We woke at 5 and started our day repacking our bags, having breakfast and exploring our digs in daylight. At breakfast we were joined by Benet a tour driver who was off to Kruger and Chobe today. The hotel is surrounded by two fences the second brick with a few electric lines above it. We saw a couple of birds guessing they were of the ibis family and confirmed when they flew off with a squawk. Two cats, a dead rat and an unfenced swimming pool later we were back at our cabin called Serengeti.
We spoke to some Sydneyites for a few minutes and then the owner came and picked up Harry's bag and took it to the car. I did wonder why I was left with two bags while the guys had one each. Harry said it might because he has grey hair - that one doesn't quite wash with me. We are now sitting at the airport looking at the departure board with names like Vilanculos and Tete and a few more familiar names like Livingstone and Victoria Falls. There are lots of seats reserved for families and the disabled but not oldies. Harry is doing the crossword and I am blogging (sound familiar?). Someone came and dropped their bag and wandered off. After about 10 minutes of feeling slightly edgy I reported it to the security guard. He came over and looked at it and said "we will leave it for 10 minutes and see if he comes back." Within the allotted time the security guard came over again with his mate and said "what do we do". Deciding that if it had anything sinister in it, it would be quick for us I continued blogging. A public address system with a voice asking the owner to pick up his bag had the desired effect. We are much more security conscious than others it appears.
The plane trip was like any other. Well except for messages in French and English telling us not to sleep on the floor, not to use any electronic devices including cell phones during take off and landing. I read the local paper and I was surprised that they have the many of the same issues to NZ - housing, acceptability of breast feeding in public, misbehaving politicians, the glass ceiling experienced by women, and the variability of the stock market.
After a lengthy and slow trip through customs (made shorter by a monkey playing outside the windows) we found Tete our driver. The hotel is nice, with good food, a large unfenced pool and many places to relax. And very welcoming staff.
We were hoping for a few hours of sleep before going on the dinner cruise. Well customs put paid to that. We think one of the hold ups was not everyone had $US which is the only way you could pay.
The boat trip was something special. We met up with a couple from Singapore who shared stories of their visit to their daughter in Nairobi. We sat on the top deck in large wicker chairs, drink in hand watching the sun set behind the trees, the birds coming home to roost and crocodiles catching the last of the afternoon sun. Our highlight was seeing hippos in the river, rising above the water with a snort and then a few minutes later submerging once again. Then round the corner a family of hippos came out of the water going home to their patch to sleep. Last of all came baby not much bigger than a half grown lamb except quite a bit rounder.
It fell dark and quiet and we retreated downstairs for our 4 course dinner which we ate as the boat floated slowly back to the dock. We crashed as soon as we arrived and slept soundly until 4 in the morning. What a great day.
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