Our morning started at 7 am as we headed out for our first game drive. Today will be drives through the local game preserve. As we climbed aboard our truck with Shaun, our guide, we were ready to photograph the nearby residents. The first large animals we encountered were impalas, wildebeests, and warthogs. The warthogs however did not hang around long. The impalas were all sizes and included a black impala. At one point we were hoping for two males to engage in a dispute over the females but they greeted each other and moved along. Farther along we stopped by a lake where two hippos were lazily residing along with several different kinds of kingfishers. We returned to camp for breakfast and an afternoon of leisure before the evening drive and an African style barbeque. ... read more

The flight from Atlanta, Ga to Johannesburg, South Africa was a healthy 15 hours. This is the longest duration for one flight that we have taken and it seemed to go on and on. We did receive dinner, a snack (a sandwich) and breakfast that helped fill time. There were also numerous movies stored in the TV that could fill more hours. The one thing that we did not achieve was sleep. So by the time we landed in Johannesburg we were tired. The flight was totally uneventful and once again we landed on time. We were staying in a hotel attached to the airport but found that getting there was a healthy hike. Having finally reached the hotel and checked in, I discovered I had left a small but needed item at home and needed ... read more

Our final day in Costa Rica found us once again on the bus traveling to San Jose. We returned to the same hotel we have been to twice before, the Studio Hotel. After getting to our room and freshening up we walked to the nearby Italian restaurant for lunch. After lunch we returned to the hotel to join the City Tour. After being dropped off by the National Theater we had a look inside the theater and walked some nearby streets. We spent some time in the Gold Museum which contains artifacts from the indigenous peoples of Costa Rica. It included pottery and clay artifacts as well as many of the items made from gold. The gold items range from very small gold pieces to larger plate sized pieces. From the museum we walked past older ... read more

Breakfast at the hotel proved entertaining as the Howler Monkeys join us by breakfasting in the trees nearby. One never knew when they would show up. Once again we choose to take the optional tour hoping for some wildlife sightings. It was a short ride to the marina in Quepos. We boarded the nice Catamaran complete with water slides and bar. There were drinks and snacks available. The day was beautiful and the ocean calm, but wildlife was at a minimum. We saw just a few different birds including Magnificent Frigatebirds, Brown Boobys and Brown Pelicans. Before lunch we anchored in a cove where we could snorkel or enjoy the water slides. I chose to snorkel and armed with my camera got a few murky fish photos. After snorkeling, lunch was provided on the boat. We ... read more

We had decided that it would be in our best interest to not go zip lining or hike to cross the Hanging Bridges, so after breakfast at the hotel we hopped on a shuttle that runs within the hotel to go up to the canopy. Up at the canopy we hoped to see some different birds as there are birds that only live in the high elevations. Upon arriving at the canopy, the young man working there noticed our cameras and set about refilling the hummingbird feeder. As soon as he replaced the feeder, a variety of hummingbirds appeared. Sometimes as many a five at a time. Christian then came out and started looking with us to find other birds in the trees. After a time, he suggested that he might know where we could find ... read more