The three of us were sitting at a table, poolside at Ilboru Safari Lodge. Mr Saif had come to review our itinerary, introduce us to our driver, and, of course, carry the news that Vicki would not be molding in her clothes.
Then his bowels fell out
And there I was when I woke up (part 1)
Taken for a ride
An uncomfortable arrival
I hoped it was Arusha when we slipped in. It was hard to know in the dark. The tinting film stuck to the “taxi” windows, bubbled and peeling, made it even more disorienting. There were few working streetlights; those that did work revealed a shantytown in eerie hue. The driver, grimfaced under a stocking cap, looked straight ahead and never spoke a word. Vicki was unnerved.
Where the safari started
Our flight into Zanzibar settled on the runway after midnight. I looked out the window. It was dark and soft like the inside of a smudge pot and there was little to see except the flashes of the ground crew. A tug swung around. Its lamps illuminated palm fronds just beyond the pavement. Dense vegetation completed the backdrop.
The lumpy flat-top
Notes from Karanga Camp, Kilimanjaro
High flyer
Ants in your pants
Rookie mistakes
Sturdy students
Canyon critters
Baker's dozen
A Threepeat
Travel documents
Piggy flies
Required reading for explorers (part 4)
Required reading for explorers (part 3)
Naturally I lost my bearings
Gordon lifted the oversized compass to his face. The transparent plastic flexed in his hands, making his nose appear to wiggle. His voice was less animated. His words came out deliberately.
“Turn the bezel until the arrow is in the box.” He turned the disk on his plastic demonstration model. His nose wiggled again.