As many of you know, to conclude each trip, we take this
opportunity to mention things of importance that for one reason or another didn't
make it into one of our other stories. We also use this post to recognize
people we met along the way that made a difference in our life on the road.
Because the two legs of our journey were so different, we've chosen to separate
this post into two sections, one for each leg.
On Safaris
Other Things African
While in Africa, our internet connections were limited, so
even though there was so much to say with video, we could only include still
photos in our stories. So here now is a video summary to give you a better idea
of our safaris in the wilds of Africa.
The roads were rough, dry and dusty, daytime temperatures
were in the 30s Celsius on the sun baked Tanzanian savannah. Each element added
to the realism of the Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti Plains. In other places in the
world, where conditions were less than tourist-comfortable, helicopters were often
available for the soft soles to get the Coles note version of the experience.
Fortunately, helicopters are not allowed to fly in the conservation areas, as
they would without doubt, adversely affect both the animal habitat, and the
real safaris experience.
One question was left unanswered at the end of our safaris,
do zebras have white stripes on a black body, or black stripes on a white body?
Kudos
We spent many hours over a number of days with Rama our driver
and Kennedy our guide from Micato Safaris. We think they did a fabulous job,
and Kennedy's knowledge and experience with the animals brought us to
situations that others didn't see. In
addition, there were four other people like ourselves on board our vehicle,
Mike, Lisa, Chris and Johnnie. It was truly a pleasure to be on this once in a
lifetime journey with those folks, each contributing to our safaris experience.
On Zanzibar
Other Things African
In the town of Jambiani, there was a high degree of respect
and cooperation between the tourist operators and the community at large.
Unlike many resort areas, the beaches were open to both the local people and
tourists. The locals using them to launch their fishing expeditions, collect
seaweed, sell their services and wares, and enjoy their time off.
As a result, we were in close contact with all. In the days
spent there, we felt welcome and a true connection to the community. We've
mentioned much of that in our other stories, but here's another example.
One morning, three kids, about 4 years old, were playing on
the beach, and as happens sometimes, a tiff resulted in the little girl getting
sand in her eyes while the two boys went on their way. Marlene went down and
consoled the little girl then washed the sand from her eyes so she could go on
her way too. The next day, the girl returned with love in her heart for Marlene
and the connection was magical.
In Zanzibar, 95% of the people are Muslim and 5% are
Christian. That is more or less the opposite of here in Canada. We were in the
minority with some of our beliefs, men and women equality, single marriages for
men rather than multiple wives, and the use of alcohol being just a few. We spoke
with a number of Muslims about our differences, and it was interesting because
none took us to task over our beliefs. As we do, they appeared to fully respect
that we were different in some respects, but it was obvious to all, we had more
similarities than differences, love of family, acceptance of responsibility,
the need to make a living, have fun, and laugh, the desire to connect with
other people starting with a smile and handshake, and more.
Kudos
Phillip, the half owner of our accommodation in Jambiani, deserves
a kudos for being very helpful to Marlene when she was looking for
accommodation. He arranged for local transportation, cleaning services, and added
a few extra conveniences to the apartment that we requested.
We were fortunate to meet Hassan who receives our second
kudos. He's a young Muslim man that took on the roles of driver and coordinator
for our trip to Stonetown. In addition, he and his extended family invited us
to their home in the neighbouring town of Makunduchi where we got a very warm
welcome. While there, we had the good fortune to experience Muslim family life
and the Island culture first hand. If you're thinking of visiting Zanzibar,
Hassan is your man to put you in contact with local resources, and he can be
emailed at hassangae43@gmail.com.
And lastly, thank you for joining us on our once in a
lifetime journey to the Wilds of Africa.
