CAPE TOWN ARCHITECTURE

I wanted to add this picture of the old train station to Mary's other architectural shots. (It's the red brick, triangular building, not used for the trains anymore T.

Just of few quick shots of some buildings in Cape Town - it is a beautiful city

MORE PICS

Can you believe this homemade xylophone? It's made of gords, horns, wooden slats! And the sound was very good.

Below is a pic of the wart hog. He's one of my favorites. . . probably because I loved Pumba in the Lion King. When shoveling the ground looking for food, they get down on their knees and dig. Looks funny, but works.

For those that don't know me, here's a picture by the falls. The falls area at our end is called Rainbow Falls because there is always a rainbow.


The scene is from the river in Botswana. Despite being hot and dry, it was peaceful and alluring.

The internet cafe gives you an idea of what we were up against. It sure is easier to do this from home!

Twinkle

PHANSI MUSEUM

One of my favorite afternoons was the Monday we spent in Durban. Our guide, Shiney, is an amazing woman from London who has spent the last 30+ years of her life in South Africa. She has a love for the people and a passion for the country that are both sincere and contagious.

On this day she was able to arrange for us to take a tour of a private museum as well as have lunch at a small adjacent restaurant.. The Phansi Museum is the result of a young couple’s passion for the South African native costumes ….. of course we consider them “costumes” today, but they used to be simply their everyday clothing. The status of every person in the village – and this was true of all the different tribes – could be read by what they wore or by what they carried. The husband is an architect and by nature is drawn to the colors and shapes and structures of these pieces …….. the wife ( sadly passing some ten years ago) was a ceramicist and collected the pottery and other arts. Together they traveled and traded and listened to the stories……...they recorded the legends and the traditions and – luckily for us (and everyone) – have opened a private museum in an idyllic, quiet residential neighborhood surrounded by a few artists’ studios. The most wonderful, engaging , native women, Phumzile Nkosi is the curator and acted as our docent…..I could have easily and happily spent twice the amount of time there.!! She made the traditions sound so colorful and meaningful …….. personally, I looked down at my khakis and beige shirt and thought “what a bland, homogeneous society we have become.

Before we began the tour , we had a tasty vegetarian lunch awaiting us and , as our guide would say “The ancestors were with us” because the collector himself, Paul Mikula, just happened to stop in and he sat with us and explained how it all began and where he hopes it all will go – Amazing !

The photos are wonderful – and if you would like more information on this wonderful collection – as part of it does travel - here is the info:

http://www.phansi.com/

info@phansi.com

Enjoy, Mary

HOME

Zambezi Sun - Livingstone Airport
customs and check-in............................2 hrs
Livingstone-J'Burg.................................2 hrs
wait ..........................................................6 hrs
J'Burg - London ...................................11 hrs
wait ..........................................................3 hrs
London - Chicago ...................................8 hrs
wait ..........................................................5 hrs
Chicago - Madison .................................1 hr
get car/drive home................................2hrs

return trip .............................................40 hrs

African Experience ............................PRICELESS

Mary

ROLLIN' ON THE RIVER

We had the most incredible day !! - even though we had to get up at 5:45 .

We first took a drive to the Chobe River where it is the only place in the world where 4 countries come together; Zambia, Nambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana. We take a small boat across the river to the Botswana border - go through immigration - take another bus to the Mowana Resort and board a boat for a 3 hr river safari. It was more than I could have dreamed - plus, I was just so happy to be on the water - wind blowing in the hair....sun shining. We saw hundreds of elephants, hippo, buffalo and crocodiles. There are islands in the middle of the delta region of the Chobe and since it hasn't rained since March....many of the animals cross over where there is food (grass).We also saw herds of Cape Buffalo grazing and beautiful birds ...... and loved the endless vistas.

After a great lunch back at the lodge, we had an afternoon game drive....you will see the photos - and I must tell you that the last two elephant encounters made my heart race. Too close for my comfort. I was teased - whatever

Mary

The elephants in the sunset was such a lucky find. The sun had set and we were racing back to the hotel. I had hopes of viewing the sunset over the river with the zebras munching on the lawn, but it was not meant to be. But the elephants in the sunset made up for it.

The bird picture doesn't do justice. I'll do a better job with it later.

WATER FEATURE !!!

We flew into Livingstone and had a short drive to our resort - The Zambezi Sun. It is so wonderful to have space around us and a safe area to walk around. I took some time relax and change clothes - Twinkle and Annie took a helicopter tour of the area.........my luggage went on a trip of its own so I needed some time to regroup. Upon return - Twinkle and I went for a long, long walk - all along the great Victoria Falls

No comments needed.
( Pics are so slow in coming - may have to wait)

Mary

3 of these are picture of the falls late in the day, against the sun. please note that they feel that the falls are empty, having had no rain since March. but I realize that there is plenty of water for me, plus when the falls are this low, you can see the falls. Otherwise it's all mist. the aerial view gives you an idea of the pattern of the river flow. It is very hazy there because of the dryness, so these pics could use some photoshopping.

the 3rd picture is the Zambesi Sun resort. Such a great place to explore, and just steps from the Falls. But you have to watch out for the baboons, they'll snatch anything.

Twinkle

CAPE GOOD HOPE

Well, we’ve just finished our stay in Cape Town without writing a word on the blog. Same ole, same ole…. problems getting online and very little free time.

We arrive Cape Town to find it too windy to go on the gondola up to Table Mountain. So instead we toured the area til we could check into the hotel. The placed we stayed was on Bantry Bay, a Protea hotel that was quite nice. We walked down the street the beach to see waves that averaged 10 feet. And this is during the calm springtime!

As I think I noted earlier, the next day was to be Robben Island, but still too windy. Instead we went to the Botanical Gardens. It’s a HUGE park under the mountains that made us want to stay and picnic there. Then it was over to the waterfront, the Victoria and Alfred. That is an area that has lots of shops and eateries. As always, there are lot of boats that make it fun to watch the goings on. Diiner was out to a price-fixe, which ended up quite good. There were entertainers that sang and danced their native songs along with the local food. None of the waiters, singers, or dancers at any of the restaurants were from South Africa, instead from every other African country.

Thursday was spent going to Cape Point. It is a National Park at the Cape of Good Hope where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet . . . . . well supposed to meet. It’s actually a few kilometers down the road. It was a “cool” feeling knowing that one was standing at the cape. We climbed up to the lighthouse for some much needed exercise, then had to avoid the baboons. They are quite clever and can beat you into your car once you unlock it! They have workers that spend all day chasing them from the parking lot.

Further down the coast we visited the African penguins. They are small like those in the Galapolas, I guess cuz they don’t need to stay warm. Anyway, we got up close and personal so I should have some good photos. The road down to that area was beautiful interspersed with quaint seaside towns. We finally stopped for lunch at 3:30, and you’ve never seen so many people run to find a bite to eat.

Later,

Twinkle