http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/AfricaBound/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from AfricaBound en-us Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:59:53 +0000 Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:59:53 +0000 After approximately 33 hours of traveling time spent either in planes or on layovers we made it home We were a little bit worried about our luggage not making it to Calgary because we had it checked through all the way from Mombasa to Calgary including changing airlines and terminals at Heathrow. But it made it no problem. So yeahOne of the first things we did when we got home was go throug http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/Canada/Alberta/Calgary/blog-315741.html Ahhh... so relaxing All we did for the 4 days spent in Mombasa was hang out by the pool or when it got too hot swim for a little. We also splurged and got a couple of massages by the friendly spa staff. It was just what we needed at the end of a long trip. http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Kenya/Coast-Province/Mombasa/blog-312739.html With the exception of the month off in South Africa where we rented the car and a few days in between trips Cape Town 5 days and Nairobi 5 days we've been on a DragoEncounter truck since about September 22nd 2007. It's been very tough at times but also very enjoyable at other times. For the most part our groups have been pretty good there is always going to be the one or two people on t http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Kenya/Nairobi-Province/blog-312738.html It was an amazing experience definitely a trip highlight The trek itself was tough We pretty much hiked uphill for 3 hours straight gaining approximately 600m in elevation. The trails were muddy and at times very steep. Also we had to be wary of the stinging nettles. When we did see the gorillas it was on a steep hill and through dense bush which made it tough for viewing but the guide and http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Rwanda/Province-du-Nord/Parc-National-des-Volcans/blog-312737.html We rafted the Nile it was awesome Too bad we didn't have a water proof camera with us to show you what the rapids were like instead we bought the DVD.They say that the rapids on the Nile are probably some of the best grade 5 rapids in the world. The water was warm so it didn't matter if we fell out which Kathie did on the rapid they call Silverback a giant wall of water and the water is http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Uganda/Eastern-Region/Jinja/blog-312736.html After booking the Hot Air balloon safari over a year and a half ago we were finally able to enjoy the experience. It was absolutely amazing. Originally we had booked the balloon safari for March 24th but it was canceled due to poor weather conditions. We were fortunate enough to have another opportunity to visit the Serengeti on this trip and we were able to rebook the balloon safari for our s http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Tanzania/North/Serengeti-National-Park/blog-312735.html We consider ourselves pretty lucky to have had the opportunity to go back to the Ngorongoro Crater during this trip. Although I have to admit I think the first time through we had amazing luck with the animals which we didn't quite have this time around. Although we did see a Serval hunting not too far from our vehicle which was pretty neat. The Ngorongoro Crater is still by far one of the bett http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Tanzania/North/Ngorongoro-Conservation-Area/blog-312731.html To finish off our month off in South Africa we decided to spend a few days wine tasting in the FranschhoekStellenbosch area. We figured it was appropriate considering how much we've enjoyed the South African wines especially the pinotage and shirazWe planned on limiting our wine tasting to a maximum of two wineries per day. One of our favorite wineries that we visited was the Simonsig winery http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Franschhoek/blog-312723.html This is probably the most spontaneous thing that we've done on our trip so far. We had initially planned a few days in the Hermanus region for whale watching and never even considered diving with the sharks. When we met a really nice couple at the backpacker's lodge in Oudtshoorn they had just come from Gansbaai and they couldn't stop talking about it. We immediately went online and booked acc http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Gansbaai/blog-302619.html We woke up super early from our base in Kleinbaii and drove to Betty's Bay to see the penguin colony. We enjoyed the ones in Cape Town so much that we just had to see more. Here was a much different experience as we literally had the place to ourselves.After a windy morning visiting the penguins we headed to Hermanus for lunch and spent the afternoon watching the Southern Right Whales from the s http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Hermanus/blog-301432.html We finally made it to the southern tip of Africa Pretty much just a photo op here but it was interesting meeting a couple of guys that were just beginning a transafrican journey on motorbikes ala Ewan McGreggor and his buddy in the Long Way Down. http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/blog-301430.html We heard reports of poor weather for the coast so we decided to head inland away from the Garden Route and take the alternative Route 62 from Oudtshoorn to Robertson. Oudtshoorn is the Ostrich capital of the world and is also the gateway to the Cango Caves. The caves were cool and the Ostrich was delicious. In Robertson we treated ourselves to a winetasting tour where we visited four wineries http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Oudtshoorn/blog-301420.html Since leaving the Wild Coast we've been working our way down the sunshine coast. Our stops have included East London Port Elizabeth Jeffrey's Bay and Plettenberg Bay.East London and Port Elizabeth although very nice cities were just a couple stops to break up the driving and do some shopping and laundry. We stopped at Jeffrey's Bay on the morning of the 10th to check out the first day of co http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Plettenberg-Bay/blog-298727.html The Wild Coast is described as the real africa that most travellers to South Africa miss. It's a lot more remote and undeveloped compared to the rest of the country and the coastline is beautiful. We had initially planned on about 5 days to explore the wild coast but found that after a couple of days it was time to move on. It was very beautiful and quiet we probably would have stayed longe http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Eastern-Cape/Port-St-Johns/blog-296873.html Now for something completely different. We've probably overloaded on the animal photos for a while so the next part of our trip will not likely have much in the way of game parks. We will however be looking to photograph some of the ocean wildlife at some point.Durban was a nice place to relax and get used to the idea of having our own transportation. Okay maybe it wasn't so relaxing at fir http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/KwaZulu-Natal/Durban/blog-296871.html This is the safari experience that we've been looking forward to for a long time. It's the complete opposite to our past couple of game parks where we were in an overland vechle full of 18 people. We had planned on staying at a nice tented camp at the Edeni Private Lodge but we were surprised by a nice upgrade to one of the 5 star luxury cabins big thanks to our travel agent.In total we had http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Limpopo/Hoedspruit/blog-296867.html Another month on an overland truck comes to an end. Livingstone reminded us just how expensive Zambia is compared to the other African countries. From here we fly to Jo'burg and begin a month of independant travel in South Africa. We're looking forward to the time on our own and the freedom to go where we want when we want. It will also be nice having a month off from sleeping in tentsOur ro http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Zambia/Livingstone/blog-296863.html It doesn't get much better than this. Sort of a welcome back to true Africa. It took us 5 hours to get onto the ferry to cross the river into Zambia. Too bad we couldn't drive through Zimbabwe and use the bridge instead. Some of the transport trucks have been waiting up to 10 days before they can cross. Total carnage. http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Botswana/North-West/Kasane/blog-292317.html Our second visit to Chobe National Park in Botswana was much like the first but with less water in the river and more people on the boats. We probably saw more wildlife on our first visit but we did see Sable antelope for the first time although not the best light for photos. http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Botswana/North-West/Chobe-National-Park/blog-292312.html The next few days of the trip overlap with places that we've already seen on our trip from Nairobi to Cape Town. So when it came time for the Okavango Delta we decided to opt out and spend some quiet time at Ngepi Campsite. A unique place to stay with even more unique toilets and showers. We went on a sunset cruise down the river just the 2 of us and saw lots of hippos and small crocs as wel http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Namibia/blog-292307.html