More photo's

I have added a few more photo's (with a few videos) into Picasa. After clicking on the link, click on the "Slideshow" button in Picasa.

Ngorongoro Crater

Serengeti

Zanzibar

Selous

Ruaha

Still have some South Africa and Australia pics, but that will take some time...it's a slow process (even for those with a LOT of free time).

Ruaha (2)

Our last full day in the bush and it was another early start...

What started out to be a slow day got more interesting with a puncture in the middle of no where - not surprising as the car takes a real battering when we go off road.

We were told by other rangers of a cheetah nearby and we were very lucky that it hadnt moved by the time we found it 30 min later. To get such a good sighting we went off road again (which is strictly forbidden in this park) - just amazing.

On our way back to camp we stumbled across this hyena in the middle of the road soaking up the last of the afternoon sun ...

As we slowed down we couldnt believe our eyes when we saw leopard in the background. At first they were quite far away but then they got up and started walking around...

What a way to end our holiday!!!!

Ruaha (1)

All I can say is that we saved the best for last.... our 'bush camp' in Ruaha was simply fantastic and I suspect that even Alistair has come around to my way of thinking.

The scenery at all the other game reserves we had been to were very different but Ruaha reminded us very much of the bush in SA.

We started our game drive at 6am and then usually had breakfast at around 9 or 10.

Just after we had packed up our breakfast and hopped back into the car - we had driven not even 500 meters when we got the fright of our lives as a pride of 23 lion casually strolled by!

We were so excited to see our first good sighting of leopard but it seems as if the feeling wasnt mutual

Back at the camp having yet another brilliant meal in the bush with our guide Pietro.

Selous

And from the beach we went back to the bush to see a bit of the 'Southern Circuit' which is supposed to be more remote/less touristic than the traditional Northen Circuit (Serengeti). Selous was recommend to us by friends of ours and it turned out to be a fantastic game reserve. We stayed at Lake Manze camp and all I can say is that this kind of camping is more my style!

The tents were great - hot showers and flush loos!

We were escorted to and from our tent by Masaai staff. At first we thought that this was a bit of an overkill until we realised that the brochures were true to their word.... elephants, hippos do actually walk through the camp during the day and at night. One morning at around 3 am we woke up to a strange flapping sound but we couldnt work out what it was so we went back to bed. When we woke up at sparrows for our game drive, we found an elephant sleeping 10 m from our tent!

There were a couple of firsts for us, never seen an elephant swim or wild dogs....

We were very lucky to see lion again...great sighting with lion cubs playing

We also went on 2 game walks - its amazing how vulnerable we felt walking in the bush knowing that all the game was around us. On the 2nd walk we got well and truly drenched by a torrential downpour.

And after a great 3 nights, it was off to Ruaha....

Zanzibar

Well it didnt take long for Al to get comfortable - this photo was taken within 5 min of us arriving at our hotel (around 20 minutes south of Stone Town).

The setting is idealic .... turquoise blue waters etc. But what makes it even better is that its winter here so its not too hot and there is a constant breeze - just perfect conditions for both of us. One downside is that there are loads of mozzies though and both of us have been bitten quite a bit... (dont worry Mom, we are both taking our anti malaria pills)

Our chalet is right on the beach....

While I am sending this blog, Al has gone town to the bar for sundowners....

Yesterday we went into Stone Town for the day. I'm not sure what we were expecting but at the end of the day we were both disappointed. It seems as if absolutely nothing has been done to any of the buildings (except for the one above) since 1964. Its as if no one cares or has any pride in the place .... very sad.

The fruit/veg/spice market was extremely vibrant and nice to walk through.....

...but the same could not be said about the meat or fish markets.... Mom, if you have a problem with flies, lets just say that this is not the place to be..... absolutely hideous!

After the markets, we had to get some fresh air so we headed down to the beach. At this point I became totally paranoid about anything I put in my mouth, we headed off to the more touristy side of town i.e. the converted English Embassy for some drinks.

Midday, very very hot and here I am, bordering on a sense of humour failure despite the pleasant surroundings. All in all, we pleased we went but not sure if it would be high on our list of places to revisit.