Africa was definitely the most unique travel experience either of us has ever had. We bought a car! We got married! We had some dark moments where we seriously considered abandoning PJ and leaving the continent, but we’re incredibly happy we stuck with it. We camped out more than 80 nights in all sorts of landscapes and saw more wild animals than we ever dreamed possible. We made some great friends and met all sorts of amazing people. This was definitely the part of the trip that made the biggest impression on us. After six months, we were ready for a change, but we’ll absolutely be back in the future.
Hardest part of Africa:
B: Our engine trouble was a bit unique, so I decided to go with something that is unavoidable – border days. We visited 13 countries and brought a vehicle into 12 of them (we walked into the DRC). Some of these countries we visited multiple times due to the timing of the wedding and the route we took. Border day was by far our least favorite day. Every border had a different process. Every country had a different set of rules and wanted different things, especially to let PJ in. We had food confiscated, got a flat tire, got pickpocketed, got scammed, bought bogus insurance, got ripped off in currency exchanges, and got asked for bribes left and right. Even leaving a country usually involved a few different steps. Each border took hours and zapped our energy as we fended off touts, tried to avoid scams, and walked all over confusing border compounds without signs, trying to make sure we paid all our fees and got all the right stamps. We were ecstatic to return to South Africa and breeze through our final border. While it was great to have our own wheels and not have to rely on public transportation, border days are MUCH easier as a simple backpacker.
K: The most emotionally exhausting part of Africa was all of the engine trouble with PJ. At one point, I can remember being at a mall for the umpteenth time at a Mexican restaurant (in hopes of building our spirits) and seriously discussing leaving Africa. We’d only arrived a month beforehand. We had just come from Winburg, South Africa where we spent our days watching two TV movie channels all day because this place was in the middle of nowhere. The place we stayed was overpriced and had no internet, heat, shower, or kitchen. The only mechanic there, Ian, did a shitty job fixing our car and his staff stole multiple things from our vehicle. We barely made it back to Joburg in one piece. Then we towed it to Freek who fixed it the riiiight way but still there was stuff missing from our vehicle (including my wedding bouquet–wth man!). It’s funny that white people were always the ones to ask “Have you been robbed yet?” like it is an eventuality, and we have had only white, male mechanics steal from us! We didn’t know enough about cars at the time and too many people tried to take advantage of us. Due to the protests downtown, we were confined to Kensington and Westmoreland Lodge while our car was in the shop where we binge-watched Netflix and took turns sighing heavily. It was a sad time. I am incredibly happy we stuck it out and stayed. It was a hard six months but quite possibly some of the most memorable times of this journey.
Favorite country:
B: Namibia was the country that had it all. We started off with a stop at Fish River Canyon, which I had originally planned on us hiking through (thanks a lot, PJ). In hindsight, I’m not sure a 5 day hike through the desert would have been the best idea, but watching the sun rise from the top of the canyon was pretty awesome. Next was Sossusvlei which was hands down the best landscape we saw in Africa. The red sand dunes stretched as far as the eye could see and hiking up Big Daddy dune gave us a view over everything. Running down it and exploring Dedvlei made for a perfect day. At the coast, we deflated the tires and drove the beach outside of Walvis Bay to check out the seal colonies and flamingo flocks. We sandboarded and sledded down some dunes in Swakopmund. We spent two days in Etosha National Park, where the only water was at the small waterholes which meant all of the animals were there. Over two hundred animals, more than ten different types of animals, and lions to boot! All capped it off with a couple relaxing days camping by the river in the Caprivi Strip. We drove the full length of Namibia, although our shortened time table meant there was a lot we didn’t get to explore. As much as we don’t want to go back to countries when there are so many new ones on our list, Namibia is one I would go back to in a heartbeat.
K: It has to be Namibia. It was the most unique of all the countries we saw. The deep red sand dunes in Sossusvlei are unlike anything we’ve seen previously. I can still close my eyes and feel the cool sand between my toes. I love that tiny person in a big world feel and certainly felt so when we stared off into the vastness of the park while on top of the Big Daddy Dune. I love the curvature of the Momma dune, and the way the shape of the dunes are always changing–just awesome! Etosha was also a very unique park. The white, dust, desert conditions meant that the waterholes were king! On the western part of the park were three main waterholes and hundreds and hundreds of animals were there to relax during the scorching afternoons. We’ve never seen so many varieties of animals at one time in one spot. This was an exciting way to watch the behavior of the animals. Even the lions called a truce because it was so hot!
Favorite safari park:
B: Mana Pools National Park was one of the only parks that we were actually able to camp inside of (PJ’s engine trouble meant we missed a few bookings). We decided to roll the dice and show up without reservations and were lucky enough to get one of the four walk-in spots, and right on the river to boot! Of the parks we did camp inside of, this was the only unfenced campsite. This meant that at any given time any animal could wander through where we were sleeping. Besides the constant monkey & baboon companions, we were treated to numerous elephants and some buffalo, as well as some hyena visitors after dark. This was the true African camping experience we were looking for. On top of that, this was the only park in Africa with predators that let you walk around by yourself. When we asked about the permit, we quickly realized they didn’t care about anything except getting our money. There were no rules, no restrictions, and no signing back in to make sure you were still alive. We spent five hours walking around the park, spotting all sorts of animals and getting a bit too close to some hippos. Later in the day we found the lions… thankfully we were in our car then! This was our first park that was truly green and it provided a great contrast and environment for spotting animals. We didn’t see the most animals here, in quantity or diversity, but in terms of overall experience, Mana Pools was tops in my book.
K: After much debate, I think I am going to say Mana Pools in Zimbabwe. Kruger was excellent to see the Big 5 and the landscape was different each time we went. I don’t know if that park could ever disappoint. Kgalagadi was a friendly park where people were constantly alerting others of things they saw, and it was the first time we finally saw lions! But in Mana Pools, we stayed right on the river bank with PJ and heard quite possibly the loudest bunch of hippos! They were everywhere! We were able to get up close and personal with the angry, angry hippos. And I found the most adorable baby hippo out of the water while the mom watched from the lily-filled water! It was fun to constantly see wildlife stomping through our campsite and sometimes a bit alarming. We had some close encounters with some very curious elephants. Our neighbors from Germany were less fortunate with the baboons. Walking around unguided was also a huge thrill! I just couldn’t believe that we could do that no questions asked. Just sign a release form and pay. We had an awesome day walking around with all the animals watching out for them as they were watching out for us. What a once-in-a-lifetime experience!
Most “Africa” moment:
B: Lots of moments to choose from here, but I think my volunteering experience takes the cake. We decided to go through Hopeland specifically because they had both a teaching and a microfinance program, which would give us each an experience tailored to our strengths that we could participate in. I had exchanged a few emails with their coordinator confirming that there was a microfinance program and was excited to start. Of course, when we showed up in Uganda the first thing the Executive Director, Valance, asked us was “so what do you want to do while you’re here?”. Uhh… the programs we signed up (and paid) for?! Turns out, they had a microfinance program about five years ago, but people didn’t repay their loans, so they shut it down. Would have been great to know that! Valence was clearly searching for things for me to do, and finally came up with an idea – meet with the teachers at the school about their personal finances and come up with a plan to start a group savings program. Ok, not what I was expecting, but that’s something I can get behind. Five interviews later, all five teachers were participating in some type of savings group, including one that was being run at the school by a bunch of teachers. *smacks forehead* I ended up finding ways to make myself useful and the teachers and local savings group were very grateful for my help. All you can do is shake your head and say TIA (This Is Africa). Happy to take your money, no advanced planning, and zero follow through. Thankfully we had been in Africa long enough that we knew we had to just roll with the punches and make the best of it.
K: There are so many to choose from! My most Africa moment was trying to leave the South Africa border into Namibia and getting rejected. Let me set the scene. In South Africa you receive a 90-day visa to visit the country which I had stamped in my Kourtney Lipka passport. I was quickly running out of pages so I applied for a new one and decided to change my name all at the same time. Efficient. While PJ was being fixed, we were renting little white Nissan Micras and making small trips. We went to Losotho to go skiing for a couple days and popped into Swaziland to walk with the rhinos. On the way back to South Africa, a very aggravated woman gave me a two week window in ZA with my new Kourtney Coons passport. So when we went to leave on another small trip to Namibia because PJ was still not ready, the woman at the counter said my visa for South Africa had expired and if I left I couldn’t come back for a year! I was beyond the two week window but not beyond the 90 days window, and we needed to return the rental car and eventually sell PJ and fly out of Johannesburg.
At the South Africa/ Namibia border the woman was fixated on the two week stamp and couldn’t believe I didn’t do this or that. Why didn’t you ask for more time? Why does your husband’s stamp have more time than yours? She couldn’t get past any of this and focus on solutions. Nothing I said could appease her. She gave me two options which weren’t options at all. Other attendants gathered around and asked questions but ultimately said they didn’t know how or couldn’t help. So we turned around and went back. I felt so defeated. I wrote out my appeal email to contest my ban from ZA. Once PJ was finally ready to move again, we went back to the same border. A lovely, smiley gentleman took both of my passports and scanned them once I explained the situation and said I was all set to leave and return once I was ready. Just like that. I guess it just depends on the person you interact with and what mood they’re in that day. There don’t seem to be rules or regulations. But if at first you don’t succeed, try again?
Favorite piece of gear we bought for PJ:
B: Does a new engine count? No? Ok, fine. Pretty much everything we bought was very essential to our wellbeing and comfort out in the bush, but my MVP goes to a tiny little device we found by accident in a 4×4 store. We had gone up to Vic Falls and back to Cape Town just using my phone cranked up as loud as it went for music. Podcasts were too quiet, and the music level was not nearly loud enough for the roll-down-the-windows-belt-it-out experience that any good road trip needs. Radio stations were few and far between and our radio just had a tape deck (classic 1995). But at the checkout of a 4×4 store in Cape Town, we found a 12v bluetooth adapter that would broadcast to a radio station. Think what you used to dock your iPod in the car back in the 2000’s, but way better. We were back in business, listening to podcasts to kill the miles (shoutout Pardon My Take) and blasting tunes to the bemused looks of villagers everywhere.
K: I really just loved the compressor! We weren’t able to use it for some time due to all PJ’s ailments, so when we finally used it for the first time in Namibia I was so excited! Coons and I had to work together: he hooked it up and went around deflating or inflating all the tires and I was listening for his voice to shut it off and on. The long yellow cord stretched all the way out! So fun. It allowed us to go to places we wouldn’t otherwise have been able to go. We went through the deep red sand in Sossusvlei National Park, on the beach to look for cape fur seals in Walvis Bay in Namibia, and through the most remote parts of Chobe National Park in Botswana. PJ was able to conquer most things thrown his way, but the compressor provided us with an extra bit of relief and safety.
Least favorite police force:
B: This was a tough one, but my vote goes to the police force in Mozambique. They set the tone early on at the border by refusing to let us cross until we gave them something. We ended up giving them some spare change left over from Tanzania. The next couple of stops saw us unpack everything in our car for their inspection. I was behind the car unrolling our trash bags, explaining what each spice was, and opening up every bag and bin we had. This was also the first country where English wasn’t the common language, so almost all of our interactions were done in their native Portuguese and a mix of Spanish & Portuguese from me. We hadn’t been subjected to anywhere near this level of scrutiny anywhere else. Rare was the police stop where we weren’t asked for things, never a fun proposition when the police doing the asking is holding an RPG. The cherry on top was the B.S. speeding ticket we got on our last day in the country. The speed camera was so poor that there was no way you could see if it was actually your car and there was no speed limit sign anywhere to verify what the limit actually was. They were basically pulling over every white driver and giving out tickets. I tried arguing for a bit alongside a South African, but we got nowhere and ended up paying just so we could leave. I was very glad to leave them behind.
K: At first I want to say Tanzania because we were stopped the most frequently and we got the most tickets; they literally call themselves the revenue authority. Malawi wasn’t great either–absurd really with their antics–but in Uganda was the nastiest police officer we came across. He was curt and aggressive. He stopped us for a bullshit reason and clearly pocketed the money not feeling the need to hide it. He demanded an insane amount of money–far more than any other officer and wouldn’t budge. We had been caught off guard because we were all excited to get to our volunteer opportunity, but had we been ready, we would have fought with him more or offered to go to court just for the experience. We were stopped most days in Uganda as well, but it helped giving the principal of Kitoola school a ride to avoid most of the fines. The mzungu prices were in full effect here; locals just charge white people more money for everything (food, haircuts, bribes, etc) because they assume we’re all rich. It makes me feel terrible, because comparatively we are, but it’s just not right. The bribes and the mzungu prices all came to a head in Uganda, and it was tiring to say the least to constantly bicker over pricing.
Favorite wild camping site:
B: While the wild camping spot on the way to our wedding was pretty awesome, I think my favorite has to go to another spot in Botswana. We spent three nights at a wild camping spot just outside Moremi Game Reserve. The nice thing about this reserve is there are no fences, and the animals certainly didn’t respect the line on Google Maps showing the end of the park. The first night there, we were cooking dinner when an elephant decided to come see what we were up to. This elephant was very shy and possessed zero size awareness. He decided to pick the smallest tree to hide behind and watch Kourtney cook dinner. The second night, after an amazing day in the Reserve, we were up in our tent when I heard munching close by. We peeked outside the rooftop tent with the spotlight, and lo and behold there was a giraffe snacking on the tree right next to us! We also heard plenty of hyenas (by far the most distinctive sound) and saw some other nocturnal animals with spotlight sweeps. We would return a few days later and spend a great night outside by the fire with Marcos, Natch, Mike, Allison, and Tony.
K: I really have three, but I’ll chose one. It is the secluded waterhole near Nata, Botswana. We were heading to our surprise wedding, and we had just finished the fiasco of purchasing PJ. On the way there we passed a waterhole where hundreds of elephants were bathing. I was so overjoyed that tears were streaming down my face. Elephants, giraffes, warthogs, etc. kept our speed in check as we were constantly stopping so they could cross the road. We were so fresh and full of excitement. Coons was off-roading in the sand on the outskirts of some national park, and then through the trees we just opened up to this field with a large waterhole. We were the only ones there, and we pulled out everything to make one of our first dinners on the road. We had all the best stuff from Food Lovers which was our favorite grocery store–hands down: biltong, cheese, crackers, wine, meat, veggies, sauce, and spices. It doesn’t get much better than that, right?! That is unless multiple families of elephants show up to watch you eat dinner while you watch them play in the water at dusk. They were the cutest, most curious dinner guests. After we washed up, we went right up into the tent and opened all of the vents and watched them until it was pitch black out. Then we could hear and faintly see a zebra and a giraffe show up for a sip. It was our first introduction to wild camping–no fence, no problem!
Africa by the numbers:
13 – Countries Visited
197 – Days spent traveling
18,600 – Miles Driven
9 – Trips to the Mechanic
77 – Nights in the Rooftop Tent
34 – Nights at Westmoreland Lodge
28 – Days Spent Volunteering
10 – Safari Parks Visited
1 – Ski Slopes Shredded
42 – Total books read
1 – Magical Wedding
$197 – Average cost/day (including net cost of PJ)