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Happy New Year!!
Well, after I left you in Dubai airport, the remainder of my trip was fairly uneventful. I got to Jo'Burg, got hassled in the airport, managed to check in for my domestic flight (which seemed far more complicated than it should have been!) and settled down in my business class seat for the 90 minute flight to Port Elizabeth (PE). I had to fly business as there were no other flights available on Christmas Day but it was worth it for the bubbles and wine! And it was Christmas after all. Got picked up in PE and taken to the hostel where the other volunteers were staying. The guy in reception took one look at me and put me in my own dorm, although 4 (very polite) Spanish guys joined me later on. Luckily I bumped into Sue in the hostel who was also a volunteer and she offered for me to join them for Christmas diner later on - result! So, at 6pm we set off to the casino (odd venue I know!) and sat down to a buffet of turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and…wait for it….Christmas pudding! Yippee!! We then went to a bar for cocktails before heading back to the hostel. The whole evening, alcohol included, cost me less than GBP30!
On Sunday, a few of us went for breakfast and a wander and then we were picked up and driven to Kwantu where I would spend the next 2 weeks. Kwantu (which means 'place of gathering') is a private game reserve covering 6,000 hectares of land. It's owned by a Muslim South African and marketed to the Muslim community so…….no alcohol! Oh no!!!! I was there as a volunteer and would be getting involved with different aspects of conservation work and animal monitoring while there. There were 13 volunteers during the first week. As always, some really nice, some odd, some just misfits and some annoying know-it-alls and eager beavers! I know I fit into one of those categories but I'd like to think it's the former!!
As well as an open area for game drives, the reserve also has a predator camp where they breed and rehabilitate lions and cheetahs. There are also a number of Bengal tigers that have been rescued from poachers in Asia. They can't be set free in Africa as they're not indigenous species so some of them will remain here as part of the breeding centre and some will be donated to nature reserves elsewhere in the world. One has been donated to China and is just waiting to go. There are also 2 enclosures of cubs - one 8 month old tiger who is now too big to play with (but he thinks he's still cute and small) and a pen with 2 tiger cubs and 2 lion cubs, all about 4 months old - we had lots of 'cub time' with them although they were like puppies who don't know their strength or how sharp their teeth and claws are! There's also a touch farm with lots of rabbits, baby ostriches, geese, ducks, cows, sheep etc. Aaaaah!!
Our accommodation was super luxury compared to what I've been used to over the last year or so - big dorms holding 10 people but every 2 beds were partitioned and we each had cupboards and drawers etc - all very nice and new. The living area was huge and all open plan with loads of comfy sofas and we had a huge terrace with lovely furniture outside. We were cooked for 3 times a day (I think they were trying to kill us with the amount of food we got!) and didn't even have to lift a finger to wash up a glass or make our own beds! Our 'working' hours were 7.30-9.30, 10-1 and 2-5 and we generally did a combination of gardening, chopping, conservation stuff and animal-related stuff.
Anyway, the past 2 weeks have really been special. On the 1st day alone I got to see the animals in the predator camp, played with the lion and tiger cubs (soooooo cute!!), chopped down some alien vegetation with machetes (great for stress relief), went lion tracking and saw Zulu, the male, within the first 5 minutes (he's one of the biggest males in southern Africa) and went on a game drive and saw a lot of the animals in the reserve including zebra, giraffe, wildebeest (black and blue), ostriches and their chicks, impala, springbok, gemsbok (oryx), hartebeest, eland, reedbuck, waterbuck, kudu etc.
The rest of the first week was mixed. We spent most of one day at the elephant sanctuary, chopping down thistles and then shoveling s*** but we did get to interact with the heffalumps too so that was fine! We also raked grass in the predator camp, planted grass in the cub cage and cuddled lots of bunnies in the touch farm (I loved that until one wee'd on me!!). It poured down for 2 days in a row and one afternoon we all just stayed in and watched TV, DVDs and slept! It was so cold in the evening that someone came and lit the log fire. And this is supposed to be summer!!
We were supposed to do a tick check every night in the shower as they burrow their heads under your skin when they bite and tick bite fever can be really nasty. I went to the loo one evening and saw something out of the corner of my eye on my hip. Yep, a huge tick! I think it was just about to strike. It had already bitten me and was sort of suckered onto me but I managed to get it off and haven't (as yet!) had any horrible symptoms.
On Friday we went back to PE. Tune and I had decided to get a hotel room as the hostel wasn't great and I also figured we wouldn't get any sleep there as it was New Year's Eve. We ended up in a really nice place and then also decided just to have a grown-up evening (we are the eldest in the group as she is 39) so we went for a great Italian dinner with bubbly and wine (Tune got drunk very quickly which was funny!) and then headed to the beach where there were some DJs and musicians playing. We were the only white faces there and it was fine when it was still early but when we suddenly turned around and were surrounded by a huge throng and people kept grabbing our shoulders, we decided it was probably time to leave. There were some great dancers there though - Black people seem to have this natural rhythm which is amazing to watch - even the little kids. So, once again on NYE I was in bed when the clock struck 12 and there went another year!!
On New Year's Day, everything was closed and the weather wasn't great (besides, we had been advised not to go to the beach then anyway) so Tune and I headed to a shopping mall that the hotel insisted would be open. Hmmm, there were about 4 shops open but we did find a cinema. In the evening the weather was miserable again so we ended up getting a bottle of wine from the bar, room service and staying in bed watching films all night. Was good fun though and I don't think I could have been bothered to go out on the town to be honest (age and all that, you know!!).
Sunday evening those of us left (7 of us) headed back to Kwantu where it seemed very quiet! On Monday there were no vehicles free so we did a bit of weeding, planted some grass in the cub area and cleaned the horse stables. In the afternoon we went for a long walk on the outside of the reserve and tested the electric fences. No, that doesn't just involve grabbing hold of them and seeing if you get a shock; there's a special instrument (although David, our coordinator, managed to zap himself the first time he was showing us how it worked!)! When we got back home, we met 3 additional volunteers so we were 10 in total for the 2nd week.
The rest of the week was spent lion tracking - we were close to the female but didn't spot her and Zulu was nowhere to be found (I think we were really lucky last week as the other group hadn't seen her at all). We did a 20km walk in a place called 'Wilderness' which was good for the exercise but since I haven't done anything in months I really felt it plus none of had enough water with us! We were chased by a female ostrich which was hilarious as she kept sneaking up behind us and hiding behind the trees and bushes but then popping just her head and neck around and running towards us again. The rangers were carrying sticks to try and look taller than her but she wasn't having any of it and just kept stalking us. She followed us way out of her territory and I personally think she took a shine to David. They can be quite aggressive but luckily she didn't come that close!
We also managed to do a night drive which was nice. I was in the front seat which comes with responsibility - opening and closing gates and holding and sweeping the torch - I thought my arms were going to fall off! We didn't see a lot - some gemsbock and reedbuck, jackals and lots of spring hares (which are a sort of tiny kangaroo - very sweet) but it was a nice experience.
I got involved with the touch farm one morning which meant feeding the bunnies (no problem) and the chickens and geese (problem as they chase after you!). I also got to carry a baby ostrich out to its pen and they are definitely much nicer when they are young!
Thursday and Friday were fab days. We did a bit of tree chopping with machetes on Thursday morning and then went for a game drive in the afternoon - ideally to find some of the things I hadn't seen yet. Fairly early on we spotted the elephants I the distance. There's a fairly young calf so you can't get very close to them right now. We then went in search of the 2 white rhinos, at first to no avail. We were driving through a Mars-like landscape full of brown termite mounds when I thought I saw one moving. There, right next to the jeep was Zulu - the male lion. I found it hard to contain myself and started shouting "lion" like a bit of a muppet but it was fantastic to see him again - and so close up. Amazing.
After lunch we had the fantastic chance to go into the white lion enclosure. There's a male and female and they've always been in captivity but let's face it, they're still massive, they have huge teeth and claws and they will always be wild animals. They were absolutely stunning though and it was a great experience to be able to be so close up to them and stroke their faces. We then went into the enclosure of some young lions - they were a little too boisterous for my liking and after they ripped the ranger's shirt after a few seconds (no blood - I don't think!), I stood well back. Later in the afternoon we headed out to find the rhinos - and there they were. It was obviously my lucky day. We couldn't get too close as they're pretty timid but we were a few hundred feet away so close enough.
Friday morning was nice. David had agreed to take us out on a dawn drive so we were raring to go (kind of!) at 4.30am! Just as we entered the reserve, we saw the lone bull elephant by the watering hole. Apparently he normally doesn't let the jeeps get that close so it was fab to be so near and watch him for a while. We were hoping to see Zulu making his way somewhere but no such luck. We did see all 4 buffalos though, lots of giraffe, zebra, wildebeest and the various bok. And all of this before 7am!! We went back to bed and after breakfast went to the new tiger enclosure to plant some trees. Bloody hell, that was hard work. It was scorching scorching hot and there was no shade which made it hard to motivate yourself. The poor b*****s had to continue with that after I left!
Anyway, I'm now back in Port Elizabeth for the night, wine in hand. I've had a really great experience at Kwantu and am so glad I chose to do it. I'm now ready for the next leg which is a solo roadtrip to Cape Town along the garden route. I have 5 days to get there and am hoping to fit in a great white shark cage dive enroute, a visit to an ostrich farm and a day's wine-tasting in Stellenbosch.
Photos to date are on picasa (take a deep breath - there are lots and this is only half of them!!): www.picasaweb.google.com/lindylou73
Hope all is well in your part of the world and I look forward to hearing your news.
Linda xx
- comments
Debs Atlantic Fantastic blog, great to read all the news, sounds amazing as usual....I really don't know how you do it......you deserve one very big rest and make sure I'm there with you when you're all travelled out..... Take great care of yourself. Debs xx
mum Fantastic, and wiild life at long last!! Enjoy the next leg but be careful as you are alone. I know, I know you are not stupid but I know about SA am your mother!!!!Love you xx