Whale Peak

Got out on Saturday for a good hike with friends. We tried this peak back in June when there was just too much snow!  This time was perfect, no snow and beautiful weather and fall colors. I Heart Colorado.

Dogs photobombing the summit shot. Thanks Ez and Bean. 

Autumn Willows, Whale Peak in the background.  Good hike!

Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs...

One of the great joys of travelling (besides meeting new people, seeing new sights and enjoying a totally different culture), is reading SIGNS!  These are the best of the best from our recent travels...some speak for themselves, some need a bit of explanation.  Enjoy!

 

Jordan is a Muslim country.  This means alcohol is rarely available on a menu.  But their overuse of the word "Happy Hour" leads me to believe they don't actually know what it means.



 

Near Petra, Jordan

In Aqaba, Jordan.  When we asked our guide in Cairo about this, he said "of course they deliver, and  very fast too..."  Amazing.  He couldn't believe they don't deliver in the US.

Near Israel in Jordan

 Near the Dead Sea in Jordan.  Love the picture.

Important when travelling to a Muslim country.  It was horrible, by the way.

This is one of the MANY MANY Butchery & Hotel signs we saw in Kenya, selling live animals too.  We eventually asked our guide - he said they use the world "hotel" for a place to rest and get a drink.  OHHHHHHH!  Of course.

 

What the heck is a Breath Clinic?  In Kenya.

In Kenya - an Oil Hotel.  Perfect.  And above OilLibya.  Even more perfect.

Jesus Winner Ministries.  Lots of similar ones in Kenya.  Love the name.

It's the Highclass Butchery (& Grocery), in Kenya.  Many people raise goats and sheep and cows.  Meat is very expensive, so there is at least one butchery in every town, no matter how small.  Most towns have multiple ones.

In Kenya, of course.  Two in one Butchery.  Wonder what #1 and #2 are?

 

Almost SpongeBob, but not quite.  Near Aqaba, Jordan

Steam Bath = A "holiday for your lungs"...

Read it from top right.  What?!  In Cairo airport.

 

Hippos in the river.

On our last night, we sit around a fire pit by the Masa River, listening to snorting hippos. We saw many many animals today, from migrating wildebeests to mating lions!  

We start our long trip home tomorrow. A 7 hour drive to Nairobi followed by several flights home. As always, I'm ready to go home but sad to leave the country we visit. The people we have met on our travels have been wonderful, especially our safari companions - Trish and Murray, Yvonne and Ken and our guide, James.

Some parting shots below. We will post a bunch of photos online when we pick through the hundreds we've taken - I'll post the link here so check back. Also check back for a more well written blog entry about all the wonderful countries we visited and some overall impressions!

Male Lion. 

At the Kenya and Tanzania border.  Tanzania is behind us in this photo b

Wildebeest migration. Thousands and thousands of wildebeest in Masai Mara right now. Amazing. Along with thousands of FLIES!

Love on the Serengeti. Or at leat some action. Honeymoon lions mate constantly for 4-7 days and don't even eat or drink while mating!

South toward Tanzania

After two very long days in the car, and an overnight at Lake Nakuru (disappointing in my opinion), we arrived at Masai Mara yesterday, part of the Serengeti and bordering Tanzania. 

I can tell you that they've both been the longest car rides I've had in a long time and the shortest. Shortest because we have great company, two other couples that are a lot of fun to be around and we are driving through a new country. Longest because it has been 6+ hours each day of driving horribly potholed and eroded roads in a vehicle that is super tough but at the same time sounds like it's going to rattle apart and burst into a million pieces at any moment.  Longest also because apparently somewhere in our travels, I either got a hold of bad water in ice or on fruit or vegetables, or maybe those two undercooked over easy eggs did a number on me, but let's just say I ended up with something that leaves you wanting your next bathroom stop NOW. Thank goodness for the strong antibiotics we brought with us. It seems to be on the way out, no pun intended, haha. 

We've seen a lot of roadside Kenya. Most are farming communities and the livestock looks healthy, especially the goats and sheep. It is a hilly mountainous country complimented by large open plains. The scenery reminds us a lot of Colorado in some ways. In short, it is beautiful. 

We saw a cheetah and two male lions last night, along with many many wildebeest and a few hyenas and jackals. We have an ALL DAY game drive today, complete with box lunches and peeing in the bush. Hopefully lots to report after that. 

Storm over the Serengeti 

Melissa with dead wildebeest carcuss. Great background, huh?

Sleepy young male lion. 

Cheetah - our first!

Hippos in the river directly in front of our tent. They make little (big) snorting sounds, FYI. 

5/5

Well our guide scored a leopard for us tonight, and a pride of 9 lions this morning!  Samburu has given us many sightings, and close up ones at that. 

Leopards are the hardest of the big 5 to spot. They are so striking with their spots. In order to get to this leopard, our driver drove faster around bumpy curvy gravel roads than I've ever experienced. Those of you that know me well, know I get carsick. But I will say the leopard was worth every nauseous moment. The guides communicate through radio and the second lead he got panned out for us. We pulled up and were able to see it for about a minute before it jumped down and disappeared into the bush. They're very shy. 

The lions were also amazing, all ages in the pride including 3 tiny kittens. We got to watch them for probably a half an hour. 

Tomorrow, we have an 8 hour drive to the next reserve. Yuck!  3 more nights left before we make the long trek home. 

Intense leopard. 

Grooming baboons with baby. 

Part of the pride, kittens in front. 

Lion grooming. Lots of love there. 

Giraffe montage.

I declare giraffes my favorite African animal (so far). So, this entry is dedicated just to them in their long-necked glory. 

They are such peaceful animals with inquisitive faces and just stand and watch you, unmoving, for minutes. When they walk, they seem to glide and aren't in any hurry to get anywhere.  They are definitely my favorite. 

Quick facts we learned about giraffes:

1) They regulate blood pressure much better than humans. This regulation is also attached to why they never lay their head down when they sleep. 

2) They sleep for only 5-30 minutes per day. 

3) Their bones have no marrow, they are solid bone. 

4) They usually get attacked when they are laying down or eating/drinking. This is because they are slow to get back up. 

5) There are 3 kinds in Africa. Masai (which we haven't seen yet), Rothschild (endangered one), and Reticulated. 

6) They can run up to 55km/hr. 

7) Despite their peaceful nature, one kick from their leg can kill a lion. 

8) Their tongue is 45cm long and their saliva is like an antiseptic!  If they get cut while eating a thorn, it heals quickly. 

North toward Ethiopia

We left Sweetwater Game Reserve today. We headed north, into drier conditions and lower altitude. It is HOT here, near 100 when we arrived.  After the 40s of last night, it seems hotter than it is, I'm sure. 

The camp at Sweetwater was different - greener, more manicured. This camp feels more rugged and wild. Monkeys roam the camp and try to break in to your tent, so you have to be sure to zip it up and put the provided caribeener around all zippers when you leave.  At the last camp it was the baboons, but the baboons didn't know how to use a zipper yet, so there, zipping was sufficient. Not here. The small monkeys must be smarter. :)  Of course, Tom has already fed one of the monkeys some of a granola bar from our tent patio, which I'm sure will increase our "trouble with monkeys" chances.  

Last night, still at Sweetwater, he put the camera on a tripod to try to get a picture of a baboon right around nightfall (they were swarming the trees directly behind our tent). I was inside the tent when I heard a scuffle, a curse, and Tom scrambling onto the stairs. Hehe. Apparently he was nearly trampled by some gazelle like hoofed animal that came charging through camp. Needless to say he never got the photo. We may try to hook our bendy tripod onto the patio railing and bait a monkey with a granola bar to attempt a close up tomorrow!

On our game drives today we saw more lions VERY close up, and the 5 animals only found here, in Samburu - a certain type of ostrich, gazelle, oryxes, zebras and one I can't remember, darn it!

Our wireless connection is totally unreliable here, so I will try to add pictures to this entry later tonight, but no promises. I'm not sure the bandwidth will allow it!

Male lion close up. 

Two female lions. 

Kenya delivers.

4/5 of the "Big Five".  Rhino (white), Elephant, Cape Buffalo & Lions!  All that's left of the Big 5 is the elusive Leopard. 

 

We are in a tent camp on the equator in the Sweetwater conservancy park, but are headed north tomorrow, closer to Ethiopia - Samburu is the name.  If it's anything like what we saw today, we are in for some great spotting!  Africa is definitely a whole different world, as I write this blog, I'm listening to the baboons which line the trees around our camp, they're huffing and puffing in what sounds sometimes like a hearty laugh. 

On our first game drive we saw tons of animals.  Oryxes, gazelle, lots of birds, impalas, zebras, chimpanzees, baboons and more I can't recall. I hear the last reserve we will visit should deliver very close lions and the best chance at seeing the leopard.  We failed to get a picture of a Cape buffalo but the rest are below!

We also have great safari companions. There are only 6 of us. A younger couple from NYC and an older couple from Alberta, Canada. All really fun people with great senses of humor. Should be a fun week!!

Tom found a new friend. Coco the chimp at the conservancy. 

 

One of two female lions we saw hunting warthogs. 

 

White Rhino

 

 

Two young male elephants, scouring for grass. Most have moved onto greener areas, but these two were there waiting for us. 

 

"Baboon Tree". Yes those are all baboons!

 

Obligatory equator pic. 

Lots to tell.

3 countries in two days leaves a person sleep deprived!  We flew out of Jordan at 6am Friday, landed in Cairo and met our guide for the day, Ahmed. He was fantastic!  Not one of those "talk too much and hover around" types. Personally I think this is because he snuck off to smoke his hand rolled cigarettes quite often, but he was great!  We saw the pyramids, the famed Egypt antiquities museum, had tea (mint, of course) in El Fishawy, the oldest coffee shop in Cairo and wandered through mosques and bazaars.  Pictures below, of course.

Everywhere we went Egyptians were overwhelmingly welcoming. Ahmed said tourism is down 95% recently. VISIT EGYPT!  We never felt unsafe and we walked all over downtown, the Islamic neighborhoods and more. Sure, they have a big military presence but that's OK. Seriously, visit. 

In Jordan, the officers at the checkpoints on their roads shook our hands as we rolled through in our rented Kia, asking where we were from and declaring that we are always welcome in their country. I have never met more welcoming people than the middle easterners we came across. Such warm people. Don't let the media scare you away. 

We arrived in Nairobi after a short red eye flight from Cairo at 345am. After being questioned about our health, countries visited and temperature scanned (Ebola screening), and then escorted to an airport bank for USD (another story), we met James who drove us to our hotel and we crashed. Later we visited a giraffe sanctuary, and I used the gym at our hotel to crank out a few miles. Safari starts TOMORROW!!

Sorry for that long blog but we've been off the radar for awhile. Now for the pictures!

In Cairo:

No explanation needed 

Again, none needed

Having tea

Crowded streets of the bazaar 

Now in Kenya:

Giraffe kisses for Tom

Giraffe kisses for Melissa with tiny warthog legs in the background 

And speaking of warthogs, we learned today that warthogs are killed by predators because they have such a short memory that they forget they are being chased WHILE they are being chased, and they stop running. Seriously?!

Take me to the Pyramids!

We are off on a very early flight to Cairo for a whirlwind tour of the city, then onto Nairobi. It's going to be a busy couple of travel days!

Quick picture from the Dead Sea yesterday, it really is as easy to float as they say!  Your feet just pop up and you bob around like a buoy.

PS - shaving your legs the day before going to the Dead Sea is not the best idea. 

Luxury Day 2

Tom and I spent the day lounging by the pool and snorkeling, in lieu of heading back into the desert to explore, it is just too hot here!  So, we hung close to the water.  We saw tons of fish just along the reef near the shore. The sea floor drops off QUICKLY, so you find yourself perched on the edge of the abyss with a reef to one side. We did another similar drift snorkel in Bonaire years ago, with maybe a bit larger fish, but this trip was still packed with coral and fish, and I spotted two pretty large barracuda in deeper water, skimming the surface for smaller fish. 

This resort is such a melting pot, different than you would find closer to home in Mexico or the Caribbean. Muslim families, women in burka swimsuits (basically a loose looking track suit with the head covering, I'm not sure of the proper name for these garments, although I'm sure there is one), next to scantily clad European women (and men) on holiday. It's quite the contrast. 

But, alas, onto the Dead Sea tomorrow, then a VERY early flight to Cairo on Friday AM. I will try to get a pic of the Dead Sea up tomorrow night but no promises. And I think Friday and Saturday will be very hard to find wireless, so you may not find a new post here until we find our way to Nairobi, unless I can find some airport wifi along the way. 

One last look at the Red Sea before heading north tomorrow...