There is nothing other than vast plains, and fields that go on for miles. You look in every direction and are the same. How do the animals do it, how do they know where to go, how do they find one another?
Originally the safari was not part of the trip, it was going to be a bit of a beach holiday in Zanzibar but after talking to a travel agent she kindly explained that it would be silly to not add on a safari for a few days. (This is why travel agents are amazing and I’m glad that I am one). By this point in my life, I was already a vegan (and still am) I like animals enough to not eat them but I’m also a little scared of them. Seeing so many animals in THEIR home is something out of this world. We are on their turf, if you respect them, you are fine. We had our own open-top safari jeep and Wilson was our driver. Wilson is a local man, and his knowledge was out of this world. The things he knew about the animals, could only come from someone who had been doing this for many, many years. He could look at the face of the animal and tell us what would happen next, ie they are going to mate (AWKWARD when you are with your family watching lions humping), or when they are about to chase a Gazelle. There are so many things that I loved about that trip. Have you ever noticed how wildebeest have the skinniest legs and a massive body?
Honestly, there are so many things I can tell you; the best thing is to call me and we can book a trip for you.
I will add that I HIGHLY recommend that you have excellent travel insurance while you are out there. My dad dislocated his shoulder coming out of the car at the airport. We had a short-haul flight leaving in an hour so seeing a doctor then and there was out of the question. What we did do was call our beloved travel agent who called our hotel. The hotel driver was briefed on the situation and took us to a local clinic.
Now, this is where things get interesting. The hotel that we chose (without our agent) had a well-known brand that we had stayed at a million times in so many countries. Well, guess what folks! It’s not the same in Africa, this one was a franchise, and it was not good at all.
I’m just a very normal girl, but when it comes to travelling, I have always splashed out on location and hotel. Within an hour of checking in, we were checking out.
Let’s get back to the driver, so really this hotel was a 2-star and quite out of town. The driver took us to the clinic where he would go for treatment, where the locals go. These are eye-opening experiences when you see what money and wealth can offer you, and see what millions of people in the world live with. We waited in the outdoor waiting room with no air conditions, fans or flies. My poor dad was getting so upset. Again, it’s not that we are better than the people in the waiting room, we just have the means to get a different type of service.
We had a local sim card in our smartphone and found the ‘international hospital’ was local and near. We excused ourselves, got back in our taxi and asked the driver to take us to the other hospital, we had the address which helped him. Even as we pulled up, we knew we were in the right place. It was a massive multi-level hospital with big glass doors and a security guard outside with a machine gun. (I won’t even start on the gun topic – I have STRONG feelings). As we entered the building, there was another massive culture shock. Guess what colour all the staff were? Go on… guess? Every colour you can think of other than Black. This makes me so sad.
Anyhow, that was our small drama, my old man, dad, pops, and padre is fine.
I can’t wait to go back on safari.
Side note, I may not be able to fix what I think is an injustice, but I give to over 10 charities every month on a standing order. I’m the BIGGEST believer that you must give back in life.
Peace out, 👩🏾 Leena x
