Thursday 16 April 2015

Big News

I know it has been ages since I last posted - oops. I could give you the excuse of not having great internet and not wanting to stress out about it, but while that is part of the reason I also just didn't feel like writing. I've now posted several updates to try to make up for it. I have done tons of exciting things since the last post and illness and injury have been much less of a problem for me. This trip has been an amazing experience so far and I can't believe how close to the end I'm getting. 

SO.

I've decided to stay in South Africa for a while after the tour ends. I'm not sure what my plans are after that but the chances that they will include returning home are slim. The thought of leaving South Africa so soon made me quite sad and although making this decision was extremely difficult I am very happy with my choice. I will miss everyone at home but am so excited about all the new experiences and adventures that I will have.

A Day in the Life

Here is a bit of a generalized rundown of an average day on the TDA to make up for my lack of posts lately.

Wake up between 5:00-5:30, depending on breakfast time

Pack up, eat and hit the road between 6:30-7:00

Bike and bike until lunch, normally around 10:00 am

Bike and bike to camp, arrival time varies depending on the length of the day - often around 2:00 pm

If we are in an organized campsite tent goes up and you get a shower! If we are in a bush camp tent goes up and you get a baby wipe bath or bucket shower.

Hang out in camp until dinner, trying to shelter from the hot hot African sun.

Dinner at 5:00 or 6:00

Tea and a struggle to stay up until it is a reasonable time to go to bed - normally between 8:00 or 9:00 but it has often been earlier

Sleep and do it all again

A Little Behind... A Brief Update

It's hard to believe that I haven't posted since Ethiopia and I am nearing the end of Botswana.

Kenya flew by. I took several days off to rest my ankle and it started feeling much better. We cycled past Mt. Kenya and over the equator, found frozen yoghurt and ice cream in Nairobi and started practicing useful Swahili phrases.

We had three rest days in Arusha, Tanzania which I was lucky enough to spend on a safari through the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. The safari was absolutely spectacular, I had no idea that we would see so much wildlife. Animals everywhere. Cycling through Tanzania was a lot of fun and the children were definitely some of the cutest yet.

Malawi was stunning, the lake was amazing. Very jungle-y and some beautiful climbs; the landscape was indescribable. So many people on bikes! Bikes were everywhere, carrying anything you can imagine. Chickens, sticks, goats, other bikes, small families - anything. Malawi was over really quickly too, we didn't spend many days there.

Time seems to have flown - Zambia was over quickly too. Spent one day in Lusaka surrounded by shopping malls and South African chain stores/restaurants. Three rest days in Livingstone (Victoria Falls). The falls were awesome - proper awesome (heh). So much water went thundering over, you could see the spray from ages away. Standing near the falls you got positively soaked. Look left and the falls disappear into the mist. Look right and the falls disappear into the mist. Look down and the falls disappear into the mist. It's unbelievable. On the last rest day I got to go whitewater rafting on the mighty Zambezi and we lucked into a sunny day. Wow. Rapids that were big enough to be fun but not so bit that they were scary. Didn't flip but got to hop out and float down the river for a bit and it was wonderful. Absolutely worth every penny.

Crossed into Botswana the next day and started seeing elephants! Four days in a row of elephant sightings, the riding might not be exciting right now but the elephants sure are. We stayed in one bush camp where we heard lions roaring in the night, prompting everyone to move their tents closer to the trucks. Now we are in Maun and several people have gone to do flight seeing tours over the delta. I'm not one of those lucky folk but am excited to see pictures and hear about it. 

Can't promise where the next update will come from - hopefully I will pull it together enough to write one soon!