The Animals - Ngala Private Game Reserve

Some of the animals I saw while on two game drives in Ngala.

The Lodge - Ngala Private Game Reserve

While in Ngala I took about 450 photos! I want to share just a few of them with you to give a flavour of my experience.

In this entry I have included pictures of the place we stayed.  That is, the Lodge itself.  

It was a perfect place to relax.  My phones simply did not work so for the first time in months I was unhooked! I could relax on a number of decked areas overlooking a watering hole or a pool or one that just let me stare into the distance.

The rooms were fantastic.  My bed was really comfortable - not that I got to spend much time in it!

We fed well.  The lunch was a sumptuous spread of salads and cold meat.  I was a little disappointed to find out that what I though was a side of wild boar freshly caught that morning was just regular pig.  But it and the chutney that went with it was superb.  Oh, and there was an apple pie to die for!

Dinner was served in a lantern lit court yard.  It was an idilic when to end the day.

Sweet Federal Air

When Federal Air talk about a departure gate they mean a literal wooden gate.

Our pilot met us at the gate and walked the small group out over the tarmac to our waiting plane.  If you are never sure if you would prefer a window or an aisle seat then this plane was made for you.  With only one line of seats on each side you get to do both.

The in flight refreshments were selected from a cool box as we stepped onto the plane.  This same box was then brought on board and used by the pilot to sit on while he pulled the door shut.  No hot hostess required.

It was a fun flight.  I felt like all the flying I had done up to that point had been kind of fake.  This was cooking and all the other stuff was tv dinners.

But then we had to change planes.  For this we had to land in the middle of nowhere.  I still do not know where it was!  We only stayed at arrivals terminal (if you could call it that) for a few minutes where we met a Ranger Trainer.  I'm not sure that was his real job title but it turned out he was responsible for the training of the Rangers or Guides at the game lodge we were going to.  So what was for us a trip of a lifetime was nothing more than a commute to him!

Then we moved to the second plane.  It was even smaller than the first!
Again, the pilots walked us to the plane - all 3 passengers.  I got in at the back of the plane and after hitting my head on the ceiling I crouched, took 2 steps and sat down behind the pilot.
This was fun.  As well as just enjoying a more basic form of flying we lucked out by having the guide on board the flight.  He drew our attention at various points in our small journey to different spots on the ground.  As a guide he knew how to spot where the animals where - so before we even got there we were sighting Wilder-beast and Impala from the air!

Best Departure Lounge in the World

I've done a bit of traveling lately but of all the departure lounges I have been in, the Federal Air terminal in Johannesburg has got to be the best!

Sitting in the open air always beats air conditioning.  And it is hard to top a departure gate that is actually a physical wooden gate after which we had only a very short walk to get onto the plane.

We were on our way to Ngala Private Game Reserve for a great weekend of wildlife spotting!

Johannesburg

Its not long since I returned from Johannesburg.  It is the sort of place where people warn you to keep your eyes and ears open.  But I found myself listening and watching, not just for the bad guys, but to all that was good and wonderful about the city and the nation.My time there was spent with a few South Africans but also with representatives of many other African nations.  It was fascinating talking with those people.  Everyone has a story about the problems in their home country, some claim to have a solution to those problems and others just voice their general acceptance that things will not change.

I went on a tour of Sowetto and Johannesburg while I was there.  Such contrast.  

The rich live well but they do so behind concrete walls and electric fences.  They live in fear that someone will break into their fortresses and shoot them and there family just to steal the car.  I'd love to comment on the beautiful houses in the 'millionaires' part of the city but I didn't see them behind their walls.

The poor do not have concrete walls, or bricks, or electric fences.  But they do have Coca-Cola!  Part of the tour took us on foot into one of the townships - I think we only got a flavour of what it was like.  To be honest it didn't strike me as hard as the poverty in India.  

Also, while being shown through this ladies home I felt a little odd.  Maybe it was guilt for being so wealthy my comparison and not being as thankful as I should be.

Another thing that I have taken for granted is a good education.  In 1976 a teenager called Hector Peterson died during a mass protest by students in South African.  The then government wanted to restrict their teaching to the Africaans language - not learning English would hold them back.

You can learn all about it at the Hector Peterson museum in Sowetto.

The memorial outside the museum is pictured below.  It was opened by Nelson Mandela in 1992 after he was release from prison.

In 2010 South Africa will host the World Cup (Fifa.com).  Maybe a sign of the progress in this part of the world - or let's hope so anyway!  

Victoria Square

I haven't actually bought anything there yet but I did get a chance to see the view from the dome in Victoria Square, Belfast.

Again, only the iPhone otherwise I may have taken a few more shots.

Thanks to Matt for the coffee!

Dundrum Castle

I have been to some wonderful places this year but I was glad of spending a day in good old Northern Ireland after returning from India.

We really do have some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
Sadly, I only had my iPhone with me but even with that I really like the shots I got.

Thank you India

My third train-the-trainer session was in Mumbai, India.  It was a fascinating experience.

Driving in India is not for the feint hearted.  They cram at least 7 cars across a 4 lane carriage way and are constantly hooting their horns at each other!  

The poverty is plain to see.  People live on the foot path in make shift lodgings and spend most of their day sitting around the road.  Some don't even have a roof over their heads.  All this in one of the fastest developing economies in the world at the moment.

While there we had a tour of the City.  Here you can see Dhobi Ghat which is where most of the city hotel's laundry is done. You can see it hanging out to try right below the overcrowded train!

Families live and work here.  They move from their shacks to their concrete pens where they soak the linens in sudsy water before beating them on the concrete blocks to start the drying process.  It is a hereditary occupation meaning that the same families have been doing this for generations.

We also visited a Hindu temple.  It was a strange experience.  Hard to believe that people spend so much time and effort bowing before idols they made themselves.
I discovered my cameras macro function at the hanging gardens.  There is nothing hanging in these gardens.  The name is given as the gardens sit on top of the main reservoir for the city.
This cheeky monkey was one of many we found during a trip to Elephanta Island.  We took a boat trip to the island where we saw some ancient Hindu caves.  It was a hot day so on the way back to the boat we got the little train.  When we arrived at the dock the visitors who just arrived hardly gave us a chance to get off the train before barging on.  They pushed on in a style not dissimilar to the way they drive.  It was like it was the last train out of town.

Back at the hotel the restaurant staff got to know us well.  So much so that when we left they gave us a cake which was iced with 'Thank you, come back soon!'.  Here we are with the chef and a few of the waiters.

Hamburgers

After Gothenburg and Genoa I had to go to Hamburg, Germany.  My two weeks there were fun.  The city is beautiful - I enjoyed just walking around and snapping at the architecture.
On one of the evenings we had a team event.  We were introduced to the Segway which I discovered is a really great way to get around!

The Italian Job

I had a chance to catch up with a few of my Swedish friends in Italy.  Sounds a little odd but that seems to be the nature of the job!  I bump into people all over the place.
Genoa is a lovely seaside city.  Although only there for a few days it felt like a little holiday - but I was working! Honest.
Everyone seems to ride a scooter.  These were parked right along the sea front!
The Italians are crazy.  They served me chocolate ice cream with chilli!  My mouth couldn't work out if it was hot or cold!

Where all good Ikeas come from!

"It just doesn't flow for me" - something I think Matt and Dave will recall and understand more than any of you. Those were words uttered by a former employer while we were desperately trying to get him to record a few simple words to camera for a sporting event we were involved with.

That really has nothing to do with this blog entry. I just thought of it as I sat here staring at a black compose window in blogger as I tried to summon up the will and the 'flow' to actually start typing. Of course, now I'm falling into another trap that so often caught that same employer - I'm saying a lot but not actually getting to my point. But I blame it on yours truly. That last line also just for Matt and Dave.

And now to the rest of you. Thanks for sticking with me. This blog has been quiet for a while which is some ways is ironic. Usually people update blogs to tell the world about the cool things they are doing. Well, I've managed to fill my entire blog to date with not very much at all but over the period that I have been silent I have been very busy doing some cool things!

Like traveling!
This new job of mine opened up a few doors for me at the start of this year. Although I still work for the UK outfit I have been seconded at times to 'Centre' aka Copenhagen to fulfill the role of a trainer of trainers! Just to explain - that isn't to say I'm the best trainer out of a bunch of trainers rather it says that I am training others to be trainers. And nothing to do with footwear.

My first big trip was in the last week in January. I made my way to Gothenburg, Sweden for two weeks in the cold. So just like home then!

I had a great time. The work was fun as I got to try to enthuse people about a new way of working. Basically I got act like an idiot for two weeks so required very little effort.

As well as the work I got to enjoy some nice food. I discovered that typical Swedish food is well, Italian! You can't go far without seeing a pizzeria or ristorante. Another food phenomenon is what they call Filke (I think). On Fridays through an organised rota employees will bring a host of cakes and desserts to the office. Then in the afternoon the whole place grinds to a halt of half an hour as they all get stuck into coffee and cake and a general chin wag.

Speaking of phenomenal food I need to tell about the single most expensive meal I have ever had in my life. I don't want to go into all the details - you can ask me when you see me - but I want to tell you about one of the courses on this epic gastronomic experience. About 4 courses in, yes, 4 I found myself staring quite bewildered at a glass of ice. How stupid did I feel when I was told it was not just a glass of ice - it was a glass of the purest, oldest ice in the world. Impressed? Apparently I should have been. This ice was mined from deep underground (not the same place as River Rock though - I checked) in the most northerly parts of Finland. They say it is as close to pure frozen H20 as you can get.

You'd think that given the age and purity of this ice they would let me suck and savour it. Not a bit of it. They covered it in champagne making it the most expensive slush puppy I am every likely to consume.

Anyone who has been to Ikea will know that the Swedes are great at design, order and storage! In reality they are exactly like that which to my Aussie co-trainer and me was something to be admired and to rebel against. They have a device on the road side that counts the number of bikes using the cycle lane. A casual observation will tell you the answer is lots - this is what they would do in Belfast (and get it wrong) - but the Swedes have a dedicated counter. But one of my new Swedish friends couldn't understand why it was fun to try to run past this device to see if we could trigger a count. You guys understand, right? (We triggered it by the way, and not just once! We rock!)

A note to the lads: it is true what they say about Sweden. Oh yes, it is true. Nuff said.

I have spread a few pics around this post to break up the blurb. One is of us in another fancy restaurant where we had the privilege of learning how to taste wine. Its easy really, you just kind of swirl it around in your mouth. But what was interesting was how the guy demonstated how and why certain wines go with certain foods. We would try the same wine after eating honey, then sucking some lemon juice, then after taking some salt. After each item the wine tasted differently - in some cases a good wine tasted awful!

That night was a late one. The restaurant stayed open late for us but even when we left we didn't go home. We traveled to an Irish bar where I met a guy from Banbridge. He was one part of a two man band who entertained us with some great tunes.

Ok, this entry is very long now and I am shattered! I'll leave this for now an promise another updated soon. I have been to other places since Sweden.....