Sandra Getgood - Snapshot Chronicles Roadtrip

You’re going to Africa? – Part 3: Clothes

August 24, 2009 by Sandra Getgood

As far as clothes went, I was surprised…and pleased…to see that I really didn’t need to buy a lot of specialized clothes for the trip. Most people already have washable, easy-care cotton t-shirts and shirts and slacks, and those are perfectly fine for Botswana, South Africa and Zambia.

One of the lists recommended bringing a jacket with lots of pockets and, if possible, zip-off sleeves. That seemed like a really good idea, as we are going to be in Africa at the end of winter, when nights can be cool and mid-days really warm. So I Googled “Safari Jackets” and found dozens of sites. Amazon, in fact, had just what we wanted, for a very reasonable price.

Another article mentioned that having a hat that would protect the back of your neck was a really good idea, as the African sun can be really powerful. I never wear hats, but what they said made sense. Again, just Googling “safari hats” located dozens of possibilities, and I found some good, reasonably priced ones at www.OutlandUSA.com. [Susan: Tilley hats are by far the most recommended. Mum and Doug got a good deal at Outland USA. I got mine at EMS using a coupon for $25 that I’d earned from a previous purchase.]

After reading about the strong sun, we decided that having a few long-sleeved shirts that would protect us from burning might be a good idea, and found them at www.Coolibar.com . [Susan: LL Bean and Lands’ End also have good alternatives. Watch for end of season sales, and generally buy big. Many of these shirts seem to run small. I’ve also had better success buying the men’s versions.]

Susan has already mentioned the walking shoes I found (in our recommended products section} …they weigh practically nothing, which is great when you are watching baggage weight, and they are soooo comfortable. I found my shoes at Magellan’s. There are lots of other travel goodies there, which I have managed to resist. So far.

I have gotten a few hints from other “Pondies” at the National Geographic website, who have been to Botswana and South Africa at the same time we will be going. They have recommended a warm jacket and gloves for evening or early morning game drives. I have a very comfortable fleece vest that will take up very little room in my duffle bag, so I think that will be coming along to Africa, perhaps with a pair of gloves in the pocket.

With less than a month to go before we start our trip, we are pretty much ready. We have all been wearing the clothes we plan to take — no point in bringing anything that doesn’t fit, or isn’t comfortable, after all — and learning to use the binoculars and cameras we are bringing. Well, I am learning to use the binoculars and camera…Susan and Doug are both very proficient at that sort of thing already. I have finally learned which end of the binoculars to look into, which is definitely progress.

Next: A brief rundown on books we are reading to prepare ourselves for the trip of a lifetime.

You’re going to Africa? – Part 2: Planning

August 22, 2009 by Sandra Getgood

Doug started doing research on travel agencies that could help us plan an itinerary and arrange the details for us. Susan, an experienced traveler, took on the airlines and also found us a marvelous Fodor’s reference book on African safaris that went into incredible detail on what you should do before you go, what you should bring with you when you do go (note: not too much! And nothing too heavy!) and what to see and do when you get there. Fodor’s also has a great website…no matter where in the world you are going, they have information for you.

And what did I do? Well, once we had decided on our itinerary…Mashatu Game Reserve and Pete’s Pond in Botswana, Victoria Falls in Zambia, and MalaMala Game Reserve in South Africa…I started putting notebooks together for all of us, with information about each destination. Mashatu and MalaMala both have excellent websites, with pictures and information about the wildlife, the accommodations, what you can see and do while there, even videos. I made copies of the basic information at each of their sites , and occasionally added updates to the books as they updated wildlife sightings…fun to get acquainted with the animals you might be seeing during your visit.

I also found a lot of information about Victoria Falls, from the history to maps of the area to the accommodations available, and made copies of the useful information I found there. It’s much easier to find Livingstone these days than back in the day when Stanley was searching for “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” Copies of our itinerary, airplane reservations and travel insurance information also went into the notebooks, along with anything else that seemed useful or interesting..

A site to check if you are going to unfamiliar areas is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where you can get health information about the shots you may need, the diseases you could encounter, how to stay healthy. Once you have that information, you can call your local Work/Travel Health Clinic to make an appointment. Your doctor will know. Or your local hospital. Or Google will find one for you. How did we manage before Google? [Note: see earlier post by Susan about visiting the clinic]

Another particularly useful site I found was African Safari Journals which posted lists of safari gear, safari supplies, what luggage and equipment you might need, documents you might need for the countries you are going to, even checklists. Copies of those went right into our notebooks, and were tremendously useful in finding out which specific items we didn’t have and would need.

Next: Clothing

You’re going to Africa? – Part 1

August 20, 2009 by Sandra Getgood

I enjoy watching animals, whether they are my cats (who are relatively goofy) or Susan’s Scottish Terriers, or the birds and squirrels and extremely fat chipmunk who hang out around our bird feeder in the back yard. I also enjoy watching wildcams. Although there are quite a few wildcams available on the internet, some of them are simply a stationary camera focused on a waterhole or eagles’ nest. My favorite wildcam quickly became National Geographic’s WildCam Africa, which featured Pete’s Pond , located on the Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana. There was always something to see there, 24/7, and because there are no humans or vehicles to distract the animals, birds and reptiles, they interact with each other as they would anywhere else in the wild, offering a rare opportunity to see wild animals being themselves.

Also, there was Afke, the world’s best cam operator, who can always find something interesting to see, whether it’s a family of elephants dropping by with their babies to have a drink and play in the water, or wildebeest and zebra herds jockeying for position at their favorite drinking spot or, if there are no animals to watch at that moment, perhaps a close-up of ants and bees investigating a hibiscus blossom. If you would like to see what triggered my obsession and started us planning this trip to Africa, here is the link to the wildcam. (You’ll need Real Player.) Warning: this site is addictive. :>D

There is also a forum, where folks watching the activity at Pete’s Pond could talk about sightings, ask and answer questions, share information, have conversations with each other and with Afke, and even post screen captures of the animals, birds, and reptiles who visited the Pond, to save the sightings for others who were sleeping or at work. You can find the forum on Facebook.

I knew I had become obsessed when I began waking up at 4 o’clock in the morning, so I would have time to spend a few hours at the Pond before it was time to get ready for work. I had become a “Pondie.”

So when my daughter Susan and my son Doug mentioned that they had noticed my obsession (a very tactful way of putting it, I felt) and that they were thinking the three of us should visit Africa, I was astonished,. Although I had often thought what fun it would be to visit the Pond in person, the idea that I actually would do it had really never occurred to me. It seemed…and is!…so far away. But the more we talked about it, the more it seemed something we could do. The three of us have always enjoyed traveling together, and this sounded like a very exciting trip for all of us.

Next: Planning the trip