The Habdogs' Adventures

Dar Es Salaam ot Nairobi via Zanzibar

thehabdogs — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 22:38:00 GMT

ULTIMATE AFRICA TOUR PART 4 - DAR ES SALAAM TO NAIROBI VIA ZANZIBAR

Day 31 - Tuesday 7th January 2014. Dar Es Salaam to Stone Town (Zanzibar).

It was a relief to get out of the tents thismorning as it was so hot and humid overnight. We all dosed up on motion sickness medication over breakfast before boarding the tuk tuks that were to take us to the ferry terminal. With 3 of us literally jammed into the backseat of a each tuk tuk, limbs were tucked in very closely to our bodies as we weaved in and out of the peak hour traffic with tunes blaring from the proportionally oversized speakers. After surviving the first part of the transit we then boarded the passenger ferry (apparently for passengers both dead or alive - yes, we boarded a ferry alongside a coffin) for a 2 hour rough seas challenge. What didn't help was that the man sitting next to Sam informed her that within the preceding week there had been a ferry accident secondary to rough seas in which more than 8 people were killed, and that the ferry involved was even bigger than ours. We later found out that the accident occured on a different channel but this information was too late for the nerves on the way over.

We all arrived in one piece to the boiling heat of Zanzibar. Contributing to the heat was our long pants and covered shoulders in order to respect the local Muslim culture. It was a wonderful feeling to walk into the air conditioned hotel lobby to find out that we would be having four nights in air conditioned rooms in actual beds!! After settling in we headed off with Rob and Kathleen to explore Stone Town and the local markets for the afternoon. The buildings in Stone Town are a mixture of old and new, the streets narrow and winding alleyways. Some of the others in the group described it as the African Venice. The boys only lasted half an hour in the markets before disappearing off in search of a cold beer, leaving the girls bargaining away. The markets were brightly coloured and bustling with tourists as they contained many souvenirs - paintings, clothing, woodwork and jewelery.

Tonight we ventured to the seaside night markets for dinner. There were lots of little food stalls piled with different foods such as kebabs, seafood, fruit and vegetables, all which were individually cooked on the BBQ. Our favorite though was the pizza and the shwarma. The pizzas were like BBQ filled crepes and could be sweet or savory. Of course, we had to try both! All the stalls had names such as 'Mr Happiness' and 'Mr Fantastic', and some even had the same name. One particular 'Mr Fantastic' claimed he was the original and the other 'Mr Fantastic' was the "photocopy".

Learning Points:

1. It is difficult to find a beer in s Muslim-predominant town

2. Zanzibar pizza is amazing and definitely going in the cookbook when we get home

3. It's hard looking at so much seafood and not being able eat it (due to likely food poisoning)

Day 32 - Wednesday 8th January 2014. Stone Town to Nungwi Beach (Zanzibar).

After a wonderful nights sleep in a bed with aircon we were ready to explore what Zanzibar had to offer. First on the itinerary was the 'Spice Tour'. With our guides we walked around a plantation full of many different fruit and spice plants/trees including jack fruit, passion fruit, mangoes, coconut, banana, avocado, star fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, peppercorn, lemon grass, clove and tumeric, just to name a few. It was a great experience trying to guess each spice after smelling and tasting the leaves/fruit/roots/bark. We also had a fruit tasting session followed by a demonstration by one of the butterflies (local coconut tree climbers).

We them travel north to meet Vladia and Wes at our next destination, Nungwi Beach. It was beautiful and our accommodation was the best yet. In the afternoon we went on a organized sunset snorkeling/booze cruise. We would just like to confirm for all those concerned that the snorkeling was pre booze. The boat we were on was a traditional wooden sailing boat called a dawa. We also had our own local band playing up the front of the boat to which we sang and danced to as we swayed in the ocean swell. The sea was so salty you could even float when shaped like a banana! After dinner we continued to party the night away at a local bar with Vladia leading the way in true form.

Learning Points:

1. In addition to an orchard we would like to have own spice plantation one day.

2. Again, one could never get sick of seeing an African sunset.

3. We also new it was supposed to be easy to float in salty water but not that easy.

4. Vladia sure does know how to party.

Day 33 - Thursday 9th January 2014. Nungwi Beach (Zanzibar).

Todays itinerary consisted of a snorkeling tour to Memba Island, a 2 hour boat ride (on a dawa) around to the east side of the main Zanzibar island. To say the least it was a rough ride and the strong smell of fumes from the petrol leak didn't help the queezy tummies. Suprisingly no one was sick. As we had divers on board our snorkeling was divided into two sessions to match their dives. It was a bit rough but we still had great visibility (10m+) allowing us to snorkel along the edge of the reef. We saw many species including triggerfish, flutefish, fingermark snapper, squidies, flounder, angel fish, nemos, sea snakes and moray eels to name a few. The ride there was bad but the ride back was worse. We were sitting up the front of the boat and each wave would crash over the bow and drench us. It was that rough we had to enter the protected reef and risk becoming beached on the coral due to the low tide. It was a very slow ride back but it certainly beat the alternate route of guaranteed rough seas and vomit.

After looking at many many paintings in the last few days this afternoon we finally bought one from a local artist. The painting is of the Masai people. Exhausted from a big day in the sun on rough seas we had a night off partying, however a few of the others went out to a beach party drinking Konyagi (local spirit).

Learning Points:

1. Apparently applying sunscreen 4 times was still not enough with both of us sporting pink skin

2. Our seamen initiation was not particularly fun

Day 34 - Friday 10th January 2014. Nungwi Beach to Stone Town (Zanzibar).

Unlike the party goers we woke up feeling fresh this morning and ready for another day exploring Zanzibar. Unfortunately this meant leaving beautiful Nungwi Beach. Once back in Stone Town, first on the itinerary was Prison Island. Prison Island was originally set up for the slave trade but was never actually used for this purpose as the slave market was ceased before it was ready. The island was subsequently used for quarantine purposes before people and goods were allowed to the main island. These days it is used as a resort and tortise sanctuary. We were expecting to see a couple of tortises but nowhere near the number we did. The ages ranged from freshly hatched to 180 years. The tortises aren't native to the island, rather they were given as a gift from the Seychelles in exchange for spice plants. We were told that over-population was becoming a problem but we certainly didn't expect to see an 127 year old male tortise chasing down a somewhat younger female and do the deed in front of our eyes. It was one of the funniest but most disgusting things we have ever seen let alone heard.

After returning to the main island we went to visit the slave markets. All the slave chambers except for 2 have been demolished. It was difficult to imagine that 75 women and children or 50 men could fit in such a small space let alone survive the heat and poor ventilation. It really was survival of the fittest. The rest of the afternoon was spent wandering around the local markets followed by a group dinner at an Indian restaurant.

Learning Points:

1. Apparently there is no such thing as too old in tortise world.

2. Seeing the slave market brought the concept of slave labour into a whole new perspective.

Day 35 - Saturday 11th January 2014. Zanzibar to Korogwe.

With 2 fellow truckers struck down with gastro (or as Vladia calls it, "Zanzibar belly") we are all a bit concerned our good luck streak of health might be running out. What made it worse today was the 12 hour transit day we had ahead. We survived the ferry back to Dar Es Salaam, sad to be saying goodbye to Zanzibar and the air conditioning, but also excited about venturing to the greatly anticipated Serengeti. Despite the long drive we again enjoyed the scenery. We are now driving through flatter plains of red soil, acacia and boaba trees with tall rocky mountain ranges that appear to arise from nowhere.

Tonight we camped at Korogwe, a campsite Vladia refers to as the "shit hole". In summary, it was pretty basic camping in the middle of nowhere but to be honest, any campsite was going to be a shock to the system after the last 4 nights of luxury.

Learning Points:

1. It's hard to believe it'd be possible but Sam's supervision of hand hygiene has become even more strict

2. When it comes to camping and over landing we have all become a bit soft after Zanzibar

Day 36 - Sunday 12th January 2014. Korogwe to Arusha.

After a comparatively 'short' drive we arrived at our campsite (Snake Park) in time for a late lunch. Unfortunately we couldn't see Mt Kilimanjaro on the way due to the clouds. Snake Park is also a reptile and wildlife rescue sanctuary housing crocodiles, at least 10 different species of snakes and a variety of birds. The campsite however is best known for its Medical Clinic which specializes in snake antivenom, supplying much of Africa. We were very lucky to have arrived on snake feeding day as it only occurs every 2 weeks. Baby (live) chickens are released into the snake cages and the snakes are left to help themselves until they're full, and then the surviving chickens are removed and safe for another 2 weeks. It was fascinating watching the snakes strike and then swallow the chickens whole but we did feel sorry for the trembling chickens huddling in the corners of the cages.

We also visited the Masai Museum and learnt about their tribal traditions and lifestyle. Of interest was the importance of circumcision in their culture. Males are circumcised at age 15+ which marks the beginning of their 'manhood'. They are then sent away to the land for 6 months and upon their return they are considered warriors, and are entitled to a wife (or two or more). If the boys are not circumcised or show any signs of weakness during the procedure (crying/flinching/tears), which is performed without any anesthetic, then they are never considered men and are not allowed to marry. Female circumcision is now illegal but is still occurring illegally in ~ 30% Masai women. The women are circumcised at age 10+. The mortality rate for women is quite high, largely due to sepsis. Similarly to men, uncircumcised women are not allowed to marry. The circumcision 'status' of a Masai is obvious by their dress, as with each 'milestone' their traditional attire changes.

Learning Points:

1. We are thankful that neither of us are chickens or Masai

2. Habby's love for snakes is still matched by Sam's hate

3. We miss having a washing machine

Day 37 - Monday 13th January 2014. Arusha to Serengeti National Park.

Our Serengeti trip had finally arrived and to say that we were excited was an understatement. For this part of the trip we left the truck behind, taking two 4WD instead. Unfortunately we also left Vladia behind too as she was unwell with the flu. In our vehicle, which we of course called 'The Spotted Genet', we had Godfrey our guide (Captain GG), Wes (Frog), Sarah (Bush Buck), Charlotte (Rhino), Rob (Lemur), Kathleen (Night Hawk), and ourselves (Mongoose and Leopard). We first had a 3 hour drive to the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Gate which was located just before the lookout over the Ngorongoro Crater. The view was just incredible and only added to our excitement.

Our lunch spot was the most entertaining yet! The Kites, birds of prey, had learned over the years that our lunch packs contained chicken, to which they had taken a liking to. Habby, being Habby, thought he would be fine sitting on the front of the vehicle by himself whilst others remained in the car or sat under the tree with other groups hoping to improve their odds of not having their lunch stolen. What happened next would make a perfect slow motion picture... Habby, drooling over his big piece of chicken, lifted it slowly to his mouth, but just as he was about to take a bite in came the first Kit, knocking his delicious piece of chicken out of his hands, quickly followed by the second Kite that retrieved it for itself. Poor Habby was left standing in shock as the rest of us rolled around in fits of laughter.

As we drove around the outside of the Ngorongoro Crater towards the Serengeti National Park we stopped at one of the Masai Villages. The men and ladies put on a small show for us, encouraging us to join in with their dancing. Essentially the dancing involved jumping as high into the air as possible at which the men were very good and the women not so. Afterwards we met some of the children at their school and were invited in to some of the Masai peoples homes to have a look. The houses are huts constructed with wood and mud, with 3 internal divisions -bed for the husband (and wife on special occasion only), bed for the wife and children, and the kitchen.

We ended up running late to the campsite as we kept spotting more and more animals. The wide open plains were like one massive paddock of animals, but all were mixed together. There were zebras, wilderbeasts, warthogs, hyenas, impala, Thompson and Grant gazelle. In the more mountainous area we saw giraffes and elephants, and the rivers and ponds were full of hippos. The most exciting animal we saw though was our first wild lion. There were 2 lioness sunning themselves on top of pride rock. We took a lot of photos!

Similarly to the Okovango Delta, the campsite was not fenced off from the animals so there was a lot of nervous excitement about the prospect of waking up to find a lion sleeping beside your tent. The same rules also applied in that the bathroom was off limits overnight unless you were desperate and had a brave/stupid tent mate to walk with you. We were advised to stick our torches out of the tent first and have a look around before committing to exiting the tent. There were a few people feeling very uncomfortable about sleeping in the tents but we thought it was great going to sleep hearing the lions and hyenas in the distance.

Learning Points:

1. If Habby protected his food like Hazel (the sheepdog Sam's family tease her about copying) he wouldn't have lost his chicken

2. Wild lions are even more spectacular than expected

3. Habby thinks that Sam is just like Michael and never lets the truth get in the way of a good story. Sam however disagrees with the truth of this statement.

Day 38 - Tuesday 14th January 2014. Serengeti National Park to Ngorongoro Crater.

It's a big statement but today was the best 24 hours of the trip so far! We were woken up at 1am to the sound of rain on the tent and were worried that the balloon flight was going to be cancelled so we were very relieved to wake to clear skies at 5am. After a check for eyes around our tent with our head torches we made a quick dash to the safety of the vehicle that would take us to our launch location. At the launch location we were not only greeted by our balloon but a pride of 14 lions. It was amazing! We were able to drive within 5m of them and some walked right up to our 4WD. With the balloon about 100m away we were nervous about getting out of the car and into the balloon without being eaten. Our balloon was apparently the third biggest style in the world, and held up to 16 people. Our take off was slightly delayed because of the lions so we weren't in the air for sunrise, but it was beautiful nonetheless and you couldn't wipe the smiles off our faces for having seen the lions anyway.

The balloon ride was much smoother but louder than we expected, lasting for ~1.5 hours in total. At the start we flew quite low to the groud, gliding over the hippo pools and grasslands where hyenas and antelope were. Due to the rains the animals had dispersed themselves across the plains, so when we saw a heard of zebras in the distance we started gliding towards them. Halfway across we looked down and saw not only a pair of lions, but 3 cheetas lying close by. This was amazing and very unusual because the cheetahs are competition to the lions and if in the right mood the lions would try to kill them. We had a relatively smooth landing with the assistance of a few trees, and were met with full bubbling glasses of champagne. As the bubbles hit empty stomachs there were soon many giggles as we tucked in to our 5 star breakfast in the middle of the Serengeti. It was honestly like we'd won the tatslotto! The serene air of fun and excitement lasted all day. Still full from our Champagne breakfast we 'forced' down brunch and then piled back into our 4WD for more game driving. We lost Wes but gained Laura (Moose), keeping the rivalry between our two trucks going all day. In our defence the other team really started it when they tried changing our name to 'The Spotted Genitals'. Again the game drive didn't disappoint. We saw a pride of lions (likely the same pride we'd seen earlier in the day), a leopard and baby cheetahs. To top it off, on our way back to Ngorongoro Crater from the Serengeti we saw 2 male lions. Admittedly, half tbe fun of seeing them was us immaturely yelling animal noises at them to get their attention for a photo.

After dinner we played a game called Werewolves and Villagers which involved a lot of deception but was really fun. The campsite again wasn't fenced off, and tonight we had some visitors. On our way to bed from the bathrooms we made our first cardinal mistake... not looking around before proceeding to walk. We walked unsuspectingly to within 10m of a bull elephant that was naughtily drinking from the water tank, startling it and subsequently scarring the living daylights out of us. Now you'd think that after listening to Vladia's regular warnings about the importance of standing still when one found themselves in such a situation this is what we would have done. However, Sam's legs had a different idea and before Habby knew it she was off at full speed to the closest bathroom, embarrassingly the boys! Apart from the initial shock at our presence/stupidity the elephant went back to drinking, our heart rates and nerves recovered and we happily live to tell the story.

Learning Points:

1. The Serengeti exceeded all expectations

2. Habby doesn't do a great lion roar. However apparently (to the lion) Rob does a mean dog bark.

3.. If Sam's natural instinct when faced with danger is to run, then lets hope she doesn't come across any other wild animals as she might not be so lucky next time.

4. It only takes 16hrs to become a balloon pilot. New hobby???

5. Even the bush toilets weren't safe with one of the other boys almost peeing on a buffalo.

Day 39 - Wednesday 15th January 2014. Ngorongoro Crater to Arusha.

This morning we went on our last Tanzanian game drive into the Ngorongoro Crater. Driving into the crater was breathtaking. It was like driving into a scene from the Lion King, an oasis full of animals. As far as the eye could see there were zebra, buffalo, wilderbeast, elephants, rhinos, antelopes, hyenas, many species of birds including flamingos, and best of all... 4 male lions playing with their kill (wilderbeast). Once again we were left grinning from ear to ear as we drove around the crater hanging out of the 4WD roof. It was the shortest 4 hours as before we knew it we were driving up and out of the crater and on our way back to Arusha.

Back in Arusha we went to the World Heritage Centre which hosts a large art gallery and is the biggest broker for Tanzanite. The girls were in heaven! Apparently Tanzanite is a finite crystal and is expected to run out within the next 8 years. Some of the artwork was amazing but unfortunately too expensive. Back at the campsite (Snake Park) Kathleen and Sam went to have a look at the Medical Clinic. The clinic was also ran as a small 6-bed hospital, and currently had 3 inpatients; a girl who had been burnt in a house fire, a man that had been bitten by a snake and an amputee secondary to being mauled by a buffalo.

Unfortunately tonight was the last night for everyone except Kathleen and ourselves who are continuing on to Uganda. We made the most of the occasion, partying the night away well in to the early hours of the morning.

Learning Points:

1. Michael would be disgusted with Sam's darts skills

2. Lions are playful like big pussy cats.

Day 40 - Thursday 16th January 2014. Arusha to Nairobi.

3hrs sleep was not really enough but a fair compromise for the great party we'd had the night before. We packed up tent 58 for the last time and farwelled Rob as he was staying behind to climb Mt Kilimanjaro. It took us 7hrs to reach Nairobi including the border crossing and most of the time was spent catching up on the sleep we missed last night. For the bits that our eyes were open, again you could appreciate the changing scenery, in particular the increasingly Westernised housing. The traffic in Nairobi wasn't as bad as expected, but is was certainly chaotic and our truck accidentally nudged a small car in a roundabout not too far from our hotel. Thankfully no one was hurt and the incident was solved in the African way.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and on arrival to our hotel we farewelled Vladia and Wes. Our incredible last 6 weeks was a credit to them and we could not find a better 2 people to explore an enjoy Africa with. We spent the afternoon catching up on washing which was a chore and a half given the dirt and dust we brought back from the Serengeti. After sadly farewelling Charlotte and Laura who had an early flight we went out for a final dinmer with the remaining crew to the Tamarind Restaurant, Nairobi's most prestigious seafood restaurant. To say the least, it was amazing! Even if we got sick from eating the seafood it was going to be worth it. With the piano playing in the background we sipped on cocktails and dinned on crab and prawns.

Learning Points:

1. It may have have taken 40 days, but we found out that Sam can actually sleep on the truck.

2. Habby won't get a choice of dining option on return to Nairobi as Sam will be dragging him straight back to Tamarind - between the seafood and the piano Sam was like a fat kid in a candy store.

Day 41 - Friday 17th January 2014. Nairobi.

Today was first proper sleep in with our wakeup time only restricted by breakfast closing time. Even this proved to be a challenge as our body clocks were still stuck on 5:30am with thanks to Vladia. Today we organized surprise lunch for Wes' s birthday at a nearby shopping mall. Wes's face was pretty priceless when he spotted Kathleen and ourselves. The only downside was having to say goodbye again. Of course, being in a shooping mall, the girls couldn't resist going on a small splurge.

This evening we had our pre departure meeting for Uganda which included an update on our itinerary and an opportunity to meet our new 13 traveling companions. Once again the Aussie's dominate with a total of 9. Apparently we are also going to be picking up another 7 people in Kampala which will mean a full truck.

With our last opportunity for a fancy feed before returning to a camp food diet we went to the famous Carnivore Restaurant with Kathleen. In the past it was famous for game meat however in 2004 the Kenyan government banned the sale of game meat in and attempt to stop poaching. Nowadays the meat is all farmed but they still retain their large selection of meats ranging from lamb and beef to ostrich and crocodile. The meats (excluding chicken gizzard which we avoided) were delicious and once again we had very full bellies. The meal was accompanied with a cocktail called a 'Dawa' (meaning medicine/doctor in Swahili), a delicious combination of vodka, lime and honey.

Learning Points:

1. Our iron stores have been adequately replenished.

2. Depite being ridiculously full after our main course there always seems to be room for dessert (there must be a second stomach after all).

3. When the Australian government sends you smart traveller updates regarding the countries you registered your travel for, sometimes it's nicer not to know that you are currently staying in a suburb that has been assigned a 'do not travel' recommendation.

4. Depite still loving the camping we're not going to lie, we did really enjoy being clean for 24hrs.

Livingstone to Zanzibar

thehabdogs — Sat, 11 Jan 2014 05:49:00 GMT

ULTIMATE AFRICA PART 3 - LIVINGSTONE TO DAR ES SALAAM

Day 23 - Monday 30th December 2013. Livingstone to Lusaka.

Today we started the East Africa leg of the tour, which Vladia refers to as the "real Africa". As a transit day much ofour time was spent on the truck. Thankfully we are back to ever changing scenery which helps pass the time by. The land is so green reflecting that we are in the middle of the wet season, and the roads are lined with little community settlements every 20km or so. The rural housing is largely built traditionally (small round houses with thatched roofs) but there are also many unfinished sqaure brick houses.

The long bus drive was an initiation for the new comers. Only just over an hour in we had had enough of hearing them counting down the minutes the next campsite, so we reinforced that " this is Africa" and we will arrive when we arrive so not to set themselves up for disappointment if we arrive " late". Habby's hightlight for the day was KFC for lunch (or second lunch if you count packed sandwiches).

Tonights campsite was one on the best so far complete with its own zebras, giraffes and waterbuck. We unwound from a long day on bus with a game of ultimate frizzbe. With Sam being the first casualty from Wes' s strong arm.

Learning Points:

1. If you want to buy/order something waiting politely in a queue won't work as you will need to push in like the locals otherwise you would be still in the line waitng now.

2. KFC is even delicious in Africa.

3. The new comers make us feel like seasoned overlanders.

Day 24 - Tuesday 31st December 2013 (New Years Eve). Lusaka to Chipata.

New Years Eve didn't start well as it had rained constantly since 10pm the night before and all the tents were soaked. With bellies full of hot porridge to cheer us up we were soon on our way for another long drive. Thankfully the complaining coming from the back of the truck was a little less with the new comers adjusting to the overlanding. Today we saw multiple motor vehicle accident scenes reflecting the danger of the narrow East African roads.

It is still fascinating to see the different agriculture and how the local people farm. There are no fences, rather the land is divided by tribe, and families share the land and its produce. Men, women and children of all ages can be seen in the fields with their hand held tools cultivating the land into rows similar to raised-bed farming. The rows extend up to and go around the base of the many mango trees scattered over the plains.

We celebrated New Years in style, drinking local brew and spirits from plastic cups and having our own little karaoke session in the truck kitchen. Despite a few war wounds (thanks to invisible tent ropes and pegs) we all saw the new year in before retiring for the evening.

Learning Points :

1. The famous African liqueur Amarulla is delicious

2. We should seriously consider locking ourselves in our tent at night as apparently we are deep-sleepers (as evidenced by us not waking to an apparently very loud argument that occurred overnight).

Day 25- Wednesday 1st January 2014. Chipata to Kande Beach.

Today we were up at 6am as we had to cross the border into Malawi. Some of the crew were a little worse for wear after less than 4 hours sleep, with 2 of the other girls crossing the border in their pj's. The early start paid off though as the border wasn't busy and it took less than an hour which apparently is good for East Africa.

We arrived at Kande Beach by lunch time and after setting up camp we headed to the beach for an anticipated relaxing swim. We could not have been more wrong. Being new years day there were local holiday-makers everywhere. We could have mistaken the beach for Bondi. The difference was however, embarrassingly our white booty was the centre of attention. One particular young boy was infatuated by Sam, shadowing her even into depths requiring him to tread water to stay close.

We were all very happy to be celebrating James' 21st Birthday, complete with our own spit pig and famous camp fire chocolate cake for dinner. It was amazing! We then partied the night away on the beach overlooking the lightning across the lake and accompanying the local guitarist with bongo drums.

Learning Points :

1. Robin invented a new drink call the Vodrumcokesprite, which can be delicious if mixed in the correct portion.

2. An outdoor spit rotisserie is a must for our new home. (when we find one)

3. Without being racist we had never felt so white before (in reference to the attention received on the beach.

Day 26 - Thursday 2nd January 2014. Kande Beach.

It's sad that we consider it a sleep in but a 7:30 rise and shine was greatly appreciated. Our first activity was a guided village walk in which we were supposed to visit the school, hospital and the village itself. Unfortunately this was a pretty bad experience because as soon as we opened the camp gates we were swamped by local people who harassed us the whole walk and insisted we purchase from their shop at the end. The sites we were taken to had all been comercialised, the school headmaster was corrupt, and essentially the tour was targetted on guilting us into donating money rather then being a culturally enriching and informative experience.

After lunch we went on an snorkeling tour to an island 900m offshore. There were many small fish around the base of the island as well as a ship wreck (sunken mokoro). After swimming back to shore we relaxed in the shallows for the remainder of the afternoon enjoying the novelty of having the beach almost entirely to ourselves.

Tonight we had a farewell dinner for James and Lauren which was a traditional African meal eaten with african knifes and forks (our hands).

Learning Points :

1. The depth of the lake was much less the anticipated when Habby and Wes decided to have a competition of who could dive the deepest. Both returned to the top with a handful Lake Malawian sand. We later told that it was only 9m deep.

2. Kande Beach is becoming very commercialised with local people relying on tourism as their staple income.

Day 27 - Friday 3rd January 2014. Kande Beach to Chitimba.

Today was a 'short' transit day (only 5hrs) and we arrived at our campsite for lunch. It was a very scenic drive through the Malawian mountains that border the lake. The vegetation was green as far as the eye could see and the views from the top were breathtaking. On arrival at our campsite we were informed that swimming in that lake would be at our own risk as quite a large crocodile was spotted there the day before. The camp site also had many monkeys in the trees which soon had Wes and Habby thinking of an elaborate plan to catch them.

In the afternon most of us went off for a wood carving lesson. Once again when we left the campsite we were swamped by the locals, but this time it wasn't as bad as they were there to be our individual teachers for the carving session. For some the lesson was more of a demonstration as the teachers did most of the work, howerer we (Sam in particular) were able to do most of the work. Sam ended up making a key with and elephant on one side and Malawi on the other with Habby making a fridge magnet of a rhino.

Learning Points:

1. Habby showed promise in following in his Pop's footstep with his wood carving skills.

2. Lake Malawi is also known as the calendar lake as it is 365 miles long and 52 miles wide.

Day 28 - Saturday 4th January 2014. Chitimba.

The one thing about camping is that you're guaranteed to never have a sleep-in even if it's rest day as there will either be the hot sun on the tent canvas or other noisy campers to wake you up. So at 5.30 am we wandered down to the beach with the locals to wait for the fishing boats to come in and watch the sunrise. It apparently wasn't a very good night for the fishermen as there weren't many fish caught and therefore lots of empty bowls remaining in the hands of the locals that morning.

Habby spent his morning trying to catch a monkey (unsuccessfully) with Wes. They had a trap set up with a banana ready to go but the monkeys were too smart, staying well out of reach. Sam went on another village tour hoping to replace her previous experience with a much better one. It did not disappoint. We were welcomed into the homes of the local people, visited the local witch doctor and heard our future predictions, tried the dried fish from the local market and visited the health care centre. We were a hit with the local children and often had at least 2 hanging from our arms.

We were initially going to hike or catch a 4WD taxi up to Livingstonia, a small village at the top of the mountain range but the temptation of a quiet afternoon reading a book and snoozing on a mat in the shade won over. Habby's back was still giving him trouble so we upgraded our accommodation for the evening to a cabin with a proper matress. The cabin, located on the beach, was in the shape of a boat and rested upon springs. It was painted red and called the 'Love Boat'.

Learning Points:

1. It is much harder to catch a monkey than anticipated.

2. A visit to the Health Care Centre further consolidated the fact that you definitely don't want to get sick in Africa, especially Malawi!

3. Maybe Habby isn't a bad fisherman after all.

Day 29 - Sunday 5th January 2014. Chitimba to Iringa.

Today was the first of two long transit days. We were very thankful of our upgrade to the 'Love Boat' as it meant we didn't have to pack up our tent for a 5am departure. We crossed the border to Tanzania in the early morning, though not arriving to our final destination until 4:30 in the afternoon as we were pulled over by the police 5 times for supposed speeding. The Tanzanian Police are openly corrupt and we soon saw how bribery worked. The mountainous Tanzania terrain was truly spectacular. There was an abundance of crops including tea, corn and casava as well as many mango and banana trees. The communities similarly to Malawi lined the road side but the housing seemed more advanced, mainly built with bricks and a tin roof.

Tonight we stayed on a farm where Vladia surprised us with upgraded accommodation and a traditional dinner cooked by the local people. Our rooms were setup like horse stables complete with a stable door and thatched roof. Before dinner we had to elect a chief who would represent our group and he would have to choose three wives. Habby was chosen as the chief and accordingly he chose Sam as his first wife (as traditionally the first wife is the most important wife and also chooses the subsequent wifes). Kathleen and Sarah were chosen as the two next wifes and we then dressed in traditional garments for dinner. Dinner was topped off with our new favorite hot beverage 'Chocorula' (hot chocolate with Amarula).

Learning Points:

1. Some things don't change as Sam still hates packed lunch.

2. Habby was informed by Sam that this would be his only chance to have three wives.

Day 30 - Monday 6th January 2014. Iringa to Dar Es Salaam.

What a long day!!! Our wake up call was at 3.30am today (which was 2.30am for us as we'd lost an hour entering Tanzania). Most of us spent the first 4 hours sleeping as we drove in the pouring rain through the mountains. The ones that weren't sleeping were busy patching up leaking holes around the window frames. We were all very happy that we didn't have to pack up the tents thismorning! 10km short of our breakfast stop we got caught in a truck jam (80 trucks in front) as there was an accident ahead. To Sam's delight this provided the opportunity to get the breakfast box out from underneath the truck so she could play her new role as truck attendant providing the 'in-truck service'.

Vladia had spent a lot of time warning us about how horrific Dar Es Salaam would be in that it was busy and full of unsmiling and unhappy people, but we had a ball from the back of a truck buying icecream from out of the windows and watching Wes shoot other drivers with his water gun (stealing santa present) when we were stuck in a traffic jam. We certainly agree with Vladia though that we would never want to live in or near Dar Es Salaam. We finally arrived at our campsite on the beach after 14 hours on the road. We weren't treated to an accommodation upgrade which meant sleeping in the hot sweaty tents again but we did have dinner cooked for us which was great.

Learning Points:

1. Swimming in the sea is as cleansing as having a shower when the showers are salt water anyway.

2. We not only survived but enjoyed the 14 hour day stuck on the truck.

3. The rest of the group thinks Sam should quit her job and become a truck hostess.

Windhoek to Livingstone

thehabdogs — Sat, 11 Jan 2014 02:12:00 GMT

ULTIMATE AFRICA TOUR PART 2 - WINDHOEK TO LIVINGSTONE

Day 14 - Saturday 21st December 2013. Windhoek to Kalahari.

Today we crossed the border from Namibia to Botswana, traveling into the heart of the Kalahari Desert. For the first time this trip the scenery remained constant - flat plains with small scrubby trees. We also hit daylight rain for the first time, and subsequently had to make a few DIY adjustments to the truck with blu-tac and masking tape as we'd sprung a few leaks around the windows. As there really wasnt much to see we treated ourself to our first truck movie.

The excitement for the day was when Wes got the truck bogged less than 50m from our camp. He had it up to the axles in sand and it kept sinking. Wes, Vladia, Lauren, James, Kathleen and ourselves had an absolute ball getting covered from head to toe in sand as we dug the truck out inch by inch. Needless to say, like in any group, the were plenty of additional assistants, but also 'supervisors' with clean hands. An hour and a half later the truck was back on firm ground, and what wasn't sandy now was after a celebratory sand fight.

After pitching the tents we went on a walking tour with some of the local Bushman. They taught us about the plants they use for medicinal purposes as well as how the hunt. Unfortunately due to the rain it was only a short tour and the much anticipated traditional Bushman dance was cancelled.

Learning Points:

1. Who would have thought getting bogged was so much fun!

2. As great as bushman are they can be unreliable due to their nomadic lifestyle.

3. Africa has so much sand!!!

Day 15 - Sunday 22nd December 2013. Kalahari to Maun. After 14 days of being constantly warned about scorpions and being made to move our tent before packing them up we finally found one. They do exist after all! It was only a small one but apparently one of the most poisonous. We managed to make it out of the campsite without getting bogged and enjoyed our short (3hr) drive to our next campsite at Maun.

Today Vladia set us a survival challenge which Sam and Lauren may have got a little over excited about. Whilst Vladia packed for our overnight excursion to the Delta our challenge was to cook dinner over the campfire (which we had to light ourselves) only using the following ingredients: potatoes, tinned tomatoes & onions, one can of pears, sausages and a packet of marshmallows. Our plan was to cook bangers and mash with onion and tomato sauce, followed by pear crumble (we figured 'gathering' was only fair and therefore using our own supply of biscuits for the crumble was not breaking the rules).

The weather however had a different idea and just as Habby and James thought about starting the fire the heavens opened. There was fat rain, chubby rain, rain the got you from the side and rain that came straight up at you from the ground. It bucketed down for an hour and we were ankle deep in water digging trenches around the tents to stop them from flooding and salvaging what we could from the campsite to drier ground. Nothing was going to break our 'positive attitude' though and we were most certainly not going to lose the challenge so we took to shelter in the pool shed and got stuck into peeling the potatoes. This is the point where our stomachs and positive attitudes were challenged... There were maggots (Sam's worst nightmare) in the potatoes!!! But this is Africa, and one must eat, so the nasty little intruders were thrown out and we got on with our job. In short, it stop raining, our gear was mainly dry and we passed the challenge with a delicious meal.

Learning Points:

1. It doesn't rain in Botswana it pours.

2. Bring on Master Chef African style.

3. Giiven it's the wet season Habby is going to have to get over his hate for camping in the rain.

Day 16 - Monday 23rd December 2013. Maun to Okavango Delta.

We'd all had a restless nights sleep thanks to Vladia's pre departure safety briefing in which she told us:

1. We weren't allowed to leave the campsite without a Poler (local guide) unless we wanted to be an animals dinner

2. After dark you were not allowed to leave your tent unless you wanted to be an animals midnight snack

3. Sleep in the middle of the tent if you want to avoid being chewed on by a hyena.

4. Keep tents closed at all times to keep wild friends out

5. If you see a hippo run fast in zig zags (their chubby legs can only run in straight lines).

6. If you come across an elephant hide behind a tree or in your tent (they're stupid and will think you're a rock).

7. If you see a lion don't panic just say a quick prayer because your life's in God's hands.

With the above thoughts on board we left to catch our mokoro, a traditional dug-out canoe that took us deep into the delta. The Okavango Delta is the world's largest inland delta and each year some 11 cubic kilometers of water reach it. The Delta is home to Africa's Big 5 along with many other species of wildlife. We thoroughly enjoyed our relaxing 2 hour ride in the mokoro as our polers guided us to our campsite. The afternoon was spent lazing around reading books, taking a siesta in the shade, swimmimg and trying to pole the mokoros ourselves.

Whilst Vladia was cooking up a storm our polers took us on a 'lion hunt'. Unfortunately the score is now big cats 4, Sam and Habby 0 as once again we failed to spot them. During our 3 hour walk we spotted zebras, wilderbeast, antelopes and a giant baobab tree. We sang and danced the night away around campfire with fire flies and stars above.

Learning Points:

1. We are not sure whether Vladia is lying or over exaggerating as no dangerous animals were spotted or heard anywhere nearby.

2. Despite our pretty umbrellas Botswanan sun burns white Aussie skin. 3. The Okavango Delta is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Day 17 - Tuesday 24th December 2013. Okavango Delta to Gweta.

You will all be happy to know that we didn't get eaten despite hearing lions and hippos in the distance. We had a delicious camp fire breakfast, helped pack the mokoros and then we were off crusing the delta again, back to Mokoro Station. We had another short drive today (3hrs) to our next camp at Gweta. On the way we stopped to buy last minute Christmas supplies includimg alcohol for the Sangria and punch.

We had a lovely lazy afternoon lounging at the bar and in the pool, and finally we got around to decorating the bus and Christmas tree. We celebrated our Christmas Eve/European Christmas at the restaurant. Despite our best efforts we all failed to finish our enormous plates of food. We capped the night off with a walk under the clear starry sky.

Learning Points:

1. We like the idea of celebrating 2 Christmas's - maybe we should try it at home.

2. Apparently you can get locked out of the park when you go for walks at night.

Day 18 - Wednesday 25th December 2013 (CHRISTMAS!!) Gweta to Kasane.

Merry Christmas!!!

In summary, Santa didn't find our tent and Christmas was never going to be the same without family, but all in all, for a Christmas away from home, it was a pretty fantastic day. With stomachs full of delicious pancakes (thanks to Sam) and nutella we all piled on to our festively decorated bus and headed towards Kasane. We traveled along Elephant Highway, which lived up to its name and kept us happily spotting them for a few hours. After a quick lunch of sausages in bread we made our punch and sangria in preparation for the afternoon boat cruise down Chobe River. It was just spectacular! There were so many herds of elephants and pods of hippos, and we were able to get up really close to them. The captain had advised us that the more we drank the more animals we'd see, so between our group we gave it our best shot and walked off the boat 10kg punch/sangria lighter (and still walking in a straight line). For Christmas dinner we had a braai (African BBQ), followed by cake and the famous Hendry brandy sauce (which we made from scratch!). After dinner we played stealing santa, with many great and funny gifts ranging from emergency ration food to african souvenirs to barbie dolls.

Learning Points:

1. In Africa supermarkets are open on Christmas Day!

2. We know this is stating the obvious but hippos are really fat!

3. It was the first and will be the last Christmas lunch of sausages in bread

Day 19 - Thursday 26th December 2013. Kasane to Livingstone.

An early start to Boxing Day saw us up at 5am for a game drive in Chobe National Park before crossing the border into Zambia. We didn't see any lions BUT... if you count spots and an ear... we saw a leopard!! Finally! Apparently sightings of the cats during the wet season are much lower as the food is more plentiful so we were pretty happy to tick off another of the Big 5. We also saw lots of elephants, warthogs, impala, zebra, giraffes, and (bloody) baboons.

The border crossing was pretty uneventful but took hours! We had to catch a barge across the croc and hippo infested waters, and then sit beside the truck in the sun waiting for the paperwork to be completed. It was only a short drive from the border to our campsite on the Zambezi river but we were all exhausted by the time we got there. Our challenge for the afternoon was trying to get out some more US dollars for east africa. Our plan was to catch a taxi to the Livingstone Hotel (which has its own bank!!) to get the money out and then head back in to town. It was during this mission that we scarily realized how blaze and dependent we had become on Vladia as we had to ask the taxi driver where he'd picked us up from because we couldn't remember! Good did come from this though as the taxi driver, Bison, kindly took us under his wing and became our personal chauffeur for the rest of our time in Livingstone.

Learning Points:

1. We need to start paying more attention to where we are and where we are going

2. We could have easily entered Zambia without a passport or with someone else's as Vladia was able to take the pile of our passports to get stamped without us even being present

3. There are big cats in Africa (finally!)

Day 20 - Friday 27th December 2013. Livingstone.

There is nothing like cram-packing your rest days on a 54 day tour says Sam! Today we went on two tours - in the morning we rode the African elephants and in the afternoon we went for a walk with the lions. They were both amazing to say the least. Both activities were undertaken at a privately owned Conservation which is aiming to help rebuild the numbers of elephants and lions in Zambia. There were 7 elephants on our tour, and we were lucky enough to get the biggest bull elephant (known as the gentle giant) called Danny. He is estimated to be over 40 years of age and had been doing tours for 11 years. We were particularly thankful for having the tallest elephant as we walked through the river as we saw many hungry crocodiles waiting for us to fall off!

On our lion walk we had three cubs (11-12 months old). They were just adorable and so playful. The lions only participate in the walks until ~18 months of age because they then become too big for the trainors to keep control of and therefore more unpredictable and dangerous in their behavior. We loved getting to pat them but it was very hard resisting the urge to scruff them up a bit as you would a pet cat.

Tonight we had a farewell dinner for those that would be leaving us at Livingstone. We had a private buffet of local cuisine followed by a performance by the local acting/dance group. The girls were particularly fond of watching one man who had very impressive musculature!

Learning Points:

1. Sam confirmed her favorite animal as the elephant

2. The Conservation (and it's animals and tourists alike) is protected from poachers and wild animals by armed guards carrying .375 rifles 3. Lions are just like big pussy cats

Day 21 - Saturday 28th December 2013. Livingstone to Zimbabwe and back.

Today we set off with our little family of 6 (James, Lauren, Rob, Kathleen and ourselves) to see the falls from both Zambia and Zimbabwe. We walked down to the "Boiling Pot" which is the first rapid for the white water rafters and watched them repeatedly fall out of their rafts. The 629m hike back up was horrendous but soon forgotten as we cooled down in the mist from the amazing Victoria Falls. The view of the falls was breathtaking with many rainbows formed along the canyon.

We then ventured across the bridge to the border of Zimbabwe, crossing our first border without Vladia. We figure this achievement made up for our little incident with the taxi the other day! We first went into the township to explore the markets, an exhausting 45 minutes of haggling, and then entered the falls. It was hard believe but the falls were truly even more spectacular from the Zimbabwe side! Words just cannot do them justice! Whilst in Zimbabwe the heavens opened once again, and we made our return border crossing looking like drowned rats!

Tonight we had our pre-departure meeting for the east african leg of our tour. We have 9 new people joining our group, now totaling 15. On first impression everyone seems pretty fun so here's hoping the next half will be just as great as the first.

Learning Points:

1. We can cross a border ourselves

2. The Victoria Falls are definitely better on the Zimbabwe side

3. Not doing the white wafer rafting was a good decision

4. We have been close enough the the end of many rainbows to disappointingly confirm that there are no pots of gold there

5. Pre-departure meetings are far more enjoyable when playing a drinking game involving Vladia's common sayings

Day 22 - Sunday 29th December 2013. Livingstone.

There are many stupid things we have done in our lives, but swimming through croc and hippo infested waters to hang by our feet over the Victoria Falls is definitely up there! But it was AMAZING and (because all went well) we certainly don't regret it!!! We are also thankful we arrived back to land safely to then tell our parents what we'd done. After hearing terrifying stories from previous survivors the night before you could say Sam was pretty stressed in the lead up. To be fair however, up until the night before we didn't actually realise what we'd signed up for. We thought we would be in some sort of man-made swim up pool on the edge of the falls, not actually swimming through the rapids into "Devil's Pool", a pool at the brim of the waterfall. Furthermore, unlike you would expect with Australian safety standards, there were no harnesses or ropes protecting us from plunging into the canyon below, all we had was a false sense of security and faith in our guides to catch us should we slip! There were two ropes tied across the brim of the fall where we swam through the rapids but thanks to VicSwim, we didn't need them.

Our tour started with a boat ride to Livingstone Island which lies 180m from the falls. We then walked over the island to ~50m short of the edge where we entered the water one-by-one, swimming across the rapids to a small rock shelf overlooking Devil's Pool. Our guide crazily back flipped into the pool, but we all gingerly slid in and swam across to the edge. Due to the strong current we didn't spend long in the pool, but we did make the most of our stupidity and had a go at looking over the edge as the guides held us by our feet!! It was amazing but bloody scary! It certainly took our minds off the little fish that were nibbling our toes in the bottom of the pool. We celebrated our survival with a delicious breakfast on Livingstone Island before heading back to the mainland.

Our afternoon was comparatively very boring, but we treated ourselves to an accommodation upgrade and lazily sat around the pool by the river, enjoying our last relaxation time before heading into east Africa tomorrow.

Learning Points:

1. Swimming in the Devil's Pool is an extreme sport, not some luxury 5-star pool overlooking the falls

2. When undertaking a challenging or potentially dangerous activity don't listen to the stories of people whom have previously completed such - they will always be over exaggerated and leave you unnecessarily trembling in your boots

Cape Town to Windhoek

thehabdogs — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 03:54:00 GMT

ULTIMATE AFRICA TOUR

PART 1 - CAPE TOWN TO WINDHOEK

Day 1 - Sunday 8th December 2013. Cape Town.

This evening we had our pre-departure meeting and met our tour leader Vladia, our assistant guide/truck driver Wes, and our nine other camping companions. There are three other Aussies; Lauren & James from Canberra and Kathleen from Sydney. There are also two Americans; Ana and Marilyn, two Germans; Eike and Roberto, 1 danish girl Linnea, and Roben from the Ilse of Man. Vladia's rules are as follows: 1. A positive attitude must be present at all times. 2. This is a Safari, meaning 'journey', NOT a 'holiday'. 3. Don't bother reading the waiver form because if you don't sign it you're not coming on the trip. 4. Wash you hands before all meals etc. If you are in doubt of whether they need washing, wash them anyway because if one of us gets sick we all get sick. 5. Again, a positive attitude must remain present at all times.

Tonight we went on our third and final date to Arnold's Restaurant, this time accompanied by 5 of our fellow campers. We were now on first name terms with manager and received 3 complimentary bottles of wine, which went down a treat. We went to bed knowing that it would be the last comfortable mattress we would have for some time. We were also excited and a little nervous about our adventure that lay ahead.

Learning Points:

1. Arnold's Restaurant food is still delicious

2. Vladia has a lot of rules!

Day 2 - Monday 9th December 2013. Cape Town to Cedeberg.

Today we met our new mobile home for the next 40 days (or that's what we thought). We were on the road by 7:30 with a short stop to pickup some last minutes supplies before we commenced our safari into the wilderness. We had lunch on the beach in a small fishing town. The beach was no match for Australian beaches but it was nice to smell the sea air. The excitement for the drive was the truck door that swung open every few bumps, requiring us to tie it closed with some rope! Vladia was not impressed and thus promptly on the phone finding us a new mobile home. We finally arrived at our first campsite (door still attached) to find ourselves at a nice grassy spot in the vineyards. We thought life was pretty tough as we sat beside the pool having a drink followed by our first meal cooked over the fire.

Learning Points:

1. Vladia's "not far" could be anywhere between 30 minutes to 3 hours. Likewise, "just around the corner" could be anywhere between 1km to 150km.

2. Apparently a broken door equals a whole new truck

3. Showers with a window overlooking vineyards are quite nice but we wouldn't want to be much taller otherwise it would be others having a view.

4. If this is camping in Africa (pool, bar, and hot showers) then this trip should a breeze right....

Day 3 - Tuesday 10th December 2013. Cedeberg to Gariep River.

We survived our first night camping in Africa. Once back in the truck we were soon leaving behind the vineyards, now heading towards the Nambian border and desert. With each kilometer closer towards the desert you could literally feel the air temperature rising. It was amazing how much the landscape changed and the further we traveled the more barren it became.

Our campsite for the evening was just short of the Namibian border, located on the banks of the Gariep River. We set up our tents and waited for the temperature to cool before heading off on a guided tour up the surrounding rocky cliffs. Right in the middle up the very top of the rocky lanscape we found a quiver tree and desert flowers. The quiver tree was a very important tree for the Bushman (African equivalent of Aboriginal people) as they used the hollow branches for their quivers (to store the arrows). The hollowness of the tree also allowed the tree to cool itself by circulating the air. The Bushman also utilised this to store their food. Finally, the tree also had a white powder-like coating to protect it from the sun. The Bushman would utilize this as sunscreen. The desert flowers were also impressive. When you poured water on them they would open up into a star-shaped flower. At the top of the cliffs we had a magnificent view of the Gariep River and the surrounding farms.

Learning Points:

1. In Africa, unless the tea is roobius, it is referred to as "the shitty English stuff".

2. Although we appreciate showers with a view, it is impossible to shower when the wind blows the water horizontally towards your towel and dry clothes hanging on the door.

Day 4 - Wednesday 11th December 2013. Gariep River to Fish River Canyon.

Thismorning we crossed our first border; from South Africa to Namibia. Thankfully it was uneventful, and the immigration man even had a good sense of humour. When he enquired as to why we had different surnames (on our passports) but were married Habby jokingky replied "because she doesn't like my surname", to which he responded "well I hope she likes you" and then laughed! On our way to Fish River Canyon we spotted our first springbok, a type of African antelope. We had lunch on the side of the road, and now we were in the desert without any trees or rocks to hide behind, the girls scored lots of toots from the passing trucks for their pasty white bums. Although it didn't reach the expected 45 degrees it was bloody hot and no one left the pool side or shade all afternoon until it was time to visit the Fish River Canyon.

Fish River Canyon is the largest canyon in Africa, and arguably the second largest in the world. It is also the oldest canyon in the world, formed approximately 500 millon years ago in part by glacial movement, movement of tectonic plates and erosion. It was definitely one of the most impressive natural formations of southern Africa. We had a romantic group dinner watching the sunset over the canyon. After dinner we went for a night walk under the stars as this place was one of the few places in the world that is not affected by an artificial light source (cities etc).

Learning Points:

1. The desert is really hot

2. We could never get sick of African sunsets or starry nights

3. Vladia is a good story teller and always begins them with "a very long time ago.."

Day 5 - Thursday 12th December 2013. Fish River Canyon to Sossusvlei area.

Today started with the earliest wakeup so far... 4am! Yuck! We were on the road and driving by 5am as our itinerary stated that we had 10hrs driving in front of us. The benefit of getting up early however was be able to spot all the game wanderimg around before it gets too hot. We were lucky to spot our first kudu (African antelope) and zebra, along with oryx and springbok. Both Sam and Habby were like kids in a candy store standing up the front of the truck spotting all the game. After a very long (12 hour) and hot day in the truck we finally arrived at our campsite and headed straight for the pool. As the evening approached we went to Sesriem Canyon, a much smaller but also beautiful canyon. The canyon was formed 10-20 million years ago by the Tsauchab River.

At dinner we were treated with a surprise chocolate birthday cake (cooked on the campfire) for Kathleen, followed by a hilarious performance by the boys (with Habby narrating) of a Bushman story about how the Milky Way was created. None of us have laughed so hard!

Learning Points:

1. Habby's narrative skills would have done Mary proud

2. Must get the recipe for campfire chocolate cake

Day 6 - Friday 13th December 2013. Sossusvlei area.

We weren't very impressed by our second 4am wakeup in a row (but we have been promised it will be the last) but it was quickly forgotten when we arrived at Dune 45 to find it almost completely hidden by mist. It was magical. We set off in the mist climbing Dune 45, two steps forward one step back, hoping to reach the top by sunrise. Unfortunately we "mist" it (forgive the pun) as the clouds didn't lift until at least 9am. What did make up for it though was the fun we had running downhill. Thankfully we are not suspicious about Friday the 13th, and as a matter of fact, being on holidays meant we didn't even realise. Otherwise, we may have considered taking it a little slower on the downhill instead of running down the steepest part with Habby eating multiple facefulls of sand. We all arrived safely at the bottom and were treated to a hot cooked breakfast by Vladia. Our next stop was Deadvlei, a dried-up salt lake and resulting dead trees found in a valley at the base of the largest dune, 'Big Daddy'. We accessed Deadvlei by 4x4s, the girls truck racing the boys! At the car park we were welcomed by the pet jackal. We came close enough to pat it, but don't worry mums, we didn't as we too were afraid of catching rabies. This is where our treasure hunt for Geocaching started. Unfortunately, to our disappointment we believe it had already been found. We did find however, a shovel nosed lizard which Wes caught by throwing his thong in the air (to mimick a bird of prey) and digging it out of the sand after it had buried itself.

Tonight we camped on a 13000 hectare Namibian cattle farm where the highlight was a tour given by one of the farmers Franz. We drove around the farm in the back of his small truck. We learnt to identify different animal tracks and dung, both important skills we can add to our Bushman resume. Franz showed us many small animals as well, including trap door spiders, lizards and beetles. We also learnt a lot about the Bushman history. The correct term is actually the 'San people' as "Bushman" is politically incorrect. Bushman were so-named because up until the 1970s they were hunted by the human race as they were consider animals. The Bushman used to hide behind the bushes, catching their predators by surprise. The Bushman led a hard life, always following their food and water sources. In order to survive the weak, which sometimes included dependant children, were left behind. We also saw many Zebras. Despite their beauty, when in large numbers they pose a significant threat to the water supply, and when the numbers exceed 300 per farm the farmers are allowed to apply for a permit to cull 4 per year. The fabulous day was topped off with a braai, a traditional South African barbeque grill. Our braai consisted of our favourite lamb chops and ribs eaten straight off the grill!

Learning Points:

1. The way to our hearts is through our stomachs (especially when it involves lamb chops and ribs straight off the grill).

2. Re 4am wakeup... Vladia did warn us that this was not a holiday but a safari, meaning journey.

3. Sam is like a pig in mud when on the back of a truck driving through the open farm lands.

Day 7 - Saturday 14th December 2013. Sossusvlei area to Swakopmund.

Today we were treated to a sleep in (6am). Enroute to Swakopmund the game spotting started early with both of us up the front in our favourite lookout post. Our previous thought that we would not see many zebras was quickly dismissed as they were now pressent in hundreds, as were the springbok and oryx. With a group consensus we took the back roads in the hope to see more game and we weren't disappointed. We soon added warthog and klipspringer to our checklist. Africa continues to amaze us with its ever-changing scenery, each as impressive as the ones before. Today we traveled from the open plains of farmland to rocky mountain ranges, to again open plains before hitting the desert. In Swakopmund we had our first non-canvas roof over our heads since Cape Town - albeit dormitory style accommodation shared with the rest of our tour group. The afternoon was spent on a village tour led by a local guide. Swakopmund is divided into 3 areas: the main town, the township, and the informal settlement. 70% of the Swakopmund population live outside the main town. We visited 2 homes during which we had the opportunity to ask questions about their lifestyle and traditions. The first house was located in the township and was occupied by a Herero lady, and the second house was located in the informal settlement and was occupied by a Nama lady who also practiced traditional herbal medicine. Historically the houses in the township were built and allocated to families according to tribal origin. Families of the smaller tribe received the larger houses and vice versa in an attempt by the government to equalize the tribes power. The housing in the informal settlement was extremely basic, essentially small 1-roomed shelters. We were both a bit skeptical about the herbal medicine, particularly the elephant-dung tea! Our town tour wouldn't have been complete without trying the local delicacy of Mopani worms (caterpillars found on the leaves of the Mopani tree). They were edible but neither of us were in a rush for the recipe!

Learning Points:

1. There is a reason we weren't raised on insects

2. We will stick to Western medicine thanks

3. To Habby surprise there is someone that not only matches but exceeds Sam's organisation skills/anal retentiveness ... Lauren. Haha. The similarities are actually quite scary!

Day 8 - Sunday 15th December 2013. Swakopmund.

First up on our itinerary was a "Living Desert" tour where Habby was hoping he could prove his newly learned bushman skills. The tour involved driving through the nearby desert and dunes with the guides stopping to teach (and show) us life and important survival tips of the desert. Plant life was almost solely limited to the "dollar bush" which was named for its appearance and is a great water source for the animals. Reptile and insect life was endless. Our favorite insect was the head-standing beetle, appropriately named as it stands on its head with its back to the mist catching the moisture which drains into is mouth. It can catch up to 80% of its body weight. Sam's favorite reptile was the chameleon because of the following reasons: 1. The can't run fast and therefore are unable to chase her. 2. The colour changes are amazing. 3. We got to feed them head-standing beetles and meale worms. Bushman Habdogs favorite reptile was the horned adder because: 1. He outdid the guides by tracking it himself. 2. It's one of the rarest snakes in the area and also the most poisonest (but not deadly). Other reptiles we saw included the side-winder adder, gecko, shovel-nosed lizard and legless lizard. We finished the tour by 4-wheel driving through the larger dunes. We even got some air off one dune! The next activity for the day was sand boarding. We had 6 awesome runs (Habby 7) but this also entailed climbing up the dunes 6 times. We reached speeds of around 70 kph on the steepest dunes. Sam may have required an extra little push to get over the edge unlike Habby who happily tried going backwards. Afterwards we had a small sand pit in the base of our shower and I'm sure we will be finding sand for days, but we had a blast nonetheless. Our last night out in civilization for a while was at Kucki's restaurant where we both tried springbok, which of course (daughter like father) Sam's was the surf and turf. Delicious!

Learning points:

1. Habby's love for snakes is match by Sam's hate for them.

2. Namibian sand finds it's way into anything and everything.

3. Habby's aspirations of becoming a bushman is on track.

4. Springbok is delicious although gemsbok (Oryx) is our favorite.

Day 9 - Monday 16th December 2013. Swakopmund to Twyfelfontein.

Today would be our last day on the coast for some time. We headed north along the skeleton coast before heading inland towards Damaraland. We stopped along the roadside to see the Herero and Himba people. The Himba people traditionally wear few garments but cover themselves in oryx fat and red ocra for sun protection. The Herero women wear dresses and a headpiece resembling cattle, which is the foundation of their livelihoods. Our lunch stop was at the 'Living Museum', a museum that demonstrates the Damara people's housing, activities of their daily living and passtimes, including dancing and making jewelery (from ostrich egg shells and seeds). We also visited the site of Bushman paintings (rock engravings) at Twyfelfontein (meaning doubtful fountain, reflecting the poor rainfall and thus erratic flow of the springs) dating back 2000-6000 years. Most of the engravings were of animals. In preparation for Christmas we had a group songwriting session in which we wrote our first song titled "The 12 days of Christmas". The last verse is as follows: "On the 12th day of Christmas Vladia sent to me, 12 hours driving, 11 Tourists touring, 10 Misty sand dunes, 9 Oryx frying, 8 Bushman dancing, 7 Zebras crossing, 6 Springboks pronking, 5 Australian's, 4 in the morning, 3 washing dishes, 2 Yankee Doodles, and a truck and a driver called Wes." We performed this rendition for Vladia under the full moon around the campsite and she was pretty chuffed. We then sang and danced around the fire with some of the locals before heading on a night walk down the dry river bed.

Learning Points:

1. We might have the bums but we can't shake our booty like black women.

2. We are probably lucky we are in the middle of nowhere with our singing skills, and it was most likey the reason we didn't see anything on our night walk. 3. Showers in the dark when cocroaches are present equals lots of girly screams from Sam and Lauren.

Day 10 - Tuesday 15th December 2013. Twyfelfontein to Etosha National Park.

Today we graduated with a diploma in surviving Namibian dirt roads ("the African massage") and have been promised mostly sealed roads for the remainder of the trip. Due to the hot temperature we arrived at Etosha National Park and our campsite early to ensure a seista, just like the animals, prior to our afternoon game drive. Our first water hole was spectacular, complete with giraffes, zebras, warthog, impala, springbok and birdlife. They say giraffes are like ladies but there's definitely nothing lady-like about the way they drink!! The remainder of the game drive was not as exciting with all the other animals still hiding from the heat. A couple of others on our truck claim to have seen a lion but we remain dubious as we couldn't see it and we are the only ones with binoculars. We spent many hours that evening (until 1am) at the camps waterhole watching the animals come in to drink. We were very fortunate to have seen seven black rhinos, including a baby, drink and play at the water hole. The compromise was that many of the other animals were too scared to drink with the rhinos present but we did see the jackals and some springok lurking in the background. Learning Points: 1. Our binoculars were by far the best buy of the trip so far 2. We could never get sick of admiring the beauty of the African animals and landscape 3. Vladia is trying to kill us with early mornings and late nights. Day 11 - Wednesday 18th December 2013. Etosha National Park. The park gate opened at 6:12am. True to her word Vladia had us there early and waiting with only 4 hours sleep in the bank thanks to the Rhinos. Today we were hoping to see the big cats, and everything else was a bonus. We had 3 drives for the day: morning, afternoon and night time (spotlighting but unfortunately minus our bang bangs). Unfortunately, despite 13 sets of eyes and calling out "here kitty kitty" in mutliple languages, we didn't see any of the big cats. We did see many other animals though including 1 African elephant the was as big as the truck and almost close enough to touch, as well as giraffes, zebras, impalas, springboks, kudus, steenboks, hyenas and a black rhino. On our night drive we were once again unlucky with the bigs cats but we did add a porcupine and a spotted genet to our check list. The funniest moment was when the hyenas started laughing (at us) after our guide mistook it for a lion when it was lying on the ground. Our hightlight for the day however was watching the family of elephants bathing in the water hole at our lunch stop. Learning Points: 1. In Africa the animals run wild and you aren't always guaranteed to see everything like in a zoo. 2. Hyenas really do laugh 3. African elephants are huge. 4. Jimbob would be in heaven with all piggy wiggies (warthog) and antelopes. Day 12 - Thursday 19th December 2013. Etosha National Park to Waterberg Plateau. This morning was the last opportunity to see the big cats as we left Etosha National Park. Again, we were unsuccessful in spotting them but we did see another black rhino (which is supposed to be one of the rarest animals in Africa). Today was only a short drive and we reached our campsite at Waterberg plateau by lunch time. We had a lovely lazy afternoon lying on the mats under the shady trees, trying to choose our best two photos for the Etosha National Park photo competition (which Sam won with her picture of the baby elephant). Later in the afternoon when it cooled down we hiked the Waterberg Plateau and watched the surrounding thunderstorm slowly approaching. It was a spectacular view looking out over the flat plains as far as the eye could see. Luckily we had prepared our tent with its rain jacket ("don't forget your condoms kids" said Vladia) because the storm finally arrived not long after we went to bed. It was so loud we could feel the ground shake beneath us. Learning Points: 1. Habby still doesn't like camping in the rain 2. Baboons are supposedly disrespectful to women so you need to walk male-female-male-female when hiking in a group. 3. Richo's theory of "if there's not a road to it then it's not worth seeing" is incorrect. 4. Habby has got to stop giving sam tips if he wants to win the photo competions. 5. African thunderstorms are amazing. Day 13 - Friday 20th December 2013. Waterberg Plateau to Windhoek. Today we woke up to Vladia swearing at the baboons who were stealing her bread as she was trying to make us french toast. Just after breakfast Habby and Wes went on a leopard hunt as Wes had heard one during the night. They were unable to find any tracks but they were lucky enough that they heard one somewhere in the nearby bushes. We arrived in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, by midday. As quoted by Vladia, "there's nothing to see in Windhoek", so we spent our afternoon stocking up on supplies at the shopping mall and catching up on the 'amazing' (haha) blog you're reading. Unfortunately today we were saying goodbye to Ana, but we welcomed two new recruits to our truck. We had a farewell/welcome dinner at Joe's Beerhouse where once again Habby had his oryx, but Sam lashed out and tried the zebra. With another game meat added to the favorite list we are seriously contemplating starting a game meat farm back home (hint hint Ian & Lyndel). Learning Points: 1. Not only is Habby losing his hair but he is also going grey - he found his first grey hair today! Devastating life moment. 2. In (only) Habby's opinion his beard was going great-guns after 14 days growth. For the benefit of all others, it was forcibly (by the 'boss') shaved off 3. Surely there is a market in Australia for game meat. 4. One of Ian's paddocks would be perfect for a small game farm.

Cape Town to Windhoek

thehabdogs — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 03:54:00 GMT

ULTIMATE AFRICA TOUR

PART 1 - CAPE TOWN TO WINDHOEK

Day 1 - Sunday 8th December 2013. Cape Town.

Learning Points:

1. Arnold's Restaurant food is still delicious

2. Vladia has a lot of rules!

Day 2 - Monday 9th December 2013. Cape Town to Cedeberg.

Learning Points:

1. Vladia's "not far" could be anywhere between 30 minutes to 3 hours. Likewise, "just around the corner" could be anywhere between 1km to 150km.

2. Apparently a broken door equals a whole new truck

3. Showers with a window overlooking vineyards are quite nice but we wouldn't want to be much taller otherwise it would be others having a view.

4. If this is camping in Africa (pool, bar, and hot showers) then this trip should a breeze right....

Day 3 - Tuesday 10th December 2013. Cedeberg to Gariep River.

Learning Points:

1. In Africa, unless the tea is roobius, it is referred to as "the shitty English stuff".

2. Although we appreciate showers with a view, it is impossible to shower when the wind blows the water horizontally towards your towel and dry clothes hanging on the door.

Day 4 - Wednesday 11th December 2013. Gariep River to Fish River Canyon.

Learning Points:

1. The desert is really hot

2. We could never get sick of African sunsets or starry nights

3. Vladia is a good story teller and always begins them with "a very long time ago.."

Day 5 - Thursday 12th December 2013. Fish River Canyon to Sossusvlei area.

Learning Points:

1. Habby's narrative skills would have done Mary proud

2. Must get the recipe for campfire chocolate cake

Day 6 - Friday 13th December 2013. Sossusvlei area.

Learning Points:

1. The way to our hearts is through our stomachs (especially when it involves lamb chops and ribs straight off the grill).

2. Re 4am wakeup... Vladia did warn us that this was not a holiday but a safari, meaning journey.

3. Sam is like a pig in mud when on the back of a truck driving through the open farm lands.

Day 7 - Saturday 14th December 2013. Sossusvlei area to Swakopmund.

Learning Points:

1. There is a reason we weren't raised on insects

2. We will stick to Western medicine thanks

3. To Habby surprise there is someone that not only matches but exceeds Sam's organisation skills/anal retentiveness ... Lauren. Haha. The similarities are actually quite scary!

Day 8 - Sunday 15th December 2013. Swakopmund.

Learning points:

1. Habby's love for snakes is match by Sam's hate for them.

2. Namibian sand finds it's way into anything and everything.

3. Habby's aspirations of becoming a bushman is on track.

4. Springbok is delicious although gemsbok (Oryx) is our favorite.

Day 9 - Monday 16th December 2013. Swakopmund to Twyfelfontein.

Learning Points:

1. We might have the bums but we can't shake our booty like black women.

2. We are probably lucky we are in the middle of nowhere with our singing skills, and it was most likey the reason we didn't see anything on our night walk.

3. Showers in the dark when cocroaches are present equals lots of girly screams from Sam and Lauren.

Day 10 - Tuesday 15th December 2013. Twyfelfontein to Etosha National Park.

Learning Points:

1. Our binoculars were by far the best buy of the trip so far

2. We could never get sick of admiring the beauty of the African animals and landscape

3. Vladia is trying to kill us with early mornings and late nights.

Day 11 - Wednesday 18th December 2013. Etosha National Park.

The park gate opened at 6:12am. True to her word Vladia had us there early and waiting with only 4 hours sleep in the bank thanks to the Rhinos. Today we were hoping to see the big cats, and everything else was a bonus. We had 3 drives for the day: morning, afternoon and night time (spotlighting but unfortunately minus our bang bangs). Unfortunately, despite 13 sets of eyes and calling out "here kitty kitty" in mutliple languages, we didn't see any of the big cats. We did see many other animals though including 1 African elephant the was as big as the truck and almost close enough to touch, as well as giraffes, zebras, impalas, springboks, kudus, steenboks, hyenas and a black rhino. On our night drive we were once again unlucky with the bigs cats but we did add a porcupine and a spotted genet to our check list. The funniest moment was when the hyenas started laughing (at us) after our guide mistook it for a lion when it was lying on the ground. Our hightlight for the day however was watching the family of elephants bathing in the water hole at our lunch stop.

Learning Points:

1. In Africa the animals run wild and you aren't always guaranteed to see everything like in a zoo.

2. Hyenas really do laugh

3. African elephants are huge.

4. Jimbob would be in heaven with all piggy wiggies (warthog) and antelopes.

Day 12 - Thursday 19th December 2013. Etosha National Park to Waterberg Plateau.

This morning was the last opportunity to see the big cats as we left Etosha National Park. Again, we were unsuccessful in spotting them but we did see another black rhino (which is supposed to be one of the rarest animals in Africa). Today was only a short drive and we reached our campsite at Waterberg plateau by lunch time. We had a lovely lazy afternoon lying on the mats under the shady trees, trying to choose our best two photos for the Etosha National Park photo competition (which Sam won with her picture of the baby elephant). Later in the afternoon when it cooled down we hiked the Waterberg Plateau and watched the surrounding thunderstorm slowly approaching. It was a spectacular view looking out over the flat plains as far as the eye could see. Luckily we had prepared our tent with its rain jacket ("don't forget your condoms kids" said Vladia) because the storm finally arrived not long after we went to bed. It was so loud we could feel the ground shake beneath us.

Learning Points:

1. Habby still doesn't like camping in the rain

2. Baboons are supposedly disrespectful to women so you need to walk male-female-male-female when hiking in a group.

3. Richo's theory of "if there's not a road to it then it's not worth seeing" is incorrect.

4. Habby has got to stop giving sam tips if he wants to win the photo competions.

5. African thunderstorms are amazing.

Day 13 - Friday 20th December 2013. Waterberg Plateau to Windhoek.

Today we woke up to Vladia swearing at the baboons who were stealing her bread as she was trying to make us french toast. Just after breakfast Habby and Wes went on a leopard hunt as Wes had heard one during the night. They were unable to find any tracks but they were lucky enough that they heard one somewhere in the nearby bushes. We arrived in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, by midday. As quoted by Vladia, "there's nothing to see in Windhoek", so we spent our afternoon stocking up on supplies at the shopping mall and catching up on the 'amazing' (haha) blog you're reading. Unfortunately today we were saying goodbye to Ana, but we welcomed two new recruits to our truck. We had a farewell/welcome dinner at Joe's Beerhouse where once again Habby had his oryx, but Sam lashed out and tried the zebra. With another game meat added to the favorite list we are seriously contemplating starting a game meat farm back home (hint hint Ian & Lyndel).

Learning Points:

1. Not only is Habby losing his hair but he is also going grey - he found his first grey hair today! Devastating life moment.

2. In (only) Habby's opinion his beard was going great-guns after 14 days growth. For the benefit of all others, it was forcibly (by the 'boss') shaved off

3. Surely there is a market in Australia for game meat.

4. One of Ian's paddocks would be perfect for a small game farm.

Kilimanjaro

thehabdogs — Sun, 15 Dec 2013 04:13:00 GMT

Kilimanjaro Adventure (Machame Route) 26/11/13 - 01/12/13

Day 1 - Machame Gate to Machame Camp:

After a very restless nights sleep it was finally time for our Kilimanjaro adventure to begin. Our bags were packed, extra survival gear hired or bought (inclusive of warmer sleeping bag, gators, hiking poles, skii gloves, snacks, and of course, toilet paper), our last shower for 6 days was enjoyed and we were ready as we were going to be. We were comforted by the 9 nervous faces of our companion hikers (Christina, Anja, Patrick, Peter, Kal, Rodrigo, Tuan, Dan and Tung) and the oozing enthusiasm of our guides. We all piled into our truck with the bags tied to the roof and we were off!! After an approximate hour drive through the fertile farming plains of Moshi district we arrived at the Machame Gate of the Mt Kilimanjaro National Park. We were already at an altitude greater than we'd previously experienced! Life disclaimer signed and permits obtained, the uphill began. Within half an hour our thought was 'bloody Richo', which became a common phrase throughout the trek, particulary through the tougher times. The rainforested slopes were beautiful, but we couldn't help disagree with description of 'gradual gradient' provided in our travel guide. Retrospectively, comparatively, their description was very accurate. We were in for a shock! We ate our packed lunch in the rain (boiled egg, samosa, bread roll and peanuts), and trekked the remaining ~12 of 18km soaking wet, to Machame Camp, utterly exhausted! Furthermore, we were overtaken by all the porters carrying ~15kg on their heads!! This became a recurrent theme. On arrival, to our suprise and relief, we were told that we went too fast and from now on we were to be going "pole pole", meaning "slowly slowly" in Swahili. At the end of our long day we were treated to a warm basin of water to wash with and mountain canapés (ie popcorn) followed by a 3 course homely cooked meal by our chef, delivered by our own waiters to our 'food tent'. This was the first of many amazing cooked meals to come! We were all in bed by 8pm in preparation for our next big days.

Altitude: 1815m to 2980m.

Learning points:

1. Bit more fitness preparation would have been nice

2. Maybe shouldn't have listened to Richo's travel suggestion to trek

3. What gets wet stays wet on Mt Kilimanjaro

Day 2 - Machame Camp to Shira Camp

Day 2 started with an early rise and shine at 6.30am for cooked breakfast (porridge, eggs, sausages and fruit), packing of bags and learning how to trek "pole pole" style to our next milestone, Shira Camp. We only walked 9km today but it was a steep climb through the heath land of savanna and lower alpine moorland. Our guides lead the way ensuring we trekked "pole pole", which is apparently REALLY slow, but thankfully so as we began to notice the effects of the altitude on our breathing with minimal exertion. We only caught glimpses of our surrounds today as we were accompanied by the thick mist of the clouds most of the way. Fortunately it didnt start raining until we reached camp but it certainly made up for it then! The Shira campsite is situated on a plateau, exposing the camp to strong winds and the temperature dropping below freezing at night. The raven birds (that circled above as though waiting for one of us to die or fall behind the pack) appeared to be following us, and when perched on the dead trees in the mist it only added to the eeriness of the campsite. When discussing the ravens over dinner (vegetable macaroni) Sam jokingly said she'd be suspicious if served "chicken" the next couple of days considering all our food was provided fresh daily and we were yet to see other animals and only getting further from the base of the mountain. The "town kids" laughed but only nervously, with the joke to evolve during the remainder of the trek. Tonight Kal became the first victim of the trek suffering from hypothermia. It made the rest of us a bit nervous, and we all bumped up our altitude sickness medication, trading off the likelihood of having to go to the bathroom (aka squatting long-drops) in the middle of the freezing night thanks to the antidiuretic properties of the medication.

Altitude: 2980m to 3840m.

Learning points:

1. Habby doesn't cope with camping in the rain

2. Should pay more attention to what we're eating

3. Packet showers (aka wet wipes) dont quite cut it

Day 3 - Shira Camp to Barranco Camp (via Lava Tower)

With all 11 trekkers back in good health we headed off to our next destination 15km away at Barranco Camp. We would only be camping at just over 100m higher in altitude than the previous night but were required to trek to Lava Tower at 4630m to assist with acclimatization. The terrain was becoming increasingly rocky and barren, and much of the path was rocky scree. "Pole pole" we trekked to Lava Tower, to be welcomed by our dining tent and a cooked meal. At 4630m altitude! To say that we were impressed doesn't do it justice! And guess what was on the menu.... African "chicken" chapati (flatbread). It was delicious and to Sam's delight she had earned herself a few "I can't believe you told me about the raven's" glares. After lunch we descended steeply into the Barranco Valley. The scenery was stunning with an abundance of giant groundsels and endemic Giant Lobelia. Many of our group ran downhill to the camp enjoying the speed but a few of us (who later became known as "team pole pole") made the most of the slower pace walking and talking (which was a difficult task uphill) and enjoying the company and learning of the local knowledge and Swahili language from the guides. Barranco camp was set in a flat area enclosed by the three Breach Walls and the Kibo massif itself. It was a comfort to know that there was a helipad and rescue team on site but as we headed off to bed early again we were also hoping this was not a reflection of the difficulty and danger of attempting to climb the Great Barranco Wall in the morning. This would also be our last decent sleep until after having attempted the summit.

Altitude: 3840m to 3950m (Lava Tower 4630m).

Learning points:

1. We felt ok at altitude 4630m, maybe we can make it!

2. If the "chicken" is actually "raven" it's delicious nonetheless

Day 4 - Barranco Camp to Barafu Camp

An early start to the day was important when climbing the Great Barranco Wall as the rocks of the sheer cliff face would become more slippery with the melting ice. Our tent had frozen over but we had the most remarkable view of the western face of the summit. Despite being overtaken by the amazing porters (thin but built with arms and legs of steel) and their ridiculously heavy loads (that left us feeling guilty of how much we packed), we all made it safely to the top of the eastern wall, just below the Heim Glacier, and enjoyed a well earned rest. We then trekked down into the alpine desert of the Karanga Valley where we had lunch at Karanga camp before continuing the ascent to Barafu camp, our base camp to summit. We had a long tiring day, covering a distance of 12km and arriving at Barafu camp at 5.30pm. This would have been ok had it not been freezing cold, blowing an absolute gale and we were expected to be up again at 11pm in preparation to summit. Furthermore, Habby had developed a severe altitude-related headache! We went to bed at 7pm dressed in double socks, two bottom thermals plus two pairs of pants, two top thermals and two jumpers, plus a beanie, and had very minimal sleep.

Altitude: 3950m to 4550m

Learning points:

1. Mountain weather is possibly more temperamental than Melbourne weather

2. 4 hours of rest at high altitude does not equal sleep

3. Barafu camp has the worlds best "loo with a view"

4. Neurofen is great for altitude-related headaches

Day 5 - Barafu Camp to Summit to Mweka Camp

The time to attempt the summit had finally arrived! Already exhausted from the last 4 days of trekking and with minimal sleep in the bank, all 11 of us were a bundle of nerves and excitement. Dressed with an extra 5kg worth of warm clothing and head-torches tightly secured, we were soon on our way, following the rising trail of dotted lights of fellow trekkers that had set off before us. For the next 7 hours we trekked Mt Kilimanjaro underneath the starry Tanzanian night skies, being serenaded by our guides singing in Swahili. At the time however, the reality was that we were scrambling up a seemingly never-ending, enormously steep mountain in the windy and freezing cold night air with running noses, hungry stomachs, and lungs that were screaming for more oxygen! In addition to cursing poor Richo, we had our own self-soothing methods to pass the time/pain whether it be singing our own music in our heads, repeatedly counting to 100, or both. Our guides (Hamedi and Salim) insisted on carrying our bags (which we resisted only a short while), and even helped warm our poor freezing hands!! As the skies began to lighten, so did our heavy hearts and feet, finding ourselves just below Stella Point, the rim of the main crater, at sunrise. Despite our exhaustion, we couldn't help but appreciate and admire the beauty of our first African sunrise. Although it only looked a short distance to go to Stella point it seemed to take forever, each step becoming harder. We now appreciated having trekked for so long in the dark so that we couldn't see the steepness nor distance to go. Reaching the Stella Point sign equal second in our group though, we could not have been happier, and we now knew that we could trek the additional 45 minutes to reach the highest point, Uhuru Peak. We arrived at 7.45am and we'd all be lying if we said there were dry eyes! Despite the exhaustion, it was one of the biggest senses of achievement we'd shared, and all the previous pain seemed worth it! Furthermore, all 11 members of our group made it to the top, though some in worse shape than others (eg. Tung in an emergency heat blanket and Peter staggering with his full bottle of Whisky in his pocket), which our guides tell us is a rare accomplishment. We only spent a few minutes at the top before begining our descent. What we hadn't put much thought into was saving some energy for the descent, which in all honesty, was as equally hard as the ascent. After spending the last 4 days reinforcing "pole pole", we now learnt the Swahili term "huruka huruka", meaning "quickly, quickly". But our poor tired legs couldn't keep up. Sam had a new appreciation for all those (annoying) poor sheep over the years that had copped a boot for sitting when she'd apparently tried moving them too quickly. After an excruciating 4 hours and someone (who shall remain unnamed) winging like an old woman, we made it back to base camp for a quick nap before descending further to Mweka Camp. The quick nap proved quite eventful, with Habby responding to a "damsel in distress" only to be bitten by the same mouse he attempted bravely removing from Anja's tent. With reassurance from the head guide Mndeme that he would not catch rabies, the nap hour quickly passed and we were back on our feet trekking to the safer altitude of Mweka Camp.

Altitude: 4550m to 5895m (Uhuru Peak) to 3100m

Learning points:

1. You can do anything if you put your mind to it

2. Apparently mice aren't affected by altitude

3. One must be careful when responding to a 'damsel in distress'

Day 6 - Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate to Moshi

As promised, with thanks to the lower altitude, we woke with an abundance of energy and ready for our final descent. Before our last mountain breakfast was served we were suprised by our entire supporting crew of > 40 men singing to us their Mt Kilimanjaro song in Swahili. We were speechless - it was so beautiful and humbling! Again enjoying the forested slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro, our short trek to the Mweka gate was exciting as we spotted several black and white colobus (monkeys). Exhausted and with sore legs, we made the Mweka Gate by 10.30, registering our success and departure from the mountain before piling back into the truck enroute to the best shower of our lives. We were awarded our certificates and celebrated our success over dinner at the Springlands Hotel with our guides and cook. The highlight though was Mndeme opening his first bottle of champagne (Tanzanian's largely non-drinkers) and clapping along to the Mt Kilimanjaro song. With contact details exchanged we said farewell to our fellow trekkers with many continuing their journey early the following morning. It was sad saying goodbye as we had a great group and can only hope we will be so lucky with our next tour group.

Altitude: 3100m to 1980m to 890m

Learning points:

1. Apparently downhill is more strenous than uphill

2. Nothing beats a long shower after 6 days hiking

3. Trip of a lifetime!!!

Photos: Africa 13/14

thehabdogs — Mon, 2 Dec 2013 13:23:00 GMT

The Habdogs African Adventures

Day 1 24th Nov 2013

thehabdogs — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 15:19:00 GMT

24th November 2013

After approximatey 28 hours in transit having flown via Bangkok, Nairobi and Kilimanjaro, we safely made it to our hotel in Moshi. The transit however was not without drama. Sitting in Nairobi airport having checked in, we thought everything seemed to be going nicely. We even had free wifi to suss out Facebook whilst we awaited the final flight to Kili.

So there we were waiting patiently at (what we thought was) the departure lounge to be called to commence boarding at 7:30am for an 8:30am departure. 8:00am goes by and we hadn't heard anything but reassured ourselves that it was ok as it was only a small plane and therefore they don't need very long to board. 8:20am passed by and we decide that maybe we should confirm that we are actually at the right place. Turns out the 50/50 decision to sit to the left or right after checking in, we'd made the wrong choice. Everyone else had already boarded the plane and they'd been paging us for ages (we couldn't hear these pages as were waiting in the different boarding lounge, and who knows how they were pronouncing Buchholz)! Luckily we were just in time and were whisked out onto the tarmac by foot and arrived just before they were to close the plane door. And the ironic thing... all along we'd been worried our luggage wouldn't make it (which thankfully it did).

On the plane ride from Nairobi to Kili we got our first glimpse of our holygrail and there it was poking it's head out above the clouds. It was then when it really sunk in just how high the mountain is.

Moshi a town at the base of Kili and is the main hub for all for climbers to gather before and after the trek. There's not much more around but we might hire a guide tomorrow and go for a look. Our hotel is within a compound just out of town but we feel safe and everyone is nice. We have met a few other people on our trek, and a few who have already completed the trek. We also got more than we bargained for when asking advice/tips and Sam in particular is now a little nervous. The food is different and basic but quite nice - we dine at our hotel.

Learning points:

1. Don't make assumptions (re sitting in correct departure lounge) - as famously quoted by Richo they are "mother of all f*#k ups".

2. There is no such thing as fashionably late when it comes to flights - there is nothing gracious about getting a sweat up running on a tarmac to make your plane with everyone watching.

3. Apparently Kilimanjaro is REALLY high!!!

4. Reconsider the questions you ask previous trekkers as the answers are often not what you want to hear!