The ride was pretty uneventful at first. Our first stop was at a rest stop that looked pretty much identical to the ones we have back home including eateries, coffee shops, and a gas station. The second stop was just to use the bathroom. The third stop, however, was much different then the rest.
.jpg "Bryce Canyon, South Africa 2015") |
| Bryce Canyon (Photo by TravellingFool.com) |
At our third stop we went to Bryce Canyon, the third largest canyon in the world. The view was breathtaking with huge mountains of colorful rock divided by a crystal blue river. We were lucky enough to view two different areas of it. With the cool wind and the pink, green, and tan colored rocks ahead of us it made for an excellent rest stop.
After viewing the canyon and shopping at the vendors for a few souvenirs we piled back into the car and made the last push to Kruger. I slept through most of that part of the leg, waking only briefly when we passed the farm that had a giraffe, rhino, gazelle, and buffalo on it.
When we finally bumped and bounced our way through the dirt trails to Ezulwini, the game lodge that we will be calling home for the next three days.
The first order of business was to listen to the itinerary and rules from Aubrey, our main host, then it was a quick stop in our rooms before heading out on our first safari of the trip.
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| Safari ride in Kruger Park (photo by TravellingFool.com) |
Getting in the truck was an interesting experience. It has three rows of seats in a stadium seating arrangement. You climb in from a platform in the lodge, traversing a gap of 6-10 inches to duck into the covered jeep. Not an easy task for someone as plump as myself.
A bit squished but otherwise fine we started off down a dirt trail with Josh our driver and Cameron our bush guide. They seemed to know what they were doing since after not too long we saw a gazelle, a type of eagle, some deer looking things with white stripes on their rump, and then suddenly - a pair of rhinos.
The rhinos were spectacular to watch Josh pulled up close and then shut off the engine of the jeep. We sat in silence watching these creatures that were easily the size of our entire car if not larger graze in the bush. Josh speculated that they may be the famous pair of brother rhinos who live in the preserve who are known for running away at the sight of people. These two were skittish but not too quick to run and with Josh and Cameron's guidance we were able to get so close that you could practically see every wrinkle on their hide.
After the rhinos we continued along. Most of the ride was just trees and dirt until Josh took a quick turn down a road and brought us close to the river. He shut off the car and turned to us and said okay hop off anyone who wants to go see some hippos.
I wanted to go but I was already crammed into my row so at first I said there was no way I would make it out of the jeep. Then I saw everyone sitting on the river bank watching the hippos play as the sun set and I decided that I wanted to go see them too. I tried to make a break for it and very ungracefully was able to get out of the vehicle.
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| There's a croc and a hippo somewhere out there (photo by TravellingFool.com) |
It was worth the effort. I didn't go all the way down to the river bed but I got close enough to watch these behemoth creatures frolicking in the water and see the hills and river surrounding them. Cameron asked to borrow the binoculars I was holding and using them was able to show me a crocodile on the opposite bank.
Getting back in the jeep was another issue all together. I got up and then realized I couldn't lift my foot onto the ledge. Josh went to help but I refused and used the momentum to get the one foot on the ledge. Then I realized it was the wrong foot. I had to lift my entire body up with only my arms holding onto the bar holding up the roof. It was definitely the great feat of strength I had been training for all summer in the gym.
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| Doritos in the bush (photo by TravellingFool.com) |
After the hippos we had a bush picnic of our drink of choice, chips, crackers, and trail mix. It was hysterical to see Cameron setting everything up on the roof of the jeep and everyone just standing around in the bush sipping cocktails (I had selected mineral water as my beverage). As everyone finished their drinks and it became time to leave I was able to get into the car much easier, having switched seats with my brother.
We drove around for a while longer in the dark and headed back to camp. After changing our clothes it was back to the main lodge for a wine tasting in their cellar before dinner.
The cellar was carved out of the rock of the building and made to replicate the caves that the bush tribes lived in. There were even some ancient artifacts that the manager had found when maintaining the trails and put on display. She poured two famous local wines for us to try, each was amazing! EJ even found the first wine he has actually liked among them!
After the tasting, and climbing back out of the cellar, it was off to dinner. The staff introduced themselves and performed a song before putting out the dinner for us. It was hot fresh yummy pita followed by a delicious mushroom soup, vegetables, salad, and bbq chicken kebabs, lamb, and sausage. For dessert we had cinnamon crepes with vanilla ice cream. By the time it was all done I was stuffed and announced to the group that I wasn't sure I would even fit in the jeep tomorrow!
With tomorrow being my brother's 21st birthday, our guide Josh has promised him a special day of drinking to commemorate it. There was talk of "the big 5" shots for breakfast and different kinds of drinking games and even apple moonshine from Alabama (I don't even want to know how he got that). I'm excited for my brother to see what the day has in store for him. I hope that it is something wonderful that he will remember many years from now with great fondness.
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