Days 1 thru 4

(Rhia’s comments are italicized)

First and foremost, the journey this year was much easier than last year’s. Instead of driving to Phoenix airport, we took off from Tucson. Instead of a 11 hour flight to London, we flew 3 hours to Atlanta. Then, we just had a 3 hour layover versus 9 hours last year. Although we had a longer second leg (15 hours versus 11 hours), it was much easier. And the final 6 hour bus journey was replaced with a 30 minute car rental drive to our friends’ (Marie and Peter) home in a beautiful suburb of Johannesburg.

At the international terminal E in Atlanta, there was an interesting display of items banned from entry into the US. 😟

I was surprised how quickly I adapted to driving on the left side of the road again. Having said that, for some reason my windshield wipers keep turning on when I try to use the turn signal 😜.

We met our friends, Marie and Peter, at Pilanesberg game park last year and really hit it off. We feel as though we’ve known them forever, so it was a delight to get over jet lag in their company, in their beautiful home.

Their house was amazing! It backs up to a bird sanctuary and recovery area, so I was in heaven.

Their garden was a botanical treat, with a jungle like fountain cascading through the foliage and into the pool.

On our second night, we were treated to a braai (barbeque) around a beautiful fire out in the garden. Peter cooked up a delicious steak and some borst (😂 boerewors 😂) and Marie served up delicious potato and Greek salads, and garlic bread. Many people have asked us to write more about the food…but we forgot to take photos so Dan’s description will have to suffice this time!

It was with sadness that we bade farewell to our friends, though we were excited to be returning to one of our favorite destinations; Pilanesberg National Park. We had booked 10 nights at “The Elephant House” just outside the Magwase Gate (yes, my Welsh friends, I actually booked something in advance!) The house is an absolute treat (and not typical of the places we usually stay in). Many of you have asked to see where we stay and, as I aim to please, here it is…

And so, we have begun our 2025 adventure and hope you’ll join us on this second chapter of our African odyssey.