I've included Highlights in every blog post thus far, but as I close out this trip, I was thinking all the great things we got to do, and I started writing a list of the most memorable ones, and the list went on and on. So I thought I would share it in closing.
Final highlights from our trip include:
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We spent our final days in South Africa staying in a wonderful airbnb house in Hazyview, just outside Kruger National Park. We did a day-long wildlife safari, and the next day we drove north onto the Panorama route to see all the sights of Blyde River Canyon, the 3rd largest canyon complex in the world (who knew?). Then we drove to Johannesburg for a final visit to the temple, and began the very long journey of flying back to the United States, which was made even longer by a cancelled flight. (see lowlights). But we made it!
Highlights: 1. Seeing all the African wildlife in Kruger National Park 2. Taking an AWESOME hike through Blyde River Canyon Lowlights: 1. A long, long delay on our flight back home We left the tourist filled spots along the southern border and turned northeast to drive into the heart of South Africa. Along the way, we entered Lesotho for lunch and a short day-trip visit to the country. Then we continued on to Swaziland where we stayed for a few nights in the airbnb home of Tera's cousins Misti and Sbu, and stayed next to Sbu's wonderful large extended family. We spent Christmas there in Swaziland.
Highlights: 1. Cool trip into Lesotho to see all the roadside pop-up shops and talk to some locals 2. Getting to meet Sbu's family at his airbnb place 3. Walking safari through Milwane sanctuary 4. Fascinating look into Native Eswatini culture and living Lowlights: 1. Long days of driving After disembarking from the cruise ship, we stayed for 3 days in Capetown, and toured the area and did some hikes and reveled in the beauty of the setting of Capetown. We also saw the Robben's Island museum, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for decades. Upon departing from Capetown we headed south and east and drove along the famous "Garden Route" stopping in Cape Aghulas, Knysa, Mossel Bay and Aberdeen. We saw and did much, and had a marvelous time in the beauty and variety of the South African coast. Highlights: 1. Climbing Plattekip Gorge to the top of Table Mountain 2. Seeing little Penguins on Boulder's beach 3. Hermanus cliff walk coves and beaches 4. Spanish Galleon Museum in Mossel Bay 5. Kingfisher Trail in Knysa 6. Bungee Jumping off Bloukrans Bridge (for the kids) Lowlights: 1. Throwing up after bungee jumping off Bloukrans Bridge (for dad) 2. Power outages all along the Garden Route 3. Hotel finding stress in Aberdeen After departing Jeddah, Saudia Arabia, we had multiple days at sea, and then a series of stops in island nations of the Indian Ocean, namely Seychelles, Mauritius, and Reunion Island. Thereafter we continued south towards South Africa and had a stop in Durban, then continued to our last port of Capetown.
Highlights: 1. Overnight stops in Seychelles and Mauritius 2. Scuba Diving in Seychelles and Mauritius 3. Bridge Class during the at sea days 4. Hikes aplenty at each of the ports 5. Family Learning hours - with new friends joining Lowlights: 1. Thick and dense cloud cover at the Maido overlook in Reunion 2. Unmet expectations in Durban |
Fall Semester 2022Here we go again! Our 8 Suitcases have been whittled down to 4 suitcases as we take a four month world trip with our two youngest kids, Megan and Jacob. From Canada to Europe to islands in the Indian Ocean and finally to South Africa, from Sep to Dec 2022, here are our travels and experiences. Archives
December 2022
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