Pbenjay's Blog

My friend Barbara just returned from a lovely long trip to South Africa.  I had been there with her many years ago and loved every minute of my adventure and experience.  I went back to South Africa a few years ago, this time with my husband and my sister and brother in-law.  We had a great time and I was able to relive and revisit some of the best of my former trip.  On my second trip we went to Kruger National Park and on safari.  There is NOTHING like seeing one of great beasts of Africa close up and free.  Giraffes towered over the truck, a pride of lions walked alongside our vehicle before dawn one day.

Africa is ginormous and different!  Not just different from here, lol, Manhattan but different looking countryside is everywhere.  I can’t say that I have traveled extensively through my own country so I don’t know if the mountains in Colorado resemble the mountains in Africa or if the forests of the Northwest are anything like the amazing forest we saw along the Panoramic Route.

Barbara left South Africa to go on a road trip that took them northeast to Namibia and she went on safari there.  Unfortunately she didn’t send me a lot of photos – but I did get to see them last night.  I was flabbergasted by the totally different terrain there.  Gone were the lush green forests and waterfalls of South Africa and in their place, dessert.  Deserts filled with Quiver trees and brush.  Huge almost barren landscapes next to virgin beaches with the whitest of sand.  And there were also fields of flowers in every color imaginable.  When I was in South Africa I fell in love with Proteas, that beautiful big fat blossom of a flower, but Barbara had photos of flowers I never knew existed.

PROTEAS
photo by blogs.scientificamerican.com

Best of all, best of any trip to Africa are the wildlife.   I have one photo she sent to me while she was there.  It speaks for itself.

Magnificent Beasts
photo by Barbara

Related articles

• Namibia wipes colonialism off the map (theguardian.com)