Reflections of a Safari

Today was a wash, rinse, repeat from yesterday. It started with a delicious breakfast, followed by hanging around in my room for a while before it was time to play golf. That’s when things changed a bit. When I checked in with the starter, I found out that not only was I playing with 3 other people (no problem), I was also playing in a TOURNAMENT!! I’m not a terrible golfer but given that I was playing with clubs that were too heavy and too long, and that I was totally unfamiliar with the course, a tournament was not on my agenda.

My partners, Trevor, Bradley and Keith were 30-40 years old, and while they said they didn’t play well, their handicaps were in the high teens. OMG!! While I don’t have an official handicap, if I did, it would be in the low 30s, so I was totally out of my league with these guys. But they couldn’t have been nicer. They were very patient as it took me 2-3 swings to catch up with their tee shots. I didn’t really hold them up, though, as they were walking and I had a cart. So, I just rode ahead until I hit my ball far enough to finally get past their first shot.

After the first few holes I relaxed a bit but still had a horrific round. Seriously, I haven’t played that badly since my first year. But it was nice to be out as it was a beautiful day.

I was in the sand…. a lot! And, unlike our bunkers at the Ranch, which have fairly low walls, these suckers were deep. By the back nine, I had so much practice that I was actually getting out with only one shot. Yeah!!

After golf I went to the sports bar for dinner and then it was back to the room for a shower and a relaxing evening.

Tomorrow, I leave Africa for Doha, Qatar on the Arabian Peninsula. It’s only a 3-night stopover on my way to Amsterdam but thought it was a nice way to see something different. It was either this or yet another 11 1/2-hour overnight flight from Joburg to Amsterdam. No thanks. Two of those were enough for one trip.

The last 2 weeks in Africa have been incredible. The only thing that could have made it perfect was to have my sweetie by my side as I experienced these amazing places.

Everyone who has been on an African safari told me the same thing – it’s a wonderous experience. And it truly is. I had seen all of these animals in the zoo, but to see them in their natural environment is hard to describe.

The beautiful leopards were my favorite.

There are over 24 types of antelope in Africa. The most plentiful by far, are the impala.

How can anything so big, be so graceful? The giraffes seem to glide when they walk.

Does anything say Africa more than lions?

Or these big guys.

The handicrafts are beautiful. I picked up more than my share.

And the vistas are unbelievable.

The best part was the people I met along the way. I missed traveling with Peter, but I made more than one new friend.

The last two weeks has been unforgettable, but there are still 2 1/2 weeks to left before I head home. Who knows what they will bring?