Around the world in 108 days: April 11 - Arrival for our safari on March 30, 2015

March 30 –April 2 – SAFARI!!

We were up bright and early when the ship pulled into port in Durban, South Africa. Our party of 6 couples and 1 Crystal Host, had an early flight to Johannesburg, where a connection flight would take us to Skukuza airport near the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve for our 4 day safari excursion.

The flight to Johannesburg went off without a hitch. After we collected our luggage we followed the instructions given to us by the excursion desk on the ship and went to meet the Crystal Representative who would transfer us to the Federal Air Terminal, 20 minutes away from the main terminal, for our connecting flight. That’s when the wheels began to fall off……

The representative was nowhere to be found, so our host decided we should take taxis to the other terminal. It required 3 taxis. When we arrived at the Federal Air Terminal, we were told that our connector no longer used their terminal, and our connecting flight would be leaving from the main terminal!! Back we went..20 min. more…to the main terminal and raced to the ticket counter only to be told our flight was already closed!!! No matter how our “host” pleaded, we were told the next flight was the following day. As one of the porters who had helped us to the ticket counter was giving us less than desirable options, we were suddenly called back to the ticket counter and informed us that the pilot was holding the flight for us. They escorted us through security and to the bus that took us to the plane!!!! Once we boarded, we realized that there was only 1 other passenger on the plane who was not part of our group, so we assumed the pilot was waiting on us all along and finally called the ticket counter to find out where the heck we were. Our frowns turned upside down and we were on our way!!

From our crazy beginning, to the day we bid goodbye to our “new friends” at Lion Sands Ivory Lodge in the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve, we were awestruck and amazed. The lodge was beautiful with a great staff, great food and great wines. The opportunity to observe and learn about so many wild animals in their natural habitat was better than we had imagined. Over the course of the four days we were there we saw the” Big 5” (lion-leopard-rhino-elephant-cape buffalo) plus giraffes, zebras, a wart hog, a hyena, Vervet monkeys, 4 species of antelopes, several types of birds and even an African tortoise. We were surprised at how unaffected the animals seemed with intrusion into their world. We were told by our guides that the animals do not view the vehicles as a danger, but if one of us stood up in the vehicle, thereby changing the appearance, we would become a threat. So #1 rule: DON’T STAND UP!! Each vehicle carried 6 guests, 1 driver, 1 spotter, a rifle and a machete. Thank goodness the rifle was never needed!

The best part of Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve was we were able to drive off-road in our searches for animals, while in Reserves such as Kruger National Park, vehicles must remain on the roads. Our lodge had only 6 suites, so our group took up the whole place, and our host was housed at the sister lodge, Earth Lodge, which was just a 5 minute escorted walk away. During the daytime, we were free to walk about on our own, but at night escorts were required because of the number of animals who wander through the grounds. There was an electronic fence around the perimeter, but the staff told us that if the elephants decide they want to cut through rather than go around, they knock the fences down and create a lot of repair work for the staff! We quickly learned during our drives, that an elephant and a rhino can pretty much go wherever they want. “Make way for large objects” takes on a whole new meaning!!

Obviously, we took way more pictures than I can add to just one posting, so I will use this as the beginning and follow up with additional ones of just pictures and captions. I also got a few great videos which I will try to add after we get home. I’m not sure if I can or not, but I do know that the ship’s internet can’t handle it.

Similar to Antarctica, I ended up having as much, if not more fun than Rick and I can understand why people say they’ve done more than one safari. In talking to other passengers who went on safaris in different areas, each had something special that the others did not include and the experiences varied a lot. Who knows, maybe someday we’ll try another one.

Enjoy the pictures! Cheers!