WEEK SEVEN

WEEK SEVEN

DAY 44 - Tuesday - 2.19.13
Loading up the child...demonstration of loading up for a walk Home. Sent Log and many lifted maintenance activities. Exercises and nap. Great dinner, met Lisa's new Bo and evening of talk. Read til mid nite, and asleep. Up at 2am to stream IU v MSU. Way to go Indiana...another week of #1 we hope.

DAY 45 - wednesday - 2.20.1
We returned our rental to the Tambo airport with 4200 miles driven. Then Off to Pretoria...we don't know why but feel we must visit several times in spite of having inspected most every place worth the time. It is a great, well organized city with nice architecture. The only problem is the walls and fences around properties obscure the viewing of the nicest places. We visited the gardens, the Parliament, the Voortrekkers monument, the high school (residential and called a college) our friends' boys attended, and the house of the first president, Paul Kruger.  The area between Joburg and Pretoria is continuous manufacturing and business buildings - half the GNP of the country must be produced in this corridor and the cities. Home for a nap after being up from 2-4:30am.... Yah IU !  Dinner out and early to bed.

DAY 46 - Thursday - 2.21.13
Shopping at the Africa crafts market. And beginning to figure out how to pack for coming home next Thursday. Looking forward to our return as we are filled up with joy and exhausted from our runnings around.  We are truly lucky to have great friends like the Cowan's to host, direct and encourage us.  They keep saying they are coming to the US, but who knows when.. We will be looking forward to their arrival... and planning a party for them.

DAY 47 - Friday - 2.22.13
We drove to the Cradle of Humankind  to Maropeng museum in the fore day - a World Heritage Site - From whence we all were derived starting 190,000 years ago. A great facility and very educational. Mid to late afternoon consumed with learning cricket rules, watching a confusing game (hits do not lead to runs, except in some case, wickets, other things) and naps. Tonite packing to head to Madikwe Game Reserve  (4th largest reserve in ZA) in the North West province, the 9 th province for us and the one we have yet to visit in South Africa.

DAY 48 - Saturday - 2.23.13
Off to the wilds.... Madikwe Game Reserve...  thebushcamp.com... Mosetlha Bush Camp and Eco Lodge for an overnite, two game drives in the reserve, and great food. Left at 8am to meet the pick vehicle at the admin building as personal vehicles are not allowed in the reserve... We had to ride and be advised by a ranger. On the trip to the Reserve we passed through the area of many deep mines of predominantly Platinum but also chromium.. We arrived at the gate precisely at 11:30 as planned and promised, on the tail of another car (eating their dust on the gravel road) that carried 2 people from New Zealand and 1 from Australia, all of whom would be with us on the drives. We drove to the pick-up point a few KM inside the Reserve and were met by our transportation. At camp we received our training on our housing, the drop toilet, the bucket shower, the dining procedure and our schedule. This is a very rustic camp, having no electricity, no running water, and very basic facilities, though adequate for our needs. People generally congregate in the dining hut around the massive railway teak table (new due to a fire that destroyed the previous dining hut) and next to the honesty bar. We are only about 14 people, which is capacity.
 We had lunch around 2:30 and at 4:30 we met our drive leader/driver, Justice and left for the 3 1/2 afternoon drive. I will detail our sightings at the end of this daily post. The weather was perfect, as it was hot and dry. Justice was aggressive in going after game, driving into and through deep brush to find and trail sighted animals. The drivers from all the camps in the reserve worked well together to notify each other over the radio of sightings and share the space around game. They have an agreement that no more than 3 vehicles will be close to a sighted animal, with the late arriving vehicles being numbered and waiting in line for their turn. Drivers work to get good sightings and positioning then give up the space to the next in line when the guests have seen the animals and taken photos. We found and watched a pride of at least 9 lions, females and cubs, for a significant amount of time. We came back to them later during the drive, sharing space with another vehicle, and moved a KM away to intercept the female who left the pride to hunt after dark. After sighting her as she searched for a kill we left her to her work, as there were a lot of hungry animals counting on her getting dinner.
We had late afternoon snacks and drinks near a dry water hole and saw the largest dung beetle ball we've every seen and several rhino including 3 under a tree. To end the drive we had a near-altercation with an elephant on the road, as he was reluctant to give way to us. In the last 30 minutes of light we saw some great sights - elephants, black back jackel, and a large herd of zebra. We arrived back at Camp well after dark, cleaned up, and had dinner. Guests included the New Zealand and Australian vacationers (3), a family of 4 from J'burg, a couple from Italy, a couple from Portugal, a single older gentleman from Switzerland and a couple from the Cradle area. We were urged to take care of all bathroom tasks before turning in, using kerosene lanterns positioned all over the camp including 2 in the hut and 1 on the porch, and using the thunder mug provided in each cabin during the night if possible. Sightings today:
Kudu, Impala by the dozens, 3 rhino upon arrival, many giraffe, many elephants, lion - 9+ twice and stalked, wildebeest, dung beetle with very large ball, black back jackal, and numerous zebra in many locations.

DAY 49 - Sunday - 2.24.13  Mosetlha Bush Camp & Eco Lodge in Madikwe Game Reserve on the Botswana border to Johannesburg, South Africa.
Up early, coffee and rusks then we departed at 6 AM for the 3 1/2 hr morning game drive. We spent the first part of the morning looking for a pack of wild dogs with several other vehicles after they were sighted by one vehicle. Finally, one ran by us with part of a kill in its mouth and we followed it to watch him eat and another stay back waiting his turn. The pack of at least 18 was sighted and we were able to take a turn at watching the adults and pups move through the area in search of more food. Supposedly the pack had already killed a small impala this morning, but more food was needed. It was a special sighting as Wild Dogs are not a common animal because it is the most endangered species in ZA. to see. That was perhaps the most interesting activity of the morning, along with seeing a large group of elephants, including 2 very young. We also saw a family of giraffe including a male, female and 2 very young. We had breakfast, packed up and were taken to the car. Also leaving were the family of 4, the Portuguese couple and the couple from the Cradle, who will be picked up at the private airport by their plane. Sightings today: Wildebeest, rhino, eagle, kudu, wild dog pack including one running by us with food in its mouth, impala, 3 young giraffe, one of which was missing the end of its tail and had an injured leg, Zebra,  a family of 4 giraffe with 2 - 1 mo old babies, and an elephant herd with 2 very young. Left camp about noon to get our vehicle and start the 3.5 hr drive back to Joburg.

DAY 50 - Monday -2.2513
Packing day and done by 9:30 .... Send the plane... We went to try and find the Chinese pearl lady, but only found a Chinese market where we bought some unstrung pearls. Then across town to the Apartheid  Museum- closed on Mondays. Grocery shopped and home to read and nap, having felt satisfied with our tour of Joburg. Made arrangement with my personal trainer to be punished next Monday at the regular time - easy Corey!  Kelzie got the job of providing exercises, an event, or/and training for the Disney personnel in Austin.. We know little detail about whether it is face to face training, program for training, or management of the 5k event ....we are awaiting details. Last weekend she was in Jersey and DC to get CEUs for her trainer/coach license. Gary and Diane have been working hard at their headhunting business. Walmart has moved to ZA and Diane has the job of finding 5 store managers. Gary works a lot with mining companies to find managers, etc. Both are trying to find people from the majority. They work hard as the rewards of work are the fodder for their world travels (northern Europe in the northern hemisphere summer this year). We are awaiting their arrival on the North American continent.

+ DAY 51 - Tuesday - 2.26.13
Up early for exercises and logging. Special thanks to Gary and Diane for providing the comradeship, companionship, fun and room/board thru out our 7+ weeks in South Africa. Our traveling together, their guidance for our sole travel and staying at their house has been great. Thanks to you Gary and Diane! We also think about how our complicated and flowing plans worked out successfully almost always-for this we are thankful. Out for dinner together tonite at a good steak restaurant.

++ DAY 52 - Wednesday - 2.27.13
Streamed IU v Minnesota basketball - unfortunately IU lost. Probably should have slept instead of listening at 3am. Anxiously waiting for late afternoon to go to the airport. We leave Joburg at 7:30pm arriving in Frankfurt in AM... Leave Frankfurt to arrive Chicago at 10:30 am Thurs. to catch Van Gelder to park n ride in Madison. Do you think it will go as planned?
+++ Days 53. 7.28.13 - ARRIVE TO WINTER.                      END OF WEEK SEVEN