Posted on 10/31/2008 8:59 AM
Oct 17, 2008
I am finally home. After 19 days in Africa, I have finally slept in my own bed. The trip was truly a trip of a lifetime and I had so much fun. It is easily the most incredible trip of my life. The people, the countries, the animals, and the countless memories will stay with me forever. I saw things that I never imagined seeing before, as well as spent time with some of the most incredible people. Mr. and Mrs. Ivester, Mr. Courts, Doo Dah, Lisa, and Dave are some of the kindest people that I have ever met. To spend three weeks with them in Africa was truly an experience and made the trip all the better. The trip would have been completely different without their company and I am truly grateful for the chance to spend this time with them. Our countless guides and hostesses at each destination were all so warm and knowledgeable of the area and had a passion for Africa that is truly remarkable.
I am so happy to be home, but cannot wait to return one day to Africa. I am as most people say, “Hooked on Africa.” People joke a lot about the people who go to Africa and return every year afterwards and I am pretty sure I became one of those people. The trip was truly amazing and I realize how blessed we all are to live where we live and have the opportunities that are available to us.
Swinton
Posted on 10/31/2008 8:57 AM
Oct. 14, 2008
We just finished our last day of trekking with the gorillas. That has been by far one of the neatest experiences of my life. These gorillas get visited for one hour each day, and in order to see them, you must hike through the Rwandan rain forest for sometimes hours and then once you get close to them, someone machetes the rest of the way through the jungle. Then, one hour of pure, uninterrupted entertainment spent watching creatures that share 98.3% of the same genes as us interact and play with one another. Truly, these gorillas are a sight to see.
While we were in Rwanda we also went and visited a school. The school was definitely life changing to say the least. Consisting of 1754 kids and 24 teachers, the primary school is in dire need of some help. They are also now constructing a secondary school which will only grow exponentially in the next couple of years. The region in which the school is located consists of about 700 people every square kilometer. These numbers and the overpopulation are difficult to grasp, but all the people seem to be so happy and loving. It is hard to fathom given the genocide that decimated this country. They all seem to have a sense of hope and joy in their eyes and it is truly remarkable to see.
Our last day in Rwanda we visited the Genocide museum in Kigali. It is really hard to describe that experience. The depth of hatred is almost impossible to imagine. The genocide killed approximately 1 million people in 100 days. They killed friends, neighbors and even their own family members at times solely based on which tribe you came from. Our guide Johnson was very candid in telling us his story. His entire family was hunted down and almost all of them were killed in the most brutal way. He showed us photos of his father and two cousins in the Genocide museum as well as the mass grave where he buried his family’s remains just a few years ago. To walk though the museum with Johnson was something that I will never forget. One would think that he could never move beyond the violence that was inflicted on his family but yet he insisted that all Rwandans must do so. They must no longer be Hutu or Tutsi but they must become “Rwandan” to prevent this tragedy from ever happening again. The grace he possesses is unbelievable and moving and something we could all strive for.
I will be getting on a plane tomorrow night at 12 to head home to Atlanta. We will have a six hour layover in London again, but hey, that’s only half the layover time from when we were heading to Africa only a mere 3 weeks ago. I cannot wait to see you all.
Swinton
Posted on 10/11/2008 3:07 AM
October 11, 2008
We just left Serian in the Maasai Mara and the experience was amazing. I was very spoiled. This cute girl named Marina took great care of me. She was from the Isle of Jersey and was absolutely wonderful. Each evening since I am such a picky eater she would have the chef make me my own meal. The tomato soup was my appetizer of choice for three straight nights. It was delicious to say the least. The camp was so comfortable and the staff was amazing and made our stay was fantastic.
Yesterday we spent the whole day driving around the Maasai Mara in search of the elusive and rare Black Rhino. Our guides Stanley and Bernard said that there were probably less then 20 in all of the Maasai Mara, and at the end of the day around 4:30, Stanley spotted something that moved a long long long long way away. When he radioed Bernard to look, he happened to have seen the same thing and the two of them whipped out their binoculars and came to the conclusion it was the rhino. After another 30 minutes of trying to get to where the rhino was, we finally found a small pathway that led us straight to the rhino. Upon arriving at the site, we quickly learned we had found not one, but two rhinos; a mother and her one year old son. It was absolutely amazing. The big five had all been found, and on our last drive in the Mara we found the finishing puzzle piece. Click. Click. Click. The cameras were going off like fireworks. It was insane. Everyone was in awe. These two massive creatures with two horns just relaxing in the middle of the Mara browsing on some bushes, and the hunt to get to them made it all the more better. Words cannot describe how happy everyone was and to look down at our two guides who had smiles from ear to ear made my day. They were wonderful and kept on all day. We had left camp that morning at 6:30 and arrived back that night at 7:20. Safari life is tough, but oh so enjoyable.
I am currently sitting on a plane on my way to Rwanda to see the Gorillas. It is about an hour flight and then a two hour drive to get to the camp where we will be residing the next 3 nights, until I head for home Wednesday night. I am hoping we will have an internet connection so I can upload some photos later on this evening or tomorrow since today is just a travel day and not much will be going on, but no promises will be made. I hope all are doing well, and I will be in contact soon.
Captain Prince Warrior Swinton
Posted on 10/10/2008 3:01 AM
October 10, 2008
So I was a little overly optimistic when I said the location we would be residing in would have cell phone and internet service. The only place we get service is out in the middle of a field. To get there, one must cross a foot-bridge, get into a vehicle and drive to the top of a hill, and then climb atop a old termite mound to get coverage. Needless to say, writing to everyone was a little more difficult then I had originally planned. My sincerest apologies.
The last couple of days have been very adventurous. The first of our adventures started when we saw a large pride of female lions with cubs resting in a field. We approached them cautiously, parked the car and watched. What we didn’t realize was that our car was casting a massive shadow onto the field and it just happened to be the only shade around for miles. The lions decided to take advantage of this opportunity and came and chilled right by our car. Literally, we could open our door to the car and could have touched a baby cub. Since this sighting, we have seen another 29 lions in two days. The Maasai Mara really is the Kingdom of Lions.
Another neat experience we had was we watched a whole scene take place with a cheetah. The scene started with the search for food. Once the food was found, the cheetah hunkered down in some tall grass so that she was not seen and waited for the right moment. The chase didn’t last very long was she decided to go for the young Thompsons Gazelle. After the chase she was tired, so she decided to rest before dragging the food towards some large mound with one tree for shade and cover. I couldn’t comprehend why she wouldn’t just eat immediately, but once she got to the mound I quickly discovered why. She began calling for her young. The sound was very high pitched and when her cubs didn’t come immediately she became worried and ran half way to where she had previously left them and called again. That is when they emerged from the bush. Three, month old cubs began running towards her. The cubs were just big balls of grey fur. The family was back together again and they began their feast.
Yesterday we took a balloon ride over the Maasai Mara. We stayed in the air for about an hour and then literally had a crash landing. We hit the ground twice and finally ended leaning up against a large dirt mound at an angle and had to climb out of the basket. Everyone seemed to be smiling from our wild roller coaster ride. Later that day, we saw a wildebeest crossing. 6000 wildebeest sat at the edge of a river bank for three hours. Finally, one took the plunge and went. The rest followed. Until a big 14 foot crocodile came and broke the migration up. No one knows when the wildebeest will cross. Sometimes they will stand at the bank all day and decide not to go, but we happened to get very lucky and see this great migration occur.
Tommorow we will be leaving for Rwanda to go and see the Mountain Gorillas. There are roughly 450 left in the whole world and they only live in this area of Rwanda. Again, I will try to keep you up to date as best as possible, but no promises will be made.
Captain Prince Warrior Swinton
Posted on 10/8/2008 10:43 AM
October 7, 2008
We have just left the land of no cell phone service. We are actually in the plane flying to the Maasai Mara as I type and we have finally regained coverage to the real world. The last 3 nights and 4 days we had spent in Sarara Camp in Northern Kenya. This land is home to the Samburu tribe. They are very similar to that of the Maasai people and are thought to be cousins of some sort that had branched off centuries back. They are a nomadic tribe who live off the land and base wealth on the amount of cattle a man owns. They believe they came down directly from the heavens with all the cows in the world and that they are just lending us cows as they please, but that the cows are really theirs. Eight cows is the cost of a wife, 12 goats is equal to one cow, and one camel is equal to one cow.
In the “lugger”, a dried up river bed, the Samburu people have singing wells. These wells are dug anywhere from 3 men to 6 men deep into the ground in search of water. The men stand atop one another’s shoulders and pass buckets of water up the human ladder to a small hollowed out log for the cows to come and drink from. As they pass the buckets, they sing a song which summons a group of eight cows to come down and drink. The cows know their own song and only enter into the river bed when their song is being sung. It is quite a remarkable site. The cows drink every third day, the goats every fifth day, and the camels every 15 days. Upon our arrival to the camp, the first rains of the seasons came and the people danced and grinned with a giant celebration of joy, because water is essentially everything to these people and without water to support their cows, they have no means of life.
One evening while we were in the camp, we drove down to the “lugger” for a night drive. We were in search of the infamous leopard. Hunting for a leopard is very hard due to their reclusiveness. Sarara is lucky to be home to a group of resident leopards. There is thought to be up to 50 of them roaming the 185,000 acre wilderness area. We were lucky and saw two brother leopards hunting together. It was a true site. We spent about 30 minutes following and watching these brothers in their epic search for dik dik. The leopard could contort their bodies any which way in order to fit into small gaps in branches and bushes on the earths floor. The major difference between the leopard and cheetah is that the leopard is a brown spot within its black spots. The leopard is also much stockier and has a longer tail then that of the cheetah. Towards the end of our trek, the ant flies of death came out. Needless to say they attacked us, stinging us constantly all over in places which should not be bothered. These “bloody” flies were actually flying ants in search for a new home due to the rain. They are the colony ants.
Now we are arriving in the Maasai Mara known as the “kingdom of lions.” We are hoping to observe a river crossing as a part of the great migration. Luckily, we will have service in this African land so I will try to keep you updated as best as possible.
Until next time,
Captain Prince Warrior Swinton
Posted on 10/8/2008 10:38 AM
October 4, 2008
So here is a recap over the last couple of days in the Chyulu Hills. The first day was spent visiting another Maasai village. The Maasai welcomed us with open arms and we went through the same rituals as the previous village. The only difference was that we interacted with the chief of the village this time and he presented me with a gift from his own neck. The Maasai typically wear loads of beads all over their bodies whether it is necklaces, bracelets, anklets. You name it; they can find a place to but some bead work. Well as I was leaving he pulled me aside and gave me one of his very own necklaces. I am now a warrior and expect to be addressed as such upon my return to the states.
The next day we rode horses in the morning across the property and towards the end of our trek we came across a lone cheetah. So, we decided to follow him. Well, cheetahs are fast so he quickly escaped and I quickly went back to macking on the cute British girl named Daisy. She was “lovely”. Lunch that day I ate in the pool because it was incredibly hot in this African Sun. I laid in the infinity pool looking out over a water hole 100 yards away where 8 elephants decided to sit and cool off during the afternoon. It was truly “marvelous.” After the swim, we went on another game drive. A bachelor group of Cheetahs decided to present themselves from the bush. Three brothers strolled along the tree line looking back at us every few seconds while marking their territory to let us know who is boss.
After our sundowner at the Hide, which was the room 20 yards away from the elephant watering hole, we went to a home style African barbeque. I know what your thinking, good old southern barbeque. Well, this barbeque was at the top of a mountain, with a blazing fire and some good old meat. Something I have been missing. It was delicious: pork, chicken, and steak hit the spot. After dinner we went lion hunting, but not hunting, just searching. Around 11 o’clock we found lions. One mother and her three cubs were spotted feeding on a wildebeest. The wildebeest has left us for a better place and will not be returning. The mother strolled by our vehicle a solid 20 ft away and found her a nice place to lay down and watch over her young. Not letting her escape the corners of our eyes, we drove a bit closer to the cubs. They continued eating and we sat and watched. Around 11:30 we left the lions and headed back for camp. During the drive back to camp, me and the head female guide, Sessa, who also was very cute, was born in Kenya but has a “brilliant” British accent, went stump hunting. I now have a stump named Bubba’s Stump thanks to my all too revealing mother, who just had to reveal my childhood nickname.
I now am residing in the Matthews Range near Samburu at Sarara Camp. Unfortunately, there is no internet available here, so you will be reading this the same day as my next post. So enjoy reading about my “lovely” travels.
Captain Prince Warrior Swinton
Ps. Upon my return any of the following sir names will be acceptable, because I know having four names will get tiring.
Posted on 10/3/2008 8:42 AM
Check three pictures uploaded to Image folder.
Captain Prince
Posted on 10/1/2008 3:47 PM
October 1, 2008
It has been a few days since my last post. Here is a recap of the last couple of days. Tuesday we went to a Maasai village where we were welcomed by dancing and singing. After the welcoming ceremony, we entered into the village where we saw their way of living. Essentially, they are a nomadic tribe and live in huts made of sticks, mud, and dung from their cows. They feed themselves by way of their livestock. They live off of the blood and milk from their cattle and drink only water. Their form of wealth is based on the number of cattle they have and the more cattle one has, the wealthier the man. The cattle are corralled into the center of the village for protection from predators. The chief’s son offered to have me marry his sister and to come back to spend the night. I gave it considerable consideration and then politely declined. So now I would like to be addressed as Captain Prince Swinton. It was an interesting experience and something you could never fully understand without being there.
We also went on a game drive that afternoon. We saw loads of animals. A major highlight was a 70 year old bull Elephant weighing in at 7 tons. Its tusks reached almost to the ground and it was marvelous. After leaving the sight of this immaculate creature, we continued driving down the desired path, when all of a sudden we saw a male lion sleeping on the side of the road. When finally awoken, he looked up and gazed at us like the king of the jungle, then, put his head back down and went to sleep. By this time it was getting dark and we had to race back to get to camp by sundown. We got into an epic race with another vehicle, and our driver, Bernard, took a slight shortcut and cut them off at the pass. They literally, ate our dust all the way back to camp. Hahaha. That night, we sat out by the fire in our camp and when I looked up I was amazed by the number of stars. At night it is REALLY dark in Africa. It was rather overwhelming to see them all so clearly without any light.
The next morning we had to pack and head to our next camp, Ol Donyo Waus, which is about 35 miles away in the Chyulu Hills. What took 18 minutes by air would have taken about 4 hours to drive. The Chyulu Hills are nothing like Amboseli. Even though they are only 35 miles apart, the Chyulu Hills has almost no water but abundant grass and trees, whereas Amboseli had large swamps but little grass outside the swamps. Late this afternoon, we drove to the top of one of the smaller hills to see the sunset over the plains. The colors were picturesque. We have finished with dinner and have just arrived back in our room. It is almost 11 here now, so it is time for bed.
Talk to you soon.
Captain Prince Swinton
Posted on 9/30/2008 8:31 AM
September 29, 2008
Over a year in planning, the trip is finally here. After a long journey,
one cancelled flight, a 12 hour layover in Heathrow, and two eight hour
overnight flights; we finally arrived in Nairobi around 6:30am Sunday
morning. I highly recommend avoiding London's Heathrow airport at ALL
costs. The morning of the first day was spent visiting the Giraffe Center
and Daphne Sheldrick's Elephant Orphange. Both are places that have
rescued animals and worked to rehabilitate them back into the wild. Later
that afternoon we went to see Karen Blixen's original house which is now a
museum. Karen Blixen is most well known for the novel and movie Out of
Africa. I also visited Kazuri Beads. Kazuri Beads was started by single
mothers and abused women, and is now a major company in Africa. Each bead
is individually crafted and painted in its own unique way.
Waking up EARLY Monday morning was a struggle. However, I later learned I
would "co-pilot" our airplane and be riding shot gun. We departed at
9:00am from Wilson Airport and landed in Amboseli National Park near the
base of Mt Kilimanjaro (Africa's tallest mountain) about one hour later.
Now I am referred to as Captain Swinton. I am expecting to be addressed as
such upon my return. Loading 10 people's luggage into two Land Rovers was
not an easy task, but once the jigsaw puzzle was complete we began our
morning game drive. This morning we saw a variety of animals including the
Thompson Gazelle, Massai Giraffe, Zebra, Elephant, Cape Buffalo,
Wildebeast, and a variety of birds. We are about to sit down for lunch and
discuss the afternoon game drive.
Signing off for now from Amboseli National Game Reserve.
Captain Swinton
