Our South Africa trip was all about Kruger and Cape Town, but getting there required much travel. We were relieved when Westjet signed an eleventh hour deal with its pilots because despite having booked all KLM flights, we discovered just days before our trip that our first flight would be "operated by Westjet". We flew to Calgary to connect to Amsterdam. Then waited for another long flight to Johannesburg. We transferred from the airport to our nearby hotel and had only a brief delay when they didn't have record of our stay in their system. By then we had been travelling more than 29 hours, with an additional 9 hours of time zone difference tacked on for good measure. It was late and we had to wake early for breakfast before a long journey the next day. I took a photo of the information placard to demonstrate what we wanted to see, and another to show what we actually experienced. Fortunately we had much better luck just a short distance away at the viewpoints for "God's Window". After three nights at Kruger, we needed to make our way back to the Johannesburg airport for a flight to Cape Town. We took a different route back, stopping first at the Alzu Petroport - a gas station complex with restaurants, shops, cafes, and a massive animal reserve where we saw elands, gemsbok/oryx, ostriches, and more. Our main stop of the day was at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. We joined thousands of school children on fieldtrips outside the official seat of the South African Government and the office of the President of South Africa. There are large terraced gardens with statues and cannons. Our return trip was slightly simpler as we had just one connection in Amsterdam , but it was still a very long journey from Cape Town to YVR.
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We spent four nights at Protea by Marriott Hotel Cape Town Sea Point. Our first full day in the city was certainly that; we completed all three loops of the City Sightseeing hop-on-hop-off bus system, walked the city centre as well as the Bo Kaap district, rode the cable car up Table Mountain, and had dinner with the nicest family ever. We did a quick self-guided walk that included City Hall, St. George's Cathedral, the Castle of Good Hope... as well as homeless encampments, plenty of urine, and First Responders manning a covered body. We then walked to the historic and colourful Malay district of Bo-Kaap. Here, two men tried to scam us by telling us we had to register to be in the area due to local filming and the presence of the President. Apparently if we'd gone with them, they'd have asked for our ATM card as part of the registration process. Instead, I refused and a man from a hotel ran them off, yelling and calling the police. After our walking excursions, we caught the blue line bus through Kirstenbosch Gardens in order to connect with the purple line at Constantia Nek to see the wineries area. Back on the blue bus line, we cruised the coast, seeing Hout Bay and stopping at Camps Bay to walk on the beach. We passed suburbs and townships, beaches and coastline, before switching back to the red line that would take us through the city and harbourfront again and on to Table Mountain. Despite having pre-purchased tickets, the line for the cable car was very slow. Eventually we learned that the delay was due to load-shedding (the country's practice of cutting electricity in different areas for four hours each day); while running on a generator, the system was operating at half capacity. We were assured that the cable car would run later than scheduled to get everyone back down the mountain. Throughout our time in South Africa, we were constantly surprised by the cooler than anticipated weather, but atop Table Maountain was shockingly cold with bitter winds. We immediately discovered longer lines for the descent than what we'd just waited in to ascend, so we split up with one of us holding a spot in the line while the other checked out the views. Everyone was very concerned for my survival in my ill-advised shorts and t-shirt. This sparked many friendly conversations while in line. Eventually it became clear that we were not going to make it down in time to catch the final hop-on bus leaving the area. The family in front of us in line generously offered not only to provide us with a ride back to our hotel, but to first go with us to a restaurant they had previously recommended. The delays actually allowed us to watch the sunset from the mountain. Eastern Food Bazaar was unique, tasty, and affordable, but the company was even better! We couldn't believe how friendly and hospitable the Solberg family is. We were so pleased to be able to join Chantelle and Kevin for dinner again two nights later. Easily the best part of our trip to South Africa was meeting the world's nicest people. Having seen rain in the forecast for the coming days, we scrambled to get on a tour of the Cape Peninsula early the following morning rather than wait an extra day as originally planned. Despite having had little sleep due to spending hours on the phone trying unsuccessfully to rectify security issues with our credit card, we set off on a full day tour. The first stop and top priority was seeing the colony of African Penguins at Boulders Beach. I took a photo of a dassie (African Hyrax) without a clue what animal we'd stumbled upon at the beach. Next up, the Cape Point Nature Reserve, where we hiked up to the country's third oldest lighthouse. We walked from the lighthouse down to the Cape of Good Hope. Along the way, we saw large elands, colourful lizards, and ostriches. The coastal drive provided plenty of spectacular views as we passed Kalk Bay and Muizenberg Beach, Fish Hoek, Simon's Town, and others. We had most of two more days in Cape Town, but the weather didn't cooperate, as temperatures dropped further and it rained quite a bit. We had already squeezed most of our sightseeing into the first two days, though, so we didn't mind a slower pace. We still managed to go on several walks, especially exploring the coastal promenade and Green Point Park. We were thrilled to be able to visit some more with Kevin and Chantelle over dinner at a Tex-Mex restaurant they treated us to!
We spent three nights in Kruger National Park at Nkambeni Safari Camp. The first night in our 'tent' was bitterly cold, but after that, we were all supplied with extra blankets. Aside from an unexpected loss of wifi for most of our stay, the camp was comfortable with decent meals. We chose to go on just one safari game drive, yet still managed to see more animals than expected, but no cats (lions nor leopards). Before sunrise was complete, we were spotting giraffes and elephants. We saw plenty of impalas... ...and their other antelope relatives like the Common Duiker, Steenbok, and featured below, the Lichtenstein's hartebeest and Greater Kudu. We saw a number of warthogs. The warthogs began the shag-fest,; the Greater Kudu continued it, and the massive hippo absolutely dominated it! We encountered herds of African Buffalo. We were fortunate to have a close encounter with a hyena. The rhinos in the park continue to be the target of poachers, so the rangers pre-emptively remove their horns. Many varieties of birds were pointed out to us throughout the day, but they are often difficult to photograph, and quite honestly, are underwhelming compared to the larger mammals. We found zebras. There were wildebeests and plenty of monkeys. No matter how many times tourists were reminded, they always left some food behind. At the end of the day, the elephants are still my favourite. Playing Kruger's golf course requires signing an indemnity form because of the danger of the hippos which inhabit its water hazards! Just outside the fence of our camp was a pond which featured five hippos that seemed most active at dawn and dusk. Four of these hippos were large, while the fifth was unbelievably gigantic! I enjoyed watching the changing African sky at both sunrise and sunset while staying at Nkambeni Safari Camp in Kruger National Park.
Our daily local walks became a little brighter in May. Lisa did more cycling and we played tennis a number of times. We once again made multiple trips up Cobble Hill Mountain. Mid-month it became unseasonably hot, but we were able to spend time enjoying our own yard. On our way to the ferries, we tended to our Nanaimo rental property, then walked in Bowen Park and at Jack Point near Duke Point Terminal. Once in Burnaby, our walks include Central Park and Metrotown. We even managed to squeeze in some tennis! Time with family is often centred on enjoying good food. We visited my mom at Langley Lodge and had dinner with family at Dad's place before Shawn Rumley was kind enough to check out the possible sources of our car's slight creaky sounds. It was nice visiting with all of these people. I had plenty of sports entertainment until both the Oilers and the Warriors bowed out in the second round of playoffs. As usual there was some movie watching on the agenda. We continued watching series as well. I continued to read, too. Now, a very long journey to South Africa begins!
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