Africa Conclusion
We traveled into Malawi which is poor even by African standards and very over populated. Almost everyone in the country is a subsistence farmer. Literally every square inch of land is used for farming except the two National parks which we didn’t go to. The narrow pieces of land between the edge of the road and start of their farms are used for grazing. Having said this it is quite green as the farms have trees for fruit and firewood.
While on Zanzibar I fortunately went on a scuba diving trip, nothing spectacular as far as the diving went, but on the boat ride is where Claudia and I first met. As she shared about her making of documentaries and under water adventures and I shared about my travels and wildlife jobs we made a lasting and strong connection.
I saw a lot of wildlife in the next week and a half. After getting back from Zanzibar we went to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater, where we saw most of the different big animals of Africa. The rhinos and cheetahs were at a distance but everything else was fairly close, but not the brushing up against the side of the truck kind. We could have with a big bull elephant but the guide didn’t feel comfortable with it and let another truck have that honor, sigh maybe next time. We saw a leopard with two or three kittens with her in a tree. We watched a cheetah and hyena chase a gazelle unsuccessfully from some distance; they were running parallel to the road so we stayed with them during the chase. If the cheetah had made the kill the hyena would have stolen the catch. Ngorongoro Crater is known for its Flamingos and other wildlife. As far as the flamingos went, that was a bit of a disappointment as they were very far off and I have seen larger numbers in Florida. After this most of the people that I had been traveling with for the last month left, only one of the Australians stayed onboard and we picked up three Brits. In another week we gained some more people.
The Masai Mara Park in Kenya was great and I saw a lot of great wildlife. Including cheetah and rhinos up close where before they had only been at a great distance. I had been taking long solo hikes from our camps to go out and meet locals. After doing this a few times my group stopped worrying that I was killed and realized I know what I’m doing (see Uganda night walk). This was one of my favorite parts of the trip, as I love meeting the local people and it is hard to do when you’re with a group of travelers. One day when I left camp for a walk I met a guy and ended up hanging out with him for 14 hours, we walked about 20 kilometers. He was impressed that I could walk so much and didn’t need much water as that is what he is use to with whites. He said that I could be a Masai warrior.
As I type this I have been riding a train over 52 hours. I’m getting bored, restless and ready to be there. I left my volunteer position almost a week ago (see African Volunteer Project) and headed to Dar Salam to catch the express train down to Zambia. The bus took longer than I was told and it started to pour as soon as I left the bus station to go to the train station, so traffic bogged down and I didn’t make it in time. So I had to wait for three days in Dar for the non-express train. Dar had already been my least favorite part of Africa because it is very humid (New Orleans in July) and nothing very interesting about it either. The train is slower than they said it would be (it needs to stop some times to build up pressure). It also periodically feels like they slam on the brakes or stomp on the accelerator and you practically get thrown out of your seat, depending on which way your facing and which lurching movement the train does. I will still have a long day on a bus tomorrow also. Ah yes welcome to traveling not just in a developing country but in Africa. Train has gotten to ruff to continue writing.
I did a micro light flight over Victorian falls it’s a very beautiful and a breath taking way of seeing the falls. A micro light is basically like a cross between a small glider and a one prop plane. You and the pilot are strapped into two chairs and are completely open, no walls or floor. Very fun and a great way to see the scenery because you’re going slower than a plane and there is nothing to obstruct your views. It’s not cheap but I will probably do this again in other locations because the view is great.
As the African portion of my trip was approaching the end I started my journey north. I took a bus to Lusaka the capital and biggest city of Zambia. You might think boring, but remember this is Africa, so a riot in a little town (because of a British soccer/football game) broke the boredom. Traffic started stopping in the middle of nowhere as they heard what was happening ahead. Finally with more info we took a dirt road detour around most of the city. Still just before the dirt road a group of guys with rocks and sling shots stopped the bus and demanded money. The driver gave them a little to let us pass even though most of the passengers were saying no. The dirt road was uneventful as most of it was on a large sugar plantation and therefore had guards. Just as we got back to a paved road there was a bigger group of guys with rocks stopping traffic and demanding money. They broke a window on one truck a couple vehicles in front of us. As I was the only non-African they all told me to hide from view so that they didn’t see me and demand even more money. The driver started to take a collection of money from people on the bus and was just starting to hand the money out when the passengers shouted don’t pay here come the police. Sure enough the crowd of guys fled and the bus cheered and laughed as we watch them run and saw the police truck full of policemen come driving up. At times like these you really appreciate the police. As the police followed we continued on back to the main road and a lot of police guarding that area, we were now in the clear. TIA, This is Africa!!
It was interesting to watch how the people not just the driver decided what to do along the way. At several points when he was debating what to do many people would shout just go! Although the short statements would frequently be in English the real info about what was happening was in the local language and would have made it a scarier thing for me except that the woman next to me was great about keeping me up to date with info. It was still a bit scary but not too bad.
Even before this past week I felt like I was about ready to leave Africa. Then there was the riot while I was on a bus, then a few days later I just missed being a witness to a hit and run that left the guy dead in the road. Seeing the guy lay there dead in the road hit me hard as it made me think of how we never know when our time will be up. Here one moment gone the next. This was followed up with me getting Malaria. Yes I had been taking a preventative pill but it’s not a guaranty and the fact that I missed one day probably didn’t help, although it isn’t supposed to make a difference if you occasionally miss one. I went to see a Doctor and tested positive, she gave me a shot plus a bunch of pills (3 different types) to take for a few days. I felt better by the next day and had not waited for serious signs before I had gone in to the Dr. so I am fine. Next I head to Europe for a brief visit before I return home.