Tinga Narina safari camp

Upon arrival at the Kruger Airport, we were to take a tiny plane to our first safari camp, Tinga Narina. The weather was socked in...so, a driver met us and drove us to this camp. Approximately 2 hour drive.

Wow! Tinga Narina exceeded any expectation we could have dreamed of! It is comprised of a large thatched roof main property (gorgeous! Once again, I will show pictures when I figure that out.) 9 thatched houses/suites are for the guests. You walk along planked bridges to get to your suite. In the evening, a security guard escorts you because you are amongst wild animals. One day, Tim almost stepped on a snake. He hasn't moved that fast since he was a high school quarterback!

Our first animal sighting was within the first 10 seconds. There were 3 hippos in the Sabi Sands River, bordering the main property. I squealed...I was so excited!!! We arrived on Wednesday and it is now Friday. By the end of our stay here, we will have been on 6 safari drives - our final is tomorrow (Saturday) morning. We have seen all the "big 5" (lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo, elephant) plus, hippos, hyneas, wildebeasts, zebras, giraffes, wart hogs, kudu, impala...it goes on and on. We have well over 400 pictures at this point.

Every safari ride is an absolute thrill for us! It got a little scary when an elephant directed a "mock charge" at our vehicle. All of our stomachs were in our throats at that moment. Our guide, William, challenged the elephant verbally and thankfully the elephant backed down. There were also a couple of potential close calls with lions. We had to quickly jump back into the Land Rover and get out in a hurry. It is so exciting! There is a family riding with us. They are quite nice and they have 2 adorable daughters. Hearing them jump and squeal every time a bug lands on them and their energy levels has made this trip extra special. Heather, the youngest (she's 15) nearly leaped over all of the seats when we had to move quick to get away from a lion. It's been great fun!

By the way- absolutely stunning birds here, as well. It is a bird watchers paradise.

Tinga Narina takes care of every detail. There is morning coffee/tea before a 5am safari drive. 3 hours later when you return, a full breakfast. Then, a 4-course lunch followed by high tea and snacks at 4:00. Then you go on the evening safari drive. Your evening ends around 8:30 when you return to a multi-course dinner.

We have had a great time. Tomorrow we leave for another safari camp. Thanks for reading our blog!

Touring the Winelands

What a terrific day we had touring the winelands outside of Cape Town. Bruce Storey with African Story Adventures was our guide. It was a private tour - and we couldn't have asked for a better day. The weather was also stunning. We had nearly 40 tastings and visited 4 wineries (Beyerskloof, Villiera, Tokara & Fairview). The last winery (Fairview) Bruce signed us up for a master tasting which paired 8 yummy cheeses with 8 wines. This winery also makes their own cheeses with goats milk. The goats were in the front of their expansive property. Even a baby goat!
South African wine is absolutely wonderful and the wineries are nothing short of spectacular. We bought a bottle of champagne for New Years Eve and a bottle of red with Tim's new favorite grape, pinotage. It's a mix between pinot noir and hermitage. A high quality, expensive bottle of wine here sells for no more than $10! Anyway - we took both bottles back to the Ezard House - and concerned we couldn't get them on the plane...we gave them both to one of the waiters in the restaurant. To say the least...he was ecstatic!

Ezard House in Camps Bay, Cape Town

Hi, all. Well...here we are in South Africa! The flight was a long one (18 hours or so, but, who's counting?!?). Our hotel, Ezard House, is absolutely stunning! This hotel is situated on Table Mountain and has a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean. Our room is also overlooking the ocean. I took pictures of every room - so, you will see them eventually when we download our pictures. Here is their website: www.ezardhouse.com
Yesterday we toured Cape Town and the waterfront area. After a driving tour, we walked around the waterfront. A couple of really gorgeous hotels are standouts: Cape Grace and the V&A. Cape Grace is certainly upper class with an elegance that is obvious the minute you walk thru the doors. Also, the V&A is spectacular. (Michael Jackson rented out the entire hotel for his friends a few years ago.) They were serving high tea while we were there. I sipped wine and Tim enjoyed a beer & cigar. Smoking is permitted here in public places. Last night we ordered a special seafood entree from the Ezard House chef. Wow! Gorgeous array of lobster, mussels, scallops, cray fish, etc. Yummy!
We also met the owner/builder of the Ezard House, Don. He is an orchestra conductor...and decided to build and run a hotel. This structure is contemporary in design and is his passion.
Today we are touring the winelands. Having a really fabulous time! Tomorrow we leave for Tinga Narina. The first safari camp we will be visiting. Can't wait to see the animals!!! Love to everyone...us!

Christmas Day 2008 - The day before we leave for Africa

We can't believe that we begin our African adventure tomorrow! We booked this trip back in February. Now we are packed using our new rolling duffel bags and backpack (for Tim) and a nicer looking carry-on for me (Joyce). Tim's backpack is nice, though. We have been immunized for everything imaginable and have malaria pills, just in case. I am hoping to keep this blog up during our journey. If I figure out how to download pictures, I will try to include them for you to participate along with us. Won't that be fun???
I have created a cheat sheet with the US to South African Rand conversion. It is an easy conversion - but, I made a cheat sheet anyway.
More to come...and thanks for tuning in!