We were up this day and to the restaurant for breakfast at 7am. Our bus would leave for Johannesburg at 8am. We observed sunrise of Skukusa before breakfast. You can see the old railroad bridge in the distance.
Then we asked someone to take a picture of the two of us in Skukusa.
Looking at this monkey on a fence watching the sunrise makes one think that, for all the difficulties for animals living in Kruger National Park, there is still something wonderful about it all.
We popped in the store in Skukusa just to see what was there. Found this amazing life-sized lion made out of beads.
We all boarded the bus to leave Skukusa. At the exit of Skukusa there were these green bushes. They are a version of the candelabra tree. Remember, it is poisonous and can cause one to go blind for 24 hours. However, it was used for lawn decoration at the entrance to Skukusa. Hmmmm....
From Skukusa's gate we drove on to Kruger National Park's gate and began the 6 hour drive to Johannesburg. We would have two stops along the way. Here are some of the things we saw along the drive.
There are community gardens. These are cared for by all residents of the community and the food is used by all the residents as well.
We did pass a KFC and a McDonald's.
One sees everything from poverty to wealth. To earn a living, some work from the sides of the roads.
Some work in places like we see more often in the United States.
I noticed a store selling columns on our way back to Johannesburg (it is called Jo-burg by the locals). I wondered why they would have a store selling columns. Then I really noticed that a lot, I mean a lot, of the homes in that area had columns as part of their exterior design. It didn't seem to matter if the home looked to be more or less affluent, the columns seemed to be an important part of the design. Many of the homes looked unfinished. We were told that to have an income, one member of the family would move to Johannesburg to work. They would send home money. The family at home would use what money came home to add a new room or finish a part of the home they had started and ran out of money to build.
We were shown a lot of poles for sale. These are used for roofs on some homes and then thatch is laid over the poles.
These are a couple of view of homes we could see from the highway.
We passed banana groves and dust devils in the distance.
Often the views are fantastic.
At one final stop for lunch before we got to Johannesburg, Alan told us to take our camera with us. We were told the bathroom would afford the best view. Say what??? Sure enough, behind the gas station and through a picture window in the bathroom we saw the animal preserve located behind the gas station. Absolutely amazing!!
Claude and I opted not to buy lunch. Instead, we purchased a few munchies and found a spot to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. Claude found these things called Koek Sisters. Koek is an Afrikaan word for cookie, cake, or wafer. These are filled with honey of some type and covered in a sugary glaze. We tried them but could not eat them. They are very sweet. Good, but very sweet. When we got home they were featured on a show about foods from other countries. They are a very popular food among the locals.
Back into our bus and onward to Johannesburg. We passed this remarkable building going and coming. It is the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere.
Now, everyone had been very good to keep to the timetable at stops along the way. There had been very little opportunity for souvenir shopping trip. We were promised a stop at a store with all kinds of souvenirs from trinkets to very nice jewelry. We managed to have almost 2 hours to shop. This is the outside of the store.
Inside Claude and I purchased a few items. First we bought post cards for our two youngest grandmonsters and our three great grandmonsters. We were able to write on these and get postage and mail them from their coffee bar. We also purchased a wallet made completely of elephant hide and a belt made from crocodile skin for Claude. We purchased a gold necklace with the Southern Cross set with tanzanite for Sandi. This is a blue/violet stone that only comes from Tanzania. After learning about the Southern Cross, I was very happy to get this pendant.
Our last stop was the airport in Johannesburg. Those who purchased lots of things had a time to open their luggage and redistribute their belongings so they met and did not go over the weight limit for their suitcases. Alan carries a scale to weigh if there is any concern. We were not a concern at all.
We would wait in the airport for about 3 hours till time for our flight. The flight from Johannesburg to Atlanta, Georgia was over 15 hours long. We were not as fortunate as on the way to Johannesburg. There were three people in our row. Claude took the window and I sat in the middle. No sleep for me. We were fed three times again on this return trip. It seemed hours longer going home on this plane. It wasn't, but it did seem that way.
Once in Atlanta we made it through customs and security with no problems. Then we found our gate and waited for another couple of hours. The flight from Atlanta to Cincinnati was 1 1/2 hours. Once we got our luggage, we found the Jeep and pointed it toward Sadieville. We did opt to stop at Chipotle and have something to eat on the way home. We made it home about noon having been 29 hours from the time we left Kruger. Ugh!! Very little in the way of sleep made us very tired campers. We opted to stay awake until our usual bedtimes. After unpacking, I drove into Georgetown to visit with Papa. When I got home I started our laundry. It felt so very, very good to be in our own bed that night. We were able to sleep until our bodies were ready to wake up the next morning.
This was an amazing trip. Very different from any we have taken before. So much fun to see another country. To find people who are warm and friendly and happy to have you visit their neck of the woods. Claude says it was more an experience than a vacation. He really has something there. Would we recommend this trip. Absolutely. Suggestions. Take a very small back pack to carry in the Jeep rides each day. It should have sun screen and jackets in case it turns cold and bug spray as Kruger is in malaria country. Also, bring a way to keep you hair back. I did not think of this and the first day my hair was almost totally uncombable (did I create a new word?) when we got back. I did have two combs in my things and I used those the rest of the time we were on safari to try and keep my hair out of my eyes and not quite as full of tangles. Bring clothes you can layer for warmth and remove as you warm up. The food is good and the water is fine to drink. The air is refreshing. Yes, we would highly recommend this trip to anyone.
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