First big fun thing: Mandy and Alisha visited

It’s been a while since posting to this blog, I know. But we’ve been busy—with fun things, mostly. April was especially eventful, with no less than 3 big fun things filling our weeks.

First big fun thing: Mandy and Alisha visited. We were visited by two friends from the US, Mandy and Alisha, and we had a great time traveling with them through Mozambique, South Africa, and also here in Swaziland. Mandy has already posted a photo album featuring the Swaziland portion of that trip, and it contains lots of great photos of our host community and country at large—click here to view it. Mandy is a talented photographer and it’s been really rewarding for us to see our everyday surroundings through her lens. Thanks Mand!

Our time in Mozambique was especially nice. We stayed with Kim and Peter (Kim’s an ex-Peace Corps Vol and friends with Mandy and Jamie) and traveled with them north to a great little coastal lagoon for a night of camping. I’ll have to relate in another entry how I lost my favorite Cape Town shirt in the lagoon; by far, the best way I’ve ever lost my shirt. Anyway, the fresh fish was great, the cashew nuts were plentiful, the Maputo markets were brimming with interesting counters and characters, the local beers were pretty good, and Kim and Peter were really great and kind. I heart Moz. In fact, We’ll be returning there after our PC service with another PCV couple for some serious weeks of traveling: all the way up the length of the country and into Tanzania.

And then there was South Africa’s Kruger National Park. Wow. Wildlife galore. It was pretty incredible. I’m sure Mandy will soon post a photo album of our days there, and when she does I’ll provide a link to it. Until then, see the entry titled “Animals!” for a run-down of some of the wildlife we encountered while there. And if you ever happen to be in Southern Africa, for God sakes spend a few days in Kruger. You’ll not regret it. Don’t let all the touristy safari crap dissuade you, because you don’t have to do that stuff to explore the park on your own. It’s huge and accessible.

next was the second big fun thing...