Groundhog Day on the Bucket List

Long before the phrase 'bucket list' was coined, I had a list - places I wanted to visit and experiences to have before shuffling off this mortal coil. There's nothing unusual about having a list nor the choices on mine:
Zanzibar
Cuba (before McDonalds and Holiday Inn get there)
Morocco
The Camargue
Russia
The Great Migration (particularly a hot air balloon trip above it)
Sossusvlei 
Mexico
Tunisia
Turkey
Antarctica
Norwegian Fjords by boat
Northern Lights
Okavango swamps and delta
Madagascar
Goa

Way back in 2003, Zanzibar got a look in when travel companies started pushing it as the destination de jour. So off we went, a friend and I, and oh, my, Zanzibar delivered everything imagination had conjured up, and more, soaring way above expectations.  How delicious it was to tick off a listed item and discover it went beyond what was hoped.

What more natural decision, then, to want to share this treasure with Him Outdoors and honeymoon there in 2005?  Life Lesson number 4876 - never, ever revisit a ticked off list destination, disappointment is sure to follow. 

Ferocious marketing of package tours during the intervening two years had changed the atmosphere.  No longer were we frequently accosted in Stonetown by eager locals, keen to shake hands, say 'Jambo' and welcome us to Zanzibar with no further expectations than just welcoming friendliness.  Now, constantly buffeted by salesmen and panhandlers, the final straw was Him Outdoors being scolded by an elderly lady one evening when out for a stroll.  It was far too dangerous for Mzungus to be in the streets of Stonetown after dark, she said. Drugs had established themselves on the island and desperate people would knife you for a fix.  Innocence lost.

Now, before you strike the island from your list, don't.  It's awesomeness outweighs the consequences of an influx of outsiders.  The beaches, diving, historic places of interest and sheer beauty are hard to match elsewhere.  The point is this - once you've visited a longed for destination, tick it off and don't return, it will never be the same.

Back to the list.  The second item to be crossed off was Tanzania's Serengeti National Park during the migration and again, it lived up to expectations despite our not being lucky enough to witness a river crossing.  My heart was truly sore when we left, though. Somehow it didn't feel like enough and a little part of my soul remained behind on the savannah.

How lucky am I?  Him Outdoors got a contract in Kenya so in 2015 we watched the migration from the other side of the border.  We've just relished our second in-season trip to the Maasai Mara, returning to loll in the magnificent luxury of Spirit of the Masai Mara lodge and yet again, their Maasai guide delivered us into the core of the Mara.  We couldn't want for more, getting up close and personal with lion, cheetah, hyena, leopard, jackal, elephant...you name it, we saw it and were lucky enough to have many sightings to ourselves where we could just sit and watch the behaviour rather than tick off the mammal sighting list and move on.

And like the previous two visits to East Africa's magnificent spectacle, a little bit of my soul was left behind and I'm already counting the days til we can return.

What hope of clearing the bucket list now when I'm so happily reliving the same experience over and over? What happened to Rule 4876?!

Maasai Mara Road Mechanics

The scene could be anywhere in the African bush.  A group of people leaning back into well-worn canvas chairs, icy beer in hand and booted feet casually resting near the flames of a wood fire.  Overhead, gazillions of stars blink like crystals nestling on a blanket of plush velvet. The deep exhalations of sheer contentment push thoughts of anything outside the circle of presence as far away as can be.

And then it begins.  Landrover vs Landcruiser with everyone firmly in one of the camps, for life. There is absolutely no room for fence sitters in this debate, ever, and there's definitely no option to select Nissan, Mercedes or even Porsche (snigger!)

Toyota have the lead on bumper stickers, memes and spare wheel covers, cheekily nose thumbing Landrover's reputation for breakdowns and yes, we've certainly chortled at our Rover friends many mechanical failure experiences. Although truth be told (shush, don't tell Him Outdoors I've let this out of the bag!) our Cruiser was once pulled out of deep Mozambique sand by a Range Rover...   

East Africa, in finest Colonial tradition, is Landrover country.  Or was.  A veritable Pearl Harbour assault on the motor industry is making inroads for the Japanese Johnny-come-latelies. But the iconic square nose and body of Landrover still covers the plains in droves.

If you follow this blog, you'll know that very few of our travels are breakdown-free and the latest Maasai Mara adventure didn't let us down, although we weren't in our own vehicle or even driving!

Barrelling along in the Landrover towards Sekanani Gate after a long, twelve hour day filled with exciting sights and experiences, our minds were saturated with colour, dust, noise and the overwhelming sensation of watching Mother Nature in high resolution. Conversation ebbed and eyelids struggled to stay at full mast until a weird 'cluck cluck cluck' rattled us out of inertia.

Rumbling to a halt, the XY Chromosomes exited and assumed serious expressions of concern as they clustered around the front end.  Apparently some split pin thingy had broken and fallen off, meaning a crucial nut followed and now the right front wheel was gaily following it's own track, completely oblivious to the demands of either it's partner wheel or the steering apparatus.  Whoopsie!


Safari vehicles rushing past to make the gate deadline were flagged down and asked for parts while some of our lot hiked down the road looking for the nut (yes, I know, it was a long shot!) One helpful passerby produced a hooked bungy cord and, in true African style, within minutes a repair plan was made and we were off.

Africa - this is why we live here. 

Nutters searching for a nut!

It was quite disappointing, really, as an enormous herd was making its way towards us and, with plenty of picnic left and warmly lined ponchos we could have made a night of it in the Mara.  But another rule of Africa is that the adventurous prospect of an unplanned camp-out is only going to happen accompanied by a beer.  And our coolerbox was empty of Tusker!  Soon rectified when we got through the gate, however, with a pitstop at Rex's Bar for everyone to celebrate the latest escapade with a brew.  And to reminisce about the last time we were in that same Landrover, which failed to start just minutes away from a lion sighting.  

Would have been a perfect campsite, those herds were moving...

Times change and this particular Landie is about to be replaced by a Landcruiser, and Japanese efficiency will deplete us of some wonderful tales to tell.