The first breathtaking days in South Africa: From Johannesburg via Swaziland to Durban!

After many days off, I am now back with a long entry. We have experienced so much in South Africa so far and our days have been so full that I hardly had time to write. Sometimes we didn't even have electricity, let alone internet. But now it works. We are now in Brazil and continue to experience so many great things...

On March 16th, we started very early in Johannesburg. We were all gathered in the hotel, there was breakfast and the first small contacts had already been made. Then he came. Our truck. Our vehicle for the next 3 weeks. The truck can accommodate 24 people and 24 backpacks. At the end of the truck there are lockers for our backpacks. There are cool boxes, power outlets, large windows and plenty of storage space. And when I say plenty of storage space, I mean a lot of storage space!! The truck has tents, mattresses, chairs, tables and all kinds of dishes, food and kitchen equipment stored. It often happens that we just stop by the roadside and eat there. Well, after the first excitement was gone, Tank, Frank and Nici introduced themselves to us. Tank was our guide, but he had to leave us on the first day because he had to jump in for another group. Now we have George. He is great! He is from Cape Town and is very helpful, friendly and he tries to do everything we want. Frank is our pilot and actually the most important man. He comes from Johannesburg and has 3 children and already 2 grandchildren. He drives us everywhere on time and safely and he always has a smile on his face. Wonderful! Niki is from Mozambique, but speaks very good German. She learned it at school and always translates when there are problems for those who don't speak or understand English so well. On the first day we left Johannesburg and drove towards Kruger National Park. We got to know our truck properly. The further back you sit, the more you are shaken. :D Unfortunately, the weather didn't welcome us very friendly. It was raining heavily and that was a great start for us as campers. Everyone does the tour together, but in the evenings some go to their nice lodge and we go to our tent. But we actually got an upgrade and are now allowed to sleep in a lodge for a total of 7 nights for free. How cool is that!! :D We arrived at Kruger Park in the afternoon and were shown how to set up our tents, which was quite easy. After a shower, we went to dinner. We were in the restaurant, but it was outside and only under fabric roofs. There were oil lamps everywhere and it was very cozy and the food was divine. After 2 months of rice and curry, I was in heaven. There was a large buffet with meat, vegetables, pasta, salads and desserts. We drank a South African cider with it. This was very tasty and then Tim and I crawled into our tent. The first night was extremely strange. There is no light, no space, no electricity and everything is damp and uncomfortable. :D We thought about what we had gotten ourselves into. But by now we have really gotten used to it and find our way around! It was adventurous and the others felt very sorry for us. Everyone is super nice! Saskia always lets me shower with her, Claudia gave us her flashlight and Jo always helps with setting up and taking down the tents. All in all, we are a great group, mixed and I get along with everyone. Unfortunately, today some of us had to leave who had only booked the tour until Durban. We miss Natalie, Patrick and Ilona in particular. But a reunion has already been arranged!

On Saturday, March 17th, we set off early for a safari in Kruger Park... We had coffee and some cookies beforehand and then hopped into the jeep and off we went. We were on the trail of the Big 5: rhino, lion, leopard, elephant and buffalo. They are called the Big 5 because of their aggressiveness when hunting. For example, a hippopotamus kills the most people in Africa every year and yet it is not included. This is because if you shoot a hippopotamus, it immediately runs away and back into the water, while a lion or a member of the Big 5 runs towards you and attacks. It was very exciting and in retrospect we all saw the Big 5 except for a leopard. It was hiding well! We also saw giraffes, zebras, antelopes, gazelles, eagles, turtles, hippos, crocodiles and the Ugly 5. These include warthogs, vultures, marabou storks, wildebeests and hyenas. Hyenas walked right past our car, they really look very mean! :D We were on the move for 10 hours and accordingly tired! In the evening George grilled for us. He is a great cook, he learned it from his mother and she really knew how to cook! :D

On Sunday, March 18th, we did the Panorama Route. It was a beautiful route. I have never seen such a landscape before and it definitely belongs in the top 3 of the most beautiful landscapes I have seen so far!! Everything is so incredibly vast and green and huge. Huge canyons and mountains, all covered with a beautiful fluff. First, we visited the 3 Sisters, which are 3 huge rock formations that turn into typical African tent houses from one to the other. The view there was breathtaking. You can see it best in the pictures! Then we went to a canyon. There the River of Happiness and the River of Sadness meet. They have these names because Dutch colonies moved on to conquer new land. They left the women and children behind and said that the way ahead was still uncertain. They said that if they did not return after 10 days, the women should continue without them. The men did not return on the 10th day, which is why they called the river they were on the River of Sadness. They then went on alone and accidentally found the men again at the next river, and they called that one the River of Happiness. It was super cool there. There were huge waterfalls and rocks shaped by the water. Then we went to Gods Window. These are 3 stages that you can cover within 1 km. There you have a beautiful view all the way to Mozambique. Within the short hiking trail, you also had to walk through a short piece of jungle, which was very adventurous and there were big apes there. Since they stole my backpack from me in Thailand, I am very careful with them. :D In the evening we had spaghetti bolognese. Delicious!!

On Monday, March 19th, we left Kruger Park early. We had breakfast as usual at the campfire outside. Suddenly we heard loud noises and I heard someone laughing and saying, "That sounds like an elephant". And then we turned around and there was a big adult elephant running 5m away from us through the camp. Thank God behind a small fence, because I think the elephant wasn't quite happy and that's why he was trumpeting :D Adventure right in the morning :D Then we drove through Kruger Park with our truck and did another safari. Natalie and I were allowed to sit in the driver's cab with Frank, so we had the perfect view and a professional next to us. While he was driving, he saw more things than we did while driving without concentrating and straining! :D Then we left for Swaziland. After we crossed the border, it didn't take long and we were at the camp. There, it continued right away, the night safari was already waiting for us. We left our luggage in the truck and George, Niki and Frank were so kind and set up our tents in the meantime. Then we met Ma No (while saying "No" you click your tongue 😊) Ba. He was our guide. Two drinks per person were included in the price. What a luxury. So we went on a sunset drive through the beautiful day, watched elephants and buffalo in the grass, and had a cool cola. What more could you want. This safari has been one of my highlights on the whole trip so far. You can't really describe what it's like when 2 rhinos stand and graze 3m away from you and look at you. You get a little bit of adrenaline there. The park is a bit different from Kruger Park. It is partly created by humans. It is divided into 3 areas. In one area there are only impalas, gazelles and antelopes and giraffes (the friendly animals :D). In the 2nd area there are rhinos and elephants, and in the 3rd area there are lions. Then the time had finally come, we drove into the lion area. The areas are all fenced off with large fences. The guide has to get up to open and close the gate. The grass there is very high, so you sometimes have a hard time seeing the animals or don't see them at all. So he listened carefully if anything rustled and then he took his legs in his hands. Because in the car you are more or less safe, but not on foot! Then we saw them lying in the grass: two young lionesses. We were only 2m away. Suddenly number 3 appeared and suddenly it rustled and 2 young male lions appeared. One lion cuddled with his lady before all 5 set off. It was just before sunset, they were probably getting ready for the hunt. We followed them for another 5 minutes and they didn't mind at all. It was really majestic. Although they were not yet fully grown, everything was already so big. I would have loved to throw myself into the grass with them. :D It's a pity that you can't upload videos, because it's much better to see, but I'll show you everything at home! :D When we were back at the camp, it was already dark and the food was ready. There was no electricity in this camp, only oil lamps, and it was very cozy. You could see the Milky Way and hear the roars of the lions. I was rarely so impressed and fascinated by such a setting. It took some getting used to in the tent at night, as you could hear the animals so close and you thought they were right next to you in the tent. :D

On Tuesday, March 20th, we had to leave at 5:00 a.m. for a bushwalk through the park. We followed footprints, excrement, learned about trees, plants, fruits and birds. For example, there is a tree whose leaves make you very thirsty when you eat them. The indigenous people used them to find water. They rubbed fruits with the leaves and gave them to the monkeys. After a short time, they became very thirsty and marched to the water and the people simply followed them. After the bushwalk, we had breakfast with porridge, packed up our tents, and then continued to St. Lucia. We arrived in the afternoon and had a cultural evening in Zululand. We were taught a bit of Zulu language and shown the cultural dance. We were also supposed to join in the dance, it looked pretty funny :D But it was really fun!

On Wednesday, March 21st, we had to get up very early for the next safari. But we were woken up by the monkeys anyway, who had examined and rearranged the camping utensils in the early morning :D The jeep then drove us into the park for about 1 hour. The park itself was very beautiful. It was a great landscape with beautiful mountains and meadows. However, we saw very few animals and our guide was driving very fast. So overall, I didn't like this safari so much. But it doesn't matter, we still had enough. The afternoon was free and we went out for a delicious dinner. In the evening, we went on Lake St. Lucia by boat and saw a lot of hippos, crocodiles, and eagles. Then we had dinner and went to the pub and listened to some live music there. It was really nice and we had a lot of fun!!