Category Archives: Africa

Falling Waters Twenty: Victoria Falls, Zambia

January, 2018 Victoria Falls is famous for being the largest waterfall system in the world, with a total width of over a mile (5,600 feet) and a height of 355 feet. It was named for Queen Victoria in 1855 by David … Continue reading

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Cruising the Indian Ocean

Tuesday, – Friday January 16 – 19, 2018 We have four sea days with no scheduled stops. The original itinerary included Madagascar, but that stop was removed because of plague. That’s right – plague! The outbreak began this past August, … Continue reading

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Maputo, Republic of Mozambique

Monday, January 15, 2018 Formerly called Lourenço Marques, for a Portuguese trader believed to be the first European to explore the area in 1544, Maputo acquired its current name in 1976 following Mozambique’s independence from Portugal in 1975. Responding to the … Continue reading

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Shakaland Village

Sunday, January 14, 2018 We docked this morning in Richards Bay, South Africa, and had signed up for an excursion to Shakaland Cultural Village. It’s part of a set for the mini-series, “Shaka Zulu,” which was filmed in the mid-1980’s. … Continue reading

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Where’s My Mai Tai!?

Saturday, January 13, 2018 We decided we were thirsty for mai tais, but when we asked for them, we were told they couldn’t be served while we were in port in Durban. We asked several people why this was, even … Continue reading

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South African Birds of Prey

According to my smart phone, today is Thursday, January 11, 2018 We’re sailing to Durban today, will dock tomorrow morning. The day is warm and sunny, also windy. We tried to walk on the Promenade Deck, but were blown so … Continue reading

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The Friendly City of South Africa

Wednesday, January 10, 2018 We arrived at Port Elizabeth this morning. The town was named, not for British royalty, but for the wife of Sir Rufane Donkin, a governor of the port in the early 1800’s. Elizabeth had died in … Continue reading

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The Ostrich Capital of the World

Tuesday, January 9, 2018 Our ship docked in Mossel Bay, the bay of mussels, this morning. The name dates back to 1595 or 1601, depending on which story you believe. Mossel Bay is part of the Garden Route, of South … Continue reading

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Mother City of South Africa

Saturday, January 5, 2018 This was a long travel day. Again, there were three legs to our flight. First, we returned to the small airport at Xakanaxa where we boarded a 12 passenger plane that took us to Maun. Mark … Continue reading

Posted in Africa, Cape Town, National Geographic, South Africa, The Big Five | Leave a comment

Kasane Heat

Wednesday, January 3, 2018 There was a beautiful full moon over the channel at Xakanaxa this morning. After breakfast, we were taken to the airport for transport to Maun where we will reconnect with the DC-3 South Africa airplane and … Continue reading

Posted in Africa, Botswana, Elephants, Hippos, Rhinos, Warthogs | Leave a comment