Diddakoi Walt Whitman
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 AFRICA 2007 - Part six

Wednesday, May 2, 2007
I didn’t sleep well – not sure if it was the surf crashing or the fact that we had to get up at 5:00 to go shark diving. Our tap on the door and coffee arrived a little before 5:00, and we had dressed, taken our Dramamine and were ready to go by 5:20. There was a van waiting for us, along with ten other divers from other hotels and we took the only available seats in the back for the half hour drive to Gansbaai in the dark, dense fog.

We arrived at the “house” in a residential neighborhood near the harbor and had some coffee and muffins. Gary got his cameras set up for the dives and we watched a film on sharks before the captain’s briefing. We walked over to the boat and boarded it in the parking lot before it was tractored into the water down a ramp. It was a pretty tight fit with all the guests and four crew.

White Shark Projects Boat

It was a fifteen minute boat ride out to Dyer Island and another twenty minutes for the crew to anchor the boat, get the cage in the water and start putting out a “scent trail” in the water – basically, it is fish bits mashed with seawater and ladled out into the current to bring the sharks in.

The cage is rectangular with enough room for four people, with steel bars and several bumpers to protect the boat and the guests. It is attached to the side of the boat and rides about eighteen inches above the water with a hinged lid on the top. The divers don thick wetsuits with hoods, booties, masks and weights and sit with our feet on one of the front bars and our backs against the bumper at the back of the cage. The captain has a bait line, a rope with a bunch of fish heads tied to it that he throws out into the water and reels back in toward the cage – he tries not to let the shark actually get the bait. When a shark comes near he calls to the divers to go down and look in a particular direction. We take a breath and sink to the bottom of the cage and look for the shark to come by out of the viewport. When we run out of air, we come back to the surface.

At least that’s how it is supposed to work. For me, I always have to overweight when I am diving, and a breath of air will keep me on the surface, so it was tough for me to get far down in the cage. It was also difficult for Gary to get shots since we weren't on scuba but had to resurface to breathe. But even with that, we had some great sightings.

Gary and I and an English couple were the first ones in the cage. We had probably a dozen or so nice close passes in the twenty minutes that we were in. The last one was “small” only about 2.5 meters, but he attacked the bait line just as it came to the cage, brushed the cage with his body and gave it a nice whack with his tail as he left. Very exciting!

Jaws

Jaws

Jaws

Jaws

We went up and I changed into dry clothes – Gary stayed in the wetsuit, hoping to get another chance in the cage. I went up on the fly-deck and shot loads of pictures, most of which are green sea, or green sea with white splashes, but a few have the sharks in action. I found that most of the time we could watch the fish hanging around the bait line as a “shark barometer” – when they would scatter, I would start continuous shooting at the bait and was usually rewarded by a shark.

Jaws

Jaws

Jaws

Jaws

Jaws

None of us, including the fish, noticed the one that came straight up in a vertical attack from the bottom and stole the bait. The same one later went and attacked our anchor line – so he seems to have figured out the trick.

Gary got another chance to go in the cage before we had to head back around 10:00. They estimated that there were seven or eight individual sharks that were circling around the boat, usually one or two at a time. There was one good-sized female with three long, nasty looking cuts on her dorsal fin – she was easy to identify and stayed near us for quite a while.

Just before we left, we noticed several seals were swimming around the boat. I was surprised to see them in the water with the sharks around, but I am speculating that they are using the boat as a cover, since the sharks couldn’t attack them as readily. It was interesting to see them swimming so close to the sharks and playing in the water.

We had a bit of a delay in the harbor as another boat was trying to get out. We had to tractor up the ramp again and then returned to the crew house for coffee and snacks. They had a videographer on board who showed the film she made from the morning’s trip, but it seemed a bit pricy at US$70.00.

We piled back on the bus, but had to wait for one couple who decided to purchase the DVD and wait for a copy. We fell asleep in the van on the way back and luckily were the first to be dropped off. We went upstairs, showered, changed and went down for lunch.

Bee-Eater at Hermanus

The inside dining room was set up for lunch as it was still quite overcast. Wayne, another chef, came out and told us today’s menu: vegetable spring rolls with a sweet Indonesian soy sauce to start, followed by a choice of grilled tuna steak or duck salad with udon noodles, and ice cream with espresso topping for dessert. I had the tuna which was delicious and Gary opted for the duck salad. We saw a pod of dolphins swimming past as well as a large ship in the bay – we were informed that it was an anti-poaching vessel, as this area was regularly hit by abalone poaching.

We had nearly finished when Lisa came in and we stayed and talked with her as she ate. Her friends are arriving this afternoon and they will all stay until Saturday when she leaves for Namibia, and after that Boulders Lodge in Singita – one of the lodges that Julian had recommended.

After lunch I sorted some details with Corinne, had copies of our passports made for the marriage license, and made an appointment for a manicure and pedicure with Alice at 9:30 the next morning. We sat on chaises on the terrace and watched the sea and read in the afternoon.

We met Rick and Monique when they arrived, still in their black Virgin Atlantic “ninja suits” from the plane. Rick is an engineer with degrees from MIT. He started an optics company with some partners, did an IPO a few years ago and retired at age 35. He’s a bit of an introvert, and Monique is the opposite – she seems to be constantly in motion. She is a TV screen writer and lives in LA, while he lives in NY, and they are getting married in October. They are having the ceremony at Chappellet Winery in Napa, with the reception at Clos Pegase – wow.

There was a woman arranging flowers in the afternoon and I assumed it was Alyson the florist. We chatted for a while; she said she would be making my bouquet the next morning. She was surprised that we were Americans – she and her husband lived in San Diego for eighteen years before moving back here.

We just hung around and read in the afternoon until 5:00 when we met with Reverend James Gray, the local pastor who will be performing the ceremony. He is originally from Cape Town, spent several years in Harare, Zimbabwe, and moved back to South Africa seven years ago. Very nice gentleman – he reminds me of Andrew’s father in a way.

Next we met with Hesterkie, the photographer. I felt very comfortable with her and we shifted the time of the ceremony to 4:30 from 5:00 since she felt the light would be better. She also suggested we not start the hair/make-up until 2:00 (originally set for 1:00) since that will give us plenty of time to do some portraits before the wedding.

We got changed and came down to read before dinner, but ended up talking with everyone instead. Gary tried a Pimm’s Cup at Lisa’s suggestion and found that he liked them – I think we may have a bottle at home, so that may be his summer drink. The southern couples did the shark diving today as well, but they went later and had even more people on the boat. I asked Kaye if she got in the cage and she looked horrified at the thought.

Dinner was again wonderful, introduced by Nico:

Starter
Steamed Mussels with Ginger, Garlic and Spring Onions
~ Or ~
Smoked Bresaola served with braised Aubergine, Blue Cheese and Rocket

Soup
Broccoli, Brie and Almond Soup

Main Course
Grilled Beef Fillet served with Wok Fried Glass Noodles and Kumchee Sauce
~ Or ~
Pan Fried Salmon with Baby Potatoes and Salsa Cruda

Dessert
Creamy Macadamia Nougat Parfait
~ Or ~
Cheese Platter with Sugared Figs

Gary had two helpings of the mussels, we both had the steak and he had the parfait while I selected cheese for dessert. We had a bottle of Five Heirs Merlot with dinner. We also spoke with Juan, one of the staff reps and he will arrange another room for Gary to get ready and hang out in before the ceremony.

Gary got some pictures of the pools at night - the lights give them a wonderful glow.

Pool at night

Pool at night

Pool at night

Thursday, May 3, 2007
The day dawned bright and beautiful, a relief after the gloominess of the day before. We slept in until about 7:30 and Gary gave me a wedding present – two lovely white gold and diamond bracelets.

We showered and dressed and went downstairs for breakfast – they have three tables set up on the terrace next to the infinity pool. We had juice, coffee and the special: croissant with scrambled egg and smoked salmon which was really delicious. We chatted a bit with Lisa and Monique – Lisa wanted to go into town for a bit this morning and Gary decided to go with her while I get my nails done.

Breakfast on the Terrace

Breakfast on the Terrace


I went to have my mani/pedi-cure done. Alice did a French manicure on my nails and a coral polish on my toes. She spent quite a bit of time making sure everything was done right and we talked.

She had been married to a Frenchman; they had two daughters and lived in Joburg. Eight years ago he was car-jacked and murdered. Her daughters were in boarding school and she spent about two years living on a farm and another two years starting a healing therapy center. She moved to Cape Town about four years ago to be near her daughters, but didn’t like it so she came to Hermanus.

She is very sweet and I invited her to come to the wedding that afternoon. She was very touched and gave me a hug when I left, wishing us many years of happiness. She added that she’s recently met a man – “a gentle angel” – and she thinks she may be ready to have someone in her life again. I hope that is true.

I went back down to the front pool for a while and read. The two American couples were planning to walk into town along the cliffs and have the hotel pick them up when they were finished. After a while, Gary came back, having done the opposite: he got a ride into town and walked back. He also stopped and took a swim at the beach near us on his return. I walked down to the beach with him (being careful not to muss my toes). When we returned, Lisa loaned Gary her flashcard reader and he went to look at some of his pictures on the computer.

Gary at the beach

Around 1:15 we sat down for lunch and Nico came out to describe the menu: tomato and pesto tartlet to start, and a choice of chicken/bacon Caesar salad or home-made gnocchi with tomato sauce. I had the salad while Gary had the pasta and everything was, as usual, fabulous.

Alyson stopped by to say hello and wish us well. Gary ordered the Bananas Tempura for dessert, but just before it arrived, Corinne came to say that Gerda was there, so we quickly got Gary’s stuff out of our room and transferred to Room 3.

Curlers in, make-up on, hair pinned and Hesterkie arrived and took some photos in progress as well as some of the rings, my shoes, the dress, etc. We had asked Corinne if she could get three extra roses from Alyson, but apparently they didn’t materialize so we cannibalized one from the bouquet for my hair. Gerda said her husband was walking somewhere around the place – he doesn’t like her driving, so he often comes with her when she has a make-up session.

After we finished and got me into my dress, we went out into the courtyard and did several portrait shots of me. There was some confusion when we sent Gerda’s husband down to make sure Gary didn’t leave his room and he returned with the groom in tow, but we banished them again and went down to the terrace to take some pictures.

Once it was time, Corinne took me to the middle pool courtyard and got everyone else situated on the terrace. I came out and they had strewn rose petals all along where I was to walk. Gary and Reverend Gray were there at the point of the terrace, and the rest of the guests were assembled at the back. As I walked, our southern friends hummed a version of “Here Comes the Bride.”

I came up and took Gary’s hand and the Reverend invited everyone to draw near. He was wonderful, half apologizing for being required by the Republic of South Africa to ask each of us if we knew of any impediment to our marrying one another – it seemed right out of “Four Weddings and a Funeral.” Then he asked each of us, in turn, our vows, which we repeated. Kaye held my bouquet while we exchanged rings. The reverend proclaimed us husband and wife and we kissed, to much applause from the crowd.

On the terrace

On the beach

On the beach

One of the requirements of South African law is that the marriage certificate must be signed “under a permanent roof.” We could have done it under the overhang on the terrace but we followed the Reverend to the formal drawing room in the middle house where there is a lovely antique desk that is perfect for the occasion. Corinne and Daniel were our witnesses.

When we finished we went back to the terrace where everyone had glasses of champagne. Hesterkie shot several poses on the terrace and we chatted for a few minutes before heading down to the beach. Daniel drove us and Hesterkie suggested I leave my shoes in the car – last time I wore them all evening!

She did a few formal poses, as well as some of us walking down the beach, trying to avoid the locals’ Jack Russell Terrier as he leapt in and out of the background. She posed Gary in a spot to do some portraits of him and I sat down on a concrete bulkhead to relax. She saw me and turned around and started shooting me instead – she liked the relaxed pose. She finally got Gary’s pictures done with me making faces at him to get him to laugh.

We went back to the hotel and the other guests were gathered on the covered terrace. We joined them and that’s where we had our “reception”. More champagne was poured and the staff brought around hors d’oeuvres. Prior to the trip, Corinne had sent us a menu with various appetizers, starters, soups, mains and dessert from which to choose. I didn’t realize that we were selecting for all the guests but apparently it was a big hit:

Canapes
Salmon and tuna sushi rolls
Mini fish cakes with a garlic aioli
Teriyaki Chicken Satay with dipping sauce
Raw oysters topped with Chilli Vodka Lime Dressing – Gary said they were wonderful

We all sat and talked. Lisa, Rick and Monique gave us a present, which explained Lisa’s foray into town this morning: a lovely African cloth with cowry shells woven into it that we could use as either a table runner or wall hanging. She said she wanted us to have something truly African to commemorate our wedding. Steve and Kaye talked about how they met – they grew up in the same small town and were high school sweethearts. Steve said he remembered meeting Kaye when he was four years old.

It got a little cooler and Corinne came up and slipped a wrap around my shoulders so that I didn’t get cold.

After the canapes we excused ourselves and were shown to one of the small dens along the middle pool. They had removed some of the couches and there was a table for two next to the roaring fire, covered with a white tablecloth, candles and tiny silver hearts. My bouquet was at one corner of the table, and a bottle of Bollinger Champagne was on ice. Chef Wayne came out to make sure we were okay with the menu and if we had any questions.

Here was the rest of our wedding dinner menu:

Starter
Chicken Liver Pate with Melba Toast and Onion Marmalade
~Or~
Saute Prawns on a Fruit Salsa with Lemon Reduction and Poppadums

Soup
Mushroom Soup with Deep Fried Leeks

Main Course
Beef Fillet set on Rocket Mash with Vegetable Ratatouille and a Merlot Sauce
~Or~
Duck Breast set on Chilli Corn Cakes with Wilted Spinach and a Granadilla Orange Sauce

Dessert
Molten Chocolate Cake

Cheese Platter
A Selection of South African Cheeses

I had the chicken liver pate to start and Gary had the prawns. We both loved the mushroom soup which was laced with truffle oil, but with all the other food, it was too much to finish. By the time my steak and Gary’s duck breast arrived, neither I nor my corset were in any condition to do it justice.

But we did save room for dessert – Corinne had said that they could do a wedding cake for us, but I had asked if chef could make molten chocolate cakes, and of course, they did. Gary asked our waiter if we could have them sent up to the room instead, so we went upstairs and interrupted them putting the finishing touches in our room.

In addition to the tea-lights up the steps, our hallway and floor were strewn with thousands of rose petals. There were also tea lights on the bathroom floor, surrounding the hot bubble bath. There was a bottle of champagne from Mom and Dad, and another bottle from David and Kimberly, along with glasses and a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries. Our waiter brought up our desserts, which were absolutely incredible. It was just the perfect finishing touch on the perfect day.

Candles and rose petals

Friday, May 4, 2007
Sadly, we have to return home today. We both woke early and decided that we may as well get up and pack. We have quite a few souvenirs, plus three bottles of wine to pack, in addition to our clothes and everything. We consolidated lots of stuff into the wedding trunk and kept one K&D duffel out in case we had an excess baggage problem again.

Gary went back and retrieved my bouquet which I had forgotten on the table. I put the ends in a vase of water to hopefully keep them fresh on the trip home.

I showered and dressed – Gary went down for another swim in the ocean and to take some pictures of the anemones and urchins in the tide pools. I came down for breakfast – we were the first ones up. Gary had spotted a pod of dolphins, but they declined to make a repeat appearance for me. We ordered coffee and eggs – Lisa came down and we invited her to join us for breakfast since Rick and Monique weren’t up yet.

Lisa talked about traveling with her eighteen-year-old godson in Bhutan. He and his family moved from Wisconsin to the Main Line of Philadelphia two years ago – a tough time for a teenager to move. He will be attending Penn State in the fall.

Rick and Monique came down – they have some spa treatments this morning and them all of them are visiting some wineries mid-day, so we said our goodbyes. We also bade farewell to our southern couples, who were leaving for Cape Town at 10:00.

I found Corinne and gave her some business cards for Gerda and Hesterkie, plus a little gift for Gerda and one for Corinne – she was very touched. I settled our remaining charges, and asked if Chef could do a light lunch for us at noon as we had arranged to leave at 12:30 so that we could stop at the Cheetah Outreach on the way to the airport.

Chef Wayne came out to the dining room and said that he had prepared a salad for two with greens, salmon, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, and olives in a tropical vinaigrette with grilled flatbreads. It was superb. We enjoyed our last views (for this trip) of Walker Bay and this spectacular home, and headed up to reception.

We had a different driver today with a BMW 535i – when we arrived, the bags were already loaded and ready to go. He said he didn’t think we would have time to go to the cheetah park, but we would play it by ear depending on traffic. We said goodbye to Corinne and left.

We got to Spier and had enough time so we decided to pop in and see them. We paid our US$1.50 admission – at first we just saw four adults sleeping in the shade, just like every other adult cat we’ve seen on this trip. We could have paid more for a personal encounter with either an adult cheetah or a cub, but we didn’t have time. I did stop and talk to one of the handlers who was in the cage with a two-year-old male cheetah named, “Enigma”. He was lying on his side, she was petting him and he was purring loudly. The handler – she had an American accent and turned out to be from Pasadena – said those cheetahs are the largest cats that purr and Enigma is the loudest she’s heard.

Cheetah

We left Spier and got to the airport around 2:30 for our 3:40 flight to Joburg. We checked in at Nationwide Airline, prepared to carry on our duffel, but the ticket agent said there was no problem. She asked if our photo trunks had camera equipment and even put fragile stickers on them.

Not much to see in the Cape Town airport. They bus most passengers to remote stands for domestic flights so we sat near our “gate” and waited. I called Mom – she and Carol were having breakfast in Charleston – and told her about the wedding.

They called our flight and we boarded our bus and found our seats on an old 737. It was about a two-hour flight to Joburg and the plane was quite full. It was a little longer than usual as we had to hold for about fifteen minutes as they didn’t have enough ATC’s.

We landed and went to baggage claim to discover that they had no luggage carts. I went to the Nationwide baggage inquiry desk and asked one of the guys – he disappeared and came back a few minutes later with a trolley for me.

We collected the bags and schlepped over to International Departures to check in for the flight to Heathrow. I asked about upgrades again, but while the tickets allowed it this time, there was only one Upper Class seat left. I suggested that Gary take it, but he gave me a withering stare and we collected our Premium Economy boarding passes.

Since our LHR-JNB-LHR flights were done on a separate booking reference than our JFK-LHR-JFK flights, they would not check our bags through to JFK, which means that once we land at LHR we have to go through immigration, claim our bags, go over to T3 Departures, check-in and go through security again. What a hassle!

We passed through security and went to the Virgin Clubhouse. It is a nice size, especially given that they only run one flight a day, at least during this season. There are two 6-seat tables, a long banquette with ten small tables, lounge chairs in the center of the Clubhouse, several small sitting areas, a business center loft with some additional couches and chairs below and seating at the bar and at the open kitchen. They also have some nice shower rooms available.

Our waitress came over and brought us drinks. We had about 40 minutes before our flight so decided to get something to eat. She took our orders and when the food was ready she brought us to one of the long tables to eat.

I had deep fried camembert coated with red pepper paste beer batter on spring greens with cranberry jelly and kirsch and caramelized nuts – yummy! Gary tried the Impala steaks poached in red wine served with brinjal confit (a type of eggplant), baby marrow and Amarula & wild gooseberry sauce, which was also good. The staff was very attentive, friendly and helpful.

An hour before the flight, they began boarding – another bus to remote stand. Tonight we were flying on G-VYOU, “Emmeline Heaney”, Air-born August 2006. We were again in Row 20, seats H and K. We got everything stowed, there were about three seats open in PE – and the FA came around with champagne, water, and OJ before take-off. The FSM made his introductions and the Captain briefed us on the 10 hour 30 minute flight to LHR.

They announced that they would be spraying the cabins with insecticide and suggested we cover our faces and eyes as they passed through the cabins. We had an on-time departure and were off.

The entertainment system was up and running before the crew were even allowed out of their seats. As soon as they were, they hustled around and passed out headsets. They came around with packs of pretzels and drinks followed by the meal service. Each meal came with a potato salad with cucumbers and vinaigrette dressing, which I didn’t care for. I had the beef curry with rice (dry) and a marbled cheesecake for dessert (dry). Gary had the penne pasta with tomato and pesto cream sauce, but I noticed he only ate a mouthful of it. I was very glad we ate something at the Clubhouse before we left.

After our experience with the Ambien – and hearing about Lisa’s problems with it as well – we decided not to try it again. Slept rather fitfully and tried to watch a movie or two – Casino Royale with the new Bond. I liked him and I thought the movie was fine, but he just wasn’t “Bond’ for me.

Breakfast was again served about an hour and a half before landing. We both had the Full English Breakfast which was really not very good. They did come around with the fruit basket and sweets prior to landing. Even though I didn’t think much of the Premium Economy food, our FA was very nice and did a good job.

We landed a little late, about 7:15 a.m., and then taxied all over Heathrow before finally arriving at our gate. At least it wasn’t a remote stand! We were quite a long walk to immigration, which was packed. Luckily, I had a spare Fast Track pass, so again gave it to Gary while I went through IRIS. I went down to baggage claim while he worked his way through the line and got a cart, but aside from a smattering of bags that were on the carousel when I got there, everyone had about a ten minute wait. Our bags were off pretty quickly once they got started.

We got our bags and headed through the construction zone over to Virgin check-in. There were about four or five people in the Upper Class line head of us, but it moved fairly quickly. We got our boarding passes and went through Fast Track security – maybe a five minute line. Shoes off, shoes on and we quickly went to the Clubhouse. By that point it was about 8:20 and the flight was leaving at 9:30 a.m. We asked the lady checking boarding passes how much time we had before they would call the flight and she said we had about 25 minutes.

We went to the Cowshed desk and asked for steam shower rooms – fifteen minutes later we felt almost human again, wearing a fresh change of clothes. I said that we still had time to hang in the Clubhouse for a few minutes as they hadn’t announced it there but Gary was nervous about the fact that the flight was shown as “Closing” on the board, so we headed off for Gate 35.

It was quite a long walk and when we arrived, there was a long queue with no line for Upper Class. And as luck would have it, we both got to have the full hand-luggage search, complete with removal of the batteries in all of the electronics – what fun! Once that was over, we went to board the plane – we looked outside and saw….the Emmeline Heaney, G-VYOU, the same aircraft that we had just left a little over an hour before! At least we were in better seats for this leg, 9A and 10A.

We were greeted by our FA, who was just delightful for the entire trip. She made sure that we were comfortable, knew all about the suite and had a drink while the rest of the passengers were arriving. I asked her about sleep suits and she said the usual about not usually carrying them on day flights, but she had a few, just not to let the others see them and get jealous.

The IFBT came around and explained the services – I requested a neck and back massage. She also came around with a basket of lotion, pens, mints and lip balm.

It was a very full UC cabin. After take-off, the FA came around with a choice of parsnip crisps or cheese crackers and drinks, and explained that since they were doing a lunch service, they didn’t want to inflict Chicken Tikka Masala on all of us at 10:00 a.m. so they would wait until about 12:30 to serve.

We both changed into our ninja suits and Gary folded down his seat and took a nice long nap. I watched “The Good Shepherd”– I think I still need to have some of it explained to me though. Just before lunch the IFBT came and said that she could do my treatment, so I had a very nice massage, much needed after the stress of running in circles all over the airport that morning. When I had finished, I found that Gary was in my seat and the table had been set up for both of us to have lunch. He said he was worried about me – he didn’t know where the IFBT station was and couldn’t figure out where I could have gone while on board a plane.

I had the smoked salmon as a starter and Gary had the potato and double Gloucester soup. We both had the Cumberland pork sausages with mashed potatoes and spinach as a main. And, since this was the end of our trip, we ordered the chocolate and pear posset and the honeycomb ice cream. All of the food was quite good.

I asked Gary how his nap was and he said, “Now I understand why you like these UC suites.”

Since lunch was served so late, we only had a couple of hours before landing. I read and dozed after lunch, and if they came around with tea, I didn’t see it, although they did offer ice cream at some point. It was a little bumpy during the approach to JFK, but a beautiful day outside. We landed just a bit early, about five minutes before noon.

We taxied for a bit before stopping at the gate and it seemed to take them a while to get the jet-way in place. Immigration was quick, and there was about a twenty minute wait for the bags. We went through customs, and we had to go over to the official customs desk so that they could inspect my bridal bouquet, but luckily decided not to hassle me about it. After that we went to the UC Limo desk and our car was ready in about three minutes. Traffic was horrible and the ride back to Philly was about 2 ½ hours.

We unloaded all of the suitcases and made piles of laundry. Gary uploaded all of the photos and figured that between the two of us we took about 5,000 pictures. Wow. We had an invitation to go to a party that night, but decided we were too tired, so we ordered Chinese take out for 7:00 delivery.

I woke up at 7:05 – both Gary and I were fast asleep on the couch and had missed the doorbell and the two phone calls telling us our delivery man was outside. So we called back and had them try it again. Good thing we didn’t go to the party!

We both had a wonderful time on this trip and are seriously thinking about planning our next Africa journey for 2009. Gary said I was right when I described going on a game drive like scuba diving without the tank. So I guess we'll have to alternate between wet and dry destinations from now on!

The end . . . this time