Africa Part 1

For Christmas, Shea and I decided that we would go to Africa in 2015 as our big holiday destination. After months of planning, the big day finally arrived for us to catch our flights to Tanzania.  We were super excited to go and the upgrade on our first stretch of the trip was a huge bonus.  Unfortunately, this high did not last long and we landed in Nairobi very late. Thankfully, we were able to make our connection but our luggage did not catch up to us until the next night at Arusha.

We were beginning to believe that Mt. Kilimanjaro was a myth as we never got to see it. 

No luggage? No problem!  I am in Africa!

While in Arusha, we stayed at a wonderful resort Called River Trees. It had both a river and trees. Because we did not have luggage, we were not able to take advantage of the swimming pool, bike rides and hiking that it offered but we did get to see a few things. 

Our room! It was so pretty. And huge!

The little river that ran through the property.

We don't even know what this is. It looked like some sort of melon after Shea finally cracked it open.

We finally came across our first wildlife: monkeys!  They were so cute and interesting to watch. That was until they turned on us and chased us across a field.  I have never screamed so loud or ran so fast!  All because of a pack of stupid vervent monkeys.

Don't be fooled by this face. Vervent monkeys are vicious and mean!

Fact: Vervent monkeys are far more enjoyable when they are in the trees and not on the ground.

We actually got a lot of pictures of these guys before the attack.

 After this ordeal, we headed to the bar where they served Canadian Rye. And that ended the exploring we did at Arusha.

Chased by monkeys? No problem. I have rye!

A starling bird, African style.

Safari Shea

The next day, we hopped on a tiny plane to fly to the Mahale Mountains. This was our first time riding in a tiny plane.  They basically serve the purpose of a bus in North America. They fly, land, drop people and supplies off, fly again and repeat.

Our plane. 

View of Tanzania from the sky.

Thankfully, this was not our landing.  This plane was at our landing destination.

Selfie with the plane.

 Then it was onto a boat for an hour or so to get to our resort.

Selfie on the boat.

One of the fishing villages we passed along the way.

Our home for 4 days.

This resort had permanent tents as accommodation. That meant that our tent had hardwood floors, plumbing, lighting and all the comforts of a hotel room. The only difference was the walls were canvas. The tent was then under a thatched roof so you didn't have to worry about touching the canvas if it rained (it never did).  It also sat on a wood platform which was extended with a lovely deck to sit at and watch the sunsets.

The king sized bed in the "tent"

Bathroom.

Desk area

Our views outside.

The main reason to go to the Mahale Mountains is for the chimpanzees. The chimps that we got to see have been studied by Japanese scientists for over 40 years.  They were quite comfortable with humans being around.  The only difficult thing is that you never know where they are and whether you will see them.  You could spend all day hiking through the forest and never see one.  The hiking is ridiculously hot too. Because of the terrain, you need to be covered head to toe and it's Africa, which means the weather is hot and humid.  After you accept the fact that you are sweaty and gross, it isn't too bad.  While walking, you are listening to the sounds of the forest for any sign of an animal being nearby.  Our guides were wonderful in telling us what we were hearing and pointing out different signs that the chimps are near (half eaten fruit, chimp foot prints, poop).  And just when you don't think you can walk another step and sweat is pouring down your face, a chimp emerges from the forest!

Our first encounter. This is an older female chimp with a five year old male son trailing behind. 

 And all those hours of hiking, and listening to the forest finally pay off.

We were very lucky. On our first day, we were taken into the forest for a couple hours to get acquainted with what to expect.We also got to see a few chimps.

The sun setting on Lake Tanganyika.

After our luck on the first trek, it was time for our first official trek to see the chimps. This means that a park ranger must accompany the group to ensure all rules are followed. In order to protect the species, you must wear a face mask when near the chimps (they can easily catch our diseases) and you only get to be near them for one hour each day. There are a bunch of rules about how close you can get and what to do if one comes near you. After our experience the first day, I did not think we would get near the chimps. I also did not think we would see many chimps together. Thankfully, I was wrong...

This little guy was running and climbing everywhere.

This young man was very close to us on the path. 

These two walked right by us, a mere meter away from us.

Just a bunch of chimps hanging out.

Chimp watching. 

We also saw our first warthog. Hello Pumba!

Chimp trekking is sweaty work!

Three little chimps, sitting in a tree...

 After a five hour hike (with one hour to watch the chimps, it was time to come back to camp.  As we were washing the forest off us, a group of baboons decided to play on and around our "tent."

A baby baboon out the window.

 Then it was time to enjoy the beach and sip some drinks in the sun shade.

We are loving Mahale!

Our second day started with a boat ride up the lake to see crocodile and hippos. We managed to see one of these!

A couple of stow-aways on our boat.

Hippos! 

Shea enjoying Africa.

 Then it was back to the chimps for our final visit.

Relaxing in the sun.

An older female.

A young male, lounging in the heat of the day.

The chimps were absolutely worth the time, effort (sweat) and money it took to see them. They are so much like us. They have a political system within the group that does not rely on strength but rather, intelligence and networking. They care for each other and each others young (we met one chimp who lost his mother at an early age and was then raised by the group). They share resources and teach each other how to fish termites with sticks. They are very peaceful creatures and their eyes show their feelings and thoughts. Spending a short time among the chimps was one of the top things I have every been able to experience in my life.

Here is a short video of one of my favorite moments watching these magnificent animals:

Croatia

For those who do not know, Shea recently decided to switch companies.  As a result, he had a few weeks of garden leave where he was still getting paid by the former company but could not start at the new company.  This left us with a bit of time on our hands (and me with an especially annoying husband to contend with).  After a few days of this, we decided we had to take advantage of this opportunity (how often do you get extra time off in the middle of summer?) and go on holiday.

After a few days of debating and talking with friends about where to go, Shea remembered an article he had read on a BA flight about a company that was trying to make is easier for tourists to rent sailboats and explore the world from the seas.  After a couple hours of research, we had a trip basically planned to sail for a week. The hardest part was where to sail: Greek Islands or Croatia? We have been getting a lot of news about the various situations in Greece (debt crisis, migrants from the sea) and decided that Croatia was the better option.

Interesting fact: our knowledge on Croatia and sailing are very limited. Thankfully, we hired a skipper who took care of us and taught us a thing or two about both! The journey through Croatia, tracked on a map can be found using the following link:

http://www.scribblemaps.com/maps/view/Croatia/2z7Esd5J2E

The numbers will correspond to various locations mentioned below and will be in blue font.

No matter where we go, Shea can always find some sort of version of a hot dog.

 After flying from London to Croatia's largest airport in Zagreb (it was actually very small), we then had to take a 5 hour bus ride to Biograd (1), where our boat awaited us.

Someone was a bit too tall to stand inside the ship.

 And off we sailed!

Shea getting used to steering "Elizabet" (that was the ship's name).

Biograd is a small sailing town. Kind of pretty, but not much to do other than be on a boat or enjoy the many beaches.

 Our first attempt out of port was unsuccessful. A huge storm blew in and we had to turn back to Biograd for the day.

The storm in the distance.

 The next day, we were finally able to sail off and explore Croatia's Archipelago.

I'm actually on a sailboat!

We got to see some beautiful sunsets from the Adriatic Sea.

 Our first stop-over was at Zlarin, a tiny port island with not much (2). There are no vehicles on this island, but Shea did notice the nude beaches on the map.  Here, I learnt how to was my hair of the back of a boat (there were no shower/bathroom facilities here) which was far easier than using the tiny bathroom on board our ship.

Zlarin. That is pretty much the whole town. 

This was my nemesis the whole week: the plank.  I hated having to walk across this thing to get on and off the ship.  I never seemed secure enough and the distance from land to the ship was always at least two steps. 

The sails are up on a happy, sunny day!

The archipelago is full of hundreds of islands covered with pine trees.  We learnt that where there is pine in Croatia, there are crickets. Tons of them all making their cricketing sounds.  Many of the islands have old stone fences around the bottom as they were used for farming many, many years ago.

View from the "kitchen" window.

 Our second day on the high seas consisted of sailing up a river, passed Sibenik to Skradin (3).

Entering the estuary with Sibenik in the distance.

We got to sail under a bridge.

As we got close to the bridge, a bungee jumper jumped. 

We also got to see some very impressive yachts along the way. 

This is the Ferrari of yachts. It's 118 feet long and only $33 million.

Finally, we arrived at Skradin, another little port town.

 Skradin has one attraction worth seeing (other than the charm the town offers).  If you hop on a ferry, it will take you to Krka National Park. Within the park are amazing waterfalls to see and swim in.

This is as close to the falls as I was willing to take my camera to.  

But we have a Go Pro which got these shots!

The water was so refreshing on a hot, sunny day.

Skradin was my absolute favourite place that we saw in Croatia. The town was beautiful and peaceful. The falls were amazing and the marina was wonderful with a live band playing in the evening.  I could have easily spent another day in this paradise.

After Skradin, we sailed to Murter (4). The sailing was a bit damp but when we arrived, the clouds parted and the sun came up.

The skies of Murter. 

Shea enjoying some sun!

The next day of sailing was a bit scary. It was our first day sailing into the wind. This means you have to have the sails just right or they flip to the other side. You also can't sail straight to where you want to go. You have to zig-zag there which can take some time. We had very heavy winds and rough seas to also contend with.

As you can see, we are not exactly sitting flat against the ocean or the land ahead. This angle was very scary as you think you will roll down from port to starboard and then into the sea. 

Thankfully, we had a fantastic, experienced skipper to keep us upright. 

I was not exactly sure of this sailing business at this point. I was ready for the boat to tip over and had my evacuation plan plotted in my head.

Shea on the other hand loved it!

This video should give you a sense of what it was like.  The sail at the front is at 90 degrees with the water when we are upright and not tilted.

Shea working hard on his holiday!

Shea also took a stab at sailing upwind and tacking the sails from port to starboard.

 Our next stop was Zut (5), The little towns were starting to look the same now...

Zut-Alors! That means "damn it" in French. 

From Zut, we went to Park Priorode Telascica (6) (a National park). This one had cliffs and a salt lake in store for us.

Yep, that's a cliff. 

Us trying to smile through the heat after walking uphill to the cliff. 

Yep, that looks like a lake. I will take your word on it that it is salty. After all, I can swim in the sea on this trip. 

Shea decided beer makes the hot day better.

This was our home in Croatia. The Elizabet. She is a Bavaria 32.

After all this sailing, it was finally the end of the week and time to return to Biograd (1).

Living on-board a ship was not a piece of candy. It was interesting, but it was not the Four Seasons.

This was our bedroom for the trip. It is basically a triangle shaped bed with a couple tiny pillows. The length of the bed is 6 feet. On each side are some cabinets to store your clothes. We also each had a tiny closet on each side of the door. We did have a skylight that we could open to see the stars.

The Kitchen and the door into the Skipper's room. Under that circular piece of counter is the hatch to the fridge. Beside it is where the stove is.  The circular piece of counter covers the sink when you are sailing. 

This is the dining/living area. The kitchen is off to the bottom left. Through the door was our bedroom.  On the bottom right is the control area. 

The control area where all the electrics, maps, mp3 player are found. The bathroom is just behind it.

Picture taken from our bedroom. Bathroom door is on the left. You have to go up those stairs and out the companionway to get on deck. 

Shea and I both fell in love with sailing and are planning to do this again in the future. Our goal now is to become certified skippers so we would be qualified to command a sailboat.  We are thrilled that we will be able to explore the world this way as it opens so many new places to visit while challenging us to learn new skills and work together so one of us is not thrown overboard.