Jodene Goes to Africa

What follows is (an abridged version of) my celebration of the magic that is Africa

I haven’t traveled much, but I have always known I would go to Africa someday. This year, my obsession with going to Africa came true – much to the dismay of my family, I’m sure. I’m sure my parents did not get a full good night’s sleep until the night they picked me up from the airport. If you haven’t been to Africa, all you know is what the press tells you. Yes there is heartache, unemployment, death. But there is also the side of Africa that I saw. Beautiful, majestic, romantic and inspiring.

It feels like I saw more than what could have filled up three short weeks. I saw celebration and torment, beauty and devastation. I saw herds of healthy animals and I saw old or maimed animals knowing they wouldn’t last the night. I saw people with nothing, happy with and proud of everything they have. I saw children devastated by AIDS/HIV and the horrors that accompany those diseases. But no matter how sick they were, they had a smile on their face, and their eyes showed the fire of life yet to live.

I met children and adults who changed my life. I saw landscape and wildlife I’ve been dreaming of since before I can remember. Africa, all of Africa, is so photogenic - it brings a tear to my eye just remembering it.

I began my trek on February 12^th, 2005. I spent a total of 23 hours in the air and 15 hours on layovers to get from Calgary to Johannesburg, where I would start my two week vacation in South Africa, and a week in Zimbabwe. I likened it to reuniting with an old friend - full of tears, wide-eyed amazement, disappointments dealt with and dreams realized. It was exactly what I had been waiting for all of this time, and more. Indeed, it feels more like Africa had been waiting for me.

South Africa

Soweto Uprising Museum, Johannesburg South Africa was wonderful. My first day was spent in Johannesburg, where I had a half-day tour of Soweto. I believe most of us have preconceived notions of Soweto that were created in the Apartheid era. There are, of course, areas where people still live in tin shacks with their roof held down with rocks, but for the most part the area was extremely clean. Super-small houses... somehow the government has figured out how to fit 4 families in about 600 sqft. I was taken aback quite a few times at the sheer size of the town (short for South Western Township). It was huge! We visited the dormitory where Nkosi Sikeleli Africa was written (South Africa's national anthem), the museum dedicated to the Soweto Uprising of 1979, Nelson and Winnie Mandela’s houses, and Desmond Tutu’s house. Johannesburg is the only place in the world that boasts not one, but two Nobel Peace Prize winners on one street.

We spent time in Kwazulu Natal, in the Drakensburg Mountain range, at a gorgeous resort called the Cavern Berg. I had difficulty acclimating to the heat, but that didn't stop me from participating. I went horseback riding up mountains to see Bushmen rock paintings. On the way up the mountain a troop of baboons took keen interest in us and even tried to throw a few rocks at us.

We stayed at a wonderful little cultural Zulu village called Umuzi Ulindi, and were graced with a visit from the Zulu Prince, Ntwana, and some Zulu dancers. The dancers were phenomenal - they were quite the force, I couldn't imagine what thousands of Zulu Impi would be like during battle! Ntwana spoke fluent English, and let us know he was open to questions about Zulu ways of life, his culture, beliefs, etc. After a few hours of discussion, he realized he had some keen students at his disposal. He gave us the rare and very wonderful honour of visiting his village the next day, where he would slaughter a chicken for lunch in our honour, pray to his ancestors for our safe passage through Africa, and we could meet his family.

We traveled through Boer War battlefields as we drove through Kwazulu Natal. We saw the battleground of three famous battles - Isandlwana, Rorke's Drift, and the Battle of Blood River. Ntwana's great-grandfather, to whom he prayed for our safe passage, led the Impi (Zulu warriors) at the Battle of Isandlwana. On this day, 20,000 Impi laid waste to a few thousand Redcoat (British) soldiers.

While waiting for our guide to take us to the Mkhaya Game Reserve, we got acquainted with some of the children in the area, just let out from school for the day and on their way home before dark (for some, a 3 hour walk). They were all beautiful, ready to smile for the camera and loved their gifts of pens, bubblegum, and stickers. They had never seen themselves in a digital camera before, so I took quite a few pictures of them and showed the pictures to the group - I was (or at least my camera was) a big hit! The first night at Mkhaya was uneventful, but the second night will have the guide’s laughing at the Canadian tourist girl for days to come! The story is too involved to get in to here, but let me just say it involves me, a 3-inch long bug in my bed-net with me, it landing on my face, me screaming, and the guard coming to my rescue. Rest assured, I later found that bug. Sorry, bug lovers, but that nasty critter is dead, dead, dead.

We also went to St. Lucia – a gorgeous, trendy, tourist town situated on the Indian Ocean. I recommend it, if you want to go to Africa to see palm trees, (Indian Ocean) surf, and a whole lot of Canadians & Australians. I had to remind myself I was in Africa and not Hawaii or California.

At Kruger National Park, we saw the Big 5 (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Buffalo, and Rhinoceros) in the first day! Kruger is nearly 2 million hectares – we couldn’t possibly see the whole park in one day, so we stayed in the southernmost region. I was excited, as I heard Kruger has elephants numbering in the thousands. I was expecting herds at every turn – no such luck. We saw two herds, very small numbers. Gorgeous creatures, and I was excited to see them, but it wasn’t what I expected.

We did see a dead rhino, the victor of a fight a week previous. Although we were sad he died an obviously painful death, we were positive we would get some good pictures with lion, leopard, hyena, etc. all together. We went back to that carcass SIX TIMES and on the sixth time only saw the vultures starting their meal. After three days in the African heat, you can imagine why we didn't stick around to see what else might pad its way in!

Our last night in South Africa was spent in a quaint (but prosperous) town called Hazyview. The next day, on our way back to Johannesburg, we visited the third largest canyon in the world – the Blyde River Canyon.

And that was the end of two weeks in South Africa – it went so quickly, but when I think back to everything I saw, I can’t believe I saw it all in only two weeks! I was very sad to see the first part of my trip end, but at the same time I was very excited to be introduced to Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe

My first introduction to Zimbabwe was to survive the airport at Harare (pronounced Hah-rah-ree). After what seemed like hours (come to think of it, it was hours!), I made my way to the front of the line at Customs and was told it would take $30 USD to get into Zimbabwe. The Britons in front of me had just shelled out $50 each, the Czechs $60 each, the Irish, $20 each, and the Americans $100 each.

My family was very worried when they found out I was going to Zimbabwe. Thanks to the torment President Mugabe has put the country through, there is not much food, safe water, or political stability. I saw very little trouble – in Victoria Falls, the Tourism Police were out in full force. At Makalolo, we could speak openly about politics, and we could pretend everyone ate as we were eating every morning and night.

I spent six days in Zimbabwe: the first three in the city of Victoria Falls: horseback riding, white water rafting down the Zambezi, grudgingly swimming in the Zambezi with Tiger Fish (!!!!), hiking, and bartering at the local market. On the bus-ride back to Victoria Falls from rafting, the guides were teaching us tribal songs (nursary rhymes, etc.). Were they ever shocked when I sang along to Nkosi Sikeleli Africa!

The most memorable of the whole three days was a morning elephant-back safari at the Elephant Orphanage. My elephant was named Demyano, a 14 year old male. The herd at the Orphanage is 50 strong, with males and females of all ages. The newest arrivals are Machado, 2 months, and Rastus, 4 months. Machado craves affection and touch, and tries his darndest to pull out tree roots as he sees the adults do - this usually results in him falling flat on his bum and the tourists laughing so hard we can't steady our camera's! Rastus is quite the little troublemaker (he just knows he's cute!), and loves to charge unsuspecting guests. Out of the corner of your eye you see a baby elephant (they’re not small!!) picking up speed heading in your direction, and you see one of the guides running in from another direction to play defence. It was funny, but it’s obviously something they’re working very hard to correct (using positive means – no chains or whips or cattle prods here) – Rastus won’t stay that little (!!!) for long.

The last three days in Zimbabwe were the most memorable, and I ache every day to return. Makalolo Plains Camp, in Hwange National Park (a 14,600 km2 park between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls), is paradise.

An hour into the park, on our way to Makalolo Plains Camp, we came face to face with two herds of elephants, each easily numbering over 100 each. When I regained my composure and was ready to continue, we came upon over 1,000 wildebeest and Cape buffalo. Traveling still further into the park brought more tears to my eyes when I viewed giraffe, zebra, impala, sable, and kudu drinking out of a watering hole, ignoring the family of hippopotamus but keeping close watch on the crocodile nearby. Sheer magic. Awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping, soul-fulfilling magic.

At Makalolo we had a unique opportunity of being raised above the ground by a series of platforms. This ensures the safety of the guests as well as safe and uninterrupted passage for the animals. It is truly a magical experience – we had wild elephants drinking from our pool every night!!!

My last sunset and last sunrise at Makalolo were the most gorgeous sights I’ve ever seen – the brilliant red setting sun lighting up one lone acacia tree, proudly standing watch over a watering hole surrounded by many species of animal – elephant, giraffe, zebra, impala, and hippo. My dream was complete, but my appetite was nowhere near sated.

The drive to the airport on my last day was especially difficult. Everything I saw held more meaning. I saw hippo lumbering to the safety of their pool after grazing all night. The sunrise was the most breathtaking yet – I cried as I tried to steady the camera. A hyena had scared a herd of elephants out onto the road, and we had to stop and wait for them to move on – I cried as I watched in awe, and as we drove away.

I left a part of me at Makalolo, and I will be back again. Maybe for a honeymoon? Trent surprised me the day after my return, on my birthday, with a marriage proposal. So all in all, it was a very eventful couple of months, full of a whirlwind of emotions!