16 - What We Will Remember

The animals, the people, the stories and the sunsets!

15 - Victoria Falls

Monday was our last full day in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and our last full day in Africa.  What a wonderful way to end this magical trip. 

Zimbabwe and neighboring Zambia used to be Rhodesia.  After independence, Northern Rhodesia became Zambia and Southern Rhodesia became Zimbabwe.

We started off taking a 2 hour hike along the Falls.  The gorge is fairly narrow and when we were standing in Zimbabwe looking at the Falls we were looking at Zambia. This is the dry season so there are great expanses of this vast gorge that have no water.  Yet, there is still so much water plummeting over a large portion of the gorge that you cannot imagine what it would be like in the rainy season.  They say that there is so much water coming over the Falls in the high season that there are sections of the walking path where you cannot walk and in the sections where you can walk you need a raincoat because of the spray.  In the area covered with the mist from the falls everything is shrouded and it is very difficult to see the gorge.  The spray from the Falls actually creates a miniature rain forest due to all the water.  Approaching the Falls, everything was brown yet close to the gorge, the landscape was lush with ferns and everything is green and dense even though it is the dry season.

The amount of water that comes over the Falls in rainy season in 5 minutes is more than the water that could be used by all of Johannesburg (7.8 million people) for one year!

Towards the end of the walk we encountered a small vervet monkey nursing its offspring and were amazed that she allowed us to get so close.   These monkeys were everywhere, were peaceful and for the most part ignored us and continued with their search for food.

We then took an excursion to an elephant adoption sanctuary. On our way we saw a 1500 year old Baobab tree (pronounced Bow Bab - like the bow of a boat).  The baobab tree is a beautiful tree that has a huge trunk with tiny limbs. It is said that the creator was so tired of everyone claiming that the baobab tree was so beautiful he yanked it out of the ground and planted it with its roots in the air. That is exactly what it looks like!  The baobab tree is very important because of its many uses. The bark is used for rugs and mats, the leaves are used for tea, the sap can be used against malaria and the roots are ground up into cream of tartar.

 
Our next stop was an elephant sanctuary which is home to elephant babies abandoned by their mothers because they were sick and could not keep up with the herd, or elephants saved from culling in nearby wildlife reserves (because there are so many).  They are brought to this sanctuary for adoption.  They have 19 elephants ranging in age from 9 months to 32 years old.

Before we saw the elephants we were treated to a great surprise.  We were shown a beautiful cheetah.  His name is Sylvester and was found by a ranger when he was just a baby. His mother and brother had been killed by a lion.  Sylvester was so young when he was adopted that he grew up not knowing he was a cheetah. He never learned to kill.  Cheetahs are partly from the dog family and part from the cat family.   Most "cats" suffocate their kill.  He chases wild animals but does not know what to do with them when he catches them. He obeys some commands (like "sit") and the Rangers had him on a leash and let us pet him.  But there were lots of rules -  approach from the back, be very careful not to step on this tail, if he gets irritated and does not want to be petted, STOP!  What a thrilling experience to interact with a cheetah, an animal that can reach a speed of 60 miles an hour in 3 seconds.

The cheetah's unique anatomy is what allows it to run so fast:

• head is small for aerodynamics
• tail is used for balance like a stabilizer or rudder
• enlarged nostrils, lungs and heart for air intake and creation of energy
• flexible spine for maximum stride
• heavier hindquarters (unlike other cats with heavier front paws) for contact with the ground and greater push off 

An amazing and beautiful animal!

Then we got to interact with the elephants.  They brought them up to the deck where we were standing and let us pet them.  Several adjectives come to mind: huge, scaly, thick, dry, tough, strong.  Yet you look at their eyes with eyelashes that are 3-4 inches long and see gentleness.  These elephants in the sanctuary are accustomed to people because of the daily interaction and were very gentle. Yet, these animals are the kings of the forest. From our observations in the wild, all animals just give way when the elephants meander through the forest.   And here we were being able to touch them.  Wow!

We were also able to feed them some treats by grabbing two handfuls of pellets made of corn and molasses.  We would call the elephant by name, tell them "trunk up", move in under their upraised trunk (a trunk that could easily toss you ten feet in the air) and throw the food in their mouth. We were told not to toss it from afar because most of it would land on the ground and it would be like teasing the elephants.  For an animal the size of an elephant, a few handfuls of pellets is a very small portion. What a thrill!

We arrived back at the hotel filthy - cleaned up - and went to a wonderful farewell dinner with our group at the hotel.  Tomorrow we start the long journey home and the end of this fabulous trip to our 7th continent..

14 - Johannesburg to Victoria Falls.

Today was a travel day.  After an early breakfast we boarded a bus for the Johannesburg Airport for our flight to Victoria Falls in neighboring Zimbabwe.  Victoria Falls, located on the Zambezi River, is one if the 7 natural wonders in the world. 

We checked in to the storied Victoria Falls Hotel and quickly changed clothes for a sundowner cruise.  As we were boarding the bus to go to the river we looked  up at the beautiful trees full of mangoes.

The sundowner cruise was on the Zambezi Rive which is the border line between Zimbabwe and Zambia.  We  saw hippos in the water and elephants along the banks and had a wonderful presentation by a retired teacher on Dr. David Livingstone, his explorations and impact on the continent of Africa.

While eating dinner at the hotel, a local African group performed.  It was difficult to understand the stories but the costumes and dancing were wonderful. 

13 Johannesburg - Soweto

We boarded the bus early this morning and traveled through the exclusive, wealthy suburb of Jo'burg - Houghton which has exclusive schools and nice homes.

Sandton - the suburb we are staying in is becoming the new central business district of Joburg.  The old central business district has large Chinese and Indian populations who have numerous shops. Many merchants from poorer suburbs come to these shops in Jo'burg and purchase large quantities of merchandise to resell in their villages. Old, unused office buildings have become housing - many inhabited by squatters. The streets are lined with Jacaranda trees so the city appears purple during this time of year.  It is now illegal to plant the beautiful Jacaranda trees because they take up too much water and there is a severe water shortage in Jo'burg.

We stopped to see the home where Nelson Mandela lived.  His grandchildren now live there.  People have left notes on painted rocks around his home.

We toured the Apartheid Museum and the Mandela Exhibit which is a part of it - they are forever linked.  The museum showed the history of Apartheid, the story of Mandela before going to prison for 27 years, President de Klerk's change of heart saying Apartheid could not continue, Mandela's release, the 1994 election, his political career and his life in retirement.

We then went to the Hector Pietersen Memorial.  Hector Pietersen became the subject of an iconic image of the 1976 Soweto Uprising in South Africa when a news photographer (Sam Nzima) captured the dying Hector being carried by another student while his sister, Antoinette, ran next to them.  The photograph was published around the world. Hector was killed at the age of 13 when the police opened fire on protesting students.  Hector's sister, Antoinette, met with our group to tell us about the day and the impact it had on Soweto.  Mbuyisa Makhubo, the boy who carried Hector down the street, was considered to be a protester and was exiled by the government to another country never to be heard from again.  Sam Nzima, the photographer, was harassed by the police, had to move, became penniless, and had no job.  Although the picture gained international attention, it ruined his life.  The only way that this picture survived was that before his camera was confiscated, he took the film out and hid it in his sock.  For years, June 16th stood as a symbol of resistance to the brutality of the Apartheid government. Today, June 16th is designated as National Youth Day when South Africans honor young people and bring attention to their needs.  What an amazing history.

We drove through Soweto and then took a hired car back to the hotel, spent the afternoon shopping at a wonderful mall attached to our hotel - The Da Vinci - in suburban Sandton and met David and Deborah for dinner at a local Indian Restaurant.

12 - Sabi Sabi to Johannesburg

This morning was cooler and the animals seemed to enjoy it.  Our last game drive included great sightings of giraffes, elephants, zebras, and a leopard on the move. 

The giraffes and elephants were eating their way across the clear areas towards water.  The giraffes, eating leaves and small branches and the elephants eating lower hanging leaves, bark and pushing over an occasional tree to get to the root structure.

The zebras, followed many times by wildebeests, ate grass down to about the three inch level and the wildebeests followed them to eat the three inch grass they prefer.

We also saw a herd of warthogs of all ages.

Towards the end of the drive, our ranger, Pravir, said he had something special to show us.   It was the dead warthog in a tree.  A leopard had killed a small warthog and climbed the tree with the warthog in its mouth and wedged it in . Can you imagine the strength of the leopard's jaws to be able to climb a tree with a dead warthog in its mouth?!! The leopard placed his kill in the tree because no other predator was able to climb up and eat it.  The leopard was under a neighboring tree relaxing after the kill, waiting to go back for his breakfast.

We loved our time in the Bush.  Lion Sands provided better service and nicer facilities while Sabi Sabi had better food and game viewing.  Although both lodges were only 45 minutes apart, the game drives were very different.  Lion Sands had more vegetation, rougher roads and the rangers and trackers appeared to work harder to spot game.  Sabi Sabi has more open areas and had done more controlled burns and it is easier to spot animals.  The rangers and trackers at both places were excellent and educational and drove the range rovers with great skill - actually used them as tanks to go over small trees, drive through sand, etc.  We want a Range Rover!

11 - First Full Day at Sabi Sabi

Today was hot - 60 degrees in the morning and 109 degrees in the afternoon.  The 9% humidity helped but not enough.  (It did help dry our clothes - hand washed some things, put them outside and they were dry in 15 minutes or less.)

On our morning drive we saw zebras and warthogs for the first time.  The zebras were beautiful and majestic while the warthogs were probably the ugliest animals we have ever seen.

This was our last full day in the "bush". And what a great day it was!  We saw each the "Big Five" several times now. The most exciting encounters were:

• the elephant that was so close to our vehicle he could have reached with his trunk and seriously hurt someone. He showed no signs of aggression but as he went to take another step closer we pulled away. 
• the male and female lions that sauntered over to the vehicle. The male was so close to Gerry that he could have reached out and touched him and the female was behind us so close that Myra could have done the same. They seemed to be nonchalant but the male looked right at us and the female (though she had her back to us) had her ears pointed at us. 
• the leopard that we followed and watched make a kill of a reptile and took it away to eat it. Exciting but we were glad it was a very large lizard and not an impala or baby elephant or something else close to the heart!

The Big Five 

Cape Buffalo:

Leopard:

Rhino:

Lion:

Elephant:

Some interesting facts:

• The lion's front paws are larger than the back paws because the front of the animals are larger than their backs. The head, neck and chest need to be supported by the larger front paws. 
• Termites require water. When you see a termite mound, it is where there is a good source of water. The mound is sand/dirt that has been excavated by the termites and water can be found at twice the distance below the ground as the mound is tall. 
• Giraffes, zebras and elephants are not territorial. They roam. 
• The elephants have a matriarchal society. The females stay with their young for several years. The males join together and roam. 
• The stripes on the impalas are meant to break the body into sections visually. To a lion, who sees in gray tones, the gray stripes look like the exact size and color of the vertical tree trunk and so the stripes are a perfect camouflage. If the impala does not move, they are very difficult to see. 
• The stripes on a zebra are like a barcode or fingerprint. And, the left side is different than the right side. When a baby is born, the mother will take her baby away from the herd for a few days - but not too far.  Our guide told us that the mother will keep her young on either her left or right side for a week and then switch sides for the next week. The baby can then recognize his/her mother by voice, smell and by her stripes. 
• A group of lions is called a Pride. A group of baboons is called a Troop.  A group of zebras is called a Dazzle.
• You can tell lions apart by the first line of whiskers  - the number and alignment is unique.

As with all days in the bush, we ended our drive with a sundowner - what we call happy hour.  And happy we were!

10 - Lion Sands to Sabi Sabi

We started again this morning by leaving the lodge and heading out to view animals.  There seemed to be a sense of urgency from our Ranger, Sylvester (Sly) and our tracker, Omega.  They drove faster and went off-road more often.  It paid off, we were able to see a Leopard and a male and a female lion.  Both Sly and Omega were very happy that they had taken us to places to see all of the big five.

The lions were amazing.  They walked very confidently and acted as if we were not even there – in fact the female walked right beside the range rover not more than three feet from where we were sitting.  After a while, they laid down under a bush and the male took a nap – not more than 25 feet from us.

We returned to the lodge at 9:00, ate breakfast and transferred by range rover to Sabi Sabi about 45 minutes away.  After the dusty ride, we met for lunch and prepared for our first drive on Sabi Sabi.  Sabi Sabi, which is also located in Kruger National Park, is a private game preserve and looks much different from Lions Sands.  It has better roads and less foliage. 

During our first drive we saw giraffes, cape buffalo, elephants, rhinos and, after stopping for our evening sundowner, encountered two lions coming down the road towards us after dark as we were heading back to the lodge for dinner.