Click on the pic for more scenic p0rn

Various scenes around the Cape. Beautiful views. Not much more to say except my camera has this spot on the reflex lens inside. It’s distracting but not debilitating. It all seems like a dream now.

Of all the differing scenic views available to the human experience – mountain vistas, cavernous gorges etc – it is my humble opinion that no scenic eye candy beats the experience of rhythmic, moving water. Since all water moves, even calm water moves, any mountain or gorge or valley or canyon view is enhanced exponentially by water. Falling water, crashing water, serene water, traveling water. It’s all wonderful, wonderful water. Which made our South Africa trip so scenically awesome because we were surrounded on all sides by moving water. If moving water had a Faceb–k page, I’d totally be a fan.

This morning, the Fortune Cookie app at the top right of this website said, “Accept what you cannot change and you will be happy.” An overused cliche for sure and perfect fodder for the brief message of a fortune cookie, but somehow it comes at an appropriate time. In thinking about the things I cannot change, I shall consider the determination of moving water. I can’t change ocean waves. I can’t change the course of a river. The only moving water I have any c0ntrol over is bathtub water. But that’s not very scenic and it doesn’t apply. The things I cannot change are beyond the bathtub.

Thus I will accept the moving water because I know I can’t change it and can only enjoy it moment to moment. Once the water moves, it’s gone and won’t return. But luckily, it’s replenished constantly by the water behind it.

I’ve assembled the photos from our little ’safari’ adventure here. Above, the queen is waving from our chalet which was quite lovely. It included a deck as high as the chalet roof for better animal viewing. It also served as a wonderful perch for star gazing. On our first night I carried my glass of wine up there, laid on the picnic table and simply looked at the stars. We don’t see many stars around here because of all the ambient light. When I find myself in a place far from the city lights I make a point of looking up at the stars for a while.

Another recap: The Big 5 of Africa are the elephant, lion, Cape buffalo, the rhinoceros…

This guy was laying right in the dirt road. He wanted to charge us. Dennis the ranger drove around because if the rhino punctures the tire, Dennis has to pay for the tire. Dennis has his priorities in order.

The last of the Big 5 is the cheetah. We didn’t see the cheetah. Apparently the cheetah was getting acclimated to the climate of southwestern  Africa. Personally, I would rather have seen more herd animals than view the lions or the cheetahs cordoned off in their own little areas. I realize people like the big cats but driving around the free roaming animals was way groovier than viewing the lions behind a fence. I can go to the zoo to see caged lions.

Click on the giraffe to see more safari pics

… I guess that’s what it is. Perhaps it is more appropriately characterized as ’sitting on your butt for 30 hours’ lag. We dove right into work mode yesterday. By 4 pm I was doing the best Droopy Dog imitation ever. Very droopy. Mustering up the energy to do anything but droop on a comfy chair was next to impossible. Going to the store to stock up on some much needed food (you know, that stuff that keeps you alive) was out of the question.

Before we left, I had seriously contemplated buying support hose to help with the ankle bloat that comes along with 24 hours of sitting in a constricted area 30,000 ft in the air. I am still feeling the effects of Elephantine appendages. Of course I go from sitting in a plane for hours on end to sitting in an office chair. I’m about to take a trip down the stairs for the simple pleasure of moving my legs.

In thinking about all of this, if I had actually purchased and used compression stockings and then found and bought adult diapers, those things along with my granny glasses would have officially landed me in the Home of Old Ladies Who Wobble Along at the Airport. Now all I need is a hearing aid and a cane.

Can’t wait for the AARP card to arrive! Woohoo.

Click on the picture for more penguin pics

The queen is zonked out on the couch after a grueling trip back from South Africa that had us cursing the lack of bathrooms at Heathrow airport. In an act of complete desperation, I considered buying adult diapers for a particular ’situation’ that befell me. The details of what madness could have so gripped me to the point of considering adult diapers to be a reasonable solution will be spared you, oh Gentle Woodland Folk of the Blogisphere. Let’s just say, if you were in my situation, you just might have considered it yourself. The moral of the story is always be prepared. It’s not just for Boy Scouts.

It is also startlingly obvious we are not seasoned world travelers. If so, we would have brought a change of clothes and maybe some deodorant along with the tchotchkes and other sundries purchased on our trip. We did not do this. If we had, my descent into the world of possibly purchasing plastic, padded pantaloons would never have taken place. Live and learn. And we did. And we do.

I’m enjoying a look back at all the pictures taken over the course of the last two weeks and I’ll post them here. The first set is all penguins all the time. Boulder Beach is just down the street from GFVicki and Suzanne’s house so it was just a little side trip, but what a groovy side trip it was. For once it wasn’t so bad being around a bunch of tourists because the penguins were totally worth the crowd weariness that envelopes me when throngs of tourists are involved. We try to stay off the beaten path but sometimes the well worn path is still a worthy stop.