The Dark Continent

So we landed at a reasonably chilly Johannesburg airport (around nine degrees when we got there I think, though it was about 7.30 in the morning), navigated customs etc without incident, sorted out SIM cards etc for phones (well Bec did, my phone has packed a sad and isn’t working so we’ll see what happens in Europe – if it doesn’t work there it might be time for a new one) and then bought the worst airport coffee ever to while away the time until the shuttle bus arrived. Seriously, this coffee was BAD. Worse than the stuff at Chch airport by quite a margin. And that’s saying something.

Anyhoo … caught the shuttle bus and had a surprisingly pleasant four hours travelling to Neilsprut. The scenery looked surprisingly similar to what I’ve seen of rural Australia for the first hour or so, but changed significantly as we headed north – more lush and mountainous. Lots of people wandering up and down the side of the highways doing all sorts of things – I’d hate to think what the pedestrian v car accident rate is.

Arrived without incident where we met Vic (Bec’s sister), her boyfriend Flippie (Philip) & his parents Fanie and Louma. They’re all great people, very welcoming and fun to be around, so that was fantastic – especially given we’re going to be spending the next 10 days or so with Vic & Flippie! Got a lift out to the airport to pick up the hire car (the lesser known Toyota Avensis – which turned out to be really rather nice, leather interior and plenty of room. And surprisingly cheap, once we’d finished the obligatory minor dispute about pricing. Flippie drove us out to his parent’s place in Marloth Park – on the southern edge of the Kruger National Park – and life became a whole lot better with the addition of good braii (bbq), good beer and good company. I loved the feeling of being back in Africa as well – big skies, great people, and sounds, sights and smells of the wildlife. Nothing like kicking back with a cold one watching the warthogs foraging in the backyard. Helped us forget that we’d been up for 40 hours or so … for a while. Til we crashed out, anyway… even rutting impala and roaring lions couldn’t wake me up!