World Cruise--The Way Home

On the last day of our cruise on the Queen Anne, we looked out the window to see our ride home, the Queen Mary 2 beside us. Our World Cruise “ended” in Southampton but rather than take a long and harried flight home from London, we chose to cruise home to New York on the QM2. Cunard provided transportation for us and our luggage to move from one ship to the other which was docked at another pier about ten minutes away.

We were not the only ones who chose to ride home in comfort. There were about 300 who transferred. It was a relatively easy transition except for having to hunt through a pile of luggage for one of ours that had lost its tag to indicate what group we were in. All was good though except for a broken handle that means a new piece of luggage. It was well traveled.

The last time we had been on the Queen Mary 2 was in 2011. Memories fade and changes are made and there was some need to explore and reorient ourselves to the ship. Now anytime I am asked where is the best spot on a ship to book a stateroom, I always answer, “lower decks, mid-ship”. Unfortunately for the category we wanted, there was no lower deck space, nor mid-ship. And surprise, surprise, there was a Deck 13 and all of it was forward on the ship. Deck 13? No one numbers floors or deck with 13. Thankfully I’m not superstitious but it did bring back memories of my aunt who would lecturing me about it being unlucky.

It usually takes seven days for the crossing itinerary but as we understood there was some scheduling problem with a port so we had a stop in La Havre added to this itinerary. That was good for us. We loved the port and the opportunity to visit Honfleur again.

Honfleur is a small port town on the Seine. Our first stop there had been on a river cruise years ago. The picturesque memory never faded. My precruise research showed a company that operated a bus leaving from Le Havre to visit Honfleur where it would leave you to explore on your own for three hours and then return you to a stop near the cruise terminal. (For anyone planning, the company is Beelehavre.com). The price was half the cost of the cruise excursion.

The shuttle from the cruise terminal dropped us at the main square and right next to where the big yellow Bee bus was. There were several options I discovered that had been added later after we’d made reservations but I think what we chose was the best for us. It worked out well. After a fifty minute ride that took us over a huge bridge spanning the Seine, we arrived in a bustling Honfleur.

I looked at Bob. “Not the sleepy little town I remember.”

There were several tour buses parked in the large lot next to the main part of town where the harbor is and some large groups of tourists but once we made it past all of that, it turned into the quaint little town I remembered.

Honfleur was spared the devastation that Le Havre suffered so the buildings are quite old and teeming with old world charm. We walked down several side streets and around the harbor area which is where most of the tourists gather. From there, there is a promenade that goes out to the English Channel.

The day had warmed from a chilly fifty-something to a nice sixty-something and perhaps a little more in the sun so we decided to walk the promenade and perhaps catch a glimpse of the Channel we had crossed in the night. When we got to a point where the promenade curved around, we decided the Channel might be further than we anticipated and we were getting hungry. We did an about face and headed back.

I have to share the standard little joke we have about distances when we’re exploring. Once in Paris in the late afternoon, we were in some area where we could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. We figured as long as we could see it, we could find our way to it. We walked and we walked and we walked some more always saying we could still see it. When it started to get dark and we still weren’t there and the neighborhood was getting a little sketchy, we decided to pop into the subway and take it instead. I don’t know how far we walked but it was a good couple of hours. So now when we take off for some place that’s within our sight and it gets to be a long walk the line to say is, “I can still see the Eiffel Tower.” Time to turn around.

There was a little restaurant we’d seen when we first arrived that was off the beaten track a bit and we returned there for lunch. We’d seen their board outside that read Moules and Frites. The first time in France we didn’t know what that meant and ordered pasta instead not knowing how wonderful the French dish of mussels and fries was. We never made the mistake again. This bowl of mussels was huge and we weren’t sure we would get through it but we managed. By the way, the fries are made the old fashioned way in the good frying fat and are delicious as well.

After our leisurely lunch, we wandered a bit more, enjoying the warm sunny weather and then returned to place where our big yellow bus came to pick us up. It could not have been a more perfect ending port or beginning if you consider this was the start of a seven day crossing of the Atlantic to New York where when we step off the ship we will have made a complete circumnavigation for the second time in our lives.

 

World Cruise--Santa Cruiz, Tenerife

Back in November, just five months ago, we had visited Santa Cruz, Tenerife, on our homeward cruise from Barcelona after our India trip. At that point I was a bit lax in posting any information. Sometimes you just want to experience, not document. I was regretting that a bit. I couldn’t remember what we’d done. Bob to the rescue though. He had some pictures on his phone and we recalled our walk through the city.

Rather than retrace our steps, we looked for an excursion that would take us out from the city of Santa Cruz but we didn’t want to spend all day on a bus either. We considered a day pass to one of the hotels but the resort hotels were all about an hour’s drive from Santa Cruz and it looked like a taxi fare could be pricey. Add the fare to the day pass cost and we decided the ship’s excursion price for one particular place would give us the pool/beach experience we were looking for, the look at the countryside and all for a reasonable cost. We booked it—Siam Water Park.

As we awaited our bus to arrive on the pier, I was beginning to wonder if we’d made a good choice. The weather had cooled and there was a breeze blowing that was less than warming. The excursion staff member on the pier assured me that once the sun got going, it would warm up pleasantly. It always did in Tenerife. She has a second home there. I guessed I would take her word for it.

Our bus ride to the park took us past beautiful mountain views and seaside as well. It was nice to see something other than just buildings. In one area we passed what must have been several hundred wind turbines. As we travel, we see so many countries using alternative energy sources. I don’t understand the reluctance in our country.

The traffic got a little snarled nearer the park so our ride was a bit longer than expected but we arrived to the cheers of the kids on the bus. Did I mention there was lots of high energy on that ride? You could feel the anticipation in the young ones grow.

Once the bus was empty, our group was led directly through the entrance security line, much to the disappointment I’m sure of those waiting in that line. Inside the park, everyone took off in different directions. We had the day to ourselves until 3:15 when we needed to meet our bus for the return to the ship.

The park was all that had been advertised on their website. Wonderful landscaping with shady paths that led to all the various rides. Our plan was to find a spot on one of the sandy beaches by a wave generator and then travel the lazy river and settle into a chair or lounger for the rest of the time with a book to read.

We found one of the wave pools with a beach. At first we didn’t realize it was the children’s wave pool which explained why there were so many beach chairs available. We settled into two of them and relaxed for a bit watching some of the little ones squeal as the pint-sized waves hit them.

The sun was definitely warming the air and we decided we could brave the lazy river. We left our things in place and walked the trails until we finally found the lazy river. Along the way we could hear the screams of those on the more challenging slides and vortexes that were provided for the pleasure of the younger generations. On to the lazy river for us.

We found the river but explored the area a bit more before we picked up our water ring. There was a larger restaurant near there that featured a little more than the hamburgers, hot dogs and sandwiches we’d seen at a couple others. There was also a sea lion area with a couple of entertaining sea lions swimming and waddling around. A koi pond was wound around the floating market area which featured the usual amusement park type souvenirs. But, back to the river.

We got a double ring and I sat in the front, Bob in back. Not the most comfortable arrangement but it worked. I won’t describe our getting into it more than that. Just imagine two in their late seventies with joint problems, etc., managing a bobbing inflated ring and trying to get in gracefully. Once in the concern was how to get out later.

With a little push off from the shore, we were in the current carrying us and many others along the river’s path. The sun was shining warmly and even the bumping into one another’s water rings was not disturbing but actually a fun time. There were places where it moved a little faster and then a little slower and one place we assumed was called “the rapids” bubbled water up quickly and created a bit of a thrill.

After quite a long ride, we came to a fork in the river with an attendant standing there. He was pulling some rings off to one side, ours included, on a narrower path and we didn’t think anything of it until the narrow path took us to a moving belt that carried us up. “You know the saying,” Bob said, “What goes up…”

I finished it, “…must go down.” My heart started to speed up.

The top of the moving belt deposited us in calm waters. I breathed a sigh of relief but not a few moments later I realized the calm water disappeared sharply in front of us and another attendant was making sure the floating rings were pointed in the right direction. In a flash, we were careening down a water slide, swishing side to side. My mind kept saying, this isn’t what I signed up for. I pulled my feet up as much as I could. I was afraid of stove-piping my legs and messing up my knees even more. We finally exited into the river again and everything slowed. I exhaled. Guess it hadn’t been that bad after all.

We passed a spot we’d been past before. “If we don’t want to go down the slide again, we’d better get ourselves to the other side of the river before we hit the fork.” Wiser words were never spoken before by my husband. We worked our way over and made sure that we were headed for the exit this time.

And then there was the getting out. I felt a foot in my back as I tried to stand and it steadied me enough to get to my feet and stand. I turned and helped Bob as best I could. All in all, these two old people didn’t embarrass themselves too much.

We returned to our chairs on the beach, ate lunch, dried out and read out books until it was time to return to the entrance and our bus. The grins on our faces told the story though. We had a great time. A perfect day. A great way to spend the last port day of our world cruise. In three days we would be in Southampton and switching to our ride home.

World Cruise--Dakar, Senegal

Dakar, Senegal. It would be our first visit and with some of the warnings for travelers that were out, we chose to do a ship excursion. We wanted to get out of the city so we picked an excursion that went to the Abbaye de Keur Mousa. All things considered, it was a good choice.

The morning began with a sunrise service way before the sun was to rise in order to get an Easter worship service in before all the day’s excursions would begin. A protestant service was held in one of the venues on the ship. Actually it had been quite a holy week leading up to Easter for us starting with attending the Seder dinner organized by the Jewish group onboard. Bob loves attending their Friday Sabbath service and learning more about the Jewish religion and heritage and he had been invited to attend. A pastor had come onboard and organized a Maundy Thursday service as well as Good Friday and two Easter services. He did a wonderful job.

As we sailed into the harbor and the sky lightened, we could see small fishing boats just on the other side of the break wall. They were casting their nets for an early morning catch.

 Our excursion was an hour late in getting started. There was some poor organization (a Dakar problem) going on down on the pier where buses were trying to get in and line up. When we were finally on our way, we boarded a bus that was clean enough on the inside. Earlier we had looked down upon lots of vehicles on the pier that were heavily covered in a fine reddish dust we would learn later came from the Sahara as well as the dry reddish soil of Dakar. The windows however were dirty for the most part.

Bob and I have learned that sitting in the back of the bus is not bad if the seats are raised a bit. You can not only see out your window but you can see over the heads of others and out the front window. We headed for the back and found, once we looked around, that our window was one of the few clean enough to see out of.

As we traveled through the city, we were amazed at the dichotomy. We saw some nice apartment buildings but they were often surrounded by others that were only half built. Rebar was poking out where the construction had stopped in walls that were half done but there were still people obviously living in the half finished dwellings. Laundry hung out to dry and tarps or boards closed the window spaces that had no window glass.

Senegal is 90% Muslim

There were some very modern office buildings when we got farther away from the city. With all of the poor areas we’d seen this was again quite a contrast. True to this part of the world, Europe and Africa, the soccer stadium was quite nice looking, at least from the outside.

It took nearly an hour to get to the Abbey. We were expecting that there would be a mass but we also expected that we would be able to see some of the instruments the monks were famous for making and using in their services.

The mass was already started by the time we got there and participants were under a temporary covering set up outside. Chairs were made available for us and we settled in to listen to the service. Of course the only thing we understood was alleluia and amen as the whole mass was in French, the official language of Senegal.

I could hear some instruments in some of the chanting songs but there was no way to see over all the heads and into the sanctuary to know exactly what they were playing—except for the drums. You could tell they were drums. So while the Catholic mass was perhaps familiar in many ways, the music had an African flair.

We participated in standing and sitting with those around us but in not understanding the rest of it, there was opportunity to take in the beauty of those surrounding us. The colors of African art were present in the Easter dress of the worshippers. My eyes drank in the deep blues, radiant purples, brilliant yellows and oranges. The patterns and designs of the fabric were bold and striking—except for the little girl in front of us.

The young girl in front of us had a pretty pink dress on that had a satin sash and a light pink organza overskirt with a fanciful design of sequins that glittered and reflected the deep blue of her mother’s lovely dress. It was the kind of Easter dress my mom would have dressed me in for Easter. Brought back memories.

Once the mass was over, we had a short span of time to step into the sanctuary where the monks were clearing all of the things involved in the service. We took some quick pictures and then were ushered out and the doors were closed. We looked for our guide thinking that now he would take us to see the instruments. When we found him, he pointed us to the gift shop.

The gift shop included all sorts of jams, bottled juices, fresh bread, packages of different candies, nuts and nougats and of course religious objects of faith. There were several drums for sale that we estimated cost around $100 USD. And way back in the corner, I found a stringed instrument that was displayed in a glass case. It would be the closest I would get to seeing one of their stringed instruments that they make.

Our excursion group began gathering back at the bus since there was nothing else that was going to happen. Many had bought some of the snacks available and a few shared some nougat and a piece of bread. The bread was a bit like a rye.

There would be another hour ride to return to the ship. Most of the ride was on a freeway that was surprisingly well maintained. Once off the highway however, there were many speed bumps that jostled us and kept us awake. We’d been up since 5:30 and it was beginning to show.

We scurried up to the buffet for a quick lunch when we returned and watched those who had set up “stalls” to sell their goods along the pier.

“Want to go back down and shop?” Bob asked.

It took me two seconds, “Ahhh, Nope!”

As we finished lunch, we checked Facebook and found that others on the Facebook page we belong to for the world cruise had some recent posts. One was that a woman was accosted when someone tried to snatch her purse as she got off the shuttle that was provided into the city square. Another report, unsubstantiated of course, that another woman was “mugged” and she was on one of the excursions.

On the other hand, there were a few posts of how wonderful a little restaurant was in a hotel and another who found a taxi driver who took them to a real local restaurant for authentic African  food. Many however, found too many aggressive beggars and uncomfortable situations where they didn’t feel safe.

Dakar will not be a place we look forward to returning to.

World Cruise--Walvis Bay, Namibia

One of the ports in our world cruise itinerary that was new to us was Walvis Bay, Namibia, on the west coast of Africa. We were a little nervous about trying to do anything on our own there so we booked an excursion through Cunard. The one we chose got us out of the port area and to a smaller town called Swapokmund.

We had almost canceled the excursion when we went to apply for an e-visa to enter the country. This is the first cruise where we have had to fill out so many applications for visas. I’m not sure if that’s because Cunard allocates that responsibility to its passengers where other cruise lines may take care of that for their passengers. It created quite a lot of confusion for many, especially those who were not tech savvy and those who had not bought the internet package. They had to rely on a guest pass for the WiFi just to fill out the forms online. That was fine for some of the countries but Namibia seemed to have some problems with their site.

Added to difficulty in using the visa site, was the fact that when we were first told we needed the visa and went online to purchase it, the cost was $90/each just for the day’s visit. Add that to the rather pricey excursion and we decided to make it a ship’s pool day. As time went on, Namibia relented and lowered their visa price to $16 for a day visit from a cruise ship. With that price, we proceeded to fill out the information. Paying for it was a bit difficult. Again, the site seemed to get hung up at that point but eventually we received the necessary confirmation.

The day of our arrival, immigration officers came onboard and we did what’s called a face-to-face immigration, presenting passports and e-visas. A lot of confusion arouse when some had received information that you could get a visa upon arrival. There was no office for that at the port so there was no time to get to an immigration office to get a visa and get back to the ship for a scheduled excursion. There were a few very unhappy passengers.

The time of our excursion was not until the afternoon so we decided to take the cruise ship shuttle that was provided to get a look at the area near us. The immediate area was a large container port and it looked as though there was really no good way to walk out of the port and once out of the port there really wasn’t much close by.

The shuttle took us to a huge shopping mall called Dunes. When you saw where it was situated you understood the name. The area is a desert with huge sand dunes, one of which is said to be the largest in the world at a height of over 1200 feet.

On our way to Swapokmund, we drove through a landscape of sand and sand dunes. There were squatty palm trees planted along the road and either side to cut down on the amount of sand that would accumulate on the road—kind of like our snow fences at home.

A beautiful shallow bay was surrounded by very nice vacation homes and boutique hotels. Our guide told us that many Europeans have homes there for the winter months. The bay was also home to hundreds of flamingoes, usually. I’m not I understood the reason but this day there were none to be seen.

In about a half hour, we entered Swapokmund. The town was established by German colonists in 1892. I expected to see a bit more of a German influence in architecture but it didn’t seem that way to me. Don’t get me wrong, the architecture was interesting just not what I imagined.

The most famous building in the town was the old train station that had now been turned into a resort hotel and casino. It was a very nice building and the grounds were lovely. Originally, the station was built in 1901 for the railway that connected Swapokmund to Windhoek. The railway eventually closed down and later the narrow gauge rail line that replaced it. The building was declared a national monument in 1972 and eventually turned into the hotel.

From the hotel, we drove around the corner to the Karakulia Weavers. The business has been around since 1979 and has a team of 15 who take the wool from the farmers, clean it, card it, spin it, dye it and then weave it into amazing rugs. It took me back to my college days when I spent a whole year taking a fabric arts series for my art education degree and did all those things. Our weaving was a bit different though. Not nearly as detailed as the artwork being made there.

Our next stop was at a craft market which was interesting. For something advertised as being handmade items, each stall seemed to have pretty much the same thing and the quantities were amazing. I suspect the things were mostly factory made. 

There was some interesting costuming of some of the women and they kept inviting us to take pictures. I know that ploy—take a picture and pay later. The women did have strange hats that were flat topped almost like a graduation mortar board but out of fabric. Two of the women were bare breasted, one quite a bit older and larger than the other.

A museum was included in our tour and we wandered through it albeit a bit quickly. We aren’t too fond of museums especially when the day is so nice outside.

Outside, we strolled down the area called the Mole which is a sea wall that was built back in 1899 to help protect the harbor and allow a place to tie up boats. The beach area was very inviting and we watched lots of youngsters enjoying the water and the sandy beach.

There was an hour for us to spend on our own so we found a restaurant on the Mole and had an afternoon drink with a small California sushi roll as we watched all the activity on the beach.

The excursion had turned out to be very interesting and relaxing and left us saying that Walvis Bay (Whale Bay) might be a nice port to visit again sometime. By the way, we found out the reason the excursions for this port were expensive was because the buses and vans had to be brought in from some place that was three hours away. Or so they said.

World Cruise--Safari, The Birds And More

Our game drives during our safari time didn’t just include the big animals. There was much more to see than that in the sky as well. Our safari mates in the Landcruiser were from Germany and were ardent birdwatchers so Sheldon our guide, whose knowledge of so many birds was amazing, pointed out many.

It was a tree full of vultures that led us to our lion find. The vultures were huge and a lot different than the turkey vultures we see in Florida. They were interested in meat, not the rubber on the car windshields in the Everglades parking lot.

One of the most amazing finds was on a small part of the river. Two brightly colored storks.

Another bird near the water was a kingfisher.

On the ship we’d had guinea hen for dinner a couple of times. Tasty. And now we saw them running down the road in front of us. Crazy birds, zig zagging in front of the vehicle and not jumping aside or flying up until we were almost upon them. They were quite colorful as well, kind of a bluish gray with a brightly colored eye.

Upon our arrival at the park, just inside the gate, I had seen a spectacular deep blue colored bird that almost sparkled in the sun. He flew out of the tree and was gone in a flash of blue before I could capture a photo. I thought it was a parrot although I didn’t remember parrots from our first visit ten years prior. Eventually during our game drives, I had opportunity to see one again. Sheldon explained that it was a blue starling. After that we saw several more but they were all too quick for the camera. The memory will have to hold it.

Of course there was also the hornbill that we saw several times adding to our list of Lion King characters. The only character we did not see was a baboon but we did have a monkey who loved to wake me up in the morning with his chatter on top of our roof. 

As I sat on our deck the last morning waiting for breakfast (we’d passed on the morning game drive because of our pickup time) I caught him jumping from our roof to the nearby tree. I shook my finger at him as he scrambled across a branch and jumped onto the roof of the bungalow beside us. He was unfazed and just chattered on.

Besides birds, there were also some interesting insects. A bright green grasshopper rode with us for a time but the truly unusual one was the dung beetle. We had seen dung beetles on display at the zoo back home but this encounter was in the middle of the road with fresh elephant dung.

The beetle had rolled some of the dung into the size of a golf ball and was rolling it down the road. Sheldon said that in doing so, the dung would be coated enough that it wouldn’t stick when he took it to his nest. It was fascinating to watch.

The impalas were seen everywhere. They are a little like our white tailed deer but with horns, and boy can they jump! If you’ve ever seen the Chevy Impala emblem, you have seen exactly what they look like. They can jump six feet off the ground and land as far as 30 feet away. In doing so their body stretches out in a straight line. A little hard to photograph but I tried.

It was also mating season and the young males were strutting their stuff and showing off to whatever female would pay attention. We watched them from our deck as we waited for our ride to the airport to fly to Cape Town and meet the ship again. They were growling and grunting at each other and butting heads. I wished them luck. After all, their prodigy would be the food supply for the hungry in the park.

That’s another takeaway I have from our experience. The symbiosis of nature. Elephants ate the grass and bushes, defecated (it always seemed in the roadway), which fed insects like the dung beetle and some birds who pecked the seeds that weren’t digested. Other birds sat on the back of furry animals and picked the tics off of them which gave them some relief and fed the birds. Of course there were the vultures and hyenas who cleaned up the leftovers from lions’ and leopards’ meals.

All of that led me to wonder how much is man helping nature? Where are we fitting in? For that matter how much are we helping each other? Too much to think about at the moment.

Our ride to the airport was much shorter with no traffic hinderance and we had time to eat lunch before taking off for our two hour flight to Cape Town where we arrived and managed to work our way past all the hassle of taxi and “uber” drivers who wanted to give us a ride. If you are arriving in Cape Town beware of those just outside the airport that wear uber tags. One passenger used them and they claimed the uber app wasn’t working and charged them $100 for the ride to the ship. Our uber driver was arranged through the app and we were able to follow a map on the app that led us to the pick area and to our driver who got us safely back to the ship in time for dinner.

I am sure I left out many other things we saw on safari. It was a perfect trip that came at a perfect time for me to be distracted from the pain of grief I was feeling if only temporarily. Peace was found in the most amazing sunsets on the afternoon game drives. The colors in the sky were a 360 degree picture—like being in one of those IMAX theaters. God is good.

 

World Cruise--Safari, Rhinos and Lions, oh my!

The early morning game drives were also an opportunity to see a beautiful sunrise. None of them disappointed. While the animals are probably the major reason for safari, the landscape of the area is of equal interest. In the distance were mountains and where we did the drives was somewhat hilly in places and lifted you up enough to see a vast expanse of bush with trees dotting the landscape.

Adding interest to the landscape were the skeletons of dead trees. Thanks to the elephants scraping their tusks against the bark of the trees, they would allow for the entry of beetles that would lead to the tree’s demise. The trees often took on shapes that you might find in Dali’s paintings or even reminiscent of Edvard Munch's Scream, perhaps some more like modern sculptures.

Some of the trees were just pushed over. Sheldon told us that the elephants take out their angst or frustration on the trees and just push with their head until the tree breaks or falls over. Other times the mom pushes a tree over so that her youngster can reach the leaves to eat.

We had a few encounters with some rhinoceros (should that be rhinoceroses?) My heart stopped a moment when one just stood and stared at us. Was he deciding to make a run at us? This is where you have to trust in your guide and tracker to know enough about the behavior of the animals to see if it’s time to run or stand ground. He who turned out to be a she with a youngster in the bush next to her turned and trotted away with said youngster in tow.

Another encounter was when we topped a slight rise in the road and found two rhinos in the middle of the road. They stood and looked at us for a quick moment and then took off into the bush. Sheldon said they were teenagers, so to speak, whose mom had probably sent them off to learn to fend for themselves. He was glad to see them run off as we approached. If they get too used to people, they become targets for poachers.

It was always fun to see what got Sheldon and Arnold excited. They were out there every day but I guess it doesn’t get too old for them. As we drove down the road next to the river one another jeep slowed and stopped to tell us to watch the other side of the river. There was another lodge over there and near it was a whole herd of rhinoceros. Our guys were excited to see that. It was very unusual according to them. You could see some young ones among them as well.

In another grassy area as we drove along the trail that consisted of two tire tracks we suddenly saw what looked like a small dog dart across and disappear into the taller grass on the other side. We caught just enough of a glimpse to see the markings and realize it was a jackal.

Another off road adventure had us searching for some lions who reportedly had just made a kill and were gathered together in the bush enjoying their tasty impala. It was always a little breath holding time when we left the road and drove over small brush. How Arnold stayed on that front seat on the bumper was beyond me.

It took some tracking but we finally came upon them. There were mostly females with some younger ones but no cubs. We stopped and just watched as they wandered about sometimes taking a turn at feeding off of the kill. The video I’m posting shows a lion mom with two older youngsters. Continue to watch and you will see me pan to a lion under a bush who is chewing on a piece of the impala kill.

The greatest lion find was yet to come however. The next day, we found a lion den. Again, Sheldon and Arnold were really excited over this find. We happened upon a female who had four young cubs well hidden under some large trees that made it impossible to see them clearly. We could see movement of the cubs who our guide guessed couldn’t be more than a week old--something to do with the markings he was able to see on the cubs.

Mom was right next to our Landcruiser which was between her and the cubs. We could hear her breathing heavily and uttering a low growl. We sat there for a while trying to get a look at the cubs but eventually I think Sheldon and Arnold decided it was prudent to move. Mom had not stopped growling.

Somehow Sheldon managed to back the Landcruiser over the bushes behind us that we’d knocked down. That vehicle amazed me. We gave another group some instructions of where the cubs were and I think they were able to get a few pictures as they came in from the other side.

Not only were we completing our list of the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, cape buffalo), we were also seeing all the leading characters from the lion king. We happened upon a small group of warthogs. They weren’t dancing and singing much though. Probably a good thing or I would have thought I was on a Disney safari.

World Cruise--Safari, Hippos and Elephants

After our breakfast the second day, we were offered the opportunity to do a river walk. We’d done one the last time we visited ten years ago and loved it so, hot weather or not, we were ready to go see some hippos.

We drove through the reserve and out to the public area of Kruger to get to the Crocodile River, aptly named for the critters that inhabit it. It’s a little bit of a downward walk to a group of large rocks where we could sit to watch the animal life of the river. As they did before, the two guides each had huge rifles in the unlikely event that we would have a bad encounter while on foot with any of the animals.

The hippo is the most dangerous animal on foot to humans. They can move faster than you would anticipate and if you are in the way of their path in or out of the water, they can remove you with the snap of their jaws. The only thing that kills more people in South Africa than hippos is mosquitoes. Thankfully we hadn’t seen any of those.

The hippopotamuses look like large rocks as the sit in the river and the water runs around them. Sometimes you are startled as the “rock” moves and a head appears with ears that flick the water off. In the heat, they don’t stay above water long but they do keep an eye on the crocodile that often lurks nearby. If there are young hippos around, the croc will try to get around mom for a tasty meal. Thankfully we didn’t see any encounters although I would think the croc would be grossly outweighed by the hippo mom.

So after sitting for about a half hour watching the river animals including some white egrets and other birds, we headed back to the Landcruiser. Of course the song, I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas, was running through my head.

Back at our bungalow it was time for a plunge in the pool and a relaxing hour or so on the deck trying to read. I say trying because we were interrupted with a parade—a parade of elephants.

We had seen a few on our first day just after arriving after one o’clock and here they were again, at almost the same time. I wondered if they were like our deer at home who seem to have a regular time to cross our backyard.

They slowly made their way across the grassy area behind our bungalow and we watched in wonder and awe. Some paused a moment to grab a snack from a tree or the grass and we could see a little one again weaving in and out among the herd.

Some time ago at a women’s retreat where I spoke, they gave me an elephant themed gift and a story with it that told of how the female elephants surround the expectant mom as she gives birth in order to protect her and the newborn. Later, when we encountered more elephants on our game drive, I asked Sheldon, our guide, if that was true. He wasn’t so sure it happened all the time when an elephant gave birth but they were known to circle the little ones whenever danger was present.

That made sense. The little ones, elephants or any other animal, were the easiest prey for lions and leopards. Not too different from us humans. Young ones are easier prey for the evil that pervades society.

We would see many more elephants throughout our game drives. One very old one. All were thrilling encounters. As we were told, the afternoon bush walk that we passed on had a very close encounter with a huge elephant. Not sure if my heart could have taken that one.

As always, there were plenty of zebra encounters and we appreciated each one. They are beautiful creatures with the prettiest faces and the loveliest eyes. While they are not on the big five list, they are certainly on some list. Maybe the five prettiest list?

World Cruise--Safari, The Leopard

The Toyota Landcruiser turned off the road (the two tire track trail we were on) and headed into the bush. The vehicle is amazing in what it goes over including rocks and saplings. Even more amazing is how our tracker, Arnold was able to stay on his seat in front as he not only watched for animal signs but directed Sheldon, our guide, around dead stumps of trees and rocks that were a little too large for the underbody.

Someone had alerted the guides to the possibility of a leopard in the area. We found the tree where the leopard had hung his kill, a small impala, and to our surprise, we had stopped right next to the leopard who was lying in the tall grass and watching that nothing disturbed his next meal.

A leopard! Right next to us! Not more than six or eight feet away. You could hear him breathe deeply. He was a big boy as Sheldon described him. A beautiful spotted coat of tan, black and white colors, his head was large and squarish and his large eyes narrowed as he watched his tree. Something was coming.

The something turned out to be hyenas. Sheldon explained that the hyenas could not climb the tree. Their legs are more like a dog rather than a cat and their agility not great. Their patience was great though. They would wait their turn at the carcass of the impala as the leopard would let pieces fall that he was done with.

The hyenas turned out to be a bit comical. The two of them maneuvered around to comfortable spots beneath the tree, did a little rolling around and one even laid on his back as if to say “someone scratch my tummy please.”

The hyenas didn’t bother the leopard too much although to me his breathing seemed to get a bit deeper and quicker. It also didn’t seem to bother him much that we were this close. I guess as long as it didn’t appear we were interested in his kill, he was fine with us admiring his beauty.

After a good twenty minutes, another Landcruiser was getting close to us and we pulled away to allow them to view the leopard as well.

On our last visit to Lukimbi we had only seen a leopard twice, once at nightfall as he crossed the road in front of us on our way back to the lodge and again as he ran in front of our van as we were about to leave the park. Neither encounter left much time for a good picture. We were blessed now.

The leopard in the grass was wonderful but on our next morning game drive, lo and behold, we saw him again. At least Sheldon was sure it was the same one. This time however he was resting beneath a large tree out in the open. We quickly got as many pictures as we could before he lifted himself off the ground, stretched, yawned and walked off into the bush. We followed along for a bit but then lost him. While he didn’t have any green coloring, his camouflage still worked to his advantage.

I cannot begin to tell you the feeling you have when you have met one of these magnificent animals out in the open. We have admired them in zoos but it is so much different when you see them in their natural surroundings, free to roam and hunt and live as they were intended. I’m so thankful that there are those who are trying to protect this natural environment not only for the animals but for us to be able to appreciate their beauty.

Our mornings were also punctuated with a short coffee stop. Arnold made a mean cup of Nescafe Gold instant and even had a little milk for mine as well as biscuits that were a bit like biscotti for us to snack on. It held us over until our return for breakfast.

The open dining area of the lodge had tables set up so that you could watch any animals that passed by in the open area on the other side of the small river that ran by the lodge. As we ate one time, we saw a large antelope type animal that we soon learned was called a kudu. He munched on one side of the river as we munched our meal on the other. Another unbelievable experience.