The Jon Blog

Some Stuff About the Trip

Obviously, I would have loved to blog from Africa, but they don't really have so much internet access when you're in the bush. (And Jere did such a good job in my stead. Stay tuned for news of his own blog, coming soon) Not so much telephone access, even - we couldn't call my sister to wish her a happy birthday as there was nary a phone in sight (well, actually we had a
cellphone but couldn't get service to save our lives).

But it was SO worth it. What an amazing journey. I took over 1250 photos (granted, I don't expect all of them to come out, and some was playing with f-stops and what not, but I should know more about that later today), and have many many more wonderful memories of the sights, sounds and smells of Africa. Sadly, not so much of the taste - we were served mostly "Western" food, with one notable exception.

We saw so many animals - the only "major" species we didn't see was crocodile. Amazing antelope, from the tiny dik-dik, to Africa's largest antelope, the Topi. Thirty giraffe who watched us while we had a picnic breakfast one morning in the savannah. Elephant, including some babies, lined up at a stream, drinking and playing in the water. The wildebeest (gnu) migration: literally thousands of these oddly shaped creatures galloping across the African plains - mostly in single file lines - while many of the females were grouped by the sheltering shade provided by the trees so they could safely deliver their young. Although we saw one who had not successfully delivered, and the vultures were starting in on her - and the poor little feet which were the only part of the calf which had yet been delivered. Or the warthog, such a cute little excited creature. Mostly quite shy - but still we were able to get a few pictures.

The birds were incredibly gorgeous, colorful, and melodic, and some seemed quite interested in posing for my camera. Some odd and unusual reptiles included a wild python and a red and blue lizard.

And then there were the cats. We were lucky to find a lot of cats. Of course, most were sleeping, but we found a cheetah in action in the Serengeti. It was amazing how our guide (who was brilliant) found this. He saw her ear, basically, pop up above distant grasses, so he drove us over to where the cheetah was. We watched her for a bit, then she got up and so of course we followed, snapping pictures all the way. Then she got up again, and headed back towards where she had been, and we (well, the guide) realized that she had a baby wildebeest in her sights, and grim determination in her yellow eyes. The hunt was over very quickly, but I felt incredibly lucky (and oddly bloodthirsty) watching it. Would have loved to watch something like that again (especially watching her eat - it was fascinating), but the rest of the cats were felinely lazy. Big surprise. But they were still amazing. We saw a mother cheetah with two cubs; we saw a pride of six or seven lion lazing on the shore of a waterhole in the Serengeti. We saw a leopard sleeping in a distant tree.

The plants, grasses, and trees; the skies and the clouds, the rain or lack thereof. All amazing. And what is perhaps even more amazing is to truly experience what Elton John very aptly called "The Circle of Life." There are a certain number of each species which are basically expected to die in order to feed others. Some reach adulthood and are able to breed. Elephants keep a lot of vegetation in check so that the smaller antelope are able to have the right areas for the type of grass or bush they prefer. Wildebeest, zebra and gazelle following each other on the endless migration through the Serengeti, each eating a separate kind of grass from the other, but the growth of each grass contingent on the other kind being eaten. Scavengers, such as hyena, vultures, marabou stork, sometimes lion, and many many insects, which patrol the plain for dead carcasses - from the breached birth wildebeest to a carnivore's left-overs - eating up whoever died out there. The system balances so amazingly - and we could learn a lot from it. Why do we have a rat problem in New York City? Easy - rats evolved to breed successfully because they're an integral part of the food chain: they're there to be eaten. But we've eliminated their predators in the US - so the population can explode.

Another incredible thing I saw was just the sheer happiness of local/native people. It's odd - we have so many physical (financial) resources at our disposal in the USA, but we're always craving more and unhappy until we get it. In Africa, everyone is just happy with what they have: family, beautiful landscapes, life. They aren't worried about how the Dow closed, or if gay marriage should be legal, or which bank has the better interest rate. It's a much simpler society and we could learn a lot from it (although they would benefit from some of our auto emission standards). Of course, we did out bit for their economy - especially at a couple craft shops...

Anyways, I'm supposed to get the photos back either late this evening or early tomorrow, and they're sending 'em on CD in addition to the prints, so I'll be able to show you all a photo or 100.

Posted by Jon at February 26, 2004 08:01 AM | TrackBack