Postcard Revival

Postcards and letter writing seem to be a lost art these days, having been taken over by email and social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. So when I receive the rare handwritten card or a care package, what used to be a common occurrence is now a special treat. There's something exciting about being able to hold it in your hand and know that it just traveled across the world for days or weeks to get to you.

Before we left for our trip around the world, my sister requested that we send postcards to her and her kids. Nowadays, this is a lot harder than it seems because postcards aren't as popular and easy to find as they used to be and neither are post offices for that matter. It had been a long time since I had sent a postcard to anyone and at first I thought it was silly to go through the effort of buying postcards and stamps and writing something interesting and looking up an address and finding a post office to mail it when it would take me just a few minutes to send an email with photos attached. But we agreed to try not knowing what a sensation it would be for little kids who've grown up with the Internet and have never received postcards before. There were a few countries we missed where we just couldn't find them but in the end, I got really into it and sent my sister's family and some other friends some cool care packages and even some homemade postcards. It's so fun to see how excited people get over a little piece of cardboard from a foreign country. My niece and nephew really loved reading the fun facts I included about kids from other countries. My nephew, Colin, is obsessed with these toys called, Bey Blades and thought it was so cool that kids in Thailand play with Bey Blades too. My niece, Sydney, was ecstatic when we sent her this postcard from Sydney, Australia where I wrote to her about her fan club Down Under.

Then my sister, who is a first-grade teacher, took all of the postcards we sent, displayed them in her classroom, and turned them into a class writing and art project. The kids learned about geography and other cultures and also got to make their own postcards and write about places that they have visited. You can learn more about her class project at Tales of a first-grade teacher

We have another exciting trip coming up in a few weeks. It has been almost a year since our world trip began so we will be going back to New York where it all started. Then on to Philadelphia, Ireland, San Francisco and then back to Hawaii. We plan on sending more postcards from our next trip to my sister's class and if any of my readers would like to be a part of this project and send them a postcard from the place they live or plan on traveling to please contact me for address information.

Please come back soon to read all about our upcoming adventures. I'm sure I will have lots of interesting places and activities to write about. In the meantime, you can read some older posts from past trips I've taken to some of these places.

My third trip to Ireland.

A very brief mention about my short trip to Philadelphia in 2008 rolled into this post about Michigan and Canada.

Be a tourist in your own neighborhood. I wrote about some of my favorite museums in my old neighborhood of Queens, New York

A recent post about our stop in Oahu. Our first week back in the United States after our trip around the world.

Read about our current location, Maui, where we've been for the past 6 months.

New Work

Thank you to everyone who voted for my work. The voting has ended so if you didn't get a chance to see it, here is a preview. You can also check out my portfolio at kimwagnerdesigns.com
or like us on facebook or visit my Flickr page.

(all images are copyright of Kim Wagner Nolan and may not be copied or reproduced without consent)

Thailand

It was December 12th, 2011. I woke up choking in the dark. I couldn't breathe and Darren was frantically searching for my inhaler. I was delirious with fever and thought we were still in India. Darren snapped me out of it. We left India weeks ago. We were in Vietnam and now we'd been in Thailand for about 4 days already. This was the longest we had stayed put in over six weeks. In fact, we hadn't stayed in one place for more than three nights in a row since we were in Turkey in October. When we finally stopped moving Darren got sick. Darren only gets sick once a year and the illness lasts a total of three hours. I wasn't as fortunate as my husband to be born with a super-human immune system so the next day I fell ill with malaria or dengue fever, or maybe it was just a bad cold. Whatever it was, I was too sick to go anywhere so we had no choice but to stay put. Its times like these that I want to go home but then I remember we don't have a home anymore. We gave up our apartment and everything we own is in storage so we keep moving like gypsies.

Darren kept paying our host, Bim, for two more nights every two days until two nights turned into two weeks. We were staying at a really nice, clean, family-run hotel with just 8 rooms called Jinta Andaman on what we're convinced was the quietest street in Phuket, Thailand. Bim gave us a good deal on the room. She liked us and was really thrilled that Bim rhymed with Kim. Aside from that, it was Christmas time and most hotels were all booked up. We were lucky to have a room anywhere on the island.

I was hacking and wheezing and just when Darren decided he was going to take me to a hospital, my fever broke. Until I was completely better we followed a schedule of sleeping in the room, then walking to the beach and sleeping on the beach all day, then going back to the room again. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. When I finally woke from hibernation, my skin looked unnaturally brown and my hair had turned blonde despite the shelter of a large umbrella every day. Darren was resentful of this since he was still the same shade of white as the day we arrived.

Now that I was well again, I was getting restless so we rented a motorbike for just 200 baht a day (about 6 USD) and rode around the entire island.

We rode on our motorbike from beach to beach. The beaches there are gorgeous with white sand that's like powder. The Andaman Sea has crystal clear warm water and is abundant with sea life. For 20-50 baht (roughly 1 US dollar) we would buy ice-cold coconuts. They would give us a spoon and a straw so we could drink the coconut water and then eat the meat. This was a great bargain as coconut water is really popular in the US and costs about $4 for 8 ounces.

When we ran out of fuel there was no need to find a gas station. Many of the locals sold gasoline on the side of the road. All we had to do was pull over and a three-year-old would come running up to our bike with a funnel and a whiskey bottle filled with gasoline. Cost=40 baht.

At that time of the year, Phuket was overrun with Russian tourists seeking their annual one or two weeks of warm weather and sunshine. So much so that many of the signs and menus in the restaurants were written in both Thai and Russian. This is a disadvantage for those of us who can't read or speak Thai or Russian. For example, we wound up unknowingly purchasing salt flavored toothpaste. Trust me when I tell you it is NOT good.

There was construction going on all over. The men worked all day and all night. They were still rebuilding after the tsunami that devastated the island on December 26, 2004. The buildings were going up so fast that one was nearly started and completed in the short time we were there. We were happy to see this and also to be able to contribute by visiting Phuket. Tourism is its main industry. Bim told us that business came to a standstill after the tsunami hit. No one wanted to come to Thailand after that but gradually the tourists have started coming back. Seeing the construction everywhere made us feel hopeful and optimistic for the Thai people.

Another booming industry in Thailand is massage. Every other shop is a massage parlor. The scantily clad young women would sit outside giggling and flirting with your husband even when you were holding his hand. They would try to coax people in with "you likeee masaaaaage? Hehehe" We heard this all day long and it made me cringe every time.

There were single middle-aged white men everywhere with underaged Thai girls fighting for their attention. The only thing they had in common was their desperation. Prostitution was rampant there. There were so many young girls selling themselves and there was also a fairly large amount of transvestites mixed in with the competition. We saw a few unsuspecting young men enjoying their company but were too drunk to realize what they were getting themselves into.

Little girls would wander the streets selling handicrafts and flowers. Darren became enchanted by one adorable little girl in a red dress wandering alone. She was about 3 or 4 years old and she was selling roses. She deviated from her work when she spotted a fish tank and became mesmerized by the fish. He wondered what would happen to her. Would she wind up selling herself like so many of the other girls there?

The Thai also adore karaoke. One night, Thai Elvis was serenading us outside our hotel. If you're in Phuket he is hard to miss. He is booked up every night of the week and has a really flashy van that takes him to all his gigs. He sings karaoke Elvis tunes and goes by the name Mr. Delvis!

If you're into boxing, it also won't be hard to find a Thai boxing match. Thai boxing is as much a part of their culture as massage so you should try to see a spar or a fight if you can.

We rode to Chalong Temple which was more like a courtyard with several separate structures, each more magnificent and ornate than the next. They were filled with statues of Buddha in all different poses.

When in Phuket, it would be hard to miss the "Big Buddha". No matter where you go he can be seen. He sits at the top of a very high hill looking down over the island. We rode up the hill to pay him a visit. He was still under construction but he was mostly finished. Admission was free but they did ask for donations to help with the building project. They also gave me a skirt and shawl to cover up in the temple. Darren visited the monks and they gave him a bracelet and a good luck blessing.

On our way back down the hill, we stopped to go on an elephant ride. Our elephant's name was Beyonce. Our guide would steer her by sitting on her neck and putting his feet on her ears and using them like a steering wheel. I was a little bit apprehensive about riding the elephant. I wanted to make sure she was treated well and felt unsure about climbing on her back. Our guide seemed to really care for her though and I could tell they had a bond. The guide got down from his cockpit and asked for my camera to take some pictures of us. Beyonce took advantage of this moment to try to grab a banana from a tree that was located on the side of a cliff. I had taken over the guide's position on Beyonce's neck and was starting to fall off as Beyonce was teetering ungracefully on the edge. Her feet were slipping and Darren and I were panicked as she started to slip over the edge. Then I thought maybe this was an act that she and the guide were performing for us. Surely he had it under control. Then he started yelling, "Oh my god! Oh my god! Beyonce No!" My faith in his control of the situation vanished. Beyonce bent the entire tree down to the ground and it snapped back as we flew back in the opposite direction. She had her banana and our guide grabbed her by the ear and pulled her back from the edge. We returned safely to elephant camp headquarters and I played with a baby elephant. They had him chained up in order to get tourists to buy bananas for him and pay to have their pictures taken with him. We were not happy about this but unfortunately, it's pretty common in Thailand. People would walk with baby elephants on a leash through the streets of Phuket charging 50 baht to feed him bananas. Elephants used to be considered Gods in Thailand but it didn't appear to be that way anymore.

Seashells have sort of been a running theme of my past few posts. We collected them in South Africa and then gave them away as gifts to new friends in Nepal and India. When we found out the Phuket Seashell Museum was nearby we were very interested in seeing what it was all about.

It really exceeded my expectations in that it had a surprisingly large and well-organized collection of shells that were immaculately displayed according to species, then size and color. The collection consisted over of over 2,000 species including one of the rarest golden pearls, the only left-handed Noble Volute, giant clams, and fossils dating back 380 million years.

While the displays were very organized and well categorized, Darren and I both found it to get a bit tedious. Most of the visitors got bored and left before going through the whole museum. I would have liked to have seen some information about how shells are formed and their anatomy. The exhibit was a bit too scientific and dry and I think they could have touched on some interesting history about shells such as their use as tools, instruments, or currency. However, if you have even the slightest interest in shells, you will be very impressed. I had never seen in person most of the species of shells they had and it was a beautifully displayed collection.

Then we visited the Phuket Aquarium, located on the water at scenic Cape Panwa. It was a little aquarium with a big message about protecting coral reefs and endangered species. It had a clever interactive coral display with the names of many different types of coral. When the visitor pushed the button next to the name, a red light would go on next to all of the corresponding types of coral. It was simple and much more effective to see it illustrated in real life than on a computer screen.

There was also a Deep Sea exhibit that had on display some dead but well-preserved fish which still have yet to be categorized. Some of the fish looked more like aliens to me than fish. Creepy but very cool.

Scuba diving and tourism are major industries in Thailand so there was a lot of focus on protecting the reef and local fish by using safe diving practices. It also had a message to tourists about not polluting the waters. I liked that their topics were relevant to their community. They also had a display about tsunamis. It explained what they were, how they were caused, and what measures were being taken to keep people safe in case there are future events. They had a display of photographs of the tsunami and its aftermath that hit Phuket in 2004. I easily identified the very beach where we were staying. By the looks of the destruction, it was no wonder they were still rebuilding 7 years later.

The aquarium was established as part of the Phuket Marine Biological Center, a research and monitoring station within the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources. Outside there was a nature trail that connected the aquarium with the spectacular Cape Panwa shore and the research facilities of the Phuket Marine Biological Center. There was a hatchery where they bred and raised creatures from the ocean like seahorses and cuttlefish. Visitors could climb aboard their 38-meter long research ship and talk to the crew as well as visit the sea turtle pool where we viewed turtles recovering from injuries and watched adorable baby turtles in their nursery.

They also have a reference collection of over 100,000 specimens and an endangered species museum where you can learn about whales and dolphins.

I mentioned earlier that Darren had been blessed with good luck by a monk. I didn't sit with the monks to receive a blessing and none of Darren's luck seemed to be rubbing off on me. We had gotten into the habit of washing our clothes in the sink every night since laundromats can be non-existent in some countries. Our balcony even had a handy clothes rack so we'd hang the clothes to dry overnight. Phuket, for some reason, would get extremely windy at night and despite the high balcony wall, somehow my clothes (and not Darren's) would fly away. I'd look over the wall and see my underwear scattered in the trees. Some would never be recovered.

Travel tip: If you find yourself in Thailand with disappearing undergarments you can go to an outdoor street market and buy new ones. There will be no sizes on any of them and you will have to sift through a pile of loose miscellaneous styled and sized underwear but for 30 baht your new underwear with cartoon characters will be a real bargain.

Another day we were walking down the street and a woman approached us with scratch-off cards. It was a promotion for a tourism company. I won a tote-bag and Darren won a week-long dream vacation for four at a five-star beachfront resort in Phuket. Of course, it couldn't be used for the week we were there which would have been handy because the airfare was not included. They required 45 days advance notice and the trip had to be booked within two years from that day. We had already traveled all over the world and didn't have plans of taking yet another big trip within the two years required time period but we could give it to immediate family. So that's what we did.

If you visit Phuket, Thailand make sure you visit the Big Buddha and get a good luck blessing from the monks. I have, however, been getting a lot of use out of my new tote bag.

South Africa

South Africa

Thursday, October 26th we left Istanbul and began our long journey to Cape Town, South Africa. We had to start taking malaria medication and the pills were making me sick. About ten minutes before we left for an hour-long bus ride to the airport, I was vomiting in the dirty hostel bathroom. Oh, the glamorous side of traveling! We had three flights ahead of us. Our first layover would be in Abu Dhabi and our second would be in Johannesburg.

It was a full day later when we finally arrived in Cape Town on Friday the 28th. We stayed at a backpacker's lodge called "The Backpack" which was thankfully so much nicer than the horrible dirty smelly hostel we stayed at in Turkey. South Africa has become extremely backpacker-friendly over the last ten years and the lodges we stayed at were all fantastic. Most of the places we stayed in had pools, a bar, a cafe, and a travel desk to help coordinate and book tours, rental cars, and accommodations.

I wrote in my last post about Turkey that we met a woman from Cape Town who gave us lots of helpful information about the city. She sent me an extremely descriptive email with suggestions of places to see and things to do. We found it really helpful to have a real Capetonian's perspective on things rather than reading a guide book. It was so useful to us that I've asked her to allow me to post what she wrote to us. The following text in blue was written by Alex Swanepoel:

Alex's Cape town post

[ LONG STREET is the main street in the Cape Town CBD (Which all refer to as "Town") and is great for shopping, African souvenirs and partying. It has the biggest variety of clubs, shops, and what-not. BUT, there is plenty of theft!!! You will find anything here.

Good places to go for drinks etc. THE DUBLINER, ZULU BAR (for live music), STONES (if you like to play pool), NEIGHBOURHOOD (for food and a more alternative upper class vibe) DO NOT walk down a dark alley alone, or alone at anytime. DO NOT wear lots of expensive looking jewellery. DO NOT flash your money, try using smaller notes when you pay. AND DO NOT trust helpless looking street kids or car-gaurds! Just carry on walking if they approach you, the street kids distract you, etc and that is when your phone or money goes missing. Be nice to car-guards as they can cause trouble... so be friendly, say thank you, make a joke and give them a tip of about R5 depending on how you feel about them. NEVER TIP THEM BEFORE, always when you return to your car. otherwise they leave and they don't do their job. But generally the normal rules apply for theft in any country, just watch your bags and don't ever leave them unattended. Don't put your phone/wallet in your pocket. Just ignore beggars... bla bla same in New York I am sure.

Just be aware, be clever, be humble and smile! South Africans are very helpful and friendly and respond well to kindness.

- CAMPS BAY is home to the up market lounges/clubs/restaurants, and some of our best/cleanest beaches. Great to go to after a day at CLIFTON (The main beach close by) or Camps bay beach. You can go all sandy from the beach, for some sundowner cocktails at CAPRICE, BLUES, THE BAY HOTEL, SAND BAR, BARAZZA, but keep in mind that you spend more in Camps Bay... cocktails are expensive but as a sun downers place. Always busy and vibey, food is good. Bring a bottle of your own champagne or wine to take down to the beach.

- CLAREMONT is where our rugby stadium is. Its the rugby and beer central! Go to the brewery for a tour if you can. and to a rugby game if one is on! they are about R50 for a ticket. And right next to each other. Cavendish Square, is the shopping centre in Claremont if you need some clothes etc. Best places for everyday clothing is Woolworths for quality at a decent price and Mr Price for cheap cheap cheap clothes, they won't last long from here but they do the job for a couple months. Both of these shops you find pretty much anywhere you go.


-KALK BAY is a whole day trip along with CHAPMANS PEAK DRIVE, HOUT BAY, CAPE POINT, and SIMONS TOWN. Let's plan it.

On a hot, sunny SUNDAY day you go to HOUT BAY for the market (go early) its better as a whole day thing but if you can't then try quickly do this whole trip in once. Get breakfast at the market. GET A DOGHNUT!!! This doghnut stall has been here for over 20 years and still going strong. its amazing. HOUT BAY also has the 'world of birds' if you spend the day there its pretty cool to support. For dinner or lunch in Hout Bay go to the harbour for fish and chips. BEST FISH AND CHIPS EVER!!!

!! CHAPMANS PEAK DRIVE (CHAPPIES) !! cannot be missed. its incredible to see and you have to do it no matter what! You can only go on a good weather day as its closed on bad days. You pay about R28 in a car to cross.

CHAPPIES takes you from hout bay to NOORDEHOEK. Noordehoek is cool and lots to see but you can see better.

Drive through from Chappies over to Kommetjie, where you can ride camels if you like? through to Misty Cliffs, Scarborough, on to the CAPE OF GOOD HOPE (CAPE POINT) another MUST!!! What ever you do, you must do cape point! Drive through, see baboons, springbok, dassies (little rock rabbits, FACT: their closest relative is the elephant), and walk to the point of Africa :) STUNNING. There are great hikes in the Cape Point Reserve, down to beautiful caves and beaches, unreachable by car. Try do it if you can. Food is expensive and not so great inside the reserve though, so rather eat in Simons town or at the ostrich farm to try some weird foods ie. ostrich. Just across the road is an ostrich farm. If you have never seen or ridden one, then go have a quick look.

Drive from there through Simons town, an old navy village, where you can go to boulders beach to see the penguins! on to KALK BAY. Go to the BRASS BELL for some drinks and sundowners. On the weekends it is full of surfers and plenty of drinking. Nice pizza. After then, if you stay late, go to Polana (either after Brass bell or for dinner). CAPE TO CUBE is a great restaurant for Cuban food. OLYMPIA CAFE is a good breakfast spot... be aware they are dirty in their kitchen, but they make the most amazing croissants!

FOR SURFING (learning) go to MUIZENBERG.

Long Beach for bigger surf, this is where all the locals go.

Otherwise Llundudno is good (but freezing cold) or to

Kalk Bay, but Kalk Bay is a bit rough if your not experienced enough and locals tend to get pissed of with people mucking around at this spot.

Wit Sands on good days is amazing, plenty of kite- surfing out here.

!! TABLE MOUNTAIN, you have to do. Hike up if you can and take the cable car down. !!

Very expensive to eat and drink at the top, so bring your own picnic and food etc. It gets cold and windy on top so bring a wind-breaker. You can go KLOOFING, or Paragliding from the top.

http://www.adventurehub.co.za/abseil-africa-table-mountain-kloofing-hiking-cape-town

Kloofing at Crystal Pools, would be an incredible experience. I think that -especially for the two of you- it would be an incredible adventure in the mountains and natural springs.

http://www.cape-xtreme.com/water/kloofing/

SHOPPING. go to CANAL WALK for a million million shops, its our biggest centre. and the

V&A WATERFRONT is great too, more up market but its great for lunch, movies, to see the boats, people, the mountain, its a great tourist thing to go to and I highly recommend it. Also at the V&A Waterfront:

!! The TWO OCEANS AQUARIUM is incredible. I have never been to an aquarium like this in my life. You will love it !!

Robben Island, where Mandela was in Jail. You take a day trip out on a ferry.

Little indoor Market on your way to the Aquarium with lots of hand-made African Crafts. Across the road is Put-Put and the Scratch Patch.

Or LONGSTREET, which depending on where you go can be expensive or cheap. GREENMARKET SQUARE (in Town) for african souvenirs,.

GRAND WEST CASINO is brilliant. a huge casino, with ice-rink, games area, food and restaurants and generally have theatre and shows. Its a bit far out but the casino is well work the visit!

!! KIRSTENBOSCH GARDENS is a must and I mean A MUST!!! You cannot go to cape town without going to kirstenbosch. Best on a hot day. If you are able and if the live act is any good, then on a sunday, they have an open air theatre in the gardens. You go around 3pm (always go early as possible as parking is hell) with a big picnic blanket and basket. take wine, cheese, more wine, and grapes, snacks to keep you going for a good couple of hours. its crazy busy but the best thing. A picnic in the gardens with live music, good happy people, children and nice food. Its a truely cape town experience .

http://www.uncoverthecape.co.za/event-calendar/kirstenbosch-concerts.htm

This is a pretty good site.

There are some great Hikes over into Kirstenbosch Gardens from Constantia Nek, that go through Cecilia Forest, where there are many natural water springs from the mountain :) Should only take Two hours or so depending on the trail you walk and how fast you go. But try do this. The forest is a working one, They might have recently cut down some trees but not too sure???

http://www.uncoverthecape.co.za/hiking-guide.htm

For wine tasting go to Steenberg in Tokai, Constantiaberg uitsig in Constantia... these are great and close. but if you have a chance to get out of cape town, take a day drive out to

Franschhoek! Just wine wine wine farms one after another. But its so beautiful! Take a sober driver, stay the night in a B&B or hire a bus haha as you will be waaaay to drunk to get home.

Or to Stellenbosch which is a student town, very old, plenty wine farms and great local shops etc. Just outside of Stellies is a Cheetah sanctuary at "Spier". You can take a train out to this area which is quite nice to do. The restaurant here MOYO is amazing, they paint your faces, wine tasting and you can dine in a tree house, really great!

http://www.spier.co.za/what_to_do_at_spier/cheetah_outreach/

For Kruger I think you might need the Wild Card? https://www.wildcard.co.za/

I know this is a lot of info all at once but maybe one or two of these things will spark a memory and you'll have a good experience.]

We were only in Cape Town from Friday to Monday and there were no rental cars available until Monday but we still got to take advantage of a lot of the things Alex mentioned in her list. We climbed up Table Mountain which was amazing but it took an hour just to walk up to the base of the mountain and an other three to do the serious vertical climb to the top. This was a very difficult hike but worth it. If you take the cable car up you will miss all of the beauty along the way. Most people choose to take the cable car up and then hike down. Now we know why we only passed a few other people hiking up. It's a tough climb to the top.

One thing we really wanted to do that was on Alex's list was to take a tour of Robben Island. Like the rental car, this needed to be booked in advance and tours we booked up through Wednesday, two days after our departure from Cape Town. So if you're planning a visit, know that tours are very limited and plan ahead.

You can buy a ticket for one of the backpacker buses and hop on and off at backpacker lodges all along the Garden Route. It's a really safe and easy way to travel around South Africa. But we found that for the two of us traveling together it was actually cheaper to rent a car. It wasn't available until Monday though (another thing I recommend booking ahead of time) so on Sunday we took the bus to Kirstenbosch Gardens, home to the worlds oldest plant species which predates the dinosaurs and survived the Ice Age.

We also saw the V&A Waterfront, Camps Bay, and Mariner's wharf in Hout Bay where we did eat the fish & chips and also saw seals! They came right up to the pier to get fed.

We also decided to take a Township tour. It was an extremely awkward and uncomfortable yet humbling experience to take a tour of someone else's impoverished living conditions but this is something I think is important and also necessary for anyone visiting South Africa to do. I found the disparity of wealth in this country to be disturbing. People are living in shacks made of salvaged scrap metal and just up the street others are living in mansions. We were invited into people's homes even though the six of us on the tour could barely all fit inside. At one point (and this is the part where it got awkward and uncomfortable) we were invited into a church while a wedding was in process. We were brought right up to the altar where the bride and groom were standing. All over Cape Town and the rest of South Africa homes are surrounded by fences or walls with spikes and barbed wire.You have to pay car guards to watch your car and you can't leave any items inside the car when your driving or when it's parked. It's extremely unsettling, unwelcoming and gives the impression that nowhere is safe. Yet, in the township where they had nothing to offer us but their smiles, we were welcomed in. A little boy ran up to Darren and gave him a hug (this was the humbling part) This township was small in comparison to most. 30,000 people lived there (most of them children) and there was one bathroom for every 500 people. The name of this township was Imizamo Yethu which means "Our Struggle"

We spent the next week driving across the country along the Garden Route to get to our final destination of Kruger National Park. Along the way we stopped in Simonstown and saw hundreds of African penguins at Boulders Beach. Then we drove for six hours to Knysna and saw no houses or people for almost the entire drive. What we did see a lot of was mountains and wide open land with ostriches,donkeys, cows, sheep, goats, and baboons!

We spent one night in Knysna, a gorgeous little town on the coast. We explored the Knysna waterfront, Thesen Harbour Town and these amazing cliffs called The Heads.

We spent the next night in Port Elizabeth and stopped in Jeffreys Bay to check out the world famous surfing beach. The waves and surfing did not disappoint us! What an amazing beach and phenomenal surfing!!

The next day we headed to a remote little town call Chintsa. A Canadian couple we had met at The Backpack back in Cape Town mentioned that it was their favorite place they visited in S.A. So we decided to check it out. On our way we saw giraffes, monkeys, wart hogs, goats, cows, sheep, ostrich, impala, pigs and horses. It was way out of the way and really hard to find. We drove down an unmarked dirt road and what we discovered was an amazing little gem in the middle of nowhere hidden away in the wilderness and overlooking a lake and the ocean. For approximately 50 US dollars we had our own private house with a terrace and an ocean view. So of course we decided to stay an extra night.

We went canoeing the next morning and that afternoon we went surfing for the first time in the Indian Ocean. There were millions of giant colorful seashells all along the shore. The hermit crabs loved them too and we discovered a lot of the shells could walk!

We wished we could have stayed in Chintsa but had to get back on the road if we were going to make it to Kruger Park. Everywhere we drove in South Africa we'd see people hitch hiking or walking along the road or selling fruit, crafts, live chickens. Women with babies on their backs and groceries on their heads. Vans drive around picking people up and cramming in as many as possible. There were children walking barefoot along the highway by themselves and up to ten kids would pile in the back of pick up trucks to take them back to their villages after school.

We spent just one night in Durban and originally we weren't really thrilled about stopping in a big city after our relaxing time in Chintsa but we wound up happy that we did. We found the diversity refreshing and promising. Durban has a large Indian population as well as some other Asian in addition to the black and white South Africans we'd seen everywhere else. It was nice to finally see some diversity and on top of that blacks and whites were interacting as friends and colleagues, which we unfortunately saw very little of elsewhere.

From Durban we drove to Swaziland. (read my separate post on Swaziland)

We drove through Zululand and started seeing round huts with thatched roofs. One woman working in the toll booth tried to teach Darren some Zulu but Zulu is such a complex language and with an Irish accent is a total disaster. She couldn't understand his English either so they just laughed at each other.

We finally reached Kruger National Park on Sunday. Kruger National Park is a protected area for Africa's amazing wild animals, many of which are critical (ie. Wild Dogs) or endangered (ie.rhinoceros) Poachers kill one rhino every day in Kruger Park just for their horn. It's estimated that a rhino horn is now worth about $250,000. We were told it is very difficult to spot a rhino-probably because they're hiding from poachers- but we were lucky and spotted nearly ten of them. It's sad to think that by the time I post this many of them will have been killed by greedy poachers.

There are so many magnificent animals in Kruger. Even though I worked in zoos it still amazed me and I saw animals I had never seen in person or in pictures. I never thought I'd hear myself say, "Watch out for the elephant in the road!" Everywhere we went we saw elephants, giraffe, nyala, kudu, wildebeest, buffalo, wart hogs, zebra, rhino, and cheetah. What an amazing experience. All of South Africa was truly an amazing and eye-opening experience. It is not a vacation but it definitely leaves a lasting impression. It is a land of extremes. It's rich in so many things- culture, landscape, animals, and minerals but people are living beside diamond mines and starving. One in four people are HIV positive and 25% are unemployed. There is no welfare and no unemployment assistance.

It's one thing to read about it but it to experience it first-hand has truly affected us. It is such an amazing and terrible place all at the same time. One woman we met from Johannesburg summed it up perfectly when she said, "I love South Africa and I hate South Africa."

Swaziland

Swaziland

Even though crossing from South Africa to Swaziland involved driving through a gate, it was very apparent we had just entered another country. We drove through and there was a dirt road with a plywood sign with hand-painted letters reading, "Welcome to Swaziland". Then we drove through dirt roads and fields until we finally found the main road which was (thankfully) paved. We found Swaziland to be even more rural than South Africa. We never came across any big cities or even a big town. The land was really lush with these magnificent trees (possibly jacarandas) covered in purple flowers.

We drove around trying to find someplace to stay before dark. We found a lodge that had a room. It was an unusual place with an unusual caretaker who chose to sleep in a tent in the yard even though there was a whole house filled with empty beds. It wasn't the most comfortable or cleanest place to stay but we were happy to have a place to sleep for the night. When we went out for dinner we realized we didn't have any Swazi money. The waitress said it was no problem because they took south African rands and they were worth the same amount anyway.

The next morning, Sunday, November 6th, we went to the Swazi Cultural Village. We got a guided tour of the village and our guide let us go inside the huts. The doorways are very small and you have to crawl to get inside. The straw used to make them keep them cool and dry inside. Once children are six years old they sleep in separate huts from their parents. Girls and boys also sleep in separate huts.

Girls will marry around the age of 18 whereas the men would not get married until the age of about 30. The reason for this is because they have to pay the girl's father a dowry of between 10-20 cows. The price varies depending on whether she is a virgin or not and several other factors that will be negotiated between the groom and father. If the men can afford it they are allowed as many as two wives. A typical family would have 7-10 children. This would ensure that the parents would have someone to take care of them in their old age-Swazi Social Security.

The men would be responsible for hunting for food and the women would cook, clean, and take care of the children. The wife must always be subservient to the husband and when feeding him his meal she must bow, leave the food and back away. When eating meat, she is not allowed to eat the brain for fear she will become smarter than the man. She may not eat the tongue for fear she will talk too much. And she may not eat the feet for fear she will walk away and leave him.

After the tour, we were treated to a performance of traditional Swazi singing and dancing. This was so much fun and somehow the tribesmen kept dragging me into the act!

Afterward, we walked up the trail to see Mantenga falls and then we got back on the road and headed back to South Africa. We had no cash left so we stopped at an ATM and took out 1200 Swazi Lilangeni. We crossed over three border checkpoints to get into S.A. and then drove another hour to our lodge. When we got there we found out that they don't accept credit cards and no one in S.A. Accepts Swazi currency even though Swaziland will accept South African Rands. So the next morning we tried the bank and they wouldn't exchange it for us. They told us to try the exchange bureau at the Mozambique border. So we drove to the border of Mozambique but they didn't want it either. Even the ladies who sit on the side of the road at the border crossing and try to get you to change your money with them before you go into the exchange office didn't want our money.

The only thing we could do was drive back to Swaziland. So we drove an hour back to the border, got our passports stamped leaving S.A., drove into Swaziland, got our passports stamped entering Swaziland, and changed the money at customs. Then we got back in the car but the south African official wouldn't let us in until we went back and got a stamp to enter S.A. again. So we parked the car again, went back into the S.A. immigration office and got our stamps, all while providing entertainment and outbursts of laughter amongst the border patrol guards. We got in the car again and drove to the S.A. gate but this time the guard had to check our immunization cards just in case we might have come in contact with any diseases during our ten-minute visit to Swaziland that we hadn't been vaccinated for.

We thoroughly enjoyed both of our visits to Swaziland and found each of them to be a unique cultural experience in their own way!

I love the Library!

Not all exhibits are located in museums. In addition to being fabulous resources for all ages, libraries often have some great exhibits as well as many other enriching activities and programs. My favorite library is the New York Public Library located between 40th and 42nd Street on 5th Avenue. The library sits adjacent to Bryant Park which also happens to be my subway stop so I'm literally underneath, above, inside or outside the library every single day.

On Monday nights in the summertime, you can watch a free film on the lawn. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you can attend a free yoga class-- even the mats are provided. If yoga is not your speed they even offer knitting classes!

You can also get food and drinks at the outdoor bar and restaurant behind the library while listening to live piano music, knitting and watching a film. Or you can listen to an outdoor book reading while knitting and watching 600 people do yoga. You can do all that without ever even stepping foot inside the library but inside there's even more exciting and stimulating things to see and do.

They offer free guided tours every day but you can also explore the exhibits on your own. The Wachenheim Gallery focuses on the history of the library and has clips of movies and TV shows that have been filmed at the New York Public Library over the years.

The Celebrating 100 Years exhibit is best known for featuring the Gutenberg Bible but it contains so much more than that. You will also find Sumerian Cuneiforms, a Tale of Genji scroll, a handwritten manuscript by Jorge Luis Borges, one of Malcolm X’s journals, costume designs for the Ballets Russes, and even dance cards and board games.

Those two exhibits are ongoing but they also have several other temporary exhibits throughout the year. Currently, Children's Book Illustrators and Authors Come Alive and Winnie-the-Pooh and Friends: The Original Toys. You should also explore their special collections which include The Manuscripts and Archives Division which houses over 29,000 linear feet of archival material in over 3,000 collections. The George Arents Collection on Tobacco is a comprehensive collection of the history, literature, and lore of tobacco. Additional collections are The Henry W. and Albert A. Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The Carl H. Pforzheimer Collection of Shelley and His Circle is one of the world's leading repositories for the study of English Romanticism. The Photography collection comprises approximately 500,000 photographs, including examples of almost every photographic process from the earliest daguerreotypes to contemporary digital images, The Print Collection has over 200,000 prints, and The Rare Book Division has approximately 130,000 titles. The Spencer Collection surveys the illustrated word and book bindings of all periods and all countries and cultures.

If that's not enough to keep you occupied, they also offer many programs and films for adults as well as children. The Children’s Center at 42nd Street features on-going public programs for kids and their parents. From intimate readings to large-scale events, programming includes storytelling, musical and theatrical performances, spoken word performances, and guest appearances by authors and illustrators.

The New York Public library also has a General Research Division, Art and Architecture Collections, Jewish Division, Periodicals Room, Map Division, Microforms as well as U.S. History, Local History & Geneology.

Lastly, you can also get your hands on some free music, e-books, audiobooks and believe it or not, the library still carries those old fashioned books printed on paper.