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!

Tanzania

I have been in an area with no wifi so couldn't post A thing. But today we flew from Kenya to Tanzania and tonight we are sleeping in lodge tenting-not your standard tenting but an upscale tent with a bathroom and a shower, etc! We have had terrific safaris --seeing many elephants,giraffe,rhino,hippos, and lions. Bob is very happy to see the animals that he wanted to see for years! The group of Lynne, Doug, Barb and the Osgoods have been getting along very well...we all have a great sense of humor! Tomorrow we go on safari here in Tanzania and then move on to the Serengeti! We think of you folks at home and hope you are well and enjoying life. If you comment we will get it the next time we have wifi--it is Africa after all and wifi is not a common thing to have. Till next time-- Claire

Ol Pejeta

Some of you may remember that we got an upgrade for a night and here we are in Ol Pajeta, the home of an Arab billionaire arms dealer! Of course he was arrested and no longer owns it! Bob and I slept in the room where William and Kate slept! I will try to get a picture into this site--Darn cannot seem to get it to work! Just take my word for it the rooms (all 4 of them!) are spectacular !
We are seeing lots of animals-the giraffes are beautiful, there are elephants, many deer like animals, ostriches and so much more. Now we are going for breakfast! More later and I'll work on the pictures!

Thanksgiving in Doha Qatar

We started out at noon on Sunday--Aaron Smith drove us down to the airport and we hung out there till 4:30 then off we flew to New York. We had quite a wait there --played some scrabble and had a nice meal then off at midnight for Doha Qatar. We flew for nearly 12hours --actually lost the day . So we are getting closer--one more flight tomorrow. All is well so far and we have seen a new spot in the world already!

Today and tomorrow -days of waiting. We are all packed ( we think!) and tickets have arrived via email. I keep rooting around in my duffle-taking one thing out and putting another in! We have a 15kg weight restriction -we travel on small planes a couple of times- and I would hate for us to go down because I took too many shoes!
Bob wants to mow the lawn for the last time but that is difficult with snow on it!

   Last night Lynne and Doug came up and after dinner we watched the movie "Out of Africa".  What beautiful scenery!  --Robert Redford is easy on the eyes too! We chose that movie because it is autobiographical about Karen Blixen and we visit her house and museum the last day of our trip. That's it on the left.
 But here I am writing about the last day when we haven't even left home! Oh well, I'm new to this --have to cut me some slack!

The dream begins!

When Bob was a boy he saw the movie Snows of Kilimanjaro--it fascinated him and he was enthralled by all the animals of Africa. He retired 15 years ago and began to think about going to that continent--specifically to Kenya to go on safari. Well, guess what!!--after all his years of dreaming he is finally getting to go! We leave this coming Sunday --Oct.9th. Our good friends Lynne Sheridan and Doug Smith are going also and Lynne's friend Barbara Belbeck from Toronto. We have made arrangements with a tour company called Hoopoe which is centered in East Africa. The North American rep, named Gayle,  actually lives in Lunenberg, NS and we met her for lunch in Halifax to discuss details of the trip. We found her to be friendly and knowledgeable and felt that she would look after us well. So after some further discussion --Hoopoe it was!
Instead of the usual journal I am trying this blog---let the blogging begin!