Vienna; Still dreaming of a White Christmas.

Craig Writes;

19th December 2013 

We have just finished seven weeks of beachside living on arguably one of the most stunning coastlines on the planet. We were home, as in back in Perth W.A, but still managing to live in a suspended state of reality because 'home' was in fact a lovely apartment at Observation Rise on the Scarborough beach front. 

Sand, surf and shark sirens

Our real home is still leased out to a couple of corporate high-flyers sadly intent on treating our home like it was a holiday cottage on Rottnest Island. Quite disappointing really. 

Since our return we have been dipping our toes back into the pond of our pre-adventure world and trying to be 'normal' again. Early morning runs up to Trigg Point in the deep crunchy sand, the occasional paddle on my Mini Mal and a newly acquired fondness for bike riding have occupied most of my mornings. Mid morning coffees on the terrace of our apartment were often spent listening to the shrill scream of the shark alarm and the heavy whoop whooping of the Surf Life Saving Chopper. The boys slipped back into a school routine like they had never even left and Christina's social calendar was promptly filled. 

Catch ups down Matilda Bay, The OBH and drinks on our terrace with our 'besties' were a pleasant reminder of the things that we hold dear about this city we call home.

One of the few things I missed, a cold beer with good food and great friends

A Smedley masterpiece. No words needed.

This past seven weeks has blown by so quickly. We have just seen off the first heat wave of summer with a succession of 100 degree + days and watched England lose the Ashes at the WACA. I shall have fond memories of laying on the couch, one eye on the lazy waves of the Indian Ocean closing out on the Scarborough sandbar, the other on Mitch Johnson sending thunder bolts down at the hapless Englishmen trying desperately to make runs while literally trying to keep their heads about them. 

Twenty four hours ago Christina and I were having a final cuppa on the terrace, contemplating the contents of our over stuffed cases for the tenth time and enjoying the slowly warming glow of another perfect West Coast day. What a difference a day makes.
In those twenty four little hours we have gone from the sun and the surf to the icy fog of the Viennese tarmac. The promise of snow hangs heavy in the air. The second we left the warm cocoon of the Austria Air flight onto the shaky passenger gangway you felt the icy wisps of air that crept through the gaps sucking the warmth of our bodies through our thin jackets.

We have just driven in a taxi van through a fog that thick that the shape of the surrounding city buildings were completely lost, their very existence defined only by the erratic bright fluorescent dots of their glowing office lights. The city scape looked like one massive join the dots puzzle. 

20th December 2014 

We finally arrived at our friends, Nora and Anastas in Grinzing, at 7am to be greeted with warm hugs, hot coffee, freshly baked croissants and Nora's delicious sweet and florally quince and fig jams. This is home for us for the next twelve days while they fly off to seek the heat of the Middle East and we settle in for a bone chilling White Christmas. At 10am we helped pack their bags into the car as they head to the airport. Christina and I decided to donn jackets and gloves and head out into the frost while the boys swaddled themselves in the warmth of central heating. Less than five minutes walk away is a small strip of restaurants, shops and bars.

This fairy tale was our local shopping precinct

Within seconds I regretted not changing from my thin cotton "Dumphies" into jeans and popping a beanie on. By the time we found a restaurant and settled in for roast sausage, chicken schnitzel, bacon and cabbage and hot Gluhwein, I couldn't feel my ears and the movement in my legs was frozen to a gum boot shuffle. No snow yet but the biting cold suggests it's up there somewhere. 

22nd December 2013 

They throw small crushed pebbles on the footpaths here to help with the traction. It's that cold that any moisture on the path freezes to a thin layer of ice and would become dangerous without it. 

On day two we've wised up to the necessary number of layers needed to keep the chill out. It is many. But fortunately we have come prepared. Our mornings now start with a gradual unravelling from the warm doonas and a hot cup of tea. The layering process usually starts somewhere around eleven after a cup of coffee then we're out the door by twelve. The city of Vienna is such a lovely place. The Christmas lights are up, the Christmas markets are in full swing and the hot Gluehwien can be found on most corners. 

Forget the hot coffee, give me an orange, apricot or plum Gluehwien anyday

Just one of the many Christmas markets

The streets are busy but not insanely so like in Perth. There is no manicness, rudeness or attitude, just people going about there business, all rugged, scarfed and gloved up. 

24th December 2013

Here we are, Christmas Eve in Vienna, Austria. And we all find ourselves asking the same question. Where's our bloody snow? If I wanted cold I could have stayed in Perth and cruised the frozen goods section in my budgie smugglers. Still, we are not complaining, Vienna is a truly beautiful city and we are so pleased to be here sharing the home of our good friends Nora and Anastas. 

Every street, every corner. offers something lovely

Perhaps the fanciest coffee shop in the world

Posh coffee and cake

And, we have something very special planned to celebrate our first northern hemisphere Christmas. A concert at the famed Schonbrunn Palace. A magnificent 1400 room Palace built in the early to mid 17th century. It has magnificent gardens, an astonishing maze and the Orangery that has provided the outstanding acoustics for concerts down through the centuries must be at least two hundred metres long. It was in this same venue that the great Mozart competed with one of his most revered rivals of the day, Antonio Salieri, in a musical contest of the giants. I'm not sure who won but I did have to google the spelling of Salieri.

The Famous arched ceiling of the Orangerie

It's claim to fame in respect to modern folklore was as the meeting place for that pivotal moment in the Cold War where John F Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev met in 1961 to decided whether or not to start World War Three. For us though the high vaulted Baroque ceiling of the legendary Schonbrunn Orangery was to be the venue for a classic concert featuring the Schonbrunn Palace Orchestra playing the classics of Mozart and Strauss. They were to be accompanied by a soprano, a baritone and two dancers dressed in the authentic costumes of the day. Vienna is so easy to get around. 

A quick bus ride dropped us right outside the train station. After a very short wait we jumped on a train and were promptly delivered right to the doorstep to the Palace. We decided to browse the Christmas markets that fill the front courtyard of the Palace before heading in for the concert. The markets were a bustling mass of late shoppers pouring over the many stalls that were selling the most stunning range of goodies. Everything from Christmas decorations to cheeses, hats and gloves, beautifully carved wooden toys, delicious waffles, tasty sausages and hot orange gluehwein. 

Schonenberg Palace Christmas Markets

Sausage art

Although the seating for the concert was not very comfortable and we were a bit further back than I thought $500 would have got us, I thought it was a triumph. Unfortunately it may have just been a little bit of a cultural overload and at half time the vote was 3 to 1 that we draw our Viennese evening of opera, ballet and symphonics to an end. It was still a tremendous experience and one that the boys will hopefully appreciate down the track....somewhere.

25th December 2013 

CHRISTMAS DAY!! We were all ready for a bit of a change from the familiar Christmas routine and what a way to make a break from the past and start to forge some new traditions. Thanks to the miracle of modern technology we still got to have some face to face time with Christinas mum and dad as they lunched on the standard fare with Christinas sister and her family all the way back in Perth.
For us though, there was to be nothing standard about it at all. Not a turkey nor a spoonful of stuffing to be seen. Not a chipolata or a mango salad in sight. For us it was sausage and sauerkraut, chicken and spatzel and panacotta with raspberry chocolate sauce washed down with a chilled Piper Heidsiek. Bloody fantastic. 

Oh Christina, you are a wonder

And just to prove a point, she does this.

We bought presents with us so the boys were happy. We even managed to pick up some bits and pieces for ourselves at some of the many beautiful Christmas markets. It was a brilliant Christmas Day. 

Mozart chocolate balls. Not the originals of course.

Finally the price for a 4.30am start is starting to be extracted. The yawns start around 7pm and by some miracle the boys make it through to 9pm before I pour them into bed. Christina has long departed and I am not far behind. It has been a Very Merry Christmas indeed. 

26th December 2013 

We celebrated Boxing Day by upholding the time honoured tradition of hanging around the house, eating, reading and playing games. Back in Perth it would normally be prawn sandwiches sitting in front of the forth cricket Test but seeing as cricket is just something that eats your grass over here, that wasn't going to happen. It was still a wonderful day of nothingness. 

27th December 2013 

It was time to break the cycle of food induced slothfulness, throw a few layers of clothing on and go out to see what was happening in the world. What better way than to go open air ice skating. We caught a bus/train combo and once again found ourselves conveniently deposited less than 100 metres from our destination, the Wiener Eislauf- Verein outdoor ice skating rink. I haven't been skating for probably 30 years, Christina about 26 years and Charlie... never. Callum was the only one amongst us who had any recent experience courtesy of some timely school excursions.

I will not fall, I will not fall, I will not faaallll.

Negotiating who should let go first.

Located just behind the Intercontinental Hotel and only a short ten minute walk from the centre of the city lies 6,000 square metres of slippery icy cold fun. Callum slipped onto the ice, confident and in control while Charlie and I clung desperately to the side railing trying to make our way down to the beginners section without falling on our arses. We slipped, we slided, we zigged and zagged till finally, slowly, we weaned ourselves from the safety of the edge and ventured out into the traffic. We were not fast, we were not graceful, but, for the most part we were upright and... we had a lot of fun. Christina swapped skates with Callum and made her way to the ice. We have photographic evidence to prove it. Callum was a star and even at the end when I was channelling my inner Torvill and Dean, I couldn't catch him. So much fun. 

We did it

A slow walk through the beautiful backstreets of this amazing city and we were right back in the main shopping hub. People were everywhere. It was time to head back home where we dropped the boys off and headed down to one of our local restaurants, The Grinzinger Brau, for a couple of hot fruit punches and the most massive plate of ribs I have ever seen. Think Fred Flintstone. 

Yabba dabba doo

My god, when will the eating stop? 

28th December 2013 

It was back to our favourite Viennese palace today, Schonbrunn. We had booked tickets for the Marionettentheatre Schloss Schonbrunn to see their production of Mozarts last opera, The Magic Flute. He died just nine weeks after it was first staged. The Christmas markets were still set up in the Palace grounds and we made sure we were there in plenty of time to cruise, eat and get some more of that delicious hot orange Punsch. 

I thought they were quiches. They're candles.

These however are perfectly edible

As you'd expect the post Christmas crowds were a lot lighter which made checking out the stalls so much more enjoyable.

The history of the Marionette show in Vienna goes back to the early 18th century. This particular theatre is in an old part of the palace and built over some ancient Roman ruins. It was renovated and reopened back in 1994. It is a charming old place, and with only 50 seats, definitely what you would call intimate.

It was always going to be a big ask to get the boys to sit through two hours of Opera even it was being presented in the form of a puppet show. It didn't help that the boys had crap seats and couldn't see a damn thing over the heads of the adults in front of them. It didn't help that the entire thing was in German - although we must have seen that coming- and it didn't help that the seats were really really uncomfortable. The booking information stated that kids would get priority viewing seating, that didn't happen. 

And quite frankly, while the singing was excellent, I found the acting a little wooden.

So once more we found ourselves out in the parking lot at intermission- half time deserters yet again. Having said that, I am in no way concerned for the cultural souls of our boys. I have no doubt that when I was their age I couldn't have sat though two hours of Opera either. It was worth a shot though.

30th December 2013 

Time to go shopping. We always give the boys the option of going and the result is always predictable. 
So, videos-check-, food and water- check-, exit strategy in case of fire- check. Then lock em in and off we go. 
Firstly let me say how totally impressed with the public transport system of this amazing city we are. You never have to wait more than nine minutes for a bus, train or tram. You can forget the Swiss with their silly unreliable perpetual motion watches and claims to the crown of preciseness. The Viennese are kings. 
We strolled the streets and shops with a warm familiarity. It was only back in July when we were first here and the memories are still very strong. The post Chrissy sales were on and we were determined to get a Vienna bargain. It wasn't hard. The quality of the merchandise here is outstanding and the prices are remarkable. Wait till you see my two new hats. A peacock blue fedora with a feather in it - don't judge till you've seen it- and another light tan beauty with a contrasting chocolate brown band. Superb. 

Now that's a hat.
Unfortunately I left them both at the Oslo airport. Gone forever. So sad.

Jackets, ski pants, gloves and jocks completed the stash. It was so nice for just the two of us to spend the day together. The kids were square eyed but fine by the time we returned. As a treat, and an attempt to get them to breathe some fresh air, we went out to Ninos for pizza where we met a large crazy local man. 
We had barely sat down when he wandered up to us, well dressed and full of Christmas cheer. He asked where we were from then proceeded to insist on buying us all a drink. Why not I thought. I let him buy me a beer and we chatted briefly until a new patron walked in and caught his eye. Off he went, chatting and buying more drinks. Not content with with sharing his large personality and open wallet with one and all he decides the waitress could do with a hand and unceremoniously picks her up in his arms and carts her around the restaurant. It all seemed good natured and there was no agro, just a few nervous laughs. His whole visit was probably no more than ten minutes but it was memorable and certainly entertaining and hey, I got a free beer. Oh and the pizza was sensational.

31st December 2013 New Years Eve. 

There was talk of heading into town for a look see at the planned celebrations but it's bitterly cold, raining and we have to clean up and pack up as Nora and Anastas are back nice and early tomorrow morning. The next day we're all of...TO THE SNOW !!!! So, it's a yummy home made pasta and another bottle of French bubbles as we bid farewell to 2013 and say hello to 2014.

Safari

Craig Writes;

23/10/13. An uneventful flight, just the way I like them. We were met at the Hoedspruit airport by Peter Peter. A very obliging and extremely friendly local with a huge tombstone grin who also happened to be the senior guide at the park.  We were delighted to hear that as our guide for the next four days, we were to be getting the benefit of his thirteen years experience.

The incomparable Peter Peter

We are here at the 9000 hectare Karongwe Private Game Reserve staying at one of the four lodges on the property. Originally it was to be a couple of rooms at the four star Shuiduli Lodge but for some reason we found ourselves being driven into the gates of the five star Kuname Lodge to a three bedroom, two bathroom house. It came complete with an expansive outdoor deck overlooking a water hole where Baboon, Warthog and Impala would come and drink and a small pool for us to have a dip in. I assume they must have mistaken us for the Vanderbilts or the Van der Rockefellas. 

We couldn't believe our luck

We had an hour to settle in before we were off on our first safari, but not before a bite to eat.  I was expecting a cup of tea and maybe a scone not deep fried prawns with sweet chilli dipping sauce, gourmet wraps, five different pastries/cakes with freshly squeezed juices, tea and coffee. Before leaving we placed our order for drinks out on the savannah. Vodka tonic please.

Today and tomorrow morning it's just the four of us on safari before we are joined by some other guests. We are only five minutes out of the gate when our tracker Sandy spots a small herd of very large Rhino grazing just off the side off the road. That's one of the Big 5, four more to go. 

They were not in a hurry to move

Look at that stare. This guy made his point very clear

There are two safaris a day. The first is a very keen 5.30am to 9am and the second is  4.30pm to 7pm. Five in the morning seems a bit early to be getting up but it is amazing how alive the savannah is at that time of the day. 

Aside from the Rhino we saw Giraffe grazing off the bitter leaves off the Acacia trees and Banded Mongoose stretching high on back legs to peer at us over the dry grass before vanishing into the bush. There are Kudu and Impala everywhere. Both looking like different variations of big Bambi's. The Kudu and the Impala both have the unenviable reputations of being the tastiest two animals out here. Not a rumour you'd like getting around. 

It's a long way to the top if you want a sausage roll

Impala, Oh so cute, oh so tasty

The wilderness here is not without it's own sense of synergy and teamwork.  Baboons like to hang with the Kudu, warning them of any approaching danger from their treetop lookouts and dropping fruit for them to eat. The Blue Tail Wildebeest hang out with Zebras because they like to eat the top bit of the grass and the Zebra like to eat the bottom.  

Rumour has it that the Wildebeest are apparently not the sharpest beasty on the plain. At the first sign of danger the Wildebeest will gallop away as fast as it can which seems a perfectly reasonable thing to do. But, whether it is easily distracted, forgetful or just plain dumb, it eventually stops before slowly turning around and wandering back to see what it was that was chasing it.  The result is predictable. They are definitely the takeaway food of the savannah, cheap and easy. That makes anything hanging with them second choice on the menu. Clever Zebra. 

Zebra with a McWildebeest. Do you want fries with that.

It came over the radio that someone had seen Leopard. Peter slams the brakes on, engages four wheel drive and charges into the bush. Trees are knocked aside like bowling pins and enormous bushes are gobbled up by the undercarriage of the cruiser, long tentacles of dried branches with two inch spikes come swishing over our heads like we're in some sort of medieval joust. We bash and crash our way around the savannah for about an hour, but alas, much to Peters chagrin, no Leopard today.  Still, you could only call our first safari an unqualified success.

About now Sandy is wishing he took that lion taming job

The sun had set by the time we rolled back into camp. A guard stood at the entrance gate to ensure no unwanted beasts snuck into the compound under the cover of darkness as we reentered. 

Dinner tonight was a communal affair around a large and very broad table for twelve.  The food is superb.  Ostrich steak was on the menu tonight.

A big appetite needs a big table

24/10/13 Getting up at 5am is like pulling off a bandaid.  Up and out, a quick cup of tea then out the door. 

It's not as cold as we imagined, not until you start driving, then the wind chill factor hits you and you reach down to hoist up the thoughtfully provided "granny" lap rug. 

The first thing to cross our path this crisp and clear morning was a small family of Zebra with a one week old foal hugging the flank of it's wary mother. It was the cutest thing. I saw a stuffed Zebra in Harrods that was bigger.

Hard to believe she is only one week old

The morning was thick with Impala, Water Buck and Kudu. The radio burst into life with word of another sighting.  Peter crashes into the bush, does a 180 and heads back from where we came.  Our first thought was Leopard but Peter wasn't saying. We bounced along for a short while before pulling up next to another cruiser.  There was a Cheetah in the bush. These sleek beautiful creatures are the fastest land animal on the planet capable of 112 kms per hour.  Peter Peter was negotiating with the other guide to see who was going in first. We were on the right team. We're in first. Next he's out of the vehicle, peering into the bush and waving us down from the high safety of the LandRover. 

The Cheetah has a fresh kill just 50 metres into the bush and we are going to investigate. Single file and as quiet as a dozen nervous tourists can be, we marched into the bush.  It was a landscape blackened by a recent controlled burning and still smouldering in patches, but there they were. 

A very relaxed mum was cleaning one of her cubs while the other three tore into a freshly killed Impala. It was a surreal thing to see. It's body was a decimated carcass of exposed meaty ribs, trailing intestines and elastic stomach lining yet it's head was perfectly untouched. It's dead eyes glazed and staring right at us.  

You've got a little something on your chin dear

A surreal thing to watch

We were a mere ten metres away but apart from occasional disinterested glances, none of the Cheetahs gave us a second thought.  If we didn't see a Leopard today that was perfectly ok.

We moved on to find a place for morning tea and found a large watering hole with a pod of Hippos. We pulled up onto the gently sloping bank and sat for a few moments to watch their movements before piling out. 

Do this before you die

They huffed and blew loud raspberries in the water, popping up and down like enormous bug eyed lounge cushions, sinking slowly in the middle and resurfacing just metres from us at the muddy edge.

They don't look so frightening in the water do they

Peter made it clear that while they were content to see us on the bank, if one of us was to put a foot in the water they would charge the vehicle and promptly bite everyone in half. A dramatic but effective warning.  

I don't think they'd even bother to chew you.

Surprisingly these big two tonne fatties can run at a very credible 35 kms an hour so the chance of outrunning it would be slim. Lets say zero.

That afternoon we were joined by four Americans. Vince and his son Kevin, son in law Scott and Vinces buddy Wilbur. Wilbur and Vince were two retired firemen from New York. A good bunch of guys. This afternoon we were looking for two female lionesses, one heavily pregnant, who were on the prowl not far from where we were. When we arrived they were right by the side of the road. We got within metres of them. 

Two older gals on the prowl, dont mistake them for Cougars

They look, they snarl but to them we are this enormous giant green beast that they don't want to mess with. 

The first instruction, made loud and clear before your first safari is, DO NOT STAND UP IN THE JEEP. Seated together they see this medusa headed beast as something to be wary off.  The moment you stand up you separate yourself from the whole and they will see you for what you are, a meal. They will ignore the big green beast you're sitting in and they will jump into the cruiser and chew on your dumb arse.

More pictures and more bush bashing and we were done for the day. Springbok carpaccio and rack of lamb were on the menu tonight.

25/10/13. Another day another 5am wake up call.  Christina was not feeling great this morning so she missed this one. And guess what we found? Finally after hours of bashing through the savannah we find two mating Leopards deep in the bush and well off the road. After some outstanding off road driving by Peter, down some very steep ravines and through bush that thick we were all literally on our knees as the thick spiky branches of the thorn trees swept across our backs, there they were. Lean, muscular and striding with a gait that simply said, "don't mess with me". 

"Don't mess with me."  

I felt like we were on a bit of travelling peep show. We followed them till they were ready to hump then we stopped and watched till they were done. It reminded of the Ping Pong Club in Patpong, Bangkok but without the cheap drinks and the dim lighting. We would follow them a little further when they would stop and give a repeat performance. And on it went. As riveting as it was, they do this for four days so we decided to leave it to them. There's no doubt "the business" is all business on the savannah. There is some deep guttural growling and about five seconds of frantic pumping and wham bam, the jobs done. If she's lucky there's some casual neck chewing but it seems little more than a token effort at some awkward jungle foreplay. 

It was definitely a fabulous highlight and a credit to Peters persistence. Apart from a huge bull Rhino having a lazy bask in a dry river bed the rest was more of the same stunning landscape and the general hoi polloi of the jungle. 

This guy looked like he'd had one to many at the Rhino Club.

Christina joined us for the afternoon safari along with a couple from Munich. We were originally searching for Elephant but they were too far away so we turned our attention to Cheetah, Hippo and Rhino before getting bogged in a river bed just after sunset. Once extracted by a passing LandRover we were heading back to the Lodge for dinner when we came across three lions, two female and one male, starting to doze off for the night, their extended bellies showing that, unlike us, they had had their dinner and were now preparing for an early night.

'Where ever I lay my hat, that's my home"

Only  Elephant and Buffalo now to complete our Big Five.

26/10/13 This is the last full day of our ten month round the world adventure. It is extremely hard for me to write those words. For all of us really. At the beginning of the year, back on January 17th, this day seemed an eternity away and today that nervous, excited family with fresh unmarked suitcases and a world of adventure in front of them seem like complete strangers to us.

We started this morning pulling up beside a Rhino and her baby relaxing just off the track, a few metres into the bush. Peter Peters excellent impersonation of an approaching male Rhino got her raising her head a few times but she was reluctant to get off her rear and reveal her baby.

A little further down the road we had to slow up for an adolescent Giraffe walking in the middle of the track, her mum walking along idly a hundred metres further on. There were an abundance of Impala, Kudu, Water Buck and all the usual suspects. We finally came across a couple of Warthogs who were not camera shy and ate and ferreted around by the side of the bush till we had all had our Kodak moment.

A face only a mother could love

Then we spotted elephant. It was a herd of a dozen or so from cute and stumbling newborns to a massive Bull the size of a small Zeppelin. You heard them long before you saw them as they slowly lowered the jungle around them in search of food. Large branches were ripped from tree trunks and ceremoniously stuffed in their mouths in an effort to eat their daily 220kg of food. 

There was no argument about who had right off way

It is not uncommon for them to stick their noses inside the vehicles to randomly sniff and poke around. We were told in advance to fold our arms across our chests and let them do what they want. To move or disturb them could easily result in you being plucked from the vehicle and thrown or stomped on. They passed very close to our LandRover but none showed much interested in us.

We stopped for morning coffee by a barely flowing river bed to throw a frisbee Kevin had bought with him. It was a lot of fun. In a lovely show of generosity Kevin gave it too our tracker Sandy when we had finished the game. I'm not sure how he'll go with it, it will likely end up as a fruit bowl, but you never know, this could also be the start of the South African Frisbee Golf team. 

Yesterday on safari I tore the sleeve of my one and only jacket and the next time I saw Vince, Kevin's dad, he's handing me a brand new official Troy Fire Dept long sleeve shirt. He had bought five along on their trip to give away.

Two more safaris to go and we are headed home.

The elephants are still close by so we go back for one more look.This time the Bull Elephant, quite possibly one of the biggest Elephants I have ever seen, comes crashing through the bushes less than ten feet from the front of our vehicle. He stops and eyeballs us.  He couldn't possible be intimidated by us. What Sandy would be thinking, sitting right at the very front in the trackers seat, god only knows. 

Right about now Sandy must be questioning his hourly rate

But, the Bull's content with a look then happy to show us his enormous grey wrinkled rump and wander off. The final sundowner was on a massively pebbled river bed that once again was patiently waiting for the summer rains to boost the trickle that currently ran it's length. We were a bit later than usual but still in time to catch a glorious sunset.

The sunlight pours down the mountain like liquid gold

We lingered well after the sun had sunk to welcome in the savannah darkness.  Peter and Sandy sang for us and our new American friends Vince, Wilbur, Kevin and Scott shared some of their family photos over Vodka Tonics, local beers and a bottle of red. It was a brilliant way to conclude an excellent safari.

Dinner tonight was a local BBQ around a campfire. Perfection.

We felt the love, we really did.

27/10/13 Our very last safari and we headed off into the new dawn of a fresh clear South African day. The morning was crisp but without the cheeky little chill in the air of a few mornings ago. Time for our last look at the beautiful, deadly wildlife that pads the savannah floor.  Someone had found three lions who were enjoying a quiet breakfast of Impala but there were also reports of the Cheetah and her family of four cute cubs also enjoying a fresh kill. We decided to head to the Cheetah first, and like our previous visits, we were not disappointed. 

We always said no more pets, but maybe..

The boys are surprisingly cool considering the mother hasn't eaten yet

Only days before we were marvelling at how cute the Bambi looking Impala were, particularly the babies. Yet here we were now marvelling at how cute the baby Cheetah was as it tore apart the insides of same said baby Impala.  It's unsettling how we can so easily readjust our sensitivities when we are faced with the necessary brutality needed to survive.

Out here, what's cute today is lunch tomorrow

We find the Lions an hour or so later but they had finished feeding and were lying flat on their backs under a tree with huge extended bellies exposed.  The male propped his leg up on a tree to allow his belly room to move.  They were that stuffed you could have gone up and rubbed his big fat tum and lived to tell the story.  Although, not really.
Last but not least, we finally found Buffalo. These were not your standard Water Buffalo. These were Cape Buffalo.  Just as big and just as nasty and still rated as the most lethal animal in the African wilderness.

So glad to finally discover it's not my fault I over eat. I'm a Leo

Big, Bad and very very Mean

The whole safari was an amazing experience made all the better by the fantastic staff at the Karongwe Lodge, Peter Peter our funny, knowledgeable and dedicated Ranger and Guide, his tracker Sandy, the amazing chefs dishing up superb meals and all superbly managed with the loving care of "nothing is ever to much trouble" Anita and her remarkable multi skilled husband Andre. But, it's the travellers you meet along the way that can make or break the experience and once again we had the pleasure of meeting a great bunch who made our time there a richer experience. Vince, Wilbur, Kevin and Scott, thank you for your companionship, your stories and your clothing.

Thank you all for helping make this so memorable

We are two plane trips away from home and I must sadly face the reality, that for the time being, our time as world travellers is coming to a close. It has been an experience beyond my wildest imaginings. I have changed, we have changed.  We are so grateful for now having a greater understanding of humanity and a thankfulness for the outstanding beauty of our planet.  This is not the end, it is a launch pad for the future.