Hoba Meteorite, Namibia

I got to stand on a rock from outer space

Namibia is world famous for its meteorites, who knew?  The Hoba meteorite is the largest single meteorite known in the world today it weighs approx 60 tons. Guesses on the age of the meteorite are 190 to 140 millions years. It fell to earth 80,000 years ago.

Okavango Delta, Botswana

The Okavango delta in Botswana is the world's largest inland river delta. It is a 16,000 sq km expansion and expiration of the Okavango River. It has a unique ecosystem that encompasses both forest and flood plains.

To penetrate the dense vegetation of the delta's waterways one must hire a mikoro (a type of canoe) which is manuevered by a poler. Apparently poling is a lucrative business (for Africa) and marrying a poler would be considered quite a catch.  Poling isn't limited to men.  There are women polers as well.  The reeds are very dense and they continuously smack your face as you fly by. Wearing sunglasses to protect your eyes is a must. Luckily none of the reeds that slashed past my face were sharp.

We made camp on an island in the middle of the delta. It was rustic.

In the evening and early morning we had a guide give us a walking safari around the island.  There were tons of aardvark tracks.  There are lots of ants and termites on the island, a favorite food of aarvarks, and there were many holes in the ground and torn up termite mounds. Unfortunately, we didn't see any aardvarks.

Judge scouting for animals

There were a lot of interesting insects on the island.  The guide, Judge, was very excited to find out that I was an entomologist and asked me to teach him everything I knew. In exchange he taught me how to read animal tracks and identify dung. I thought it a fair trade.  How can you tell the difference between hippo and elephant dung? Elephants are browers, so their dung is full of roots, grass and seeds. Hippos are grazers, so their dung  is only grass.

Later that evening, I took Judge spider hunting in the dark.  There are so many different kinds of spiders in the delta. I swear I didn't see the same one twice. Also, showing him the spiders allowed me to explore the island at night, which would not have been safe otherwise.  There are lions and elephants to worry about.

I was given the opportunity to learn how to pole a mikoro, which is a lot harder than it looks. I wasn't able to make it go straight for more than 5 feet.

It was very hot in the delta, it had to be over 100F. That limited our movements to early dawn and late evening. On the plus side, I was able to see several sunrises and sunsets.

Our last night the polers sang and danced for us, which was hilarious.  Usually you see women dancing, so it was nice to see the men getting into it. My favorite dance involved the men hopping around like frogs and croaking on every third beat. I was pulled into the dancing group and gave my very best frog jump in front of the fire. It was a great way to celebrate Thanksgiving with my African family.

African entomology part 2

I've seen a lot of amazing insects in my travels. Here are a few. My hand is in a lot of pictures for perspective. The insects are huge!

A gecko enjoying a cricket

Some kind of orthopteran

Giant centipede

Stickbug

Grasshopper

Mayfly on Lake Malawi

Cicada

Elephant rhinoceros  beetle

Praying mantis

Giant millipede

Grasshopper

Dragonfly

Victoria Falls, Zambia - Sunset Island Tour

Sunset Island Tour

As part of our whitewater rafting package, we were able to take a sunset cruise on a catamaran. We were given a delicious bbq dinner and there was an open bar.  The highlight of the trip was seeing a herd of 8 elephants swim across the Zambezi. I had no idea they could swim so well.

When we were back on dry land we were treating to an African drumming lesson. I was a pro.

Victoria Falls, Zambia - Devil's Pool

Livingstone Island and Devil's Pool

On November 16, 1855 David Livingstone was the first white man to see Mosi-oi-tunya, the smoke that thunders, and named it Victoria Falls.  Purely by coincidence I stepped foot on the island exactly 157 years later.

Its beautiful standing over the falls, but the highlight was devil's pool. You swim across the falls, yes across (so so scary), to a natural pool. There is a rock shelf that prevents you from going over the falls.  It's a deep pool, you can jump in. It is only open at certain times of year when the water levels are low.  You can feel the power of the water as you sit on the rockshelf and fish nibble at your toes. You are allowed to look over the edge, which is exhilirating.

Afterwards, you are treated to a traditional english high tea, complete with a drink. I tried Pimm's for the first time. Not my favorite, but my british friends loved it. If you ever come to Victoria Falls, the Livingstone island tour is a must.

Victoria Falls, Zambia - Whitewater Rafting

Victoria Falls - Whitewater rafting

Victoria Falls is in Zambia and has been described as one of the natural wonders of the world.  There are lots of adrenaline adventures centered around the falls.  I'm scared of water. I hate getting dunked as I have no ability to keep the water out of my nasal passages.  Hence, I figured whitewater rafting the Zambezi would be a great idea.  In truth, I try to do things that make me uncomfortable now. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to face some fears.

The Zambezi is one of the best rivers to raft in the world. The water is really warm and the lower Zambezi has 25 rapids in 30 km, you almost can't take a breath before the next one is before you.  It has the most class 5 rapids in such a short stretch. The river is also infested with freshwater crocodiles, which were basking along the banks of the river. Thankfully none of them bothered us. Avoiding crocs while trying to stay afloat in a rapid would have been difficult.  The river itself is guarded by a river god called Nyami Nyami, which is represented by a serpent.  Some kayakers that regularly run the river wear pendants for safe passage.

November 15, 2012 the day I went rafting was one of my top 5 days I've ever had. It was amazing. At the very first rapid we got stuck. The raft was shaking and none of us knew what to do. The rapid eventually spit us out and we collected our lost passenger.  At the second rapid Tom went over. He looked pretty concerned as he disappeared into the waves.  The river was intense. When we hit the first class 5 the drop into the waves was so terrifying I screamed.

At rapid #10, the gnashing jaws of death, the left side of the boat (including myself) was swept away. Kirsty and I swam and she somehow ended up with both of our paddles. Falling in was so much fun! I wasn't afraid, just focused on not drowning. I was collected by our camera man at the end of rapid. What a rush.

We were given the chance to boogie board through the rapids. Alene and I decided to take on a class 4 with only flippers and a styrafoam board. It was scary. You're thrown around and there is no way to steer, really nothing you can do. It was fun, I'm glad I did it, but I was definitely shaking at the end.

Rapid #18, Oblivian, proved to be our raft's undoing. It's nicknamed popcorn, because the people in the boat will pop out one by one and there is a 50/50 chance of the raft flipping. We made it over the first waves and felt like seasoned pros. Before we could celebrate, the second wave flipped the entire raft over. I was caught under the raft for a few seconds before the current pulled me out. Swimming through the entire class 5 was terrifying, you can't breath, you can't control yourself. It was a blast.  Once we got back onto the boat, we did a high five with our paddles, hit a rock and Kirsty went flying back into the water. It happened so quickly, the shock didn't have time to register on her face. It gave us all a good laugh.

Rapid 2 and 3 from above.

By the end of the trip I was paddling in the front, fear gone. I now wear a Nyami Nyami pendant around my neck in homage to the river that helped me face my fear of water. I don't think it'll bother me anymore.

Lake Malawi

Malawi is a very tiny African country, the majority of it consists of Lake Malawi, a huge lake.  When you stand on the beach you can't see the other shore, just mountains in the distance.  The first campsite was right on the beach. The beach itself is made of dark brown and black sand flecked with glitter.  There were even waves. There were hammocks hanging along the beach, the first ones I have observed in Africa.

The highlight of Malawi is the lake. It is home to about 600 species of cichlid fish, 99% of which are endemic to only this lake. Cichlids are very brightly colored freshwater fish and are prized for freshwater aquariums. They are also one of the only species of fish that have parental care.

I was given the opportunity to snorkel at Kande Beach and observe some of the cichlids at a small island just off shore. They were beautiful fish. My favorite were bright blue with black stripes. Some were hiding in cracks and under rocks, some were swimming just below the surface.

Just outside the Kande Beach campsite is a local village of 4500 people. We were given a tour and could see how basic their lives are compared to the typical western lifestyle. They gre a lot fo cassava, a white root vegetable that tastes a lot like sweet potato. We were given tours of the hospital, school and orphanage. All the kids kept wanted pens, which is interesting, since they all had pencils.  Funny that pens are such a hot commodity.

That evening we had a meal cooked for us in the village. They laid out a grass mat in the dirt, which we sat upon. As the evening light fell upon us, we were very relaxed and content. It was a false sense of security. Lurking in the shadows were solpugids, some of the creepiest things I've ever seen. The common names are camel spiders or sun scorpions. They move very very fast, like nothing I had seen and they were huge, leg span greater than my palm. They ran across our grass mat, scattering us and causing several exclamations of disgust, surprise and horror. I'm an entomologist, pretty much scared of no bug, and they freaked me out. I didn't want it anywhere near me. I like them better behind glass, not running over my feet.

The highlight of Malawi was definitely the party night. For my Lexington friends, we had an African goodwill party, which was not Jordan's idea. For those of you who do not know this concept, you go to a goodwill store (in this case a second hand clothes market in Africa) and pull a name from a hat. You have $5 to spend on an outfit for that person. Anything you want, everything goes, provided your person is covered up.  I had the pleaure of dressing Jordan, giving her a flannel pirate jumpsuit complete with furry tail sewed on the back. Henry, our driver dressed me. I ended up in a flannel sequin number, very chique. We had a big dinner and there were 3 other trucks participating with dressing up. It was a blast.