Home, Sweet Home - Thank you Mom and Dad!

We finally made it home! 27 hours of travel and we are safely nestled back into our regular lives. A great night's sleep and I am now taking time to reflect on the last 11 days. Did we really just do that, or was it all just a dream?!?

I can't thank my parents enough for this incredible experience!! They began a tradition years ago with their first grandchild, taking each one of them on trips at 5, 10 and 15 years old. They were allowed to choose the destination and work together to plan an adventure. Somehow one or more of my four older sisters cleverly convinced my Dad that 40-year-old daughters should also have a turn, and the result for me was this trip of a lifetime. As the youngest, with the youngest two of the ten grandchildren, we decided to pool the boys' trip and my trip together into a family affair. Together we picked Africa. (Rick was invited as well, but sadly couldn't take the time off from work.)

With over 1,700 photos (Rick loaned us his camera if we promised to bring back at least 800) and video footage, we now have the satisfying opportunity ahead of sorting them all out and creating something to help savor the memories. 

I leave you with a few last clips from our journey:

Baby Elephant learning to use his trunk

Lion calling his comrades to gather

Also, the name of the company who helped organize the whole thing:
The Africa Adventure Company (http://www.africa-adventure.com/)

I can't say enough good things about the arrangement and planning that they did. The trip went off without a hitch. We were welcomed at every stop by someone with a smile and strong arms to help get us to our hotels and back to the airports. The accommodations were perfect and all of our transportation was on time and comfortable. If you are ever considering this type of trip I highly recommend you give them a call.

Lastly, a recent blog post from Mala Mala Camp:
(http://blog.malamala.com/index.php/2012/08/cyberdiary-%E2%80%93-31-july-2012/)

Our guide posted this on Facebook this morning and I thought I'd share it here. Some of the things he mentions were specific things that we did, but mostly it gives you a feel of what it was like to be there.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Mom and Dad. You are both amazing and wonderful adventurers!

Wrapping it Up in Zimbabwe...

Kevin's last post before heading home:

After seeing the Falls in all their glory, the last two days lacked any scheduled events, so it was up to us to decide what to do. My grandfather and I made our first decision; we reserved an 11:00 am tee time for the Elephant Hills golf course, designed by South African legend Gary Player. We were met by our two local caddies, who not only gave us tips (which were entirely necessary), but also insight on Zimbabwe culture. There were lots of animals along the way and the monkeys followed us everywhere. Fortunately, we only hit two water bucks and they didn't seem to mind. Overall, it was certainly a great experience.

While the two of us were out on the course, the rest of my family had been relaxing in the comfort of the Ilala Lodge. When they knew we were almost finished, they left to meet us at the Elephant Hills Hotel, where we all enjoyed a nice lunch together.

We came back to the hotel to relax for a little while before taking a taxi to the Zambezi River, where we were greeted by Zimbabwean musicians and dancers, for a three-hour sunset river cruise. We were told that we would see some animals in the water and land throughout the ride, and although that would sound appealing to most (including the easily excited Japanese tourists on the boat with us), we weren’t expecting anything that could top what we had already seen. Even still, though, we were pretty taken aback when an elephant came to the edge of the land just a few feet away from our boat (and was very excited to see us!). Capped off by a beautiful red sunset, the Zambezi cruise was certainly a nice way to end the day.

            

On our last morning in Zimbabwe, we all woke up relaxed and in no hurry. Well, most of us, anyway; my grandfather, being the adventurer that he is, had a 7:15 appointment for a microlight flight on the Zambia side of the river. If you don’t know what that is, that’s okay, because we didn’t either. But as you can see from the pictures below, it was a pretty exhilarating experience for him.

           

The rest of the day was pretty slow. We enjoyed a nice lunch together in the hotel, and we split up for dinner. My grandparents went out to one of the more famous hotels in the area, while my mom, my brother and I ordered from the bar menu and played cards outside. It was easy to forget where we were while being occupied with games and food, so we had to stop before returning to our rooms to say, “Oh my god, we’re in Zimbabwe right now.”

          

Tomorrow we will begin our long adventure back to the United States. This has been an incredible experience that I’m sure none of us will forget as time goes on.

Victoria Falls - Zimbabwe

We arrived in Zimbabwe after getting up at 3:30 am to catch a 6:00 am flight from Cape Town. I stayed up way too late updating the blog to be coherent at that hour, but somehow managed to get my act together for the van ride, two flights and a bus to our hotel. I was NOT functioning enough, however, to try to solve my father’s algebraic equation that he posed in our discussion about Celsius vs. Fahrenheit - fortunately for me, Eric was up to the task.

Upon arrival we settled in to yet another amazing location (Ilala Lodge in the town of Victoria Falls) and ventured out for a tour. I had no idea what to expect, except that it must be pretty darn amazing to be called one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Our drive through the town and into our hotel area had me doubtful that this would be the wonder that we had heard about. But the rooms are beautiful and sitting out on the porch, as I am now while writing this post, we can see the spray from the falls and hear the thunder, so I was excited to explore.

Our guide gave us some history of the falls and and a very interesting geological explanation of how this was all formed and evolving. Then we were off for a hike. After a short shady walk through the woods, with monkeys appearing and disappearing, we turned the corner and our breath was taken away with a view of the most vivid rainbow I have ever seen. That rainbow, combined with the water crashing down with such thunder, made me realize in a split second that I should never have doubted those who named this one of the Seven Wonders.

We continued on many paths along the falls, walking out and back to points with various views and levels of spay. By the time we neared the end of the long stretch, we were quite wet and in awe of nature and all its glory. 

At the end of the walk we reached Danger Point, aptly named for it’s wet slippery rock surface, no railing or wall holding us back, and a view across the chasm to the Zambia side of the Zambezi river. Fortunately we didn’t fall, so we got to see views of the bridge connecting the two countries (Zimbabwe and Zambia) where we could have decided to bungee jump (no, we didn’t).

Back to the hotel for a nice dinner and early bedtime - we were exhausted. We have two more days here and then we head home. 

Cape Town, South Africa

Thank you again to Kevin for this post and Eric for helping with the pictures. This blog is a great collaborative effort!

Departing from Mala Mala meant leaving behind all our new friends (human and otherwise), the beautiful African bush scenery, and the cozy accommodation of the camp. Cape Town was the destination, and although we had seen plenty of pictures through months of research, we weren’t really sure what to expect.

Upon arrival by airplane, my mom spoke the words that would later be able to sum up the entire Cape Town leg of our journey: “I can’t tell if this is a really colorful city, or if it’s just such a strong contrast from where we came from.” The historic city was incredible, but in a completely different way.

It certainly didn’t take long to understand the extent of Cape Town’s beauty. After picking up our luggage and meeting our new guide Christine, we set out on a half hour drive to the Welgelegan (don’t try to pronounce it, you’re doing it wrong), where we had rooms booked for two nights. On this short drive, we looked out the car windows to find breathtaking views of sunshine on the water and clouds sweeping low on top of the famous Table Mountain - beautiful for sure, but a little bit different from dirt roads and large scary mammals.

On the night of our arrival, instead of enjoying a cozy meal under a canopy of stars as we had become accustomed to, we took a taxi to a bustling shopping center on the Waterfront. While we all recoiled from a bit of culture shock due to the startlingly different environment, we were able to enjoy a delicious Italian meal before returning home in time for the Olympic Opening Ceremonies and a full night of rest.

We woke up to a nice breakfast of cereal, yogurt, eggs, and Michael Buble music (never part of the Lion King soundtrack, if I remember correctly), before leaving with Christine for a full day tour of the city. Our itinerary featured a boat ride to a seal colony, unbelievably scenic drives to the Cape of Good Hope and its lighthouse, photo ops galore, and time to view the awkwardly pleasant African penguins. It seemed like every time we turned around, the muttering of “Wow” or a camera click quickly followed. It was certainly a day to remember, capped off by a nice grill dinner back at the Waterfront and disappointing news concerning Michael Phelps’ first performance in London.

Tomorrow we’re off to Victoria Falls, and as nice as it would be to enjoy another day in Cape Town, I’m sure nature will once again take our breath away.