Blogs from Africa - page 2701

Im back! From washington dc to new york to amsterdam to nairobi, nairobi to samburu national park in middle kenya to lewa downs rhino sanctuary next to isiolo town from where you can see mt. kenya to massai mara. this was the luxery part of the journey so far. ive seen all of the animals. (kweli kabisa) I could describe all of these experiences, but already they seem far away and my head is clogged with new things. At Lewa Downs the whole birthday court of Nancy (turning 80--the point of the trip in the first place) attended the meat eating ceremony of Karamishu, a Massai friend of Nancy. We slaughtered two sheep and a cow. the massai drank the blood from the cows neck--literally. two men held down the cow and pushed on it so ... read more

Hello! Todd, great to hear that all is well in Istanbul. (Todd is attending the annual conference on Globalization for the Common Good.) I am now back home in Ottawa after a long flight and a missed connection in Toronto due to tightened security in Heathrow, London. Although I am home, the journey does not end as I continue to process everything. I imagine a few more blogs will be posted over the next while as Todd and I revisit some particularly gripping events during the trip. For now, I will pick up where Todd left off and tell you about our 3-day safari at Maasai Mara. It was a 5-hour drive to Maasai Mara (Serengetti) from Nairobi. The roads were partially paved...or maybe it was just that the potholes spanned the entire width of ... read more

Last you read we were sitting in a Jo'burg hotel. The following morning, Wayne (our "guide") drove us to Pilanesburg. The drive was not very remarkable, with the exception of a platinum mine and several non-metropolitan, more truly African towns. The disparity between the cities and the countryside is unbelievable. When we arrived at our lodge, we were greeted with a nice welcome lychee juice. The place had been billed as the Akeru of the northwest, and while it fell short (just not as personal, had electricity, couldn't follow the animals offroad), it was still beautiful, relaxing place. Our first drive started at 3:30 that afternoon, and we saw several new animals. We spotted a black-backed jackal, a bushbuck, a brown hyena, and some tesebe. The area had a cold front come through, as well ... read more

I write to you now from Africa! I'm a week into my little adventure and I must say it's been a busy start! Matt and I arrived in Cape Town (South Africa) on Wednesday morning and were met with a chilly air and brilliant sunshine. Our transfer from the airport took us to where we were staying for the next couple of nights: The Backpacker. The place was simple but nice, and there we met two other travellers, one of whom was going on the same Acacia tour as us. On the advice of the owner of The Backpacker, we shared a taxi to Table Mountain that day, while the sun was out - despite Matt having had barely three hours sleep on the plane! We agreed to meet Jane and Kim later that day as ... read more

Leaving Fez early in the am for the journey west through the Atlas mountains into the Sahara desert. The mountain scenery in Morocco looks more like the Western US, with lots of dramatic red rocks and sparse greenery, and long windy roads against cliff faces. That morning we had 5 hours driving and most of the group were hopped up on Immodium, while I just had 4 bananas, it essentially does the same thing! Halfway through our drive, we stopped in Midelt, high up in the mountains and a hike around a small(ish) canyon and down to the casbah (village with mud houses) to meet some local Berber people. The original peoples of Morocco are made up of 5 tribes, and Berber is one of the biggest. Morocco has been occupied or settled by the Romans, ... read more