Londolozi Camp borders Kruger National Park in South Africa. Londolozi comes from the Zulu word meaning to protect. The Shagaan Tribe has its roots in this area. We visited their village. Lina read an assortment of small animal bones to figure me out. "You are a lady of many surprises.." she said. Lina lives in a rondavel, a thatched hut that stays cool in the heat and is impervious to the rain. The camp's location is referred to as Sabi Sands and is part of the Greater Limpopo Park. In the late afternoon light, I huddled under a wool blanket. We saw our first white rhino and an aging male bull. There were also herds of wildebeest. Somehow I had always thought that wildebeest were fabricated for fairytales, but here they were in the flesh. Guinea fowl hurried along with their long blue necks. We heard the knock knock call of the blacksmith plovers, a chorus of painted reed frogs, the calls of the white-faced ducks and the rustle of marula trees. The earth is a shade of reddish brown that is different from the pale yellow Kalahari sand in Botswana.
The setting of this camp is granite outcroppings with lush green undergrowth. Elephants ambled toward the Sand River for a drink. In the morning we walked with our guide, Byron and a couple from Oklahoma whom we had met. We studied hippo and tortoise tracks, lizards with indigo blue tails called rainbow skinks and colorful lilac-breasted rollers that happen to be the national birds of Botswana. A chameleon was almost completely camouflaged in a fig tree. Later we were driving north, looking for lions. In the chilly air I had on a scarf, a fleece sweatshirt and a vest. Our vehicle crossed the river with the rushing current. We came upon a pride of two lionesses, four cubs and a young male lion who was old enough to go out on his own but must have preferred to stay with this group. I snapped a photo of him looking as though he is smiling for the camera.
We encountered two male leopards facing off with low growls. They each had bite marks and gashes on their faces. Our guide explained that clearly there had been a territorial struggle. Later we were lucky to track a lone male leopard moving stealthily though the brush. He pounced seemingly effortlessly on a tree limb and suspended himself gracefully. On our way back to camp that day, we passed a crash of five rhino and a herd of buffalo wallowing in the mud.
It was magical to be in a place where we could study the web of the golden orb spider, listen to monkeys sounding the alarm that lions were near, touch wild anise, taste biscuits and coffee in the pink glow of the rising sun and speak in hushed tones so as not to disturb the animal life.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Cape Town
At the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Town is a gorgeous city with a tough history. A cable car ride to the summit of Table Mountain enabled us to have a stunning view of the rocky cliffs, the irridescent blue sea and the new stadium built for the World Cup soccer event. Our first stop was Robben Island, a penal colony where over six thousand political prisoners were held between 1963 and 1991. Although Nelson Mandela is its most renowned prisoner, there are many others with stories to tell. The guides at Robben Island are men who were incarcerated during apartheid. Their children under sixteen years of age were not allowed to visit, so many did not see their kids grow up. The prisoners toiled in the blinding sunlight of the limestone quarry under the watchful eyes of their sadistic guards. Our guide thanked the United Nations and all those who did not turn their backs on South Africans, but supported their struggle for freedom. By keeping them in their sights, the world made sure that they were not isolated.
We continued to the District Six Museum where we learned about the destruction of a community and its music and arts. In 1966 during Botha's regime as minister of community development, District Six was declared an area for whites only. Over a period of fifteen years, 60,000 people were uprooted and moved to an area called Cape Flats. Nearby was the Jewish Museum that was built adjacent to the oldest temple in South Africa. We learned about Nadine Gordimer's writing, William Kentridge's art and Helen Suzman's role as a lone white voice in the fight for black African rights. We marveled at the recreation of a shtetl that seemed to have an echo of our grandparents.
The Xhosa Tribe inhabits many of the townships on the outskirts of Cape Town. We viewed acres of tin shacks with outhouses out back. We visited Langa Township where activist Amy Biehl was murdered, Guguletu Township where seven boys were shot in their schoolyard and Khayelitsha Township where we met Vivian Zilo who runs Iliso Care Society. Vivian has a soup kitchen that feeds 300 people one hot meal each day, a sustainable vegetable garden, a day care center that is free for parents out looking for jobs, a youth group that includes a soccer team and encourages youngsters to volunteer in Iliso's programs and five bunks so she can shelter aids orphans. Her home is immaculate as were the children inside. Their faces were full of smiles and their manners were good. Vivian says that her work is a drop in the ocean, but it is visibly important work. The soup kitchen lets Vivian and her staff take the pulse of the community, her home is a safe house and she finds foster homes for the orphans within a few months.
In the morning, we took a boat to Seal Island in Hout Bay where thousands of seals were barking, yelping and waddling in the water. There were so many seals that the rocks they were lounging on looked furry. There are lots of shipwrecks dating from the days of the explorers. We made our way down the coast to The Cape of Good Hope, at the very tip of Africa where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans converge. These were perilous waters for Portuguese explorers Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama in the 1400's. Their discovery was beneficial to Europe as it opened the whole world to the East. We could feel the strong winds and see the clash of the currents. A fabled surfing spot, Dungeons, is close by. We observed African penguins in the Indian Ocean and collected sea glass and anemone.
Our Wineland tour took us to the university town of Stellenbosch as well as the Franschhoek and Paarl regions. Here the gold and orange tinges of early fall were evident against the jagged peak backdrop. Some wineries have thatched roofs on their manor houses that hearken back to their Dutch heritage. We particularly liked Meerlust's 2003 Pinot Noir and our lunch at La Ferme in Franschhoek Village. In the evenings, we looked forward to meandering around Victoria Wharf in Cape Town, a city that gave us some sobering context for our trip.
We continued to the District Six Museum where we learned about the destruction of a community and its music and arts. In 1966 during Botha's regime as minister of community development, District Six was declared an area for whites only. Over a period of fifteen years, 60,000 people were uprooted and moved to an area called Cape Flats. Nearby was the Jewish Museum that was built adjacent to the oldest temple in South Africa. We learned about Nadine Gordimer's writing, William Kentridge's art and Helen Suzman's role as a lone white voice in the fight for black African rights. We marveled at the recreation of a shtetl that seemed to have an echo of our grandparents.
The Xhosa Tribe inhabits many of the townships on the outskirts of Cape Town. We viewed acres of tin shacks with outhouses out back. We visited Langa Township where activist Amy Biehl was murdered, Guguletu Township where seven boys were shot in their schoolyard and Khayelitsha Township where we met Vivian Zilo who runs Iliso Care Society. Vivian has a soup kitchen that feeds 300 people one hot meal each day, a sustainable vegetable garden, a day care center that is free for parents out looking for jobs, a youth group that includes a soccer team and encourages youngsters to volunteer in Iliso's programs and five bunks so she can shelter aids orphans. Her home is immaculate as were the children inside. Their faces were full of smiles and their manners were good. Vivian says that her work is a drop in the ocean, but it is visibly important work. The soup kitchen lets Vivian and her staff take the pulse of the community, her home is a safe house and she finds foster homes for the orphans within a few months.
In the morning, we took a boat to Seal Island in Hout Bay where thousands of seals were barking, yelping and waddling in the water. There were so many seals that the rocks they were lounging on looked furry. There are lots of shipwrecks dating from the days of the explorers. We made our way down the coast to The Cape of Good Hope, at the very tip of Africa where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans converge. These were perilous waters for Portuguese explorers Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama in the 1400's. Their discovery was beneficial to Europe as it opened the whole world to the East. We could feel the strong winds and see the clash of the currents. A fabled surfing spot, Dungeons, is close by. We observed African penguins in the Indian Ocean and collected sea glass and anemone.
Our Wineland tour took us to the university town of Stellenbosch as well as the Franschhoek and Paarl regions. Here the gold and orange tinges of early fall were evident against the jagged peak backdrop. Some wineries have thatched roofs on their manor houses that hearken back to their Dutch heritage. We particularly liked Meerlust's 2003 Pinot Noir and our lunch at La Ferme in Franschhoek Village. In the evenings, we looked forward to meandering around Victoria Wharf in Cape Town, a city that gave us some sobering context for our trip.
Zarafa Camp
The setting of Zarafa Camp overlooks the Zibadianja Lagoon in the Selinda Reserve near Chobe Camp in northern Botswana. We slept in a canvas zippered tent under mosquito netting but our tent had a wooden floor fashioned from old railway timbers, leather furniture, a decanter of sherry and a copper bathtub. During the night, we could hear a hyaena snarling and an elephant hooting. In the morning, we discovered that the hyaena had attacked a baby elephant. Later we came upon the agitated mother thrashing in the water while she tried to clean her bloody baby with its chewed tail and ears. Our guide assured me that the little elephant would survive and these altercations are part of the cycle of the jungle.
We sipped coffee around the fire and scooped porridge from a pot resting above the coals. As we got ready for our daybreak drive, the flaming orb of the sun began to burn off the morning mist. We saw groups of impala leaping. Their hind quarters go up as they leap. While the baboons jumped around with them, the scene evoked a field day from elementary school. We tracked a leopard for almost an hour. She must have been very hungry to be looking for food so actively in the daylight. Leopards are usually solitary and secretive animals that can be difficult to find. At noon we enjoyed a surprise lunch on a riverboat. We tasted vegetable pie, grilled beef kabobs with homemade chutney, a tossed green salad with artichokes, sunflower seeds and tomato, and sliced papaya with prickly pear. An elephant peered at us through the reeds while a waterbuck couple waited nearby.
In the afternoon, we drank red roobuis tea and munched on mango cake and passion fruit. The air in the bush has a particularly pleasing scent as the sun goes down: a blend of wild basil and sage and amber grass. On a sunset drive, we listened to the symphony of bell frogs while we watched hippos leaving the water and creating walkways through the thick under brush. The new moon was a sliver of silver. A lioness suckled her three cubs. We saw an owl gyrating on a tree branch, sparkling fireflies and the eyes of the impala glistening.
When one shakes hands in Botswana, the custom is to hold the opposite hand on the shaking forearm. This motion conveys extra warmth. The management team at Zarafa were an African husband and wife, Alex and Onay. Together with Stephen, our guide, they welcomed us into their home and shared their sense of fun. They were excited to point out a pelican looking for fish, a dwarf mongoose scuttling, baboons scavenging and a leopard lurking. During our last dinner when the whole staff performed for us, they sang and danced with feeling.
We sipped coffee around the fire and scooped porridge from a pot resting above the coals. As we got ready for our daybreak drive, the flaming orb of the sun began to burn off the morning mist. We saw groups of impala leaping. Their hind quarters go up as they leap. While the baboons jumped around with them, the scene evoked a field day from elementary school. We tracked a leopard for almost an hour. She must have been very hungry to be looking for food so actively in the daylight. Leopards are usually solitary and secretive animals that can be difficult to find. At noon we enjoyed a surprise lunch on a riverboat. We tasted vegetable pie, grilled beef kabobs with homemade chutney, a tossed green salad with artichokes, sunflower seeds and tomato, and sliced papaya with prickly pear. An elephant peered at us through the reeds while a waterbuck couple waited nearby.
In the afternoon, we drank red roobuis tea and munched on mango cake and passion fruit. The air in the bush has a particularly pleasing scent as the sun goes down: a blend of wild basil and sage and amber grass. On a sunset drive, we listened to the symphony of bell frogs while we watched hippos leaving the water and creating walkways through the thick under brush. The new moon was a sliver of silver. A lioness suckled her three cubs. We saw an owl gyrating on a tree branch, sparkling fireflies and the eyes of the impala glistening.
When one shakes hands in Botswana, the custom is to hold the opposite hand on the shaking forearm. This motion conveys extra warmth. The management team at Zarafa were an African husband and wife, Alex and Onay. Together with Stephen, our guide, they welcomed us into their home and shared their sense of fun. They were excited to point out a pelican looking for fish, a dwarf mongoose scuttling, baboons scavenging and a leopard lurking. During our last dinner when the whole staff performed for us, they sang and danced with feeling.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
On Safari
We flew over Botswana's legendary Okavango Delta in a six-seater plane. Below us was a verdant flood plain covered with blankets of bright green duckweed. We caught glimpses of stately giraffes and lumbering elephants. After landing on Mombo Camp's sandy airstrip within the Moremi Game Reserve, we climbed inside a waiting Land Rover. The air was pungent with the scent of wild sage. We heard the calls of African cuckoos and the snorts of a female impala herd. Was there a leopard slinking around in the brush? The snort is the alarm call as impala are low on the food chain. We passed a family of warthogs strutting with their self-important stride. They almost look like women wearing high heels.
At the camp, we sipped ginger tea while we learned about the daily schedule. Our wake up knock would be at 5:30 a.m. so we could be out of our tent by 6:00 a.m. to view the emerging sun, hear an elderly male lion calling for his pride and watch as the early morning mist evaporated in the distance while a pod of hippo bathed in a pond. A baobab tree can be as much as three thousand years old. Acacias are also prevalent. Giraffes enjoy munching on the greens. Their long eyelashes protect their eyes as their thick tongues grab breakfast in between the thorns. Their necks are so long and their hearts are so large that they never totally lie down with their heads on the ground.
A group of zebra is called a dazzle and they are dazzling. Their stripes shimmer in the rosy morning glow. No two zebras have identical stripes, but a baby zebra can always pick out his mother. Wondering if he will lead us to his pride, we stalk a male lion. He wanders along with a powerful gait but the sun starts to bake the earth. Seeking shade, he retreats inside a bush that is like a cave. We move on to a wild dog frolicking with two jackals and a male kudu with giant antlers.
After a few hours of driving around, I wondered if we could stretch our legs and walk. We ambled single file behind our guide who led us with a loaded rifle. He claimed that he had never used his gun, but liked to have it just in case. The animals are not interested in humans unless they are startled or provoked. We could touch the thick mud of an abandoned termite mound, pick up a porcupine quill and collect kingfisher feathers. Standing near a giraffe, we realized just how small we are in the world.
At the camp, we sipped ginger tea while we learned about the daily schedule. Our wake up knock would be at 5:30 a.m. so we could be out of our tent by 6:00 a.m. to view the emerging sun, hear an elderly male lion calling for his pride and watch as the early morning mist evaporated in the distance while a pod of hippo bathed in a pond. A baobab tree can be as much as three thousand years old. Acacias are also prevalent. Giraffes enjoy munching on the greens. Their long eyelashes protect their eyes as their thick tongues grab breakfast in between the thorns. Their necks are so long and their hearts are so large that they never totally lie down with their heads on the ground.
A group of zebra is called a dazzle and they are dazzling. Their stripes shimmer in the rosy morning glow. No two zebras have identical stripes, but a baby zebra can always pick out his mother. Wondering if he will lead us to his pride, we stalk a male lion. He wanders along with a powerful gait but the sun starts to bake the earth. Seeking shade, he retreats inside a bush that is like a cave. We move on to a wild dog frolicking with two jackals and a male kudu with giant antlers.
After a few hours of driving around, I wondered if we could stretch our legs and walk. We ambled single file behind our guide who led us with a loaded rifle. He claimed that he had never used his gun, but liked to have it just in case. The animals are not interested in humans unless they are startled or provoked. We could touch the thick mud of an abandoned termite mound, pick up a porcupine quill and collect kingfisher feathers. Standing near a giraffe, we realized just how small we are in the world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)