New Years Eve

On New Years Eve I took a shower, washed my hair and ran a blow drier over my head a couple times. It was a special occasion. On our game drive everyone was a bit more excitable and chipper. We drove up a mountain to watch the sunset on a rock overhang that allowed us to see as far as our eyes were able.

The Overhang

Wayne and Riann popped champagne (its new years somewhere) and we all took a glass. We joked around with each other like we had known each other for years instead of days.

Wayne and Riann

Riann, Phillip, Wayne

Joe, Shelly, Phillip

When the sun set at the edge of the world we were all quiet except for the occasional sound of amazement at the beauty before our eyes.

S&J

Gorgeous!

Back at the lodge we had a lovely dinner with our new friends and had champagne toasts on the hour because somewhere in the world it was a new year. The people are one of the main reasons why our stay at Honeyguide was really special.

J&S

5...4...3...2...1...Happy New Year!

When we came in from the game drive on our final night, Wayne told us that the monkeys had ransacked our tent again and we needed to go there with him. When we got to the tent we saw that the staff had organized a private candlelight dinner and transformed our tent into a romantic oasis. Except for the moths and a frog. Joe and I recapped 2009 and made some grand plans for 2010. It was beautiful.

Honeyguide Safari

We left Kapama a little worried that the next place couldn’t possibly measure up, but we were wrong. Both Kapama and Honeyguide are excellent in their own ways. Same same but different. Honeyguide camp is open to the Kruger National Park with no fences or barriers, so has a much wilder feel to it. We loved the main lodge, which is completely open air and surrounded by thick bush. It has a sitting area with leather couches, a bar, a long heavy wooden table with benches and a small but inviting pool with lounge chairs. We were greeted by the manager, Lyton, who informed us that we had to be escorted to our tent by our guide at night to protect us from the animals. The last couple nights they’ve hear a lion roaring in the tent area through the night. Great. Honeyguide prides themselves on giving guests the Hemmingway African experience, which includes being one with nature.

Our tent was on a platform only a few feet above ground and the front was completely open. On the front patio, we had a living room set up facing the bush and a watering hole utilized by many different animals. Right from the start several elephant were using it to refresh themselves…in our front yard. The only thing separating us from nature was a mosquito net around the bed. We settled into the couch and watched nature work…elephants watering, birds flying from tree to tree and monkeys swinging from limb to limb.

Our Honeyguide Tent

Our Front Yard

Just when I felt settled I heard a pitter pat on the canvas roof of the tent that gave me a fright. I looked around and saw a tail swinging from side to side off the roof. Then a little head popped down and looked right at me sizing me up.

Checking out the Scene

But he's so cute!

I’ve had an excessive love for monkeys ever since my dad rented a chimp for my 6th birthday party in the style of the movie “Every Which Way But Loose”. My granny still proudly displays the picture of the chimp and I hugging with big grins on our faces. So I wasn’t scared, but also wasn’t under the illusion that this wild monkey would come over, sit in my lap and give me a high five. He wanted my goods. He and his buddy jumped onto our patio surrounding me and inching closer and closer. One of them charged me while the other stole our bag of medicine and dragged it off the patio (looked like sweets). These little guys were tricky. I charged the monkey with the meds and they both ran away. I later found out that was a very dangerous thing to do because these monkeys bite and go straight for the jugular. When we got back from lunch, the monkeys clearly had their revenge – they had ransacked our bathroom like a couple of 300 pound burglars. The only thing they stole was my malaria tablets…and we are in a malaria zone. Luckily the monkey ditched them when he couldn’t get them open and I got them back (thanks to Lyton the manager). So as you can see, we had a very exciting start to Safari Part II.


Meals were held at the main lodge in communal style and were even better than Kapama. Every meal started with hearty homemade breads, flavored olive oils, vinegar and fresh ground pepper. It was a carb heavy few days for sure. The meals were more international in style with egg rolls, asian chicken noodles, cold vegetable soups, steak, lamb shanks, fish and the most delicious desserts of cheese cake, milk pudding and apple tart.


We met the most wonderful people at the camp and these meals are where we got to know each other. First we met a family originally from Massachusetts, whose permanent address was in Atlanta, but were living in Jo’berg for a year on a work assignment. Mom and dad had really outgoing personalities and we had a lot of fun chatting with them. They were the first Americans we’d come across in weeks and it was nice to feel a little bit of home.


Our game drive crew was made up of an interesting bunch of people. Niki Z is a hairdresser from NYC and living in Qatar (she pronounces it /Cutter/). She is a really interesting person and we became friends during our time together. Her friend Riann works at the camp and came on evening drives with us. It was like getting two guides for the price of one….excellent. Pierre and Bridgette are from Belgium and England. And our guide Wayne who is 21, just graduated with his guide degree, and has two months on the job. Then we had our tracker Phillip who has more than 30 years on the job and was very quiet, but had a great smile. We had a fantastic time on the drives and at the sundowners because everyone was young, fun and outgoing. The group had a great vibe and we got along really well.

Our Friends at The Sundowner

The first game drive was very representative of most of the drives. We saw animals, but for the most part they were further away and less in quantity than at Kapama. We concluded this was due to fewer roads dividing the bush so the “blocks” were much bigger and so harder to spot animals. Plus Honeyguide does not permit off-roading out of respect for the animals. The most memorable sightings were a male lion at a distance on the first day and a much closer encounter with a young male lion hunting at night on the last day. We saw all the other animals as well…except the elusive leopard…of course.

Young Male Lion on the Hunt

Mud Covered Buffalo

Rhino

Waterbuck

But by the tenth game drive, getting up at 5am and the animals had lost the luster and I would have preferred to sleep in instead. If you are planning a safari, 3-4 days are plenty unless you are really into it.


I looked forward to the time between our drives when we had the whole day to ourselves. We spent our days sitting on our porch enjoying the peaceful quiet and were entertained by the animals. We could sit there for hours and not get bored. That’s weird for me because I struggle to turn off and relax. We also enjoyed hanging at the pool where Niki and I shared an abridged version of our life stories and enjoyed some vino. These days were the most relaxing of the trip. We were forced to relax because there was nowhere to go and nothing to do but sit back and enjoy.


The first night sleeping close to nature we just laid there listening to the sounds of the bush. It was an odd sensation to sleep in the open air. On one hand I felt incredibly exposed, but on the other I felt very secluded. Except for the lion.

Kapama Safari

The next phase of our journey is to visit two safari camps near Kruger National Park. Kruger is one of the largest national parks in the world and is famous for the wild animals that call Kruger home. When South Africans go into the wild they call it going into “the bush”. The bush is a big part of the South African culture much like BBQ and beer are to Texans. It seems like a birthright for South Africans to go to the bush. They also love their braai or barbeques and sports, including cricket, rugby and soccer, not necessarily in that order. These things are almost a religion to them.


Our first stop is Kapama game park, which is a private game reserve on the edge of Kruger. This means that the 100+ acres of bush is fenced off from the rest of the park and the animal stock is relatively fixed and well known by the staff. This takes a bit of the “wild” out of wilderness, but was an excellent first safari. We flew into Nelspruit airport and drove two hours to Kapama. We were picked up at the front gate by our Ranger Kobus (pronounced /Kwi bus/) who is a burly Afrikaans speaking oak with a Dutch look about him and an amazing eye for game.


When we arrived at the Buffalo Camp within Kapama, we were greeted with fresh guava juice and cool towels. This was the first sign of many that this camp is a far cry from the village. We were informed of the schedule: 5:00 am wake up call, 5:30 tea, 6:00 game drive for three hours followed by breakfast. 1:00 lunch, 4:30 tea, 5:00 game drive for three hours followed by dinner. It’s a long day, but the middle bit is free for relaxing and catching up on sleep.


The camp has a central dining room, bar lounge, and braai area. The tents are on a platform about 10 feet above ground and are fenced off from the bush. As we were shown to our tent, we saw a Kudu in the bush below that made us feel close to nature, but not so close that we might get night time visitors. The tents are canvas with net windows, a sliding wooden door, water, electricity, a gorgeous fluffy bed, and patio overlooking the bush. We were excited, but felt a little guilty for being in such nice accommodation after our village experience. We found ourselves wary to flush the toilet and ultra conservative with water for showers and washing up. We briefly considered asking for a bucket but just as quickly dismissed the idea after a nice shower.

Kapama Tent

After we settled in it was time for lunch. The meals were served in the dining room at a long communal table. This was a great time to meet the other guests, share stories about the drives and get to know each other. The food was traditional African delicacies mixed with a few western dishes. If the village was home cooking, this was a 4 star restaurant specializing in modernized home cooking. While at Kapama, we enjoyed fried fish, grilled pork and sausages, braised leg of lamb and all sorts of delicious veggies like creamed spinach, baked squash, baked beans, and roasted potatoes. The traditional English breakfast of eggs, bacon (not Oscar Meyer, more like a slice of ham), beans, grilled tomatoes, sausages, and breads were made to order each morning. I may not fit in my airplane seat on the way home, but I’ll worry about that later. The meals are part of the experience.


After lunch we went on our very first game drive and boy were we spoiled for the rest of the trip. Right out of the gate we saw two female lions walking down a path. We tracked them for a half hour or so watching them walk, stop for a rest, a yawn, a lick, and then stalk off. They way the lion walked with such confidence and stealth and stared right through me left me feeling small and vulnerable.

Lionesses

A few minutes later we came upon a herd of elephant with babies crossing the road and grazing. These ginormous elephant with their flapping ears and trunks larger than my whole body were mere feet from me. The elephant have this soft, wary look in their eyes that lets you know they are generally peaceful animals. It was awesome to see them so close and the babies were absolutely adorable.

Elephant and Babies

We saw warthogs, which made Joe really excited for reasons I can ‘t understand.

 

Warthog...So Ugly He's Cute

We saw massive rhino covered in mud with tiny birds perched on their backs to eat the insects. We saw hippo peeking above the water line then submerging below and we were jealous. It was very hot. We saw tall giraffe and gorgeous zebra which are my personal favorites.

Three Heads

Then we saw more lions. This time it was a female and two cubs. We were tracking this powerful creature and two cute little fur balls off roads through the bush. Kobus informed us that the lions are not aggressive as long as you are inside the truck, but sometimes females with cubs can be aggressive. Right about this time Kobus approaches an empty creek bed with a steep incline on the other side. Kobus and our tracker Harry discussed the feasibility of crossing in Afrikaans (I assume) then Kobus guns it. In the middle of the creek bed we hear the pop and hiss of the tire going flat. We look at each other in disbelief. We exited the vehicle and stood on the creek bead wondering if we are now the hunter or the hunted. We couldn’t see the lioness, but surely she wasn’t too far away. Our capable guides changed the super sized land rover tire in all of 4 minutes. Impressive. We got back in, thanked God for answering our prayers, and were on our way. This was the first close encounter.

Lioness with Cubs

(that almost ate us)

Each drive had a break about halfway through the drive…either morning tea or my favorite, the sundowner. Morning tea was tea, coffee and biscuits which always came just when I was struggling not to doze off. I always doze off in moving vehicles. The afternoon sundowner consisted of a beautiful African sunset, cold Hansa beers and various snacks. One afternoon we parked right near a giraffe that must have been 20 feet tall. He backed up and hid behind a tree, which was about as ineffective as a nude person attempting to hide their privates with a cocktail napkin. The longer we stayed there the closer the giraffe came. They are quite curious creatures.

Giraffe Hiding

One evening we watched Kobus and Harry track a leopard for the better part of two hours, which is a show in itself. Kobus drives and Harry tracks the animals and directs Kobus with hand motions. Harry had a very specific tracking routine. He scans the areas left, then right almost 360 degrees and then starts again with an intense look in his eye. When Harry spotted an animal track he would motion for Kobus to stop. They would get out, inspect the track and speak to each other in Afrikaans (I think). Then we were off again with Harry giving direction with hand motions. This particular evening the leopard was hunting, so the tracks were circular and difficult to follow. Kobus got a call on the radio and announced that we were going to see lions, but it was a long drive across the game park so hang on tight. We travelled at high speed down tiny dirt roads, bumping and bobbing all the way. It was very exciting.

 

Night Tracking with Harry and Kobus

The radio report indicated that there was a male lion, so we were all giddy with anticipation. While we knew we were spoiled with all the animals we had seen, we still hadn’t seen a male lion and were vying for that opportunity. There is only one male at Kapama, so the timing must be just right to see him. When we arrived in the area, it was pitch black and the only light besides the moon and stars were the headlights and tracker spotlight. We slowed to a halt and Kobus held up his hand indicating stillness and silence. Suddenly we saw a mean looking lioness stalk between two bushes. This was nothing like the lioness we saw before. She had her mouth open so I could see just how big her teeth were. This lady looked like she would eat me in one bite. A few steps behind her was another female just as viscous. And then it happened.


The male was even more powerful and enamoring than I thought he would be. His mane was big and his face was calm. He walked with slow certainty. My breath caught in my chest as I was taken aback by his complete authority over the situation. Mr. man plopped right down on the side of the road and made himself comfortable.

Male Lion

Kobus informed us that the females were hunting and that he would relax there while they did the dirty work. Just as I was thinking feminist thoughts, we learned that the males are mane makes him visible to prey. They are good for the kill of big animals like giraffe and rhino because of their strength, but women are more stealth.

Female Lion on the Hunt

So then we tracked the females off roads through the bush. Once we found them Kobus and Harry turn off all our lights. Holy smokes was I scared sitting in the pitch black with lions just a feet away. We had a lioness on each side of us and they were communicating with odd grunting sounds. Kobus says, “Be veeeerrrry still. She’s using us as cover for her hunt”. What the @#%!? I have never been more still or scared in my life. We sat there for at least 10 minutes and it felt like hours. I was sure she could see my blonde hair and would go for me first, so I slowly, carefully pulled up my hoodie and rationalized that the big dude in the back was much more appetizing than my bony booty. We could see the outline of the female to the left. She laid there for some time then began stalking toward the jeep straight at Joey. I thought we were both goners but then she turned off and went for the big guy in the back.


In the end, the male lion came over too soon and ruined the hunt for the females. We think they were going for a kudu. Lucky bugger. It would have been interesting to see a kill, but I think some things are better left a mystery. If I saw it I might come home a vegetarian. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.


So at Kapama we saw all the big 5 except the elusive leopard. She evaded us multiple times. But it was an excellent experience and I would highly recommend it to people who want to experience a safari in luxury.

J&S

Jo'berg

Our friends from Jo'berg told us that there was nothing to see in town and we took their advice a bit too literally and only scheduled about 12 hours there.  Luckily that was enought to see two of my classmates George and Ryan and their significant others Benka and B, respectively.  We missed Brett...he was living the good life in Plett for the New Year.  We met for dinner at a great asian place in Melrose Arch for excellent wine, sushi, and various delicious dishes.  Marbel Arch stood in the face of everything I had heard about Jo'berg.  It was lovely, filled with beautiful young people, had a great vibe and felt totally safe.  Our friends gave us a ton of good information about how to make our time in Capetown, the winelands and Knysna wonderful and we were very appreciative.

Shelly, Joe, Ryan, B, Benka, George

Jo'berg was our first contact with the city and civilization since our time in the village and it was a bit of a culture shock.  The people, cars and noise were a bit foreign after a week with only birds (and house music).  Our friends didn't understand why we would want to stay in a remo te village on our holiday which was a common theme among many South Africans that we met.  I suppose Americans might have the same curiosity if South Africans came to America to volunteer in the ghetto during their vacation.

Christmas Day

Normally Joey and I would have spent Christmas buying things for people that don’t have real meaning, racing from family to family (4 gatherings in three states), opening hordes of gifts, wrapping/ripping/tossing tons of paper, and eating a feast at each place. And probably showering and washing hair daily. A lot of that seems so wasteful now. I have even more respect for my sister-in-law Ally’s newsprint wrapping paper and handmade gifts. We take so much for granted.


All week we’ve asked the children and adults that we’ve connected with what they are doing for Christmas hoping that we could tag along to one of their family gatherings. Almost all of them looked at us strangely and said they would be at the village center. A few have travelled a distance on foot, bicycle or in rare cases a car to see family in a surrounding village. But the vast majority spent Christmas day in the village just as they would any other day. The villagers are protestant Christians. They converted a century ago or more and they take their religion quite seriously. They maintain their tribal traditions, but also attend church service, listen to Christian music and pray to God and Jesus. But on the most important of Christian holidays there are no feasts or gifts.


Maybe it is a cultural difference but certainly it is a difference in priorities for what little disposable income is available. I’m not sure they even have an equivalent term for disposable income. We certainly missed our families on Christmas day and couldn’t skype with them as planned due to a slow connection. But I must say this is one of the most special Christmases that we’ve ever had. We spent the day at the center with the kids and visiting with Chief John, Sulume and the ladies. We had traditional African meals just like other days. The time we spent with the kids was very special. They were so happy and wishing us a “happy Christmas”. It was really cute and a lot of fun.


On Christmas night and the following night we had parties at the center. All the kids were tucked away at home and the adults came for some fun. We had Hansas and Brutal Fruit drinks, listened to loud house music, and talked at length asking any sort of questions about each others culture and traditions. In that moment we weren’t Americans or Ndebeles. We were just friends sharing a drink and a chat. It was excellent.


Both nights we had awe-inspiring thunderstorms with bright streaks of lightening, loud claps of thunder and no electricity. We made due with candles glued to plates with hot wax and carried on with our carrying on.


We learned so much from the Ndebeles…I’m certain we learned more than we taught. We were reminded that water is precious. We learned that if its yellow let it mellow, but if its brown flush it down. We learned that nothing is garbage – newspaper, soda caps, and boxes can be recycled into learning, fur and art for the kids. Music transcends continents, cultures and generations…John Legend, Beyonce, and Jay-Z to name a few favorite artists of both our cultures. Some symbols are internationally known and accepted…the thumbs up, “say cheese”, “ahh” after cool drink, and the “guchi, guchi goo” tickle monster works on all children. And finally, we learned that kids are the same no matter where you are. They are curious, beautiful, intelligent and lovable and I grew very attached to them in only a week. And boys are generally as naughty as girls are good.


When we left the village I shed many tears and part of my heart will stay in the village even though my body has moved on.  We will stay connected through letters, email and hopefully another visit just now. 

The Little Ones

Mpo and the kids

Noko

Initiation

When we arrived in the village the initiation of the boys had just taken place and the initiation of the girls was in progress. This is the quinceanera or bat mitzvah of the Ndebele tribe when the kids become men and women. But much, much more intense. For the boys initiation school happens every four years. The boys leave the village for the mountains for three months. Yes, three months. They make their own housing, cook their own food, and survive in the bush. They also get circumcised. The rest of the tradition is quite secretive and only meant for those who have been through it. The tradition is much more medically sound today than in years past, but there is still a risk given that the surgery is not done in a sterile environment. Many boys have not survived initiation due to infection or loss of blood. When the boys return to the village there is a parade and celebration. Their skin is covered in ash that looks like white paint to symbolize purity and they're decorated in extravagant beaded head dress and traditional blankets. If a boy were to not make it, the ceremony is the first time the mother would know because her boy would not return from the mountain.

The girls initiation is much safer in comparison. Sulume invited me to join part of the girls initiation and it provided a window into their culture that I valued tremendously. Girls stay in their family home for four weeks or so. There are many ceremonies and lessons on how to be an Ndebele woman during this time, which are also only meant for those who have been through the initiation.l The gogos started in a circle outside the girls' home singing and chanting. 

Initiation Part I

I followed the gogos into the small main room of the girls’ home and sat on a straw mat. The women were chatting in Tswana and all I understood were a series of “Mmmm” agreement sounds. Hot homemade biscuits and tea were served with heaps of sugar and milk. They like it sweet.

Initiation Part II

Suddenly one of the gogos made a call slightly louder than the rest and all the women responded with a chant that sounded like it had come right off the Lion King on Broadway. The songs that followed were rhythmic and beautiful with a lead chant and responsive harmony. A couple of the women began to dance a unique traditional dance pointing a wooden baton, striding side to side and skipping on a certain beat. It was exquisite and mesmerizing.



I felt so lucky to have been included in this sacred ritual and thanked them many times before heading back to the babies in the village center who were waiting on me to return. Ntokozo even came to the house and asked for me to come back. So cute.

Priscilla and Shelly in Initiation Blanket

Volunteer Work

Our goals for volunteering only became clear to us after the fact. We knew we wanted to help people and experience the culture in an authentic way, but we didn’t really understand what the meant because we didn’t know the people. Marnie and Jeremy at Voluntours (www.voluntours.co.za) developed several ideas for us and gave us tons of recycled materials with which to work. We had food boxes, newspapers, travel magazines, and the staples – tape, glue, markers, paper, crayons and glitter. For the smaller ones we focused on math, spelling and arts and crafts. For the older ones, we focused on sustainable projects that could generate income or improve quality of life. The world cup is coming in 2010 and the tourists will be ready to buy souvenirs, so we tried to give some ideas.

We used paper mache to create bowls, beads for jewelry, cover bottles for vase or candles and painted the objects in the traditional Ndebele style. The kids loved the hands on creation technique and loved painting even more. A couple of the bowls and bottles were painted beautifully and with practice could be sold to tourists.

Paper Mache

Mmakgashi, T, Kagiso

The boys enjoyed creating Tippy Taps, which are milk jugs converted into water taps that conserve water. This was very relevant because there was no running water in the village and washing hands sometimes falls in priority to drinking water and can increase illness. And the kids’ hands were constantly dirty from playing baseball and arts and crafts. We hung two tippy taps on the front gate and the kids could rinse off their hands after the potty, a messy play session or before lunch.


The gogos make beautiful beadwork and we tried to think of ways that they could capitalize on this skill. They make cute little bead dolls that we taught the kids to sew onto regular clothes pins, which are readily available. They could be used to hold down a table cloth, for chips or anything else you want to clip. We also told gogo Sulume out wine glass charms as another income opportunity. I think the tourists would snap these up and they could even end up on the shelves of Pier One or World Market with the right connections.


The girls and a few boys constantly asked to learn math and English. We practiced spelling, writing, phonics, shapes, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. I tried to teach them to read a clock, but the concept of time is very different in the village and the language barrier was too high. My favorite activity was when the children wrote the story of what they want to be when they grow up and how they would achieve that. Neo wants to be a teacher. Thaimo wants to be a police officer. Kagiso wants to be a journalist to tell the story of the village people and to help them.

Kagiso & Neo

 Kagiso and Mmakgashi Practicing Shapes

At the end of the day we would have clean up time. The kids would race to grab the broom to sweep and rags to scrub the glitter and paint off the primary colored kiddie tables and chairs. They would take the rag from my hand and carry out my task. When we said “thank you,” they would reply “pleasure” (pronounced /ple-sha/) with a huge smile and I think they truly meant it. What kid ever enjoyed clean up? These kids are good, good through and through.