June 13, 2016 – Today we flew from Zambia to Antananarivo. The second we got out of the airport we ran into about five different men who wanted to help us with our luggage. We had no idea how poor Madagascar was we had a 30-minute drive to the hotel, and our driver only spoke French which was very annoying. While driving to our hotel John and I were both blown away at how dirty and overly populated Antananarivo was. We saw many people walking and running with no shoes. We felt sorry for them. We saw people washing their clothes in a dirty river, and then they put their clothes on the grass to dry. Once we arrived at the hotel, we were relieved that it was nice so we decided to stay there and settle in. After unpacking, we decided to go to the shops in the lobby and buy a few souvenirs, and after that, we went to the bar for a few drinks.
After having a few drinks at the bar, we decided to have dinner in the hotel since we felt unsafe to walk in the streets while we are having dinner we were lucky enough to see a whole bunch of ROTC kids and an active Colonel.
We had a great time speaking to the Colonel and some of the young kids it was pretty exciting they explained that they were there because of a program that the US has where they help the military in Madagascar with training. One of the great things the Colonel gave us was pointers on where to go shopping and what to see while there.
June 14, 2016 – The next day our tour guide took us on a tour of the city we saw the Kings home its kind of interesting to find out how people lived back in the 1800’s. After seeing the city, we decided to go back to the hotel and relax before going to dinner. The Colonel recommended a nice place, and we took a taxi had dinner and took a taxi right back to the hotel. We had to get back and pack to leave in the morning for Andasibe.
June 16, 2016 – This morning we decided to leave Vakona Forest Lodge instead of tomorrow which was our original plan because the drive back to Antananarivo was three hours long and the road is pretty much one lane all the way there and back. We had a flight to catch in the morning to go to Seychelles, and we didn’t want to risk missing the flight in case there was a problem on the way to the airport. Either way, we had a great time hanging out with the Colonel and his associate. We ended up meeting up with the Colonel and had dinner at the best restaurant in Madagascar called La Varangue. We had great food, great atmosphere, a lot of laughs and most of all they knew the Colonel, so we got the best treatment. After dinner, we hung out in the lobby and talked to the Colonel for about 2 hours and headed upstairs to finish packing and get ready to leave in the morning.
June 17, 2016 – This morning we woke up and met with the Colonel and had breakfast with him. After that, we had our tour guide take us to the airport. John and I were very excited to go to our next destination.
We started our journey from Florida to Zambia. After an 18 hour flight, we finally arrived in Johannesburg for one night our flight to Zambia is tomorrow morning. The Hilton Standton Hotel in Johannesburg (Joburg) was very nice we only spent one night there.
June 8, 2016
Today we woke up and got a taxi ride to the airport to officially start our Zambia Zambezi River adventure. We arrived in Zambia and took an unbelievable helicopter ride to my friend Tina’s river lodge. We flew into the gorge which was incredible it was an experience you couldn’t have had anywhere else. We flew over Victoria falls the view was breathtaking about twenty minutes later we arrived at Royal Chundu River Lodge. Upon our arrival to our river lodge we were greeted by Aggie & Hessah after a brief orientation we then boarded a boat for a short trip to our island lodge where Tina had set up our five days four-night stay and our chalet number four. We had lunch upon arrival and about two hours later we had a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River. After the cruise, we went back to our room to freshen up before going to dinner. When we got to our room we had a wonderful surprise at our room the tub on the deck was full of warm water waiting for us it was an unbelievable experience to be in the jungle and while bathing you hear the grunts of hippos is something city folk aren’t used to. After our amazing and relaxing soak in the tub we headed to the main area for our dinner we were very tired from jet lag.
June 9, 2016
The next morning we had a rough time with waking up at 5 AM to go on our first adventure, but we managed. We took the boat back to the River Lodge to meet up with our driver for the day. It was so cold on the boat that we nearly froze to death. It’s cold in the morning and by the afternoon it heats up and it’s much warmer. We drove about an hour away tomorrow to Mukuni Big 5. The first part was an elephant ride for 45 minutes which was fun. We saw what they normally do when they are in their natural habitat. Almost every step they took they would eat from the trees in the pathway.
After the elephant ride, we were introduced to two seven-year-old female cheetahs. Suzanne and Lulu were their names. At first, John and I were both nervous because even though they were raised from babies with humans, they are animals who belong in the wild and have natural instincts to hunt and kill for survival. One cool thing is that cheetahs are the only large cat that purrs so hearing the cat purr made us comfortable because you knew they were ok with you around them. After about half an hour we took them for a stroll in the bush.
After we were done walking the cheetah, it was time for them to get exercise. There was a lure attached to a pulley that the cheetahs chased while being timed and afterwards they got a chunk of meat as a treat.
The next adventure was the king of the jungle a 22-month-old female and male lion siblings. The lion’s name was Milo, and the lioness’ name was Dina. This experience was very different than the cheetahs because they don’t purr they are very quiet. The way we knew they were ok with us was by their body language. After about 40 minutes petting and walking with the two lions we were taken to meet two seven week old cubs
They were so cute and playful. We even got to feed the cubs milk from a baby bottle. Overall we had an unbelievable, once-in-a-lifetime experience at Mikuni Big 5.
Our next stop on today’s day of harrowing adventure was to see one of the seven wonders of the world Victoria Falls. The first part was an incredibly wet walk around the falls which was pretty amazing. The sheer force of the water flowing down and shooting back up was like a monsoon rainstorm even though we had ponchos on our bathing suits were soaked.
John decided to be daring and swim in part of the falls which is called Angel’s pool. It’s pretty close to the edge which is crazy. After swimming in the falls, we took a picture while sitting on a rock right at the edge. One false move and we were going over. Luckily the guide told us they hadn’t lost anybody.
We then started our one hour journey back to Royal Chundu, and once we arrived, we had a lovely early dinner and then went to our chalet for our nightly soak tub and right to bed.
June 10, 2016
We woke up at 5:30 AM and took the same cold boat ride to the River Lodge to meet up with our driver for our safari guide to walk with the white rhino. The beginning of the excursion was cold but as the day went on the sun warmed us up while walking through Mosi-Oa-Tunya Park looking for the Rhino. We finally found the rhino and her baby.
This was the only thing we were doing today, so we drove back to Royal Chundu on the way there we saw a herd of elephants crossing the street. They were the biggest elephants we ever saw and there was a baby with them as well. We arrived at the lodge just in time for the daily sunset cruise which we looked forward to every day. After the cruise, we went back to our chalet to soak in the tub and get ready for dinner.
One thing I found comforting about the lodge was every night after dinner we had a guard walk us back to our chalet with a flashlight and a taser because in the evening hippos come out of the water and onto the island to eat. They are known to kill more people than any other animal in Africa.
June 11, 2016
Today we decided to relax and hang out at the lodge after travelling so far and doing the excursions the past two days we needed to relax and unwind. After lunch we decided to participate in a four-hour private river safari it was quiet and very peaceful.
Unfortunately, we didn’t see much we saw some birds, a lot of baboons, two crocodiles and a family of hippos. After the River Safari, we relaxed on the deck of our chalet once again and read our books. We took some time out of our relaxation to take part in the sunset cruise luckily we enjoyed a private cruise, and after that, we decided to have dinner and then went back to our chalet and enjoy our warm bathe before going to bed.
June 12, 2016
We had such a great time on the river safari yesterday that we decided to participate in one early this morning.
The only thing that was an issue if you were doing anything early in the morning it was freezing for the first two hours, but as the sun came up, it became warmer which is pleasant. We followed our river safari with lunch and the sunset cruise, soak in the tub and dinner.
June 13, 2016
Today we woke up completely relaxed and ready to travel to the airport to catch a flight to Madagascar after a final drive down the unpaved road as the driver called it a free African massage we boarded our plane for our flight.
The days leading up to our trip the news was filled with images of the unrest in Egypt. Egyptians were trying to overthrow Mubarak. We were on the fence whether we were going to go on the trip or cancel it. We decided that we should continue with our plan.
The day finally arrived for our flight, we were excited, and when we reached the airport, of course, there was a huge snow storm, so that caused a lot of flight delays. We boarded the plane, so we thought that we were going but as we were sitting waiting to take off the ice was forming on the wings they tried several times to get us going but were unsuccessful. Finally, around midnight they canceled our flight and told us to come back the next day. We should’ve taken that as a sign but we didn’t.
The next day we were back at the airport waiting for the flight while watching the news it looked like Egypt was not a safe place to travel to. We decided to call our tour company Abercrombie and Kent, they told us not to worry, and they would never put us in harm’s way this happens all the time, and it would be over in a day or two.
This time the flight took off. Finally, after 11 hours we arrived. We were met by a representative from the tour company, and he told us we could not get to our scheduled hotel because it was too dangerous so they took us to an emergency hotel which made us nervous. Upon arrival at the Fairmont hotel, the security gave us a hard time getting in which didn’t help the bad situation we were already in. After about five minutes of back and forth, they finally allowed us entry. We checked in an decided to settle in and get ready for a quick bite to eat since it was late. As soon as we turned the Television on Secretary of state, Hillary Clinton was on, and she said: “I urge all US citizens not to travel abroad to Egypt.”
John and I looked at each other and said “WOW that’s great” We decided at that moment that we needed to get out of there as soon as possible. John called our American Express representative, and she scheduled the flight out the very next morning. Other people that were on the same tour with us decided that they were going to wait a few days to see if the issues were resolved.
The next day we headed back to the airport along the way we could see the military all over with guns and bayonets attached and heavy weapons. There were massive amounts of traffic, so I thought we would never make it to the airport. Once at the airport it was a zoo, a total nightmare we had to pay $5,000 to buy new tickets. At that point, if they cost $10, 000 I would’ve paid. The chaos was nerve wracking we didn’t speak the language people are yelling, and you have no idea what they are saying. We decided since we were already that far from home we should change our plans and head to Europe so off to Paris, France.
John at the Fairmont Hotel in CairoMilitary presence in the streets of CairoTraffic heading to the airportAn advertisement showing us the only pyramids we will see for many years
Today we drove from Kruger National Park to Nelspruit (White River) to stay at my friend Tina’s house for a couple of days. The area she lives in is very private and gated. It was another short stop we were only going to be here for two days.
The next morning we had an exciting visit to this elephant sanctuary called Elephant Whispers. We learned so much about elephants that we never knew before this visit. We also had the pleasure of riding an elephant which was fun.
Six dozen roses that Tina bought for her homeMaria at Elephant WhispersJohn at Elephant WhispersMaria & John – Young Elephant at Elephant WhispersMaria & John – Elephant ride at Elephant WhispersMaria & John – Elephant Whispers
Today we flew to Capetown and took a taxi to our hotel the 12 Apostles. It’s the only hotel that is not on the strip downtown. It’s exclusive and quiet which is what we wanted since this was our last stop on vacation. After checking into the hotel, we took a cab to the marina to meet up with our friend Tina’s aunt and cousins for a sunset cruise. We were lucky enough to be on an amazing Yacht and had a great time cruising around Capetown. After our cruise, we ended up meeting up with Tina’s father Hugh to have dinner which was great. Hugh is a great guy, and it was nice spending time with him.
The next two days we had a few tours set up Cape of Good Hope, penguins at Boulders Beach and a few wine tastings. Our private car picked us up and drove us to Boulders Beach which had hundreds of penguins. After taking a bunch of pictures, we then drove to Cape Point which is the southern tip of Africa. The following day our first stop was our first wine tasting. The building was stone, and it was beautiful. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the names of the places we visited; I guess we have another excuse to go back. This one vineyard was the best wine tasting we’ve ever been to. They gave us a lot more than usual at a wine tasting which was rough so early in the day, but we managed (wink, wink).
This was a short stop in Capetown we didn’t have enough time to visit Table Mountain, but we will be visiting again so the next time we will be sure to see it.
Maria & John – Sunset CruiseWhale tail
Maria & John – First VineyardMariaMaria & John
Locals playing soccerBoulder Beach Penguin
Baboon
OstrichBaby OstrichOstrich FarmMaria & John at the Cape of Good HopeColoful Sunset
What a great day it is we get to spend four days on Safari. As soon as we drove into Kruger National Park and arrived at Jacobin we saw an elephant just walking around which was amazing. The only time I’ve seen an elephant was either at the circus or a zoo, and these wild and free elephants are tremendous. We hung out with my good friend Tina and her cousins Sass and Tom were a blast we had a lot of fun with them.
After settling in and unpacking it was the perfect time to take a drive and have our first sundowners the real way. Elvis who was our driver at Jacobin packs the truck with all kinds of liquor, wine and soft drinks and a basket of finger foods that Saloni and Nora cook fresh daily. Once packed and ready to go for our sundowners Elvis drove us to this perfect spot and set up a table with a tablecloth and made us all drinks and set up the food. It was a fantastic welcome and a great experience.
Once we were done with the sundowners, we then drove to have a bush brie which is a barbecue in the heat of the bush. Once again another amazing experience. One of the things they told us was not to walk away from the other people and the fire because if Hyenas might drag you off and eat you.
The next day Tina and her cousins had to leave, so we had the whole place to ourselves which was great. We woke up every day at 5:30 am and were on the safari by 6 am hoping to see the Big 5 and of course all the other animals as well.
We were lucky enough to see the following animals.
Leopard
Cheetah
Giraffe
WartHog
Spotted Hyena
Impala
Zebra
Black Rhino
Cows
Buffalo
Elephant
Wild Dog
Baboon
Jackal
Wildebeest
Reedbuck
Nyala
Steenbok
Waterbuck
Bushbuck
Kudu
We were very lucky to see a Leopard that had just killed and dragged an Impala up a tree. The next day we went back to that same spot and saw the leopard finishing off the Impala, and you could hear the Leopard cracking the bones while eating it was wild. That afternoon we saw the leopard feeding her two cubs which is a rare sighting.
The only animal we weren’t lucky enough to see was the lion. Hopefully, the next time we go on Safari we will see them in the wild.
A Herd of CowsThe never-ending road to Kruger National Park
All the different lodges
Chalet 4 where we sleptBullnose birdWatering hole
Nora, Saloni &Elvis
While at the Bush Braai we were told not to go too far from the fire because we could be attacked by Hyenas and basically any of the wild animals. In the two pictures below my friend’s cousin fell asleep on the truck and fell off on the opposite side of where we were. Luckily nothing happened to him.
Huge spider
Imapala
Outdoor dining at Jacobin with view of the watering hole
Ant HillLeopard and her kill an ImpalaLeopard and her kill an Impala
Leopard and her kill an Impala
Another sundownerOwlMe next to the Safari vehicleDinner being cooked over hot coalsElvis & JohnMe & Elvis
Zebra relaxingZebra’s getting busy
Giraffe’s and Zebra’sGiraffeGiraffeLeopardLeopard eating an ImpalaLeopard with an Imapala LegLeopard and her cub
Cheetah
Black RhinoWartHogJohn & ElvisNkorho Bush Lodge another safari lodgeLovely EliBeautiful sunsetLocals carrying sticks for a fire on their heads
Today we had an adventurous tour we began with a scenic drive in a 4 X 4 jeep from the port of Safaga to the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada. We drove onto the Eastern Arabia Desert. We had great photo opportunities of the deserts that we’ve seen in movies. We drove to a Bedouin camp (settlement), where we were welcomed by the locals (nomads). We had a chance to taste their sweet tea and ate some of their flat unleavened bread. After seeing how the locals lived and what they ate, we rode camels through the desert. My luck I get the angry Camel who was spitting at the handler.
Arriving at the port was interesting, we saw piles of duffle bags from Egyptians who were traveling to the Mecca. It seemed unorganized I don’t know how they would find their luggage when they arrive at their destination. Today we were going to have the longest day of driving 3.5 hours to get to Luxor to see ancient Egyptian architecture and see fascinating mysteries of centuries old culture and hieroglyphics. Once again it was nerve-wracking to know that we had a security guard on our bus who had an Uzi.
Duffel bags heading to Mecca
Security guard with an UziSecurity guard with an Uzi
We arrived in Luxor we had a nice lunch at the Sheraton Hotel. After lunch, we continued our drive and crossed the Nile River proceeding to the West Bank area for a visit to the Valley of the Kings. We had a chance to see the tombs of Egypt’s ancient kings, their families, and other Egyptian nobility. It was amazing to see the hieroglyphics and how old they are, the colors were so vibrant. The only thing that was upsetting was that they didn’t allow any photography but luckily I was able to take two pictures before they told me I couldn’t.
Maria & John by the Steigenberger Hotel in LuxorValley of the Kings Entrance (I was lucky enough to take two pictures)Valley of the Kings (I was lucky enough to take two pictures)
Next stop was the Hatshepsut Temple. This mortuary temple was buried under sand for centuries and was built by Hatshepsut, the only woman to rule and become a Pharaoh. Built into the mountainside, it stands as an incredible monument to the powers held by pharaohs.
Hatshepsut Temple
Following that tour, we had a second photo stop to see Colossi of Memnon, two massive statues that originally flanked the entrance to Amenhotep III’s mortuary temple. Unfortunately, the temple itself was destroyed in an earthquake; the magnificent statues still stand guard today.
Colossi of MemnonMaria & John at Colossi of Memnon
The final stop was the most impressive Luxor Temple complex. The complex was a collection of breathtaking ruins, obelisks, and temples that date back to the 14th century BC.
Obelisk in LuxorLuxorLuxorLuxorLuxorMaria & John at LuxorMaria at LuxorJohn at LuxorLuxorMaria at LuxorLuxorThe Avenue of the Sphinxes
Today we sailed through the Suez Canal which is also known as The Highway to India. The canal is an artificial sea level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. It took ten years to construct, and it opened in November 1869.
Locals fishing in the Suez CanalLocals fishing in the Suez Canal and waving at the passengersMilitary bridges in case of conflict on the side of the Suez CanalOutlet pipes pumping water into Suez canal from desert construction of new section of Suez canalMilitary soldiers on the side of the Suez CanalLargest wind farm in Africa at the exit of the Suez CanalEl Ferdan Railway swing Bridge is the longest in the world and it is on the Suez CanalSarapeum (Serapeion) – Mosque on bank of Suez Canal
Growing up I had family that lived in South Africa I always dreamed of one day visiting them and figured that would never happen because Africa is so far away. When I started dating my husband in 2008, I had told him that one of my good friends Tina had just moved back to her hometown of Nelspruit which is a town in South Africa. The last thing she told me was that I had an open invitation to visit her whenever I wanted to, as soon as I told John that she extended an invitation he jumped at the opportunity and started planning the trip the next day.
The flight to Johannesburg is 20 hours we flew from JFK to Atlanta, GA to catch our connecting flight from there we flew to Dakar where we had to get out of our seats while security checked the plane. The last thing we wanted to do after flying about 15 hours was to be hassled to check the plane. Either way, after they checked our plane and we refueled, we were off to Johannesburg. Finally, we arrived at our first destination after 20 hours.
Unfortunately, our luggage didn’t make it in time, so we were without our belongings for one day. We checked into an amazing hotel called the Four Seasons Westcliff. This hotel embodies luxury and style. With its beautifully landscaped gardens and sitting high above you have a fantastic view of Johannesburg’s suburbs. It is breathtaking. A must see if you are traveling to South Africa.
Westcliff Hotel
After checking into the hotel, we had to take a drive to the local mall which was the last thing we wanted to do to get a change of clothes. The concierge advised us to take security with us, and we told them that we would be okay without the security, but they insisted which kind of made me nervous even though I grew up in Jamaica, Queens and John grew up in the Bronx. If you are unfamiliar with New York, Jamaica is not the best part of Queens. I had to go through metal detectors every day to get into my high school, so I was used to being in a bad neighborhood. I survived so I guess it can’t be that bad. We didn’t spend too much time at the mall because it was nighttime and we still needed to have dinner and get settled in and rest since the next day we were flying to Mpumalanga. Follow us along our journey next stop four day on Safari.
