Hi guys and gals,
Crikey, its been a while hasnt it!! The good news is that we have not perished in the African heat. We have been having an absolute ball, a perfect mix of relaxation and adventure!!!
The last time we left you we were on the island of Zanzibar, the next day we headed out for a day of snorkelling on an atol off the coast of the island. It was, shall we say...an experience. The boat out there was little more than a dinghy.... and the lunch that was included was fish....not so great for 2 little kiwis that dont eat fish...but on the other hand we did get to see a sea turtle, which was kick ass!! Arnoux was sick on both the way to the atol and the way back.... but is anyone surprised???
The next day we were headed back to stone town for the ferry back to the mainland. This turned out to be a little more difficult than it sounds. The bus that was coming up to get us broke down on the way, so another one had to be sent...so we were about 45 mins behind schedule to start with.... then the bus that did eventually pick us up only made it about half way through the 1 hour journey... so instead of wait for a replacement, our quick-thinking driver comendeered a public bus, kicked the locals off, loaded us on and headed for the ferry. We arrived about 15 minutes after the ferry was due to leave, but thankfully our group made up a very large percentage of the total passenger list, so the captain waited until we got there before he set sail.... oh it is nice to be important... even if the rest of the passengers resent you fit!!! hahahaha!!!
Once we got back to the mainland it was off to dinner and a few drinks, then off to bed in anticipation of the 5am start the next day. The next 2 days were spent on the truck making our way down to Malawi..thankfully I found people who would play cards with me so the time really flew by!!!
We arrived at Lake Malawi, and to our pleasant surprise, we were able to upgrade from our tent to a lovely room for the princely sum of a whopping $8 a night... hurray for a bit of luxury!!!
The first of our 2 stops on the shores of the lake was a great place, complete with a market place right outside the entrance to the campsite where we spent a lot of time haggling and trading with our new friend Mike for various wooden souvenirs, a bar that sold cheap beer and had a dart board, and a beach that had fresh water (funny that being a lake and all). The 2nd night of our stay there was Ollie the Irishmans birthday....so as anyone who has ever met an Irishman can imagine, the night was full of frivolity, drunkenness, and a new darts game based loosely on australian rules football!!! The next day there were many, many sad looking (very hungover) faces as we climbed back on board our trusty steed to head to our next lake malawi stop.
The good news was that we arrived at the 2nd place just in time to watch the All Blacks deal Portugal a bit of a thrashing, and watch a bit of 20/20 cricket before we all decided that we shouldnt spend our holiday watching TV and decided to swim in the lake and drink just a little bit instead.
The next day was a very, very, very special day.... the 16th of september... aka my birthday!!! The day started with a spot of horseriding for the few of our group that were up for it.... Arnoux was mounted on the lovely Yappie, while I was seated on Fergus... the laziest horse in all of Africa!!! Needless to say I had a rather relaxed start to the day, Fergus couldnt even get excited about the swim in the lake at the end of the ride... oh well, it was very hot, and Im not the lightest character so I suppose I cant really blame him. When we returned to camp there was time for a spot of swimming, a bit more 20/20 cricket and some more card playing before the afternoon really kicked into gear. On the way to the campsite the previous day we had made a stop at the local markets to pick up some fancy dress for the punch party that was planned for the evening of the 16th.... the twist was that we had pulled names out of a hat earlier and we were buying for someone else.... the whole idea was to get the most horrid outfit you could possibly find... which everyone accomplished spectacularly!!! You will not be surprised to discover that I ended up in a dress and much more makeup than I was comfortable with.... thankfully the punch started flowing at about 6pm so there was very little time for embarrassment before the drunkeness set in!!! I would like to tell you how much fun I had... but Im not entirely sure... although the stories the next day do suggest I has a lot!!!
Mercifully, we had the next day to recover by the lake, which is when the card game '500' became the official game of the tour.... in other words about a dozen of us spent (literally) the whole day playing it on the deck of the bar.... excellent fun!!!
Because we had spent the extra recovery day at Lake Malawi, we had 2 solid days of driving ahead of us when we awoke the next day, but this was broken up by the most lovely campsite, which believe it or not, had zebras wandering around the grounds... Arnoux was most impressed!!!
We made our way over the border into Zambia and arrived in Livingstone, the site of the booze cruise for the evening.
It is at this point that I need to veer away from the happy stories to send out all my love to the Whittaker clan. When I arrived at the campsite I received a message to call home, and when I did I was advised by my Uncle Glen that my beloved Grandmother Janice had passed away 2 days earlier. Arnoux and I made the obvious decision to give the booze cruise a miss, and spent a nice, quiet, respectful night in the campsite, I felt very lucky to have her there with me.
I know it sounds like a cliche, but I know that my darling Big Nanny (as she was affectionately known) would have wanted me to suck it up and get on with enjoying my holiday. So we headed across another border into Zimbabwe and on to Victoria falls. We really did have the most amazing weekend ahead of us. For Arnoux the weekend was spent enjoying a walk with the lions on the saturday, and an elephant ride on the sunday. For me it was a full day of rafting on the Zambesi river on the saturday, an elephant ride on sunday morning, and a half day of adrenaline sports on sunday afternoon which included a flying fox and a zip line across the gorge, and the gorge swing, which was like a bungy jump on steroids!!! The only downside to the weekend was seeing the state of things in Zimbabwe.... the people were lovely and so accomodating, but they had absolutely nothing. The shops had no food in them, the bars very little to drink, and the locals were visably desperate for anything that they could get their hands on. Such a wonderful place....ruined by one man.
On the monday morning we set sail for the chobe national park in Botswana. The next morning we were up bright and early to enjoy a game drive, during which we were lucky enough to see our second leopard!!! The afternoon as spent in the pool and in the bar.
From there it was back on the truck for the short drive to Maun, the gateway to our 3 day Okavango Delta excursion. We were taken out into the delta by a local guide in the local canoes called Mokoros. After setting up camp, we spent the next 3 days and 2 nights enjoying game walks, trips in the mokoros to the local swimming hole, and cards/drinks by the fire at night. There wasnt a lot to see out there in terms of game, but its nevertheless a great insight into the local way of life, and an amazing place!!!
The day after completion of our excursion was spent in the campsite bar watching some cracking rugby world cup games and enjoying a few bevvies.
The following morning we were back on the road for the 2 day drive to the Etosha national park in Namibia. We have spent the last days game driving, and enjoying the floodlit watering holes at the campsites at night.... very cool!!!
Today we are off on the short drive to the Cheetah park, our destination for the next couple of days.... should be great!!!
Sorry about the rushed nature of this belated update, but others are waiting for this computer. We hope you are all well, only 2 weeks now until we are home!!!
Again I just want to send my love out to the Whittaker clan, I am so sorry that I could not be there for the funeral, but I am thinking of you all.
Lots of love,
Us xxx
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