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Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

8/22/2013

One afternoon a pride of lions was spotted and needless to say we were very excited.

One lioness kept walking closer and closer and closer. I just kept taking pictures and then she looked straight at me and I seriously thought she was going to jump in the Land Rover with us.( What a photo that would have been!!!) But she sniffed & walked away.

Just look how photogenic the granddad is and how proud the young male is of his little mane. ...

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Animal Planet

8/22/2013

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[Note: Sorry I haven't been posting. Mike & I were both afflicted with a mean tummy bug for a couple days - Mike while at the lodge & me after arriving in Cape Town. That's a first for both of us on an international trip. I blame airline travel. Fortunately, we both felt better before our epic travel day home.
So buckle up & join us on the final part of our journey ...]
Game drives are so incredible!!! They genuinely care about the animals. Although we got pretty close, the animals were given the greatest respect and are never touched or harrassed in any way. The animals go about their business & we had the privilege to watch.

The meals were top notch - the best we had in South Africa & that's saying a lot. We actually ate impala one night and warthog another night. Yes, they were both delicious. Impala is very common here - and tastes like very lean beef or buffalo. Warthog is - well - a funky-looking hog. Leaner than pork tho' and the meat was a little darker - very tasty wrapped in bacon. =) And don't worry neither is an endangered species - we were just exercising our rights as carnivores. We weren't the only ones eating impala & warthog ...

We had examples of carnivores all around us. We visited the momma leopards and their cubs each day. Each had a fresh kill. They eat to their full the first day & then each momma put both her cub and her kill in the tree tops to keep the meat safe from the hyenas & other predators. Of course the hyenas would be under the trees to catch anything that fell and looked very hopeful that the whole kill would fall down. Hyenas do kill cubs on occasion when they are small but these cubs were getting big enough to care for themselves and they can run very fast. Then after a few days - to keep her cub safe - momma moves away from what is left of the kill. The leopards will be full for a few more days and then momma will have to hunt again.

The Kirkmans Kamp lodge where we stayed was a manor house back in the day. A rich Englishman tried to raise cattle there but ended up spending most of the time killing the lions who ate his cattle - ummm - duh. Later they turned it into a hunting lodge - rich people would come & spend a lot of money to kill a lot of animals for sport. Now it is park of the Sabi Sands Game Reserve and all the animals are protected. The game reserve is right along the boundary with Kruger National Park and there is no fence between so the animals can roam freely everywhere. They are working very hard to keep poachers out of the game reserve - our car was thoroughly searched when we entered the area. But sadly poachers kill hundreds of rhino each year for their horns. One horn is worth $300,000 on the black market, and with the average wage for a poor family at $30 a month, you can see the incentive.

One afternoon there was an abundance of animals right out our back door. We just sat on the patio watching monkeys, bushbaks, elephants, warthogs and more.

Our stay there was very relaxing (except for the 5:30 am wake up knock on the door for the early morning game drive) and we would have liked to stay longer. The service was impeccible and every game drive was a real adventure. Must come back here someday when our granddaughter is older.

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Out of Africa

8/21/2013

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We have seen TV shows about game drives/safaris in Africa and wonder do they really see all those animals and are you even close enough to see them clearly? The answer is Yes & Yes.

At least here at Kirkmans Kamp in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve. Our guides are excellent and they literally drive us right up close to the animals at the same time respecting the animals and their habitat. We have only been on three drives and have seen two mother leopards with their kill for the day, rhinos doing a courtship dance, giraffes eating breakfast, a herd of elephants crossing the river, zebras and so much more.

It may sound funny but it actually reminds us of "boonie-hopping" with my Dad - going on dirt roads in 4-wheel drive and just going and going to see what you can see. The terrain looks similar but the animals are very different from home. :-)

It's been yet another life-changing experience on this trip and a true testament to the marvels of creation - absolutely amazing!! I could go on & on but the pictures are worth a thousand words. Enjoy!

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A day with Pretoria friends

8/19/2013

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Today we spent the day with the Sunnyside, Waterkloof, and Muckleneuk congregations. Their Kingdom Hall, the first built in Pretoria, is home to five congregations and additional foreign language groups.

We started the day in the ministry in the areas surrounding the Kingdom Hall. Quite a different experience from our home territory in rural Nevada. But we found several to talk with and enjoyed ourselves very much.

After a delicious lunch enjoyed outside under the trees, we had an very enjoyable program presented by the local brothers and some fun & games too. It was so nice to enjoy some one on one time with the friends.

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The Special Convention

8/16/2013

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How to describe the convention in a nutshell: amazing, life-changing, a huge demonstration of love and unity. There aren't enough words and there isn't enough time to describe the incredible experience we had the last three days.

The program was presented in Zulu and English. There was a peak attendance on Sunday of over 20,000. We met people from all over Africa: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, Namibia, Ghana, and Congo. There was a front page article in Monday's Pretoria News about the convention.

The local brothers and sisters are very warm, kind and loving and so grateful that we traveled all this way to visit them. The days went too fast and we wish we had more time to hear the stories of those we met and to meet more people.They have such a love for God and many have gone through so much.

The children were so sweet and so polite. Such beautiful smiles and lots of hugs. We have been very impressed by the young adults we met who are serving in the full-time ministry - they are so giving and very happy.

We felt a little like celebrities because everyone wanted to take pictures with us. ;-) We have been so loved and so well cared for. We feel so blessed to have been here and see our worldwide brotherhood in action.

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A visit to the South Africa Branch

8/15/2013

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Thursday's highlight was a visit to the South Africa Branch office. Most of the printing for the continent south of the Sahara is done here & in many languages. So many exciting things happening in Africa right now. The growth is incredible - they can't keep up. The branch just received approval for a large expansion adding another MAN printing press + another residence building and other support buildings. We enjoyed a nice lunch with the Bethel family followed by a great program including a choir performance - their talent is amazing. The day ended all too soon.

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Our first evening in Pretoria ...

8/14/2013

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After we arrived at our hotel, we rested for a bit, showered & changed and were transported to a welcoming reception at the beautiful assembly hall in Midrand. It was so enjoyable. The local friends gave us a big welcome & put on a delicious buffet for the delegates. We received a really nice surprise when Summer, one of our travel buddies from the 2009 Munich convention, found us. We hadn't seen Summer in four years and it was so good to see her & catch up a bit.

A really nice presentation followed with the history of JWs in South Africa, a bit of what life was like under Apartheid and how the brothers coped, the current progress of the ministry work and the huge amount of work being done at the branch office. The highlight was: songs sung by a children's choir. Just want to pack them all up and bring them home. Too precious!

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BIG Travel Day

8/13/2013

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[Note added Friday, Aug 16: Sorry we haven't been posting. Our days are packed full. And internet is spotty at best - must put laptop in certain position in room with foot up in the air & tongue hanging out of mouth and hold breath. So here goes ...]

Backtracking to Tuesday,August 13th, we left New York in a downpour with a 15 hr flight ahead of us. Here is a summary of the flight:
Hours 1-5: OK no problem - I got this. Eat dinner. Read e-book. Listen to music with noise cancelling headphones (Note: headphones definitely worth it).
Hour 6: Person in front of me reclines for the rest of the flight and takes a lot of valuable square inches from the already miniscule personal space of my claustrophic self. :-(
Hours 7-10: Is it just me or is it getting really hot in here. Why isn't there a personal air vent? Try to sleep. Try to find comfortable position. Try to sleep. Forget it - watch movie.
Hours 11-12: Hit the wall. Let me out of this plane - PLEASE. Where is the exit?
Hour 13: Sleep for a full 15 minutes then get awaken by the flight crew serving snacks.
Hours 14-15: Watch "Life of Pi" and envy the fact he is stuck on a lifeboat with a Tiger. That doesn't really sound so bad in comparison - at least he had fresh air and leg room. And he didn't have to go through passport control, security, etc.

Wednesday, August 14th: We land at 6:30 a.m.
OK, I did survive the flight and we did get through the passport inspection and our bags did finally arrive. But we are EXTREMELY tired, unshowered, and hungry. Starting to wonder why I left my comfortable rut, my comfort zone ...

And then we are greeted in the airport terminal by local friends who volunteered to greet every flight that had delegates attending the convention. They had a welcome desk, transportation arranged for us to Pretoria (about 30 miles from Johannesburg airport), a choir singing beautifully a cappella, and lots of hugs. Long flight forgotten. :-)

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The Adventure Begins

8/10/2013

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Sunday, August 11: FINALLY we are on our way! It is so stressful getting everything done & ready especially the week before. But after all the months of planning, we are in the air. A trip just doesn't feel real until the plane takes off.

We flew over our home after take off (at about Noon). [I waved to you, KeikiBoo, hope you saw me.] :)

Today's agenda: 1) Travel - Reno to Salt Lake, get an overprice lunch at the airport, SLC to JFK in New York & get to the hotel. 2) Be cool and remember to breathe.

Monday, August 12: We've learned from previous trips that a "decompression day" is very important. So today we slept in (much needed after the long hours we've been pulling just to get out of town) and now we are handling final trip & work details before we take off tomorrow.

The parts I am least looking forward to: 1) leaving my grandbaby behind and missing her first day of school, 2) airports - esp security-ugh!, and 3) the 15+ hour flight.

What I am most looking forward to: 1) meeting lots of new friends at the convention - esp. the children, 2) going on a safari, and 3) experiencing a new culture & new foods! Yep. That about covers it.

PROLOUGE:
Mike & I have been invited to be delegates to the Special (International) Convention of Jehovah's Witnesses in Pretoria, South Africa, in August. There will be 1500 international delegates from the United States and other African countries as well as several thousand local South African Witnesses. The convention is three days and we will spend three additional days spending time with local friends.

After the convention, we will enjoy time at a wildlife reserve near Kruger National Park and end our trip by spending a few days in Cape Town. (See the stars on the map.)

This is a once in a lifetime trip and we are so excited to be going. :-D

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Forward>>

Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

Animal Planet

Out of Africa

A day with Pretoria friends

The Special Convention

A visit to the South Africa Branch

Our first evening in Pretoria ...

BIG Travel Day

The Adventure Begins

South Africa

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Ginny & Mike