Today began early. After breakfast and enjoying visiting with a nice family from London, we boarded the boat and headed out for our last activity at Kanana and Sam, Ona and I went fishing. On our way back to our fishing spot we came across a couple big crocodiles, although I didn't see them above water we saw the impala they had just killed and was still in the bullrushes. On the way back after fishing we went to see if they had polished off the impala and they were gone and then a little later looked like a giant wave happened and the croc flew out of the water onto the shore. It was super cool. The crocs had also polished off the rest of the impala, since it wasn’t there.
At our fishing spot there was a dead hippo which they had seen yesterday and it looks like it got into a fight with another hippo and lost. The meat was rotting since the birds aren’t willing to risk eating the carcas where there are crocodiles, but the crocodiles were taking a bit of stab at it, although it is so huge they can’t drag it under and eat like they prefer to do. We went into another bay and low and behold I caught two fish!!! I was super excited. I had just exponentially increased the number of fish I had ever caught! On the way back On a let Sam drive the boat through the marshes and Sam was great at it since you have to keep a good speed but they are also narrow and you don’t know which way you are turning until right when it’s time to turn. It was a fun ride back. We stopped and fed the fish eagle our fishes and it was fun to see the eagles swoop down and catch them- felt very National Geographic ;) The temperature had heated up so before leaving for the air strip we took showers and then headed out to meet our 6 passenger bush plane. The way to get to all these bush camps is by plane. The runway was just for our resort that holds 16 guests, but each camp has their own runway. Thankfully I fared the flight much better than coming to Kanana.
The airport at Maun turned out to be stressful since they assign you a bellman that holds onto your bags and sees you through until your bags are checked. Well, I told him what our flight was and he stood in the wrong line and so we had to wait in another line for another hour. We got the last 2 seats on the flight and our bags weren’t going to make it and tomorrow we leave for the Seychelles on a flight that only leaves every 4 days. Thank heavens we located our bags in Joburg which were put on another flight. We arrived at a nice hotel in Joburg and couldn’t have been more grateful for a room without bugs and that had air conditioning and even some chocolate- since it was just too hot for chocolate where we were the last week. Food I miss the most is chocolate chip cookies! ;)
Tonight we chose to stay in, upload our blogs and photos which we haven’t been able to do for a week and get to bed early. We have a 7 hour flight to the Seychelles tomorrow. Looking forward to the beach!
Thoughts on the countries of Southern Africa:
As we are leaving spending time in South Africa and Zimbabwe and Botswana it is interesting to compare and contrast what I have learned, knowing that I only have some pieces of the story, but here are some of the impressions I am taking away. Botswana is the most peaceful country. They have a history of peace and have a well run honest government that has managed the country's resources better than the surrounding countries. Public education is paid for all the way through University in Botswana. They have an extensive welfare program too and the government helps people own homes. As was pointed out to me by many locals, their flag doesn’t have the color red in it. They are not a country of war or conflict but a peaceful nation. The people that we met seem content and friendly.
South Africa is by far the most modern of the countries and the most populated. As the result of their large population they have many issues with hundreds of thousands of people living in informal camps. They have many people coming to their country, especially Zimbabweans that are looking for jobs, since Zim’s unemployment is at catastrophic proportions with almost 90% unemployment. I liked South Africa. It is beautiful and especially the Cape area. We encountered hard working, friendly people but we didn’t always feel safe. The South African history has been one of such conflict and especially with the horrific history of apartheid that I believe it is hard to recover from such oppression and biases in just a few years. I see changes that have been made and homes that are being provided for those that had none, but the number of people is enormous. It also takes a government that isn’t corrupt. Many of the South African leaders seem to be running off the people’s loyalty to the ANC, Mandela’s party, but not his ideals. I am sure it will take a few decades and a new generation to sort it out and which will also not see color, but will recognize people on merit and all colors of South Africa will have an equal opportunity to receive the same education and opportunities and treatment. It makes me realize that we do live in a land of opportunity in the USA where most people can find a job and have running water and electricity and by in large we can trust that our leaders aren’t corrupt. I wish we had a better education system and that our universities were free, but I feel that our country gives people an opportunity to rise if they have the drive and determination to do so and that within our country we are a relatively peaceful and well educated people.
South Africa is by far the most modern of the countries and the most populated. As the result of their large population they have many issues with hundreds of thousands of people living in informal camps. They have many people coming to their country, especially Zimbabweans that are looking for jobs, since Zim’s unemployment is at catastrophic proportions with almost 90% unemployment. I liked South Africa. It is beautiful and especially the Cape area. We encountered hard working, friendly people but we didn’t always feel safe. The South African history has been one of such conflict and especially with the horrific history of apartheid that I believe it is hard to recover from such oppression and biases in just a few years. I see changes that have been made and homes that are being provided for those that had none, but the number of people is enormous. It also takes a government that isn’t corrupt. Many of the South African leaders seem to be running off the people’s loyalty to the ANC, Mandela’s party, but not his ideals. I am sure it will take a few decades and a new generation to sort it out and which will also not see color, but will recognize people on merit and all colors of South Africa will have an equal opportunity to receive the same education and opportunities and treatment. It makes me realize that we do live in a land of opportunity in the USA where most people can find a job and have running water and electricity and by in large we can trust that our leaders aren’t corrupt. I wish we had a better education system and that our universities were free, but I feel that our country gives people an opportunity to rise if they have the drive and determination to do so and that within our country we are a relatively peaceful and well educated people.
Zimbabwe is full of friendly people but also it is a country that is suffering from unemployment and has deteriorated in the past decade. The people are willing to work but there aren’t jobs, people are very resourceful and they fill the streets selling things to passerby's. There isn’t enough money it seems being distributed to it’s people and education and the economy, especially for a country that has as many natural resources as they do. It is rich in natural resources yet it seems those resources have been sold off to other countries, like Russia and China. It seems to be a country that has lost control of its destiny and has been taken advantage of. I see people like in each country that just want to support themselves, they want an education, they need basic essentials to live- water, food and shelter and an opportunity to support themselves and their families. Botswana seems to have been the best at figuring it out, although they have a different history than other countries and so their people are different. I will say the people of Zimbabwe were so friendly and inviting and it has a country that could be strong nation like Botswana. I also loved being with the Nield's and felt so welcome by Rachel's friends from Harare and loved the Jacaranda lined streets. Again, so much potential.
Each of us is a result of our experiences. Each county has it’s own experiences, a different history, different struggles and different opportunities. As a result they are each different with their own personalities. Africa is a continent with so many resources from its coal, to it’s gold and diamonds, copper and uranium, to it’s beautiful beaches and incredible wildlife, and beautiful people… it has all the gifts to be self sustaining and prosperous. Like most things and places, too much history has made it so that it cannot return to what it once was. Like in our own lives, we can't look back we can only look forward, but we must learn from our past and preserve our history. We all can look at what we have learned from our experiences, how can we make better choices, what can we do to preserve our resources and develop our strengths and work on our weaknesses and build those around us. . I think as the political leaders of these countries do this their countries will become better at providing for their people and a stable economy so that people can provide for themselves and have a greater quality of life.. Like everything love and respect and honesty are the foundation of growth.
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