Day 6 (Chitabe Camp Highlights)

7/5/22 - The routine is breakfast at 7:30am.  Morning safari at 8:00am until 11:30am.  Lunch.  Then meet again for an afternoon safari at 4:00pm and dinner around 8:00pm.  Not a bad day.

Started off seeing an Impala.  I feel for them.  They are the main prey in the bush.  

Yitgadal. V'Yitkadash. Shema Raba...

So, then Goodman blew us away.  We were all yapping, and he told us nicely to shut the fuck up.  He heard a leopard growl.  Really?  Who could hear over Rob?  Remember the bro and sis from yesterday?

Hey. You. Get off of my branch.

Well the Mom made a kill and dragged it up the tree for feeding.  This was unreal to watch.  See if you can make out the Impala.  It doesn't even look real.  

Kids.  Wait for your turn.

Goodman taught us so many interesting facts.  Elephants are pregnant for 22 months.  But Impalas only for 3 months.  Zebras are the ones with stripes.

And if you have to go to the bathroom, there are no restrooms.  The girls created their own rituals. 

The Squat Squad


More tissues ASAP!

The morning was amazing in the wilderness.  Thanks Goodman. Time for lunch.
Party on the patio

It's time for the afternoon rest.  Wendy and I were greeted by a local, right outside our cabin.  We learned that elephants learn a route from their mothers and take them everyday.  
Cabin #2 stop
Brad and Amy also had some friends drop by.

Amy and Brad come play. Let's go swimming.


At lunch, we asked MJ if she wanted to join us for the afternoon safari.  I kinda said it half jokingly and then Rob reinforced our invite.  To our surprise, in her 6 years of working, no guest every invited her out.  She was so excited to join us.  Goodman wanted us to go see the wild dogs.  They hunt in a pack.  It was an hour and half ride out to see them.

This was the leader, he was a bad ass.

His 2nd in command... not so much.

Why hunt when Mom feeds me chicken?


We spent the afternoon following the pack of dogs.  It was fascinating.  We lost them as it started to get dark.  Goodman found a watering hole for us to stop, stretch, and have a cocktail.  
Cheers Goodman!
Goodman.  Is it safe to pet the HIPPOS?

No. Run.

On our way back, we go stopped by an elephant.  The dude charged our car.  I was in the back.  I asked the Squat Squad for some toilet paper after shitting my pants.  Honestly, the adrenaline kicked in.

Please stop.  I'm begging you.

We got back and Amy worked with MJ to have a surprise 60th birthday party for Bethie.  It was awesome to be able to celebrate her life all together.


Happy Birthday Bethie.

Nice touch Famey.

Rob decided to buy himself an evening message for Beth's birthday.


What a "Happy Ending" to a memorable day.  Happy Birthday Bethie.  I hope it was magical.























































Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
  6/28/22 - Hi.  It's blog time.  I'm pumped up about this one.  Quick shout out to my good friends Brian and Elliot who I saw at my 40 year high school reunion on Saturday.  Elliot has the same mustache he had when we were both 15.  Still has it 40 years later. He also still has the same shirt from high school.  It's a collector's item.  But ride prices have increased. I couldn't sleep last night in prep for the long awaited AfriCAN trip.  I don't know what I'm most excited about.  Seeing gorillas?  Traveling with Sunshine, Pearls, Fiances, and Taubs or the anticipated travel day(s).  Whayyyyyy Jeff, it's a long flight.  Whayyyy you get to see gorillas.    LAX to Dohu.  Dohu to Johannesburg.   Lot's of talking about when to sleep?  When to eat?  When to drink?   Never been to Africa.  Never been on a Safari.  Never spent this much money to go to the zoo.   S...
Read more

Goodbye Africa

Image
 7/13/22 - It's time to say goodbye.  We are checking out today. All I need is this hat, and this speaker, and this coffee machine.... After we checked out we decided to pay tribute by visiting the Genocide Museum.  In summary, it sucked.  Ethnic cleansing of one race that started in the late 50's and then escalated unbelievably in 1994 by killing over 1,000,000 people in 100 days.  The silver lining is the country has rebounded an a huge way over the last 28 years RIP Our last stop was an art gallery/restaurant.  Our host was another Emanuel. Restaurant Choose Kigali Hoop Lights.  Very Creative. We had a great dinner outside and then starting our trekk home.   I have a lot of feelings spiraling around.  In no particular order, I have learned a lot this trip..... 1.  People can come together.  Heart 1st. 2.  Cherish what you have.  Many have less. 3.  One life.  Make the most of it.  Go deeper.  Pu...
Read more

Day 11 (Gorilla Trek #1)

Image
7/11/22 - Day 1 of Gorilla trekking has begun.  At breakfast, it feels like the beginning of the finale.  We have 2 days of Gorilla trekking ahead.  Here is what I've learned so far...  We've been talking to some people who already trekked.  First, you have to go to the Volcano Park.  Second, the Park Ranger gives out the Gorilla family assignments and the guide.  This seems important.  Where the families are located, will dictate driving and trekking distances.  This seems really, really,  important.  We decided to do a pool for at what times we will see our 1st Gorilla.  Amy - 9:03 Lisa - 9:18 Josh 9:32 Brad - 9:38 Jeff - 9:45 Wendy - 10:28 Bethie 10:36 Rob - 10:43 After breakfast, we headed for the park, about 15 to 20 minutes late.  I'm screwed already. Real or fake? I think we might have been the last car in the park.  There can only be 8 tourists per family, and once you first experience the family, you have an ...
Read more