Update....

Since last having decent and inexpensive internet connection we have passed through Tanzania, Malawi and are now in Lusaka, capital city of Zambia.

Malawi will be much remembered by this group for some awesome long distance swimming attempts, including an accidental 8km swim by the oldest member of our group after a slight directional mistake! The lake had perfect conditions when we were there with a bit of breeze, and crystal clear water at our second two campsites on the lake.

Kande Beach lived up to its party reputation with a pretty strong fruit punch, and lots of fancy dress clothes swapping ensued. Pictures potentially to follow.

We are staying tonight at Eureka campsite, next to a game farm, so fingers crossed for some nocturnal animal visitors!

Guestblogging Swede

Hey all you Acacians!
My awesome guide Emma asked me to post something on this blog... despite the fact that I'm a Swede! So if I write something that makes no sense or manage to spell everything wrong... imagine how hard it would be to read it in Swedish :)!

I'm on the 58 days Ultimate African Overlander and we started It all in Nairobi the 26th of March. 10 persons from 4 continents. 1 Kenyan tour-guide called Kevin and our driver Letaloi.

We took off west and after a few days in western Kenya (and a gamedrive in Nakuru national park) we ended up in beautiful Uganda. Our first stop was Jinja were almost all of us went rafting (and turned red ...). The rafting was awesome, worth all the pain we all felt the day after from our burned skin.

After a few days in Jinja we took of to Kampala where we picked up 3 new passengers who were just with us for the 1 week turn to the gorillas in Bwindi rainforest.

The gorillas turned out to be easy to find... for my group. We looked for 3 minutes and there they were! The other group trakked for 2 hours in the rain. We spent 1 hour with the Nschongifamily and I almost shat myself when one of the silverbacks walked by almost touching my leg!

We spent a few days in Bwindi and Lake Buyonyi before heading back to Jinja where we dropped off the newbies again (But first we had time to do a Booze criuse, with different results...).

We started our trip back to Kenya and Nairobi where we were dropped of one of the groupmembers and Kevin, our guide! The guide we were sopose to have, Emma, had Malaria when we left so she jumped on the truck when we got back to Nairobi.

In Nairobi we also picked up 10 new people! From being a small group (with lots of legspace) we were now a big group (with not so much legspace). We left our truck and Letaloi in Nairobi and bumped (don't start thinking the roads are in European standards in Africa) our way to Maasai Mara.
The Mara was incredible and we were really lucky with leopards which seemed to be in every corner!

We also got to see lions just walking calmly on the road!

After our days in the Mara we went back to Nairobi, picked up Letaloi and the truck and left for Tanzania. Our first stop wee Arusha where we had 3 birthdays to celebrate (Corey, Hannah and Emma).

The day after we had an early start and left Letaloi again to go west.

We stopped by the Ngorongoro crater to take pictures and eat lunch with the animals aroud us. Three minutes later one of the Aussies, Simon, ws attacked by a bushpig who wanted his food!

We continued th Serengeti where we spent 2 days driving around without finding almost any animals! Well, that's what can happen when you're trying to find wild animals... they might hide! We also spent one night in the park with lions around our tents and another outside Ngorongoro with Hyenas screaming outside.

The gamedrive in Ngorongoro were better (more animals). We even got to meet 3 month old lioncubs! The last thing our group managed to do was pissing off an Elephant who started attacking us. We drove off pretty fast with blood pumping all over the place!

Back in Arusha we started our trip to Zanzibar where I'm sitting right now waiting for the fery to take us back to Mainland Tanzania and Dar es Salaam!

Zanzibar is SO beautiful and we really needed lazy days on the beach in a bed (the tents are great but It's always nice to stay in a bed.).

5 of us did the swimming with dolphins. Worth every cent! It was so amazing watching all those wild animals playing under our flippers!

Well now we're dropping of 10, 10remaining (picked up 1 new in Dar) heading for Malawi and more beachdays, AWESOME!!!

We'll see if Emma's happy with my entry and want's me to write more later! I'm off now continuing loving Arica, It's so beautiful!

See ya

Michaela

Beach time in Zanzibar

Our time in Zanzibar gets off to an slightly inauspious though memorable start as the vehicle we have used to get to the spice tour gets bogged due to the sudden torrential downpour. One quick change of plans later and the tour is rescheduled and we are off to the beaches instead.

We stay at Sunset Bungalows in Kendwa, which provides very welcome four poster beds, and importantly, airconditioning! Some pax head off to for snorkelling trips, most indulge in a massage and/ or henna tattoo, some just chill, and some volunteer to get up early to swim/ play with dolphins.

After trying hard not to sunburn, which is all too easy when the lure of the beach is this great, we head back to Stonetown ready for cocktails at Africa House, and a trip to the night markets to test out the legendary Zanzibar pizza... savoury or sweet its much recommended by all!

Game parks

THe truck is pretty full by the time that everyone has loaded there stuff on, but this is only temporary - after only a day's travel we disembark and transfer back t smaller 4x4 vehicles for our trip to the Serengeti and Ngorogoro Crater.

The night before however is celebration time - two people's birthdays - though questions remain whether a famous shot called ma's revenge was really the best way to celebrate.

Our trip starts eventfully - having warned everyone about the particularly skilled and determined food snatchers stalking the picnic area - aka malibu stork and black kite - more funis added to the mix by a baby bush pig. Luckily it wasn't an adult as they can be massive, this one decided to creep up on the group from behind and breathe lovingly down Simon's ear while it tried to steal a boiled egg. Cue speedy exit from under the trees by the group.

Unfortunately the Serengeti plains ('endless plains') where quite empty - the herds had arrived late a month earlier and decided to move on quickly as the expected rain had not fallen. However during the evening we could hear lions calling all night and were visited by a few buffalo/ wildebeest during the night.

The Ngorogoro Crater on the other had was teeming with life - its breeding season so the wildebeest and zebra were all putting on macho displays to impress their females, and fighting with each other when attempts were made to lure their girls away. We also saw black rhino, many elephants, a huge hyena population to name but a few.

Day 1-3: Masai Mara Game Driving

We set off from Nairobi to the Masai Mara in safari vehicles, and brave what has to be some of the worst roads on the circuit - its hard to believe that this road is the main feeder for the Masai Mara as it seems at times not even to officially exist. This is partly due to the recent rains which have washed away big sections of the road so detours are plentiful!

Lots of pax have asked if we will see leopard/ the big 5 and this can never be guaranteed - unfortunately, or perhaps not, the animals cannot be called before we arrive to be told where and when to put on a show.

However, it seems to be leopard season - we see one on the first day, complete with recent kill, which is the cause of much excitement, but then the next day we see three more, including a cub, and on the final day we see one hunting. We decide that this is probably Acacia's lot for the year now!

In addition on the final morning game drive we see the big 5 in an hour, and also have already the previous day seen monstrous crocs and hippos that line the banks of the Mara river waiting for the unfortunate wildebeest and zebra come migration time.

The herds aren't in the Mara at the moment - they should - fingers crossed - be in the Southern Serengeti now - which is where we are going in a few days, so we still have plenty of game viewing to look forward to.

Tonight we are back in Nairobi, ready for a gentle leaving time tomorrow of 8am. Everyone is going out to Carnivore, the famous all you can eat meat restaurant, where a huge selection of meats is brought round by waiters and carved of swords - good times!!!

Back to Africa

Since last writing I have spent an unexpected three weeks at home. One week was expected, as my passport was so full I would not have been allowed to enter another country without renewing, and have had to embarass myself infront of the group on several occasions whilst begging immigration officials to 'stamp in a very tiny spot pleeease'.

The other two were extra time, which enabled me to do all the things that Africa does not allow, primarily catching up with friends and shopping! More than ready to hit the road again now, though my group (to-be) will have already done two weeks by the time I join them, hopefully having seen the gorillas in Uganda and maybe tried out the all-new white water rafting course...