What To Do When Things Go Wrong

 "You’re either part of the solution or you’re part of the problem."

 Eldridge Cleaver

Imagine you are on a vacation, one you have paid a lot of money for, and have spent many months anticipating.  It is a tour you booked through a company.  But things are not quite the way you pictured them.  Things are not going smoothly, for what ever reason.  Do you continue along with the tour and complain when you get home, or do you take action to change things while you are on the trip.  And if you decide on the last, how do you go about doing that.

We recently took a trip to Africa.  The trip was very expensive, probably the most expensive trip we have ever taken.  And yes it was through a tour company.  Going to Africa is possible on your own, but certainly easier with a tour company, which will set everything up for you.  We thought the trip was excellent.  Sure, there were a few little snafu's, but after all it is Africa, so some allowances should be made.  But there were several in our group who were not happy.  We didn't even realize they weren't happy, because the way things were set up, we didn't always have interaction with other members of the group.  We were separated into 3 different land rovers for our daily safari's, and we tended to stick with the same group even in the evenings, to a certain extent.  So we were surprised when we found out that some of the group did not feel they were getting the right service.

At the Tanzania Border
We had vendors and others who approached us 

Everything was fine with the whole group until we crossed the border into Tanzania.  We had to wait at the border to pick up new drivers and tour guides, because the law says that the drivers from Kenya cannot continue on into Tanzania.  In a perfect world the new drivers would have been there waiting for us, since they knew we were arriving.  However, we did have to wait for over an hour.  We found out that the Tanzania drivers had a flat tire, and they got delayed partly because of that.  But our Kenyan drivers stayed with us until they arrived, and yes, it was hot, and yes there were people there who were asking for handouts and to sell us things.  I did not have a problem with that, having seen the roads throughout Africa I could certainly understand how there could be delays, and I was enjoying interacting with the people, and even bought a few things.  But that was a major complaint of some of the group.

Some also complained that the luxury tents we had along the way were not as luxurious as they thought they would be.  I personally found them to be quite comfortable, and felt they were part of the experience. 

One person in our group was traveling with her 2 teenage daughters and she was the first one who complained to the company.  She actually called the company that she booked with and had her driver fired on the spot.  She later said that she did not feel safe with him, which surprised all of us. But having got to know her a little bit, I tend to think she over-reacts.  She may not have in this situation, but I know she over-reacted to some other things with the group, which led most of us to believe she was over-reacting again.  Whether she was right to do what she did or not, who knows, but she did take action.  Would you have done the same?

Our group with our driver Juma

After this incident there was more talk between the group about how we felt.  The 4 other people my husband and I were with were happy with our driver and with the service we were receiving.  We had no problems.  We did find out that there were others in the group who had some complaints. They had decided to wait till they got home to put in their comments, but since action had already been taken, the company was immediately wanting our feedback.  They wanted to know if we were unhappy with our drivers and did we want them replaced also.  We loved our driver, Juma, and were concerned he would lose his job because the other driver was fired, and there were some complaints about the third driver.  Everyone in our land rover expressed our happiness with our driver. 

After we returned home the company contacted me and wanted to know everything that had happened and how I felt about the trip.  They were accessing whether to keep the company they had hired in Tanzania or to get a new company.  They were interested in everything that had happened and our feelings.  They sent me a voucher good for a discount on our next trip with them, even though I was basically happy with the service we received.  I'm not sure if they sent the unhappy people a larger voucher, it is certainly possible.

So, if this happens to you, would you call immediately, or wait until you got home.  I guess it would depend on how unhappy you were, and if calling then would change anything.  In her case, she was happier with a new driver.  If you were unhappy about something that had already happened and it couldn't be changed, then complaining when you got home might at least give you a partial refund or a voucher for future travel. 


Our Tent in the Serenget
Some didn't think these qualified as luxury tents

If you do need to put in a complaint, then how do you go about it.  In her case, she used her cell phone and called.  I know my cell phone would not have worked in Africa, but I could have emailed the company and probably have gotten a quick response.  If you are complaining after you get home, then there are several ways to go about it.  If you booked through a travel agent then I would go and tell the agent what happened.  The agent will have a company representative with that company and going directly to the rep will have more pull then on your own.  As a travel agent I handled complaints such as that for clients, and usually got very positive results.  If you booked on your own then the best thing is to put it in writing and either email or mail the letter to the company.  Even if you call them, they will ask for something in writing, so best to just start that way.

But however you handle it, if you are unhappy then you should let the company know.  It is your vacation, you paid a lot of money to go, and you should have happy memories when you come home.  If something has spoiled it, then talk to the company.  You may get a refund, or not.  But by telling them the problem, you may stop it from happening in the future, and help someone else.

Travel Photos and What To Do With Them

"A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed."

-Ansel Adams

My African Book on my Coffee Table
I have a display of some African Souvenirs in the table

We recently took a trip to Africa.  While there I was talking to a fellow traveler about the photos that we were taking.  She told me that when she got home that she would go online and have her favorite photos from the trip put into a book, which when printed, would look like a coffee table photo book.  I thought that sounded like an excellent idea.

For the past few years I have just stored my pictures on my computer.  I always made a backup DVD of the pictures to have just in case, but I don't print them up and put them into scrapbooks like I used to do when I used actual film.  Remember those days, when you had maybe 6 rolls of film with you, so you only took pictures of really important things, and you only took one picture of it, because film and developing was expensive?  And then when you got home and spent a fortune developing your pictures you would always be disappointed because some of the shots just weren't any good.  We are really spoiled today with digital cameras.  Not only can we see immediately how they are going to turn out, we can take a dozen shots of one subject, just to make sure we get it from the best angle.

My African Picture Book

I do tend to overdo it sometimes.  On the African trip I shot over 2000 pictures.  Mostly of the animals when we were on safari.  So when I came home and went through all the pictures, it took me awhile to sort out and pick my favorites.  But I did manage to narrow it down to a few hundred pictures.  I decided to take the suggestion of putting them in a book.  I went online to the company she had recommend - My Publisher.  I found that it was really easy to navigate their website and set up the book.  I took the pictures that I had selected and pulled them into the program, and from there I went page to page, decided how many pictures I wanted on each page and pulling them in.  Once I had all the pictures in, I went back and wrote some narratives to go with the pictures.  It was really quite easy, and fun to do.  At the end you simply purchase the book and pay for it with your credit card.  Less than 10 days later I had my book.  And I love it.

So now that I had completed one book, I decided to go back and do some past trips.  I took a trip to China in 2010, and decided that those pictures should also go into a book.  That book also turned out great, and I am now thinking about doing a couple more. 

My China Book

The books are not cheap, but actually they are probably less expensive than the film we used to always develop at the end of our trips, and these are already put into a book and published, so I do feel it was a good deal.  And now I realize that they also have sales, if you watch for them, where you can get the books for less, if you wait until the sale is in progress.  My China book actually cost quite a bit less than the African book, because I saw a sale that had 60% off the price of the book.

I am also intrigued with the idea of putting together a calendar with my pictures on it.  The same company prints calendars.  It might be fun next year to be looking at my own travel pictures each month on my own calendar.  Or maybe a calendar of my dog pictures?

There are many companies besides My Publisher who do the same type of books and calendars.  I have not tried any of the other companies, but did a search online and came up with quite a few.  They seem to all be similar, and I'm sure they would all be quite good.  So If you are thinking about putting your photos into a book, but don't want to actually do a scrapbook, then consider doing it online.  You will have a professional looking finished project that you can enjoy for years, and display on your coffee table.

Here are the companies I found when researching this, including the company I used:   http://www.mypublisher.com  
http://www.shutterfly.com        http://www.cvsphoto.com
http://www.mixbook.com          http://www1.snapfish.com
http://picaboo.com                     http://www.blurb.com  


The nice thing about putting together the book is that you can choose your theme - I chose travel as my theme and all the pages had a travel look to them.  Some pages had stamps that looked like passport stamps, some had a background of a map, and some had the backs of postcards where you could write about what was on the page.  You could choose to have lots of pictures on one page or do two or three pictures to the page, or just do a full page picture.  You chose the format for each page as you go.  Here are a few pictures of the inside of my book:

Our African Adventure

"Africa has her mysteries, even a wise man cannot understand them. 

But a wise man respects them."

Miriam Makeba

 

"Africa gives you the knowledge that man is a small creature,
 among other creatures, in a large landscape." 

Doris Lessing

Mt. Kilamanjaro

We just returned from Africa.   I had been dreaming of going there for some time, and it did not disappoint.  Of course, Africa is a large continent and we only saw a small part.  We flew into Johannesburg, South Africa and immediately changed planes and flew to Livingston, Zambia.  We spent 3 nights at the Toka Leya where we stayed in very luxurious tents.  They were raised off the ground, with wood floors and lovely decks overlooking the Zambia river.  There were glass windows and glass sliding doors to enter the tents.  A large bed with mosquito netting around it.  A lovely bathroom with 2 showers, both inside and outside (in case you wanted to shower while watching the river and the wildlife).

Our tent at Toka Leya

Inside the tent



Moto Moto

The Toka Leya has a resident hippo, who they have named Moto Moto.  It is a wild animal, not a pet.  He has decided to claim the resort as his home, at least temporarily.  He wanders around the camp, usually below their raised walkways, and grazes.  He has claimed an area between two buildings as his sleeping quarters and can be found sleeping their each evenings.  In the daytime he spends much of his time in the river in front of the camp, or sleeping on the banks.  We enjoyed watching him.



Sunset on the Zambia River

The camp had arranged for us to take a sunset cruise on the Zambian River on our first night, and we had a very enjoyable and relaxing time, watching the sun go down.  There was a wedding party on board with us, and they were having a good time, they were partying, but we were able to enjoy the views and have a few drinks while we sailed down the river.



Victoria Falls

The main event in this area is Victoria Falls, which had been on my list of places to visit, for many years.  It did not disappoint.  We spent our first full day visiting these falls, and getting wet from the mist of the falls as it sprays back up the sides of the cliffs.  They are quite spectacular.  In the afternoon we had a visit to a local village, where we met some of the children, who all wanted to hang on to us, or be swung between us.  They showed us their school also.

The next day we took a day trip over to Chobe National Park in Botswana.  We were picked up and driven to the border.  We then took a boat across the river where we were met by our guide, who then took us to the park.  We were then put into boats again where we took a game drive down the Chobe River, watching for animals.  We certainly saw quite a few different animals, but our main spotting were elephants and hippos.  We then had lunch at a lodge on the river, and then did an afternoon game drive on land, spotting more animals.  We even had a short stand-off with a Cape Buffalo.  We were transferred back to the Toka Leya in time for dinner and an evening show of local dancers.

Elephants in Chobe National Park, Botswana

Feeding a Giraffe at the reserve

We then flew back to Johannesburg where we overnighted before flying to Nairobi, Kenya.  There we met up with our group of 13 other people and our guides and we were taken on our 12 day safari through Kenya and Tanzania. We overnighted in Nairobi at the Fairmont Hotel.  While in Nairobi we visited a reserve for the Rothschild Giraffe, where we able to get up close and personal and even hand feed the giraffes.  We also visited an elephant orphanage and saw lots of baby elephants. 

We then proceeded to our first stop on the safari, which was the Masai Mara National Reserve area.  We flew in small planes to this park and spent 2 nights there.  We went on several game drives in the park and we saw so many animals.

Taken from our balloon

We also had a balloon trip over the Masai Mara.  We had to leave the camp at 3:30 a.m. in order to drive the 1 1/2 hours to where the balloon took off, and arrive by sunrise.  So that was 1 1/2 hours of bouncing over very bumpy dirt roads very early in the morning on empty stomachs.  We were all very glad when we finally arrived.  The balloon ride was wonderful, just quietly floating over the plains and treetops, occasionally spotting animals.  But then we landed - with a thud!  We hit several large rocks on the landing, causing us to bounce quite hard, then the basket fell over on its side.  We had to crawl out over each other.  Quite the ending to the lovely ride.  We had a champagne breakfast and then used the trip back to camp as a game drive, spotting more animals.



Cheetah

 At the end of our stay here we flew back to Nairobi, and picked up our jeeps for the rest of the safari.  We drove first to Amboseli National Park.  We stayed in a lovely lodge and went on several game drives, where we again spotted many animals, including a beautiful cheetah.  From here we left our Kenya drivers, and crossed the border with our new drivers from Tanzania.  Guides are only allowed to guide in their own country.

A word about the roads in Africa.  There are very few paved roads anywhere.  In the cities the roads are paved, but no where else.  So even when we were driving from park to park, we were driving over very rocky dirt roads.  We did a lot of bouncing, and there was much dust.  At one point in Kenya they were actually working on making a paved road, so for hours we bumped along dirt roads next to a beautiful paved road, that we were not allowed on, because even though they were not working on it right then, it was not yet open for driving on.  When we were in the parks, the roads became even more primitive and were quite often only dirt trails, and we even had to occasionally forge a stream.  There were a few times when we almost got stuck, and once when we did.

Elephants on our game drive

We proceeded on to Lake Manyara where we stayed at the Serena Lodge.  Lake Manyara is a small National Park with a lovely lake, and lots of varieties of birds, as well as the regular wildlife of Africa.  We did a day long safari in the park, spotting much of the wildlife. 

On our drive from Lake Manyara we stopped to visit a local orphanage.  The camp is run by a woman who the kids call "mama".  She has 63 children, of all ages, many of the children were born HIV positive.  We met only the small children the day we visited, because it was a Sunday and the older children were in church.  The kids were happy to see us, as some in the group passed out candy and gave mama school supplies to be used.  She showed us around and we saw the dorms where the children sleep, the area where they ate and the grounds where they raise chickens, goats and cows.  The kids seem well taken care of and happy. It was a wonderful stop and we all gave contributions to help run the orphanage.

Mama and one of the orphans

The bathroom of our tent

Our next stop was the Ngorongoro Crater, and here we had reservations at one of the "luxury" camps right on the edge of the crater, which would give us early access to entering the park before the crowds, which would have to come a much longer distance.  The tents were nice, quite large, with wooden floors, large comfortable beds with mosquito netting around them.  They came with their own bathrooms which included flush toilets, sinks with running water and showers.  The toilets could only be flushed once every 20 minutes, so if sharing you needed to wait to flush.  The running water was only cold, and the shower had to be arranged for in advance with your cabin steward, as he had to fill the bucket above the shower with the hot water.  He then stood just outside your tent till you finished, in case you needed a refill.  Since he talked to us as we showered, it felt like we were taking a shower with another person.  A little disconcerting.  It was also quite cold here, because we were at a higher altitude, so there were heaters in the tents, and hot water bottles in our beds at night.  We had to bundle up in the mornings and evenings.  It was warm during the days.

Outside the tent
The setup for the showers

Our first night we visited a Masai village where we were given a tour of the huts and entertained by their dancing.  They even talked me into joining in.  We visited their school and gave more candies and goodies to their children.  We even had a "buying opportunity" where we could purchase items that they had made.

Me dancing with the Masai women

A leopard

Our game drive into the crater was an all day event, with a picnic lunch.  It would waste too much time leaving the crater to return to camp for lunch.  So it was a long day of bouncing, but we saw so many animals, and got our first really good look at some lions, which excited us all.  And the crater was beautiful inside.  There are no giraffes inside the crater, it is too steep for them to descend into with there long spindly legs.  But there are certainly lots of other species.  We felt like we saw them all that day.  We even saw lions and a leopard.  We had our picnic lunch near a small lake, which was quite lovely.

One of the things that I have observed while driving through this area, is that the small children are quite independent.  We will be driving from one area to another and going through villages and farmlands, and everywhere you see children, quite often very young children - some even toddlers, who are out on their own.  No adults nearby.  They are quite often even out with their herd of goats or cows, guarding the herd all by themselves.  We won't even allow our children to play outside by themselves anymore, yet these very young children seem quite capable of being on their own.  You even see toddlers sitting alongside the roads by themselves.

Taken alongside the road

Also, it is fun to see everyone going about their daily business, but dressed so differently then we are.  Many still wear the types of clothing that their tribes have always worn.  The Masai particularly have stuck to their customs and you can tell the Masai when you see them.  They prefer bright colors, in particular red.  The women still carry everything on their heads.  You see them at streams washing their clothes.  Africa is still, in many ways, the way I pictured it would be.

Our next stop was the Serengeti National Park, a place I had been longing to see for many, many years.  We also stayed in a "luxury" camp there, with the same kind of tent setup.  The nice thing about this though, was that this area was much warmer, so we didn't need the heaters or hot water bottles.

Wildebeast migration

The Serengeti is famous for the migration of the wildebeasts.  We did an all day game drive over to where they were migrating.  There were millions of these animals, all in one general area.  It is impossible to describe.  They were not all gathered in one group, but in lots of smaller groups, for as far as the eyes could see.  At one point a group of wildebeasts decided to cross the road right in front of us.  Before they proceeded to cross the males started rounding everyone up, grunting at the herd and each other, running around, getting everyone in order. But when they crossed the road all grunting stopped and the herd started running.  They were silent, you couldn't even hear the sound of hoof-beats, just the swishing of the long grass in the plains.  Several thousand crossed, but then a truck came down the road and the herd stopped crossing.  We then had a partial herd on each side of the road.  The grunting started up again, on both sides.  They didn't like being separated.  It took awhile for the left behind section to decide what they were going to do.  They moved farther down the road and finally crossed also.  It was interesting to watch them. 

Lion on our game drive

Bull Elephant we had a stand-off with

The next day we did morning and evening game drives in the park, and spotted lions, leopards and just about every other animal imaginable, including lots more wildebeasts. We even had a 20 minute stand-off with a giant bull elephant who did not like that our jeep had separated him from his herd of female and baby elephants.  He came right up to the jeep and we ordered not to talk or move.  It was very exciting.  He finally got his family across the road and he backed up.  We ended each evening around a campfire, having sundowners (drinks), and talking about our day.  It was very pleasant.  Felt like we needed to roast some marshmallows and make S'mores, but we didn't do that.  We had dinner in the main tent, and then proceeded to early bed, as our mornings always started early.

The Serengeti was the last stop on our safari.  From there we said goodbye to our fellow travelers, they all headed home.  We had one more stop planned.  We boarded a small plane and flew to the island of Zanzibar for 2 nights.  We stayed at the Serena Hotel which was right on the beach.  We had a balcony overlooking the Indian Ocean.  We took a guided tour of a spice farm, since the island is known as the Spice Island because of the spices it produces.  We also had a walking tour of the old Stone Town section of the city, which is a Unesco World Heritage site.  I spent one afternoon swimming, for awhile in the pool, but the lure of the ocean was too much, so finally made my way to the beach for a swim in its warm salt water.  It was a nice way to end our vacation.


Sunset in Zanzibar

 

Swimming in the Indian Ocean












When we are on vacation my husband, George, writes a newsletter home to our family and friends.  I have always taken those and put them in the side column under Trip Reports for trips we have taken.  If you would like to read the entire report of our trip to Africa, with day to day details, then you can go to the tab on the side column, or you can click the link below. 
http://havelistwilltravel.blogspot.com/p/getting-there-is-half-battle.html

Packing Tips for Africa

“Let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure.”  

J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

 

As I write this, we are getting ready to head out on another adventure.  We leave in a week for a 20 day trip to Africa.  So on my bed in the guest bedroom, I am laying out what I plan to take with me.  This has been a different experience I have packed for many trips over the years, but never made a trip like this, with the limitations on what we can bring.  I have been looking online for tips, and reading all the information sent with our documents. 

So what is different about this trip.  First of all, I like color.  I usually dress with bright colors or blacks and whites.  I do wear jeans most days, here at home, and usually pack a couple of pairs.  But none of those things work for this trip.  I have had to purchase quite a few new clothing items, things I may not be as inclined to wear when I get home.  All of our paperwork tells us to wear only tans, khaki, browns, olive green.  They say no bright colors, no black, no white.  Also, what we pack should be natural fabrics that breathe, are easy to wash and fast to dry, and comfortable. 

We are also limited on our luggage. I am a fairly light packer on most trips.  I can go to Europe for 3 weeks with one suitcase and a carry-on.  But on this trip the suitcase has to be soft-sided, no handles and no wheels.  In other words, a dufflebag.  And the total weight (that is of our checked bag & our carry-on) can not be more than 35 pounds.  We are allowed one checked bag each.  The reason is because we will be flying on small planes within Africa, which have limited cargo holds and limit the weight requirements. 

So what am I packing for this trip?  I thought I would give you my packing list, in case anyone else is getting ready to go on a similiar trip, my list may help you pack.  Here is what I am taking:

Clothing:
3 pairs of long pants - All lightweight, 2 khaki, 1 brown
3 pairs of short pants (knee-lenghth) 1 brown, 1 olive and 1 khaki
3 short sleeve T shirts - 1 tan, 1 tan and brown, 1 olive
1 3/4 sleeve striped tan shirt
1 long-sleeve shirt with light blue and tan design
1 blouse with a brown cheetah pattern
1 light-weight safari-style jacket with pockets and rollup sleeves - olive green
1 pair sneakers - brown
1 pair good walking sandals, with straps around the back
3 pairs of socks
buff to go around neck and pull up when it is dusty
underwear that is fast drying so that I can wash and re-wear
hat - bought especially for this trip, with strap and wide brim
lightweight nightgown

But clothing is only the beginning.  There are many other things to bring on a trip.  With limited space, you have to decide what is important.  And there is a whole case for just medical supplies.  Before going we went to a travel doctor and got the required shots, but the doctor also gave us medicine to take with us, including malaria pills that we have to take the whole time we are gone and keep taking when we get back.  He also gave us pills in case we got sick.  And I always carry cold pills and aspirin, and bandaids, etc.  So here is a list of other items we will be taking:

Medical bag - with all the pills the doctor gave us for the trip and other supplies
Bag with all our personal items, - toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.
Bug spray - with DEET - this is a necessary item
Sun protection with UV 50
Camera, camera bag, and mono-pod, charger and cord to transfer pictures to computer, extra batteries and an extra memory card
Converters for electrical plug
Multi-outlet plug with extension cord
binoculars (small in their own case)
flashlight - mini
My Nook Reader - I never leave home without it.  Loaded with lots of books I haven't yet read.
Laptop Computer - my husband is taking that as his carry-on
Clip-on sunglasses, and my old pair of regular glasses, just in case something happens to my glasses, as I am blind without them
money-belt

And of course we will have our passports, medical yellow cards that list our shots, all of our trip paperwork and insurance cards.  And we were told to bring enough cash to cover all the different visas we will have to purchase there as we change countries - total of those is $520 and they want us to pay that in US dollars.  Also, tips for our tour guides, drivers and safari staff is also to be paid in US dollars and we have to take enough to cover that also.  So we will be carrying quite a bit of cash on us, which I am not always comfortable doing.  I usually travel with limited cash, and use my credit cards for most purchases, but not on this trip. 

I hope this helps anyone who is getting ready to take off on a similiar adventure.  We take off next week, but I am not going to post this until we are due back from our adventure, so by the time you read this we will be home, and unpacking.  We will post a report of our adventure soon, with pictures.

Next Up - An African Safari

 “There is language going on out there- the language of the wild. Roars, snorts, trumpets, squeals, whoops, and chirps all have meaning derived over eons of expression... We have yet to become fluent in the language -and music- of the wild.”

   Boyd Norton, Serengeti: The Eternal Beginning

 "Reminds me of my safari in Africa. Somebody forgot the corkscrew and for several days we had to live on nothing but food and water. "

   W. C. Fields

 

When I first started writing this travel blog, I did a series on tours vs. independent travel.  When going someplace such as Europe, I am more of an independent traveler, and that probably came through when I wrote about tours.  I’m not big on spending my days going from one place to another on a big bus, with a bunch of other Americans, some of whom I’m probably not crazy about.  I can see Americans at home.  I go to Europe with the hopes of meeting, or at least talking to people of other cultures.  And I hate being told, “you have 3 hours here, be back on the bus at 3PM or we will leave you.”  And usually that 3 hours includes a 2 hour walking tour, which if you decide to take that, then you have an hour on your own, so you can either check out the shops or have a beer and do some people-watching, but you certainly can’t do both! 
 

A Typical Tour Bus

So, while I have done some tours at different times, and I did enjoy them simply because I was seeing something new, they are not usually my favorite way to travel.  There are a few exceptions to that.  My girlfriend and I took a tour of the Christmas Markets of Germany and Austria about 10 years ago.  For that trip the tour was perfect, because it would have been difficult to have gotten to all those markets on our own, in the short time we had.  It was basically a Christmas shopping trip, and the Christmas Markets were our main goal.  It was a fun tour.
 

Our tour guide, Tony and our
driver - in China

Another tour I really enjoyed was our tour of China.  There are some places that I think having some kind of a guide with you, just makes sense.  China is one of those places.  Yes, people do go there all the time on their own, and do just fine.  But for me, having someone along who explained what we were seeing, and got us to the things we wanted to see, was nice.  However, I still would not have wanted the big bus tour in China.  Our tour was arranged through a company that does small tours.  Our group was a total of 6 people, and we were driven in a van.  We had 6 different guides during our trip.  We flew from destination to destination, and our guides met us when we landed.  All of our guides were local to the area, and they were all very interesting people that we got to know, because we were with them for several days each.  They were interested in us, and I found them all fascinating to talk to.  And they showed us their country, which they were proud of.  It was a great tour.



 

Victoria Falls

So now I am in the midst of planning next year’s vacation.  I’m always looking ahead to what is next.  Top of my list is Tanzania, with a balloon ride over the Serengeti, with a side-trip to Zanzibar.  Number 2 on the list is Victoria Falls.  My thought - why not do all 3 things in one trip?  It might be a stretch, but it is definitly doable.

 

 

But would I want to do any of that on my own?  I have decided I would not even know how to do that.  Africa seems like one of those places where you need to have someone along who knows the lay of the land.  And the good thing is, I’m pretty sure there are not any big bus tours in Africa.  There are certainly tours that are more luxurious, and those that are less.  There are tours that have large groups, and some that stay with smaller groups.  And you can spend your nights at hotels and lodges along the way, or in tents. 


Luxury Tent in Tanzania

  

Wildebeast

We have found what we hope will be the perfect fit.  It is a safari where you stay in tents, although the tents are quite luxurious, and because they are tents, will be closer to the wildlife, we hope.  Although we wouldn’t want to be TOO close.  It comes with a balloon trip over the Masai Mara, where we will touch down for a champagne breakfast.  My husband is hoping that we will not be the breakfast for the lions.   I know, my list says that I want to take a balloon trip over the Serengeti, and my balloon trip is actually over the Masai Mara, but the idea is the same, and the main thing is that I get a balloon trip over an African wildlife area, and I wanted to see the Serengeti, which I will.

The tour is 12 days on land and guarantees that there will not be more than 16 guests, and it will go with as few as 4.  So that should be a nice size group.  It also includes a night safari and a bush walk as well as a meeting with a Masai chief.  And of course, all meals are included, since we won’t be anywhere near any restaurants.
 

Zanzibar

There are post and pre night packages that can be added to our tour, and both Zanzibar and Victoria Falls were available.  So we are adding 3 nights in Victoria Falls and the flights to get there, as a pre-package, and Zanzibar for 3 nights at the end.  So the top 2 things from my list will come off next year after we take our trip.
 

Masai Warrior

The trip and the airfare is booked and paid for, as I got a discount if it was paid before the end of the year.  We have one overnight in Johannesburg, South Africa between our visit to Victoria Falls and the flight to Nairobi, there was no way to do that flight straight through, so we were forced to do an overnight there.  I am now looking into a day tour of that city.  I love planning the trip, although this one is pretty well planned out ahead of time, but there will be some free time to plan things.  We will have some free time at both Zanzibar and Victoria Falls.  So I will be studying those areas as to things to do while there.  But besides the planning I have five months of anticipation ahead of me.  Anticipation can be fun too.

So where do you want to go on your next vacation?

Why Do We Travel, And How Do We Decide Where We Want To Go?

"To get away from one's working environment is, in a sense, to get away from one's self; and this is often the chief advantage of travel and change."
Charles Horton Cooley

I travel because I am curious. I have a desire to see new things, experience new tastes, and meet new people. But I also travel for the chance to broaden my mind. We learn more about ourselves, when we learn more about the world and its people.

A mother and daughter in Bejing, China



I also think that the more of the world you see, the more you understand the differences in people, and you become more accepting. There is so much bigotry in the world, but traveling helps to open your mind to people who are different, and to ideas that are different. You realize that really we are still very much alike.

But of course, there are many reasons to travel.  Business takes people to other places all the time.  Some people have to travel, even if they don't enjoy it.  And I do know people who would never go anywhere, they are happy staying at home.  That is fine for them.  I love my home, but would be bored to death if I just stayed here all the time.  Even when we are home, we are on the go, quite often to the beach.

Halong Bay, Viet Nam

For me, deciding where to go next is not a problem, it is anywhere I haven't been yet.  My husband pretty much leaves it up to me, he'll go anywhere, but he wants me to make the plans, which is fine.  It is what I did for a living for many years, and I enjoy it.  He occassionally will say something about wanting to go somewhere.  For instance, he spent a year in Viet Nam during the war.  Now a lot of people would not want to go back to Viet Nam, it has bad memories for some.  But like George says, "everyone's war was different".  He was on land, with a medical team, providing medical care to the local people in the city of Hue.  He would love to go back and show me the beautiful countryside that he saw while there.  And now, Viet Nam is a tourist destination.  I got excited about it when I watched a special on TV that showed Halong Bay.  So now that is on our list, and it is something that we will definitly do in the next couple of years.

I'm forever watching the Travel Channel, and shows such as Samantha Brown and Rick Steves.  I get ideas for places I want to go from seeing things on the shows.  And I get travel magazines and buy travel books whenever I can. 

Venice, Italy

I seldom plan a trip back to an area that I have already been, although some areas do overlap, so I may end up back in a city I have been to before, just because it is there in the same area and it makes sense to use it as a base to fly into or out of.  The exception to my not returning to the same place will come in 5 years.  For our 25th wedding anniversary George surprised me with a trip to Italy, a place I had always wanted to go.  We have decided that for our 50th anniversary we will return to Italy.  We may cover some new territory in Italy, but we most definitly will return to both Rome and Venice.  We have some wonderful memories of that first trip, and we plan to create some new ones on the new trip. 

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Africa

I would also like to be able to say that I have visited every continenet, but I haven't.  We have of course visited Europe and Asia, and North America.  We have covered those 3 pretty extensively.  I can say I have been on the continent of Africa, because I have been to Morocco, but that hardly counts.  Next year we will be able to really claim that continent, as we plan to visit Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, South Africa and Zimbabwe, all in one trip.  I have not yet visited South America, although I have things on my list that would take me there, I just haven't made it yet.  I have been to Belize in Central America, but very briefly.   I also have not been to Australia and New Zealand, both places my husband has been.  He went to those places when he was in the Navy, and again, he says he'd really like to return and show me those places.  They are on the list.  I may never make it to the continent of Antartica, but my husband has also been there.  He did a year in the navy, stationed at McMurdo Sound on Antartica.  It was a long year of separation for us, when our daughter was quite young.  There are cruises that do make a stop in Antartica, so who knows, maybe someday we will do that.

In the meantime, I do have enough things on my list to keep me occupied for a few years, and I already have some new things to add to the list as I cross things off.

So, why do you travel and where do you want to go?