seen in magazines and nature shows.  I needed to pinch myself constantly to believe it was all real.  First a thunder storm, which seldom ever happens, then hail, which never happens.  Maybe these were good luck, not a bad thing, because the animals all seem to be active and coming out to graze on the new growth.

We saw animals before we even reached our tent and within 17 hours of arrival we had experienced the big five close up (lion, rhino, leopard, buffalo and elephant).  But that's not all: zebra, giraffe, kudu, impala, and the list goes on.  We were and still are living in National Geographic.  I am still pinching myself.

The accommodation is more than we need, including a huge rain head shower with a glass wall so you don't miss any of the outdoor action.  You can hear birds and monkeys and last night somethng bigger, though I am not sure what it was.

Food is in abundance. Morning snack is before the game drive at 6 AM. Coffee break is at some remote watering hole and then breakfast is at 9 AM on our return.  By that time you think it is lunch,  but no, that comes about 1 PM after we have had our nap.  Cocktails and snacks are at 4 PM and then comes our evening game drive.  Again we stop at a watering hole at dusk for more cocktails, followed by lots of searching and sitings of night animals. Traffic jams are caused by lazy lions laying in the road and rhinos protecting their baby, not allowing you to pass them for fear of being charged.  Our driver and tracker are excellent and you never are afraid even when the ahimals come within feet of the jeep.

But I wander.  Back to camp for cocktails and dinner at 9 PM.  Off to bed for an early morning start.
All the food is incredibly good.  We are going to be as big as elephants by the time we get home.  Oh, how could I forget we had a surprise dinner last night, in the middle of Wild Africa.  That's right, the jeep stopped.  Lanterns lit the way to white linen covered tables.  Bartenders came and brought us drinks.  A large bonfire was blazing and more white linen tables held an amazing buffet.  We were treated like royalty.  It was magical, everything is like a fairy tale, beyond anything I had hoped for.

The adventure continues.