Home

We are home--safe and sound-- although jet lag is kicking in big time today! The flight from Doha to Montreal was 13 hours non-stop and yesterday was a 24 hour trip from start to finish!
Now to hand out treats to kids! Great to be home!

Going home!

Yesterday we were up for a 7am start--the taxi driver picked us up on time and we drove the hour to the airport near Stone Town. Our flight was delayed by a couple of hours and when we got to Nairobi we were too late for the Karen Blixen Museum--remember that was one of my first entries as I got ahead of myself?? Well we didn't see it anyway! None of us was upset as we are heading home -feeling that the trip is over! From Nairobi we flew to Doha. This city is rich and modern and well lit up as we flew in around midnight. Many of The places we have been have no electricity and run on generators which are shut off during daylight hours--ie no hot water then. Carrying on--we are waiting for a taxi to take us to the airport. Our flight goes in to Montreal and from there to Halifax. Aaron picks us up and soon we will be driving up our own driveway! Sounds great to me!

So here we are at the end of our African trip. We have two days at the beach--it is very very hot here--maybe 32-34--just a guess as we have no thermometer to check! Yesterday we swam in the Indian Ocean and it was the warmest water ever! But everything has its drawbacks and this ocean has small (nickel sized)jelly fish with long stingers that work! So we had to watch for those. This resort is,like the others, very nice --lots of amenities and great food-- Bob and I have gained a few pounds!
So tomorrow we are picked up at 7am and head from here to Nairobi, Nairobi to Doha, Doha is an overnight stay, then to Montreal and then to Halifax.....going to be good to get home!

Zanzibar

Today we flew in a little 12seater plane from a gravel airstrip in the Serengheti to the island of Zanzibar. There were 11passengers so Bob was chosen to sit in the co-pilot's seat! We did some teasing about that! By the time we had landed for the third time we all agreed that he really had improved!
This afternoon we had a walking tour of Stone Town and tomorrow we move to a hotel on the beach and on the way we will tour the spice market....always something to look forward to!
Our time is running out-we fly out on Sunday from Nairobi to Doha and then Montreal--I'm sure Canada will look wonderful!

A Day

What is a day like when one is on safari?  We usually set out around 8am although in Kenya the trips were earlier--usually 6:30 or 7. Our vehicle is a Tyota Land Cruiser-- 9 seater. There are 5 of us so we have room to stand and look out the open roof. Our driver is a Masai man who is not only a good driver but very intelligent and knowledgable about the area. He teaches us as we drive along. We have a boxed lunch provided by the lodge and around noon we have that....it is always a large lunch and what we have left over goes to the men who wash the truck when we are done each safari.  On yesterday's safari we saw hyneas, many ostriches, babboons, warthogs, cape buffalo and the most impressive--two male lions resting by the side of the road where we could hear them breathing-- they were oblivious to the 15 safari vehicles watching them! We watched for half an hour. All afternoon we drove the Ngorongoro crater and looked for the animals. Then we returned to the lodge for a much needed shower - this is the dry season and very dusty. Then to the lounge for a drink and entertainment --last night it was acrobats! We 3 women play scrabble on my ipad! The meals are very good--they cater to tourist tastes. Then we relax a bit and head to bed. Tomorrow we do some version of the same. We get along well as a group--all have a good sense of humour and are patient, non complaining Canadians!

Today I want to tell you about our "Wow" moments! For Bob it was the first sight of the Rift Valley-- having done the National Geographic DNA research he knew that his family line--going back many 1000s of years started here in the Rift! For me it was watching a family of lions--including twin cubs, romp like kittens about 15 feet from us.

Others in our group chose seeing the Serengeti from the airplane and seeing just how many tribes live in such a barren land. The huge flock of very pink flamingos rise as one--like a pink cloud--was also a favorite.
Today we are doing our first safari ride down onto the Ngorongoro crater--a place where the Masai and the animals co-exist.That should be an area of many wow sightings!

So here we are waking up in. A tent in Africa!! This tent has three rooms--a lovely large shower in included! The view from our door is the one from a movie--flat land with stunted trees and it stretches in every direction. There are small deer called impala all around browsing. The main lodge is huge and there are people here from all over the world. The owner of the camp is a woman who was born and raised in Madagascar! She speaks perfect English and is very pleasant to deal with.
We are all doing fine and things are going well. Please continue to leave your comments as they are a note from home!