Elephants, Slow Fast Food and Soggy Tents

08 Friday May 2015

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Elephants in Chobe

Vic Falls being our last stop in Zimbabwe, we headed off in the direction of our next stop, Chobe National Park in Botswana, close to the Angolan border. As usual, it was with mixed feelings that we acquiesced to returning to the truck, especially now that space for stretching out was in shorter supply, so when we pulled over for a late morning stop at Wimpy (which I haven’t eaten at since I was a small child and it was a hamburger chain in the UK) we were rallied by the prospect of fast food and free wifi (our group descends on free wifi like vultures on a carcass.)

However, this was not going to be a fast experience, and one member of my table was asked to show his receipt for a cheeseburger and coke a total of five times before he was served his food. It turned out to be quite entertaining watching the Wimpy staff come unglued at the prospect of serving so many of us in a short space of time. Finally with our steaming cups of coffee, iPads and iPhones out in abundance, it was like pulling candy from a baby when after only 20 minutes we were rallied, reluctantly, back to Twinga.

Arriving at the lodge/campsite in Chobe National Park, I set about getting my tent and stuff sorted in time for our included boating excursion to view wildlife on the Chobe River. It was very hot, and I was quite upset when I learned with only five minutes left before our pick-up, that there had been a swimming pool I could have had a dip in. Nevertheless, looking at the sky, I grabbed warm layers despite the baking heat, and headed to the truck that would take us to the boat.

Croc

Three Slovenian doctors were also on our transport and I quickly befriended one of them, Mikha, once we’d settled into chairs on the roof of the boat. I listened with keen interest as he spoke to me of his recently ended three-month volunteer experience as a physician at a trauma hospital in Zambia. Working with limited supplies and with an predominantly HIV-Positive patient pool, he said it had been an incredibly intense learning experience that left him very much in awe of the African doctors and their coping skills, as well as a profound realization for how cushy he’ll have it in comparison as a General Practitioner back in Europe. He said he had also grown very fond of the relaxed method of time keeping Africans employ, namely if a meeting was called to start at 8am, it might not actually begin until 930 when everyone felt like showing up.

The time spent viewing game on the river was very pleasant indeed, if blisteringly hot. The upper deck was occupied mainly by an Australian group who’d taken it upon themselves to bring an entire cooler of cold beer along. It absolutely killed me not being able to have one myself – though I did offer payment for one and was unfortunately, turned down.

Elephant

A safari by boat is a much more relaxing experience than in a vehicle. The elephants were happily cavorting in the water, the hippos waddled in the mud, and the crocs stayed cool by keeping their mouths gaping open. Chobe is quite green and was altogether a very pleasant place to call home, if you were an animal (in my opinion, vastly superior surroundings to the harsh arid Serengeti).

We were further rewarded with an incredible sunset as we turned the boat around at the half way point. And then the darkening skies were further enhanced by a rush of storm clouds that began to rumble with thunder. The clouds almost looked like a tornado funnel as the wind picked up and lightning flashed across the sky. It was quite ominous and the temperature plummeted making me super grateful for having brought my warmer layers.

And then the rain fell. And fell.

Hippo at Chobe

By the time we ran back to the tents on the return journey, the campsite had turned into a sandy swamp. Everyone was running around desperately saving gear from getting wet, and securing rain flies on their tents. Then we all headed to the bar as the only dry refuge in the camp, where we greeted by a rare treat – beer on tap!

The following day was a super early start and it was quite miserable rolling up the wet tents in the soggy ground and getting away by 6am. We had another long drive today, this time to the town of Maun which would be our setting off point for a 3 day/2night trip to the Okavango Delta.

Victoria Falls – Getting Up Close and Personal

04 Monday May 2015

Posted by Anita in Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

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Animals, Waterfalls

Victoria Falls from the Zambian side

Standing right at the edge of the falls

The town of Victoria Falls itself is quite small and as you’d expect, extremely touristy with prices to match. At $15 for a salad for lunch, it felt more like I was back in Bellevue than still in Zimbabwe. But this is home to one of the natural wonders of the world – Victoria Falls – and I was still looking forward to being able to witness and experience this natural phenomenon.

Lots of the group were busy arranging adrenaline activities such as gorge swings and bungee jumps, but I was content in planning my 3 days around the falls themselves, both on the Zimbabwe and Zambian side together with a single excursion to Livingstone Island and Angel’s Pool – which we knew frightfully little about since only Zambian tour agencies offered the activity and therefore the Zimbabwean companies didn’t stand to profit from selling the activity. Luckily, I’d opted to go and gotten the double entry visa, which would enable us to walk across the border and back to Zim on a day trip.

I arrived rather beleaguered and bedraggled after a long and largely sleepless night on the overnight train from Bulowayo. This was a locals’ train, full of Bulowayo workers who were returning to their families in the rural areas of the country for the weekend. It was slow and stopped a lot. Plus, the inside of the train actually made the Indian sleeper trains I’ve journeyed on seem clean and comfortable – the interior was rather smelly, dirty and dysfunctional….but I absolutely loved it. It felt like we had stepped back in time and were experiencing something from a bygone era – and it seemed romantic and ideational to me.

Afternoon Tea at Victoria Falls Hotel

However, after settling into our two carriages, one for the party-going crowd, and one for those who actually wanted to sleep – it became very obvious early on that the wishes of the former were going to supersede the latter. Walls were paper thin, and despite the fact that our carriage had maybe 5 or 6 cabins, some containing families with small children, the Oasis revelers decided to blare music, dance and sing till 3am…forcing the rest of us to succumb to a sleepless and frustrating experience. My personal request for them to turn down the music around midnight was ignored and laughed at, which resulted in the state I aforementioned upon arrival.

Compounding my bad mood, the truck had not yet arrived to the campsite when we got there, and there wasn’t anywhere to even sit while we waited for our things so we could shower or change clothes. Eventually the truck arrived, and I managed to re-humanize myself to the point where I felt I could go and enjoy a lavish afternoon tea at the Victoria Falls Hotel.

We were joined by 3 additional group members in Victoria Falls, so our truck experience was gonna get more crowded but I was also looking forward to getting to know the new travelers. One of them was Australian, and I enjoyed chatting to him over our clotted creamed scones, finger sandwiches and cakes in the impressive garden setting of the high tea. It was also fun sharing the English tradition with the Frenchies – Sandrine and Benoit had not had high tea before and seemed to really enjoy it.

Photo Bombed at Zambezi Gorge

Other than the high prices, the other surprising fact about Vic Falls was the abundance of wild animals that just freely wandered around the town, especially after dark, making it slightly hazardous to do so. Warthogs were in abundance, and two members of our group were also false charged by elephants early in the morning.

By far, the highlight of my stay was the Zambian excursion to Livingstone Island – a land mass that stands directly at the top of the falls, lending itself to access to water that is literally on the precipitous and highly dangerous (especially in the wet season) edge of the 108 meter water fall.

We loaded onto a speed boat for the ten minute boat ride out to the island where we were met by a guide who talked to us about David Livingstone’s first trip to the island and how it got it’s name. Devil’s Pool – the more famous of the two pools that one can sit/swim in at the top of the falls, was closed for the season due to the high volume of water. However, the guide assured us that the only real difference between the two pools was that one could walk to Angel’s pool and swim in Devil’s. In his opinion, the view from Angel’s pool was superior.

At first, we were directed to don our swim suits and shoes and make our way across the muddy marshes to a viewpoint that was very close to the edge of the thunderous cascading water. This, in and of itself was extremely thrilling, and I managed to get some great photographs (though my camera has ultimately paid the high price of being water-damaged – the screen has short circuited, making each photo a completely random guessing activity -adding yet another technology failure to my trip thus far.)

Then, words fail to describe what it felt like when the guides lead the way to the Angel’s Pool itself. Holding our hands one by one, we were lead to a mound of grass where the view was completely unobscured all the way down to the very bottom of the canyon and river below the falls. I couldn’t believe my eyes and heartily agreed when my guide assured me “You will never be able to do or see this anywhere else in the world.”

For the fourth time in my travels, a place possessed such beauty that I found my eyes welling up with tears all on their own (for those interested, the other three are Ayers Rock, Mt McKinley, and Machu Picchu.)

Inadequately comforted by the two ropes outstretched at the falls’ end of the pool, supposedly a last ditch grab hold should one of us lose our footing in the rushing forceful water, I followed the guide into Angel’s. All holding hands together, we ventured and sat in the pool of water literally watching as the water left our bodies and cascaded 108 meters only a handful of feet away from us. I let out an automatic shriek as one of our group did momentarily stumble and floated into one of the guides’ bodies who fortunately grabbed him and set him back upright. This was a location that was altogether wondrous/exciting while simultaneously terrifying. Left to imagine the worst, I found myself quite eager to get my feet back on dry land after the first few minutes.

But what a rush.

Afterwards, we were literally spoilt rotten by an incredible breakfast of Eggs Benedict, bacon, sweet breads, jam and coffee before being jetted back to the luxurious boat launch of the Royal Livingstone Hotel.

Baboon at the falls

As for the visitor areas of the falls themselves, we spent that afternoon exploring the Zambian side, and I had enjoyed the Zim side the day prior. Based upon the numerous and conflicting opinions as to which side offered better views, I have concluded that it depended more upon the weather and prevailing wind on the day you chose to make your visit, than any objective aesthetic quality. Personally, I found the Zambian side to be far more impressive in scope, and the additional walking paths lent themselves to making the excursion more interesting. We spent a good few hours’ taking in the various viewpoints on both sides of this natural wonder, and I had the additional fun experience of being slapped on the hand by a baboon who was reaching for my water bottle. Additionally, on the Zambian side, one is able to walk down to the river level, adding an additional perspective on this immense landmark.

A final memorable encounter occurred on the Zim side, when Nessa and I met with a man by the name of David who was born and raised in Zim – I believe I mentioned him in a previous post. He was back in Zim visiting sites that he remembered from the war of 75-81. He hadn’t been back in the country since and had re-made his home in South Africa. He told us, emotionally, what it had felt like to come across a tree at one remote location south of the falls along the Zambezi, where he and three of his cherished and since long passed away friends had engraved their name and the date.

Malingering on the current state of affairs in South Africa, David spoke about his plans to move to Australia. However, he also spoke with sadness about leaving his beloved Africa. He assured us that no matter what, this land would forever be in his blood and heart and nowhere else would ever feel like home.

I for one believed him.

Matopo National Park – Rhinos, Bushmen, and Cave Art

30 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by Anita in Africa, Zimbabwe

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Animals, Indigenous People, Mountains, Safari

Checking out Dung Beetles on our Rhino Safari

Matopo National Park is home to 56 black and 43 white rhino, both species highly endangered due to the value of their horns reaching a value of $100,000 per kilo. The difference in the species is primarily that the black rhino has a double horn, making it even more vulnerable to ugly poaching. We spent an entire day in the Matopo bush with our Zimbabwe tour guide, Norman, who himself had a very interesting story to share with us of his life as a white Zimbabwean who had elected to stay in the country despite the civil war and subsequent land grab that made life here so dangerous and difficult these past thirty years.

Taking in the view in Matopo National Park

We set off from our hostel in the early morning hours, the many layers that I had put on still not offering much in the way of warmth in the freezing open safari vehicle we were in that blew the wind and rain on us on and off all day. It was not a warm day, and I was beginning to miss the unbearable heat…if that was possible!

Norman gave us some history of the English explorer, entrepreneur, diamond miner, and politician Cecil Rhodes who first came to Zim and found his home and a wealth of natural resources that he could exploit and profit from. Of course, the land was eventually named after him – Rhodesia – before the Mugabe government changed the name after the medieval ruins we’d visited several days prior. We saw his first homestead and ended the day visiting his grave. His story is rather impressive, and he accomplished much for someone who died right before achieving his 50th birthday.

Matopo National Park

The park itself has really cool rock formations that are basically layers of sedimentary deposits that have been weathered and subsequently formed really unique shapes, caverns and round, ball-like structures that were inhabited by the original indigenous of Africa – the San Bush men…who sadly, have dwindled in numbers as has their traditional way of life and culture subsequent to the migration of the Bantu and the white people into their homeland.

Norman was quite the expert, and knew a lot about rhino, the Matopos, and the anthropology and ways of the bushmen, making for a very entertaining and educational day.

One of the White Rhino we observed at very close range

Of course, the highlight was trekking into the sparse trees and bushes and discovering a family of about 7 white rhino and getting to observe them from a very close distance. Norman informed us of how to behave to avoid any provocation of these sensitive massive animals. We gave them our scent by approaching with the wind, and then stood quietly at a distance while they checked us out and indicated their comfort with having humans so close by deciding to lay back down in the undergrowth and mud.

What was most surprising and humbling about getting so close to the rhinos, was the sounds that they made! Especially the little one that was very vocal in communicating with its mother. The only way I can describe the noise they make is that it sounds rather like recordings I’ve heard of whales in the ocean. A rather sweet, high pitched little squeal.

The rest of the day Norman took us on bush walks and taught us how we could survive out here with no water, food, or shelter – something of a specialty knowledge he possessed . He also took us to some cave paintings that are estimated as being over 20,000 years old, but not containing any trace of carbon (the San people used bile from an animal’s gall bladder, mixed with it’s uric acid to create the paint they used) it is impossible to accurately estimate the age of the artwork.

Our Safari Vehicle

Norman also gave us a fascinating history of the San people’s way of life, together with a demonstration of their remarkable language which is basically a series of clicks. Less than five feet in height, with a light brown skin, and slightly angled eyes…they do not resemble any other people in this part of the world, which I found very interesting indeed. Anthropologically, Norman said that they could easily have co-existed with today’s Australian Aborignies when the two continents were connected. There are certainly lots of elements of both people’s culture that is similar – the concept of ownership of things is very foreign to the San, only take from the earth what is needed at this very moment, live in harmony with nature, live in large family-based groups that share all resources…to name but a few.

I managed to capture on video Norman giving his best impression of their incredible language and I will, hopefully, be able to share it with you on YouTube once I’m back in the land of functioning wifi.

Ancient San Art

Norman himself also gave us an account of life during the war of 1975-81 which we asked about with trepidation, after having been giving some very severe warnings about refraining from any political conversations while in Zim. Together with an account given to us by another white national whom we met in Victoria Falls, I have now formed at least a semblance of an idea of what happened during this period in history, and more importantly, what it was like to live through it for someone who elected to stay in the country (Norman) vs. flee to South Africa as David had.

Roughly half of the 30,000 white army that formed to fight for land rights and for homes during the war perished. Both men recounted the names of friends and family members that they had lost. They talked about how their country used to be an economic stronghold, and major exporter of foodstuffs such as maize and beef, feeding much of Southern Africa, only to now be reliant on incoming aid and import to feed their citizens. They talked about the land grab of 1998, where thousands of white farmers had their land and homes taken from them by force, many of them losing their lives in the process. David, whom we’d met in Vic Falls, talked about how a friend of his watched in horror as her husband was beaten to death, only to escape into the rocky hills behind her farm and walk 40 miles through the night to the Mozambique border, and then re-settling into South Africa with nothing but the clothes on her back. The situation is far from simple, and there are improvements being made…but hearing their firsthand accounts was very compelling and makes me want to do more of my own research and reading on the subject.

The one thread or element in both men’s stories that united them was this – a palpable love for their home country. Nowhere else on earth would ever enter their hearts the way Rhodesia, and now Zimbabwe has.

Medieval Ruins and Big Cats – On the road in Zimbabwe

26 Sunday Apr 2015

Posted by Anita in Africa, Zimbabwe

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Animals, Safari

Me at the Great Zimbabwe Ruins

This post is from events that occurred on 4-7 April, 2015.

We had another long day in the truck driving today towards the namesake for this country – The Great Zimbabwe Ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage site – one of the four stone monuments in the world with Machu Picchu, The Great Pyramids of Egypt, and The Great Wall of China. This represents the only medieval ruins in sub Saharan Africa and the ruins themselves combine with the rocky natural landscape in a way that is very similar to Angkor Wat – a place that has grown symbiotically with trees.

Unfortunately, I will need to do more independent research on the story and history of this place since our tour guide had such an incredibly strong and difficult to understand Zim accent – I barely grasped a quarter of what he said. The parts that I did understand included learning about the structure of society for the 12,000 or so inhabitants of the city in the 15th century, that the boys entered long initiation classes to teach them how to be warriors and hunters, where the young women received classes on how to be good wives (I know, shocking, right?) The stones themselves that were used in the construction of the city were granite and forged with fire that when cracked, formed straight cuts that allowed for the bricks to be layed one on top of the other without cement – though far less accurately or aethestically pleasing as the stones used by the Incas in Peru, in my opinion.

Climbing to the summit of the city – we learned how the king in those days would have to show his uncommon and worthy strength by wrestling a crocodile, bring the crocodile to the ceremonial plaza at the summit, and proceed to have royal incest with his sister on top of that crocodile – all in an effort to prove that he was worthy of ruling over his kingdom.

Damn.

Walking with Lions at Antelope Park

Archaeologists are still struggling to excavate and uncover more artefacts at this site, but our guide told us that the last attempt to work on the ruins resulted in the scientists abandoning equipment in the depths of the buildings due to being terrified by the spirits that haunted ancient caves and cellars.

It was an enjoyable evening and we even had the opportunity to observe families of baboons, blue balled monkeys (yes, you read that right) and rock rabbits. Plus, we camped only a few minutes’ walk from the grounds, so after preparing dinner for the group, it was a simple process to roll into my tent and collapse asleep.

From there, we were heading to Gweru, the home of Antelope Park – a private Game Reserve where they are attempting to breed lions and then raise the captive lions, teach them how to hunt, allow them to reproduce, and then take their descendants to release back into the wild, in an attempt to increase the numbers of lion populations that are rapidly dwindling.

Based on initial impressions, Antelope Park looked like it was going to be a very expensive zoo experience. However, after initially listening to the sales pitch with extreme skepticism, we were impressed by the passion that the research scientists showed for the conservation of the lion, and their attempts to also involve the local community in their efforts to save the lions by providing jobs, community investment into schools and orphanages, and also charging for some pretty unique animal experiences that are not available anywhere else on the planet.

I decided to sign up for the lion walk, a horse riding safari, a night encounter experience, and the lion feed.

Me and the Lion Cubs

Our first day at the park was marred with a tragic episode. It was Easter weekend, and a huge Christian delegation had descended upon the park and were busy in their festivities – we were in for a lot of prayer, singing and families picnicking in large throngs. We were being given a tour of the facilities and grounds when the air was pierced with a scream that could only signify something very bad had happened. Hundreds of people began gathering around the pool, and we looked on, horrified to see that a little girl had just been pulled out of the pool, lifeless and not breathing.

Luckily, several of the guests were doctors and performed CPR on the girl for the next half and hour while everyone waited for an ambulance to turn up. People prayed, held hands, and looked on, unable to tear their eyes away.

Our orientation canceled, we spent the next few hours hearing the crowds of worshippers praying, and singing for the recovery of the little girl. We later learned that she did die – and it certinaly cast quite the shadow over our arrival. I was reminded of Jennifer – the girl who drowned on my diving trip to the San Juan Islands 5 years ago. It was horribly sad – especially when we considered that the girl’s mother failed to watch her kids in the pool, despite knowing that there were no lifeguards on duty and that the girl was not a strong swimmer.

The sadness from the day before was magnified by a very distinct change in weather on the next. The rainy season was now in full force and we had a night of very heavy rain and even a thunderstorm. The rain, however, didn’t dampen our spirits as we went out to watch a Lion Feeding.

checking out a giraffe on my horseback safari

The activities were well worth the money that was charged. We got to watch Lions being fed an entire cow carcass, being released from their enclosures in a large group that then literally charged towards us and the meat, the only separation between us being a thin chicken wire fence. I can’t tell you how it felt to see these king of beasts charging seemingly right at you as if intent on taking your head off. I managed to get really great video footage by poking my camera through the fence, dropping it however, a few moments later when one of the Lions literally jumped right at us onto the fence and I shrieked in an autonomic response of adrenaline fuelled fear.

Wow.

The weather was unabating and we enjoyed a game of South African Trivial Pursuit in the bar that afternoon while the heavens unleashed a deluge on our already water logged tents. We did manage to catch a peak of the “resident” elephants swimming across the river, and emerge literally right in front of the lodge bar where we were playing. It was amazing to be this close to these magnificent creatures.

The cubs that are raised from the breeding efforts are taken from their mothers when they are very young so that they “bond” with the trainers as if they are the lions’ parents. The cubs are then walked each day at least twice, as a way of the beginning process for teaching them how to hunt. We were invited to walk with a couple cubs who were about 10 months old at dawn. The cubs were adorable, playing with one another as brother and sister, chasing each other, rubbing against our legs and generally behaving like cuddly kittens instead of the wild powerful animals that they are. I got the chance to walk alongside the lions, pet them and be photographed with them, and it was wonderful. Something I will not soon forget.

Great Zim Ruins

Since the game reserve was also well stocked with other game – giraffe, springbok, antelope, impala, waterbuck, zebra, wilderbeest and other deer – I opted to go on a horseback safari since I’d yet to go on a horse ride, and this opportunity also afforded me the chance to get super close to the animals as well as enjoy being on horseback.

What I didn’t realize, until we were already well into the bush, is that the horses we were riding were trained thoroughbreds, and mine had also competed for years as a professional polo horse. This horse, named Waverunner, had an interesting personality. He only liked to amble slowly, and then would trot to catch up to the other horses. However, if the other horses decided to go fast – he was intent on outpacing them almost immediately.

We cantered several times and Waverunner almost broke into a gallop on several occasions, manoeuvring around bushes and trees with the dexterity of a polo horse. It was quite a challenge just staying in the saddle.

It was also unique being able to get so close to the wildlife. At one point, we came across a small herd of giraffe, and my horse was comfortable approaching one of the older males to within a few feet of him. Craning my neck upward to see his face, so close to my own, was very special.

Lion with his carcass at the Lion Feed

The highlight of our three day stay, however, was the Night Encounter. Basically, the slightly older cubs (in our case they were 24 months old) are released from their enclosures once a week or so (that’s how often Lions’ typically feed) and will follow their “parents” in the safari vehicle as they are led out at sunset to view the game, and hopefully make a kill and get their supper served extra fresh.

I had low expectations despite the trainers telling us that we had a 50/50 chance of seeing the lions’ efforts meet with success. Just seeing the lions following us in the truck was a thrill in and of itself. I will never forget the trainers ‘ thick Zim accents cajoling the felines with “Come, come , come, come come! Come, Lions! Good, Lions! This way, Lions!” It was hilarious..

The three lions also played with each other and at one point had a little tussle that resulted in a catapult-like jump mid-air right in front of our open air vehicle. It was a scene directly out of The Matrix, and we all held our breaths when we saw it – feeling that we had already got our $95 worth.

We were in for a real treat. As the sun was setting, our truck came across a herd of wildebeest and zebra and we watched the lions create their hunting formation, splitting into 3 separate tracks as they began a super exciting chase that we got to watch as the sun was setting. It was incredible, and I really got the feeling that we were also on the hunt…side by side with the lions.

Unsuccessful, the lions looked tired and a little discouraged. Driving on, it got really dark, and the trainers “helped” the lions by using a red beam light that when scanning the horizon, immediately picked up any sign of life by illuminating the glowing eyes of any unfortunate prey that was around.

Soon enough, our truck crew spotted a single creature – an impala, who was by himself – indicating that he was probably one of the weaker members of his group, since he’d been left alone by his herd. We circled around the creature until a clear path was established that the lions could take to make their approach to the lone animal.

We watched, our breaths held, as the lions disappeared into the tall grass. What seemed like only a few seconds later, we saw the impala take a giant leap into mid air, only to then disappear into the brush with a lion attached to its neck.

“We have a kill! We have a kill!” our driver yelled out, and we revved into high gear as the land rover drove within a few feet of where the lions were in the process of the rather gruesome task of killing and eating their dinner.

One of the lions had it’s teeth in the poor impala’s neck , while, rather surprisingly, the two other lions proceeded to lick the impala’s body. Asking what this meant, we were told that the lion was just figuring out the softest spot for its first mouthful.

The Lions with their “kill” – the impala

After what seemed like a very long time indeed, and unfortunately, a long while after the lions had begun their chewing, the impala died and we watched in awe while they feasted. It was disturbing, but at the same time, completely mesmerizing.

Even more surprising, the trainers leapt from the truck once the majority of the kill had been consumed, and dared provoking the hungry lions by pulling the carcass away from them, shooing them away, and putting what was left of the kill in the back seat of the truck! We were told that it was important for the lions not to finish completely, as the carcass would split into 3 and the lions might be “lost” in the reserve to the dark night. Instead, they would obediently follow the truck back to their enclosure where the remaining carcass was thrown for them to finish off.

And they did. Which was quite remarkable.

The Serengeti – Meeting Simba at Pride Rock

17 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by Anita in Africa, Tanzania

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Animals, Tours

Simba

Arriving in Africa was a whirlwind of activity and not a great deal of sleep. With an 11 hour time difference as well, it was difficult to get any quality sleep, despite being exhausted. Day 1 involved a long drive in our truck to Snake Park (the name of the campsite outside Arusha) and the very next morning, we were picked up in two safari jeeps for our 3 day/2 night excursion to the Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park.

That trip was an incredible experience, especially considering the abundance of wildlife that we were able to observe. However, it has set in motion what is at least true up until now – Africa is a series of incredible pleasures that are experienced only with a measure of simultaneous suffering.

Hyenas with carriion

To paint a picture of the good the bad and the ugly for you: we spent many long hours driving in the jeep over extremely bumpy and rocky terrain. Our guide, Benjamin, explained that it was simply a “free back massage”. Temperatures would soar to well into the high 80s/low 90s during the heat of the day, the air is very dry and we would often bake and sunburn just from sitting in the jeeps themselves. For me, however, the greatest challenge to my enjoyment has been the dust. The sheer volume of dust that envelopes us at all times so far in Tanzania is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. My clothes are literally filthy by the end of the afternoon – I wring black water from them as soon as they are wet. I’ve started just wearing my clothes in the shower and using them as washcloths as a way of cleaning them of the dust. This is by no means the worst, however. The worst thing I have to suffer through is trying to keep my contact lenses clean in this dusty environment. The first two days in the Serengeti, my eyes hurt so bad I could barely see out of them. I would use eye drops every few hours with little relief. Switching from my two week lenses to my ultra thin monthly extended wear pair has helped a little, but it is still a constant battle.

The dust and dirt is making camping that much more challenging as well. On my first night in Arusha, I didn’t use the rain fly because it was so warm and the skies are clear (the rainy season, which was meant to have started two months ago has yet to make an appearance.) However, a dust storm developed in the middle of the night and blew half the campsite dirt onto my tent floor. With my backpack unzipped inside my tent – all the red dust got into my bag and all over my clothes. Having learned my lesson, I now leave my big bag in the truck and only bring a change of clothes into my tent with me at night. It is still a challenge to try and keep anything clean – your feet, your face, your skin, your sleeping bag, your backpack – everything is just caked in dust and dirt.

one of my favorite shots

I am guessing that I will just have to get used to it, and almost every aspect of this trip is an adjustment – from sleeping in a tent every night for 56 days straight, to setting up and taking down camp each day, to cooking for 15 people when its your “cook group’s” turn – to getting to know 15 very different and unique individuals and having to get along as a team, respecting the group dynamic.

With that being said, the 3 day excursion was wonderful. After a very very long drive leaving at the ass raping crack of dawn, we arrived at the lookout over the Ngorongoro Crater – a 300 square kilometer reserve formed by the extinct crater whose walls have naturally formed a barrier to the 42,000 animals that have made it’s floor their permanent home. Looking out over the crater you could see the green/brown expanse’s shape and crater-like structure – but it took on an entirely different meaning from the inside after we descended its steep walls.

Very soon we were watching groups of zebra, Hyena and water buffalo foraging and drinking along the shores of lakes, dramatically set against the expanse of green. However, as we got further into the crater – we were soon witnessing a spectacle of creatures – thousands of them all gathered in the same area of fertile grass around a watering hole – Wilderbeest, zebra, Thomson Gazelle, Hartesbeast, Elephant, Rhino, Hyena, Hippos, buffalos, and other antelopes. It was a spectacle that made you feel that you were literally participating in an episoe of Planet Earth, narrated by David Attenborough.

We were also lucky enough to observe two lion prides during our game drive in the crater, and even more rare – we got to witness a Servel cat stalking it’s prey from a very close distance.

giraffes at sunset

Stunned from the experience, we began our now 3 hour drive to the Serengeti, stopping briefly at the entrance to file paperwork and make our camping arrangements. We would be camping at a bush camp – with no fences and nothing separating us from the wildlife all around. I have to admit this was particularly unnerving, because our tents did not have a zipper that went entirely around the outside door, and one of the members of our group, an experienced Safari guide herself, insisted that a hyena could easily just make it’s way into one of our tents if it thought it smelled juicy inside. Even more disturbing, our guides warned us to be sure and check for signs of “eyes looking back at us in the dark” if we were to leave our tent in the night, or when we went to use the bathroom in the night or early morning. Apparently, a few years back, a lion decided to go into the women’s shower room in search of water.

Probably the highlight of the day was spotting a family of Cheetahs hanging out in the tall grass by a large acacia tree. Mom, dad, and baby cheetah were taking it in turn to roll, stretch, sleep and walk around the base of the tree. Just when we thought nothing much more in the way of activity was going to pass, baby cheetah decided he was going to climb the tree.

According to our guide, Benjamin, Cheetahs do NOT climb trees. He has never seen a cheetah climb a tree, not in his 5 years of being a safari guide.

Baby cheetah got about half way up the tree and then started to meow, almost like a domestic cat, as it struggled to get back down to his parents. It was such a special moment to witness that I immediately teared up and then noticed that my guide was emotional as well, especially since he shared that it is textbook that Cheetahs do NOT climb trees.

We were oh so very lucky to witness such a thing.

Our night at the bush camp thankfully passed without incident, and I found my earplugs to not only be a welcome barrier to the sounds of howling hyenas in the night, but they served to drown out the sounds of snoring campers all around me.

The following morning, with only one missing animal from the ‘Big Five’ to spot – we came upon a leopard snoozing on top of a rock. She was stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately, not so beautiful was a truck full of boozing youngsters who thought it would be approprate to start playing their music on their truck and having a party in the middle of the game drive. Zach, a member of our group asked them to turn it off, rather sternly. They turned it down, to which he remarked, ‘Off. Not down, Asshole!’ – which we all got rather a kick out of.

The Serengeti Wilderbeest migration is not yet in full swing because of the delayed rain, but we still did witness thousands of them galloping alongside their zebra counterparts heading to waterholes in the early morning mist, getting stuck in the mud, and screaming in their dumb fashion to get away. They were quite a sight.

A monkey also decided that he wanted to climb up on the roof of our vehicle and I shrieked with panic as I imagined contracting rabies if the thing got into the cab and started getting defensive. Luckily, the monkey got scared and scampered away.

It was an incredible 3 days. In the end we saw almost every form of wildlife that you could see in those parks – even Hyena scavenging on a recent kill. The only thing we missed was perhaps a rhino doing a full on song and dance show…

Exhausted from our 5am starts, I went to ‘bed’ right after dinner upon our return to Arusha and had myself some super crazy Larium dreams.

For those of you who don’t know – Larium, or Mefloquine is a weekly malaria medication which can affect one’s emotional state and/or dream cycle. That night I dreamt that our safari vehicle drove from Paris, across a glacier, to Cedar Rapids, Iowa and then back to Africa where I was falling down a raging rapid alongside a lion.

Then again, my days had been almost as crazy as those dreams.

The Choco: A remote and stunning undeveloped paradise

19 Sunday Oct 2014

Posted by Anita in Colombia

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Animals, Beaches

The Humpback Turtle Hostel

When I first met Kwame in San Gil, he stood out as the only black man for miles around, and everywhere we went, people stared (though they could have just as easily been noticing his height as well.) When it became clear that I wished to extend my stay and spend more time together, I came up with the idea of going to the Choco, the west coast of Colombia and the heart of it’s Afro-Colombian culture. After all, wouldn’t it be fun to have the tables turned and for Kwame to blend in and for me to feel like the tourist?

The streets of El Valle

There are no roads connecting The North Choco to the rest of Colombia near Bahia Solano. The only option was for us to fly in via a charter flight. We had heard of one hostel that operated in this part of the country – The Humpback Turtle, and its owner, Tyler, was kind enough to help us with our travel arrangements.

Upon leaving Sogamoso, we took a 3 and a half hour bus to Bogota and then a cab to the airport to fly to Medellin. Our charter flight from Medellin would take us to Bahia Solano the next day, and from then, it was an hour’s taxi ride to El Valle. On the bus ride to Bogota, however, I started feeling very ill and developed a fever which progressed as the day drew on. By the time we got to the airport, I was weak, nauseous, feverish and achy. This was my 3rd “episode” of fever in as many weeks, and by this point, we were both wondering if perhaps I had Dengue Fever. Kwame tried to comfort me by suggesting that if it were full blown Dengue, I wouldn’t be able to leave the bed.

Well, in the morning, the alarm sounded at 6am for us to pack and head to the small local airport to catch our charter flight. This is when I realized that I couldn’t leave the bed. Sheer mental will and determination resulted in my being able to put on clothes and head downstairs to our taxi.

A rash appeared a day or so later, and then we were sure. I was physically completely miserable.

Our tiny little aircraft leaving Medellin

Additional stress manifested in our not having been able to withdraw sufficient cash for our 7 day/6night stay at The Humpback Turtle. We had both tried numerous ATM’s at the international airport the previous evening upon arrival, to no avail. Without enough cash, we were screwed as there were no working ATM’s where we were going, and even the flights had to be paid for in cash. It was pretty stressful, feeling like death getting to the airport only to discover that neither of our cards were procuring any cash, again, and we were faced with a serious dilemma. At one point, Kwame left me to check in while he ran to the bus terminal to try the machines there. I was informed that I was in the wrong building for the charter flight we were taking, and promptly burst into tears and crumpled to the floor. The woman whom I’d asked, took pity and made a call for someone to come and escort me to the right location because I was so weak. Kwame returned without cash and we were in a quandary. Somehow, in a miraculous turn, there was free strong wifi (!!!) available at the airport (this is extremely rare), and we were both able to call our banks who had mistakenly placed blocks on our cards because of the numerous attempts we’d both made to get cash out!

View from our Rickshaw cab…driving along the beach

We literally managed to procure cash in the nick of time and get to our gate. By this point, I was suffering intensely and just dreamed about the chance to be able to lie back down again once we’d reached our destination. I promptly passed out on our little 12-seater jet.

Roads in the Choco are not paved. Small Afro-Colombian communities exist amongst the thick jungle vegetation that fringes the black, wide sandy beaches. The dimensions of the tide here are incredible – about a kilometer of variation between low and high tide. The temperature of the water is surprisingly warm, I’d say it’s warmer than the Caribbean, which is what attracts the whales who come to breed here. Electricity is not reliable and wi-fi is practically non-existent. This was by far one of the most remote and basic destinations I’ve ever visited – and that made it completely fascinating, especially together with Kwame (and while suffering from a tropical disease!)

Our Room

The community room

Taxis are little 3 wheel rickshaws similar to the ones in India. Our taxi to our hostel took about 45 minutes and was extremely bumpy. But the real surprise came when the last ten minutes of our journey was literally on the beach, which is used, for all intents and purposes as if it were a highway.

Our hostel appeared like the Swiss Family Robinson Tree-house, nestled deep into the vegetation directly on the beach. It was primarily made from wood with bamboo-like stilts, lots of separate little cabins and sandy walkways that connected the main community house with the rooms and outdoor shack ‘showers’. Lots of hammocks everywhere, meals served in the main community room and a deck with a view of the sometimes breaching humpback whales as they made their migration south.

View as we landed

The beach

Despite feeling very ill, I was so happy to be there. This was a place where even I, with my type-A always rushing personality, could completely deflate, breathe deep and find an entirely new slow, mellow, and tranquil pace. It was a place with a different frame of mind. A different concept of time. Choco time. It was very nearly perfect.

Our room was completely “open” to the outside, with a balcony overlooking the ocean that didn’t have a barrier so we would sit on the edge and dangle our legs over while catching the sunset.

Mangroves at Parque Utria

Beach at Parque Utria

It is a testimony to the place and the company I had that I am able to declare that my week in the Choco was the highlight of my 3 month voyage to South America. Kwame took very good care of me when I was ill, bringing me food and water when I was too weak to move, procuring some lovely weed which we smoked with carefree abandon most days (for medicinal purposes of course) and making sure I got lots of massages for my aching joints and muscles. We spent our days napping, taking long walks along the beach, frolicking in the waves, reading in hammocks, having drawn-out lingering conversations, and enjoying the pleasure of each other’s company. In the evening, we dined on a single portion of grilled fish, rice, and plantains (I had no appetite at all) while watching the lightning dance in the night sky and the rain pound our little shack. We got cozy and watched movies like “Jaws” , “Cry Freedom” and “Avatar” on Kwames’ laptop, eating munchies while high.

The little critters who were living in our roof

We were puzzled during our stay by what looked like a pile of rodent droppings in the corner of our room each morning which I would diligently sweep outside. Our answer to what could be making this mess came one night when we heard a rustle, switched on a light and saw a family of mongoose-like looking creatures staring down at us from their “nest” in the ceiling of our hut. Turns out that our little guests were Shrew Opossums and when we told our Kentucky-native host, Tyler, his response was to smile and shrug.

Beach walks at sunset

Little kids in town

Sometimes we’d walk the 20 minutes or so into town and find a “restaurant” which was typically a few tables at the home of a lovely woman who would bring out whatever her husband had freshly caught that day, grilled and served with rice and plantains. We’d wander the sandy streets and watch the kids play, the people walking to church and unfortunately, listen to the blaring accordion music that was pumped out of giant speakers on storefronts as early as 7am. We’d been hoping for a different style of music from this culture, but in this regards, The Choco was like most places in Colombia.

Whale Watching

Visiting waterfalls

We took two day trips out on little speed boats to go whale watching and to visit several fresh waterfalls. The humpback whales were magnificent but rather difficult to capture with a camera. I managed to get one decent video which I’ve included here for you.

I wish we had gotten the chance to see one completely breach out of the water (which I did, but unfortunately it was from quite a distance) up close and personal, but the experience was incredible nonetheless. We even made a special trip out to the Parque National Utria where sometimes mothers come to give birth and play with their baby calves, but alas, there were no whales there that day. The park itself was beautiful and had a lovely walk among the mangroves which we enjoyed despite being forced to sit through a rather lengthy introduction to the flora and fauna of Colombia by one of the park rangers.

Typical meal

El Valle Beach

I highly recommend this destination to anyone looking for an unspoilt, unique beach destination. And at around $40 a night for our private room, it doesn’t get much better.

Just be ready to unwind. To not wear a watch. To shower outside. To be bathed in the daily humidity. And to embrace candles and fire-cooked food when the power goes out.

You won’t regret it.

Medellin – Drugs, Modern Life and…Hippos?

31 Thursday Jul 2014

Posted by Anita in Colombia, South America

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Animals, Cities, Culture, Tours

Medellin – Modern and as colorful as it’s unfortunate past

I was pissed when I arrived in Medellin. The bus journey here from Manizales was supposed to take five hours and it took six and a half because we were stuck behind a town’s Saturday night “procession”, the bus driver insisted on keeping his front two windows rolled down completely nullifying any cooling effect the air conditioning might have brought those suffering in the back, a really cute guy sitting in the front got out only an hour into the journey (obliterating my plan to ask for assistance on arrival and thereby become acquainted,) there was a deafening hip hop concert taking place at the bus station upon arrival, and to top it all off, once I’d found the taxi rank, after five or so sweat-inducing laps of the entire bus station with all my luggage, listening to the thwamp thwamp of the loudspeakers and some dude screaming at the crowd instead of singing, it took seven cab drivers before I found one who actually knew where The Black Sheep Hostel was located. Well, he didn’t know where it was. But his response was at least more than a shrug of a shoulder and silent dismissal; he was willing to wait and look at my guidebook map and hear me explain the actual address.

Joggers on Avenida Poblado

Cab drivers in Colombia, I have concluded, will do anything to ensure that you take a different cab.

Now I’d left the girls at the beautiful Hacienda Venezia because it was Saturday and I’d heard a lot about how legendary Saturday nights are in Medellin – the dancing, the music. It’s supposed to be a really great night out with the locals. By the time I arrived at the hostel it was 8:30 pm, and guess what? They didn’t have my reservation and they were full. So I was sent to the Casa Blanca just down the road – which turned out to be a shitty hostel filled with very pale 18 year old English college students, wearing dirty clothes sitting around plastic tables gulping cheap vodka with Fanta and shrieking with laughter. I enquired around, meekly, to see if anyone was up for heading out on the town, but not getting any response, I decided that I’d had a long day and got a private teeny tiny room and passed out.

Park in Poblado

I immediately regretted my decision the next day when I re-packed my stuff and checked back in to The Black sheep, only to hear and see everyone talking enthusiastically about what a great night out had been had by all. Well, surely Colombians go out on Sundays too?

No, apparently. They do not.

Colorful bars in the Zona Rosa – which I didn’t go out in:-(

After finding some breakfast, I asked the sardonic Kiwi at reception for ideas on what I might do on a Sunday in this city. He suggested a walk around The Poblado (the modern side of town where the hostel was located) and a visit to the botanical gardens for a quiet nice afternoon. Since there wouldn’t be much open today, that seemed like a good plan and I quietly also devised a plan to go watch a movie that evening and treat myself to some nice air conditioning, popcorn and diet coke (bliss – a fast cure for the little bit of home sickness I felt for modern life)

Kiddie play area at the mall

I was thoroughly impressed right away by the city. It was clean, modern, bright and had well landscaped public spaces and parks. On this Sunday, the main ‘Avenida’ in Poblado had been closed to traffic and I joined the throngs of joggers, cyclists and families taking a Sunday stroll, visiting a lovely market along the way and relishing a Maracuya juice.

Piranhas at the Aquarium

The other impressive feature in Medellin is the Metro. On the walking tour (which I would take the following day) our guide explained that it was the building of the metro that gave this city the glimmer of hope it needed to pull itself out of it’s horrific history of drug violence and murder of the 80’s and 90’s, and give it’s citizens something to be very proud of. And they are – on the metro today you will see no sign of graffiti or trash anywhere. It’s extremely efficient, and what I loved most of all – it connects all neighborhoods with the economic core centers of the city for the same price. This means that someone living in the poorest neighborhood, which is typically far away from downtown, is not forced to pay more money for a longer commute, thereby excluding them from lots of job opportunities.

Why couldn’t they instigate this same concept in, say, London? Or New York?

Me on the free walking tour – great concept! If you enjoy the tour – you give a great tip!

In any case, I rode the metro each of the four days I was in Medellin and though it still involved a lot of walking to and from each station, it was a highly efficient, though jam-packed nut-to-butt experience. I rode to the Botanical Gardens only to discover that there was some sort of massive music festival going on, together with the typically deafening music and pulsing beat that Colombians seem so attracted to. It was so packed full of people, but I persevered looking for the orchid complex, only to be told that they had been removed for the festival!

Administrative center sculpture, which is also a memorial for it’s artist – his ashes are laid to rest here too

Statue by the beloved Colombian artist Botero in front of City Hall

So I opted instead to visit the aquarium which also surprisingly was a Science Center, not unlike the one in Seattle or Portland. My cost of admission also included a short movie about the inner world, and entrance to the many exhibits on the science of the human body, reptiles, football and so on.

The aquarium itself was very impressive, focusing mostly on freshwater fish, they had very large tanks full of fish that you might find in the Amazon River, including piranha.

At the movies that night, I got the last seat to the Greg Kinnear flick called “Heaven is for Real”. It was so strange to be transported back to the US and Nebraska culture with a Colombian catholic audience. They seemed to really enjoy the movie, and my aching feet were very grateful for the respite as well.

Catedral Metropolitana

Upon returning to my hostel (to which I walked from the mall in the dark, feeling surprisingly safe as I did so completely alone) I found the hostel cat, Rufus, asleep on my bed. It was lucky for Rufus that I like cats and we snuggled up all night, waking throughout when Rufus needed more attention and stroking which he indicated with a jabbing paw to my neck.

Once again, I didn’t really connect with anyone in particular in Medellin. I spent most of my days alone or in tour groups, which was fine. I did a walking tour with Real City Tours, which I highly recommend. Their owner, Pablo, has lived and studied in France, the UK and Hungary and at only 26, shows a thriving entrepreneurial spirit that is extremely refreshing compared to the service-absent mentality of almost everyone else here involved in the booming tourism industry.

At 26, Pablo, as well as Paola, the guide I had on my Pablo Escobar tour the day before, each remember very well a Medellin that during their childhood, was the murder capital of the world. Shootings and bombings were daily events. People didn’t go out at night. Everyone lived in fear. Those in powerful positions in the cartels, at that time, were literally untouchable. Anyone that stood in their way, a politician who spoke out for change, a police officer, any man, woman or child that happened to be in the general vicinity of someone they saw as a threat to their flow of substantial drug cash was killed without regard for any consequences. They were above the law. Paola, in particular spoke with an extreme amount of passion about seeing people shot to death on the street, her two uncles among the victims. She is obviously still extremely bitter, and was much less optimistic about her country’s ability to fight corruption still inherent in the system.

House where Pablo Escobar was shot

Pablo, on the other hand, believes that things are really improving and that there is a future now for the youth of Medellin, a chance to get educated and improve their lives free of that kind of fear. Much of the drug violence has moved up the chain to the distribution phase, the majority of which now occurs in Mexico. Most of the coca plants are now being grown in Bolivia and Peru because it’s cheaper to do so. The city has invested a lot of money into it’s infrastructure and now builds libraries and community centers in neighborhoods that used to be too dangerous to walk through in the daylight.

Of course, Pablo helped to dispel the myth that is still so pervasive in the world, that Colombia is such a “dangerous” country. It’s not dangerous anymore. Sure, there are areas deep in the jungle one would still want to avoid, but here is the issue. Drugs and their production have resulted in the kind of bloodshed that could be likened to a civil war – countless hundreds of thousands have died. However, until the demand lessens or ceases, there will still be a fight to supply. In other words, it could be argued that those that bought and still buy the cocaine (which incidentally is only about 2-3% pure by the time it reaches, say, the States) are the ones with blood on their hands. That’s where the money came from to buy the bombs, the guns, and created the wealth enjoyed the most notorious drug lord of all – Pablo Escobar.

My group on the walking tour

The tour I took about him was very enlightening. Not only did I learn about the Drug trade from this perspective, but out guide also talked about the rich plentiful resources that are still available here in this country. Colombia is number five in the world for country’s with the most freshwater. There are minerals to mine, incredible flora and fauna not found anywhere else in the world. Including incidentally, Hippos.

What? – you may ask.

Well, along with seeing many of Pablo’s organizations’ buildings, the house where he was finally caught and shot dead, his mansions, and his final resting place (the most visited grave site in South America after Eva Peron) we also learned about his hacienda out in the countryside, which among it’s lavish, opulent staples was a zoo which Pablo insisted should also contain hippos which he had flown in from Africa.

After he was caught, the police seized his compound and rounded up most of the animals and found homes for them all in zoos across the continent. But the hippos were too big to move. They figured that if they just left them, they’d wander off and die from hunger somewhere.

But they didn’t. They survived. And reproduced.

Me, trying to Salsa with Fabrizio

There are now approximately 40 hippos roaming the countryside of north east Colombia and if they continue to do so, will start wreaking havoc on the local animal and human populations.

My time in Medellin wasn’t all learning about history. I also took a private Salsa lesson and hit the dance floor with Lillian and Fabrizio at Eslabon Prendido on Tuesday night. Despite the fact that the place was packed, I was pretty proud that I managed the steps without too much fumbling or looking stupid. I will have to find another place in Bogota later in the trip where there is more room to spread out. I had the typical Paisa dish of “heart attack on a plate” better known as Bandeja Paisa with a couple of boys after the walking tour.

I also learned that the poor service in restaurants doesn’t just stop at the food trying to make it’s way to your table. Every morning, after my Rufus cuddles, I’d plod on down the street to this little coffee shop for breakfast. One day, I just upped and left and forgot to pay! I didn’t realize until that afternoon, at which point I returned to buy a brownie and settle my bill.

They had no idea that I hadn’t paid. They didn’t even care. It was all very strange.

I enjoyed my four days there. I would have to say, that of all the cities I’ve visited in South America – this is the first one that I could see myself living in.

The Galapagos Part III – Highlights from Under the Water

22 Tuesday Jul 2014

Posted by Anita in South America, The Galapagos

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Animals, Sailing, Snorkeling, Tours

Me snorkeling

By far, my highlights of the Galapagos came from what I experienced and saw under the water. For the majority of the snorkel sites, there was not a great deal of color, per se, except for the fish themselves, this not being a coral reef based archipelago. However, there were two sites in particular where I got to see some pretty amazing underwater landscapes of life, and they left me longing to have my scuba tanks strapped to my back so that I could get a better look..

Gorgeous Kicker Rock

Shark at Kicker Rock

Kicker Rock

The first stand out location was Kicker Rock – an anomalous small island jutting out of the ocean all on its own. The rock itself was split in two, with a nice swimmable though choppy channel separating the two islands that made up the formation. As soon as we were dropped off in the dinghy, I knew it was going to be a unique snorkel just based on the depth and visibility of the water. Almost immediately in the channel I spotted several turtles, some of enormous proportions. Then we saw sharks – lots of them, both white and black tip. There was something so very eerie about looking down into the great blue depths, not seeing anything else in terms of form, just shards of light piercing the color creating lighter streaks that then formed a backdrop that tricked your eyes into questioning whether that sleek silver creature swimming beneath you is in fact, a shark.

Further around the rock, once we had swam through the channel, you could see a wall of rock that was teeming with sea life. Here there was an abundance of fish, turtles, and a few eagle rays. At the entrance to a cave, there must have been some anomaly in the nutritional content of the water because we came upon a school of fish, so dense and cloud like that it defied belief. There were thousands of these grayish fish all clumped together such that it reminded me of the fish in Finding Nemo who form the directions to the East Australian Current using their bodies. And just when it was registering, a cool light silver shadow would appear beneath the fish and glide among them, parting a path for itself as it made bits way through the school, both beautiful and frightening to see. I’ve included the amazing video footage that Narissa managed to capture while we were watching this.

Puffed up Puffer fish

Me and a giant school of fish

Another similar snorkel site was off the coast of Floreana island and is known as the Devil’s crown. It too had strong currents and choppy waves, but with the depth of the water and being fed directly by the Humboldt current, it was one of the most biologically diverse I’ve seen underwater. So many fish, rays, turtles and sharks, all congregating in one place at one time, the water a darker but clear blue.

Sea Lion underwater

Other high points included the chance to swim and interact with the very playful sealions who sometimes came a little too close for comfort. Narissa even had one of them bite her fin and then her leg underwater. That made several of us quite nervous but we swam with them nonetheless. I’ve included some videos here for you to see just how fearless these creatures were of us, and how they almost had puppy-like qualities, wanting to play fetch with a sea shell in the water.

Penguins are increasingly rare in the Galapagos and we managed to only spot around six during our entire week, but again, Narissa was lucky enough to capture a single shot of a penguin swimming underwater. I didn’t spot the penguin, but I did come face to face with a marine iguana while snorkeling off of Chinese hat, and that was something very unexpected and so had me catching my breath.

Penguin sighting!

On our very last morning, we left the boat at six am to have a short tour of the mangroves on Santa Cruz island. There we watched many many turtles swimming as they awoke after a night of sleeping underwater, not surfacing at all for air for almost 8 or 9 hours.

Turtle

The only famed Galapagos creature that I didn’t get to see underwater was the Hammerhead shark. I would really have liked to see one of them, but a dive is necessary as they typically stay at depths in excess of 50 feet.

Galapagos Part II – Highlights from the Land

21 Monday Jul 2014

Posted by Anita in South America, The Galapagos

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Animals, Beaches, Sailing, Tours

Sea Lions frolicking on a beach

My favorite experience was watching the mating dance of the Albatrosses on Espanola island. It was hysterical watching their clumsy walk, lateral head bob following by the clacking of their beaks together – their version of French kissing. It felt somewhat awkward being present to witness the birds’ at their version of foreplay, but that was one of the wonderfully unique things about the islands. A lack of natural predators has resulted in the animals developing no sense of fear of humans – they made no effort to move away if we photographed them from just a few feet away.

On North Seymour island, we watched the courtship ritual of the Frigate bird, the male of the species’ neck inflates into a basketball sized red balloon to attract the females who then decide based upon the balloons size, color and shape, together with the potential nesting site chosen by the male, whether or not to mate with said male. If only courtship in humans was this simple.

Male Frigate bird trying to attract a mate

On the same island, we saw a few mother Frigate birds feeding their chicks. On one occasion, we watched as the mother regurgitated a whole sardine into it’s chick’s mouth, only to have the fish swiped by an audacious passing male! I’ve included the video footage of this for your viewing pleasure.

Watching Sea lion pups playing in large groups on the beaches. This didn’t ever get old. The sea lions are so cute and quite vocal, the younger ones reproduce what can only be described as the sound one makes when puking to cry out to their mother’s their need for breast milk. Not as entertaining, was watching the pups when the adult females “rejected” a pup because it wasn’t their own offspring. On South Plaza, which I nicknamed “Death Island” because we came across 8 dead bodies of various creatures, we watched a painfully thin and clearly starving pup get rejected by an adult female, who even bit the poor hungry screaming animal. It was very difficult to watch as you could see it being very weak. It appears with Sea Lions at least, that if something happens to the mother sea lion, the pup’s fate is grisly and sealed.

One could get very close to the Sea Lions

We got to observe giant tortoises in their natural “pen” as park officials struggle to help re-populate the islands with these creatures whose numbers have dwindled. Watching them move with quite unexpected speed was fascinating.

Giant Tortoise on Floreana Island

Hanging out on the beautiful white sandy beaches on Floreana island (though I often laid out and read instead of taking the walking tour)

Beautiful beaches

Climbing to the viewpoint on Bartholomew island (which I did twice because it was the first cardio I’d gotten in a week) and watching the sun setting on the surrounding islands.

Our group on Bartholomew island

Mating dance of the Blue Footed Boobies. The males show off their feet to the female and practice “skypointing” which involves them elongating their necks as they stretch upward to the sky, spreading their wings out fully to show themselves off.

The Galapagos Part I – A Shocking Confession

20 Sunday Jul 2014

Posted by Anita in South America, The Galapagos

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Animals, Sailing, Snorkeling, Tours

Beach on Floreana Island

I just returned from a week long sailboat cruise around The Galapagos islands. I am going to start this post by stating something which will probably strike up some controversy. But I’ve never shied away from speaking the truth and I can’t write about my experience there without being supremely honest. Most people (as in 100% of all the people I’ve ever talked to who have been to the Galapagos, including everyone who was on my boat) wax superlatives upon their return from the islands; they found it to be incredible, the scenery was breathtaking, the beaches stunning, the wildlife unbelievable etc. etc. In all, it was a pretty difficult destination to not at least be intrigued by, given the statistical consensus in the affirmative of it’s merits. However, I hadn’t planned to go on this trip for several reasons, the main one being that it simply didn’t appeal to me that much in the first place. I am not that keen on birds, I’ve been so spoiled when it comes to beaches and I was heading to the Caribbean coast of Colombia anyways, I love sailing but I get very sea sick, and it was very expensive compared to the rest of my travel options in South America. Nevertheless, it was the consistency with which people expressed that I simply HAD TO GO combined with the doctor’s suggestion that I walk a very minimal amount while I heal my torn hip tendon that pushed me into making a decision that initially ran contrary to my gut. I assumed the islands would be themselves achieve the same status as Machu Picchu in my travels – a place that could simply not be over stated or over hyped because it always surpassed expectations.

My cabin

That was not the case for me. I, for one, was completely underwhelmed, and didn’t really enjoy my overall experience there.

Ok, I’ve said it. There you have it – just my opinion, and in no way an indication as to whether you, dear reader, would be likely or unlikely to feel the same way if you’ve been or are planning to go. We all need to judge a place for ourselves, however, in this case I feel burdened with the need to justify my opinion, so I will attempt to do so while at the same time, letting you in on what some of the highlights (which I did thoroughly enjoy) were as they appeared scattered in my days on the islands.

Our Sailboat, named like Darwin’s vessel – The Beagle

Let me paint a picture of what a typical day was like. I was traveling on a 100 ft. sailboat, aptly named The Beagle, with a total of 13 passengers, 5 crew, and one very awkward girlfriend of our naturalist/guide. Each day we would navigate to a new island or landing point. We’d typically have breakfast at 7am and leave the boat at 8am for a “walk” which I place in quotation marks as they could far more accurately be described as “ambles” or “meanders” with LOTS of waiting, standing, being castigated for moving ahead of the guide, listening to the guide while standing, and waiting for the group to finish taking photos, or cease their ooohhhing and ahhhing at the 10^th animal of the same species that we’d seen in the past hour and perhaps the 50^th that we’d seen so far on the islands. After a typical two hour walk where we would have covered a maximum distance of about a mile (yes, if we’d been walking any slower it would be backwards) we would come back to the boat for a snack and perhaps more navigation while we searched for a snorkel location. We’d then get back in the dinghy to a snorkel spot and be in the water anywhere from ½ hour to just over an hour. The water temperature varied from bearable to very cold (at least for me) and though I LOVE to snorkel, the boat did not, unfortunately, have a wetsuit that fit me. They only carried large wetsuits that basically allowed all the cold water in at the neck which continually circulated fresh cold water around my body so the wetsuit was rendered useless. This meant that I often just had to get out of the water even if I was really enjoying the snorkel.

Sunset

After our water time, it was lunch then usually a nap or, if it was sunny (which it wasn’t most days – lots of complete cloud cover and quite chilly temperature-wise,) a lie out on the top deck with a book. In the afternoon we would take another 2 hour “walk” after which it was time for a glass of wine and then dinner at 7. For me, the fact that it was difficult to sleep at night (often the boat would be rocking so hard you felt as if you were going to be launched from your bunk like an aquatic rocket) and the general lethargic pace all our activities took meant I was ready to fall fast asleep around 9 each night.

And so passed our six full days at sea.

I will grant one concession for the islands to my general malaise during the whole trip. My boyfriend ended our relationship a few weeks ago and I’ve been heartbroken ever since. If anything, I hadn’t been as eager to include The Galapagos on this particular South American itinerary as I thought it would be a great destination to share with him, especially since he is also a diver and I would have definitely added several days of diving at the end of the cruise if he’d been there. In general, I think that a boat-based tropical island paradise full of wildlife is best experienced when you can share it with a partner that you love. Every sunset, glass of wine on the deck, snorkeling crystal waters – all of these activities scream romance and I found myself literally and physically aching to share those moments with him. This, in turn, worsened the pain

On the boat

in my heart and left me crying into my pillow most nights as I returned alone to my single cabin – incidentally, I was the only person traveling solo on the ship, the rest either being on their honeymoon (difficult to be around when you’re fresh from a break up) or married since their early twenties. This, and our guide constantly waxing on about his “beautiful future wife” left me feeling very much the odd duck, and painfully lonely. There was little to distract me from my grief, and LOTS of quiet time to contemplate and obsess over it when I wanted anything but. Not having anyone to share these feelings with as I had them was also quite difficult, and combined with the fact that I was in a lot of pain recovering from my torn hip tendon, didn’t set the best tone for appreciating my surroundings.

Chinese Hat

Having said all that, this is my third day in Colombia, and my heartache hasn’t prevented me from absolutely loving the scenery and ambiance of the coffee region of this country.

I guess I just really didn’t like the Galapagos.

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