Monday, June 4, 2007

Kruger Park

Hey guys!! I don't have any pictures yet but I will be sure and post some on the blog as soon as I can. My trip this last week to Swaziland and to Kruger National Park in South Africa was amazing! I had so much fun and was able to do so much. I can now add "driving on the left side of the road" on my resume under skills because I was chosen to drive one of the rental vans that we got. It was a little scary and difficult at first but I got it under control by the end of the trip.

In Swaziland we stayed at a nice mountain resort/lodge place, a nice way to get away from our sleep situations here in Mozambique. It felt very luxurious and my perception might be a little skewed but nonetheless, it was a great place. We were able to go to a real African village and learn about how life is/was like for these people. Men can marry more than one woman and they keep the little kids hut by the entrance so that if enemies come, they take the little girls of the village instead of killing the men. Yikes, what a culture! We also did a lot of shopping in Swaziland because they had a lot of little crafts and artsy things to buy.

From there we went to Kruger National Park in South Africa and it was pretty much everything I have ever dreamed of. Zebras, giraffes, elephants, lions, rhinos, hippos, hyienas, warthogs, monkeys, baboons, birds, etc. We got to see them all! I didn't see a leopard or a cheetah, the only disappointment but it's all good. I got to see the sunrise and sunset over the African plains. The animals were so close and so real and it was just incredible to see them in their natural habitats. It truly was a spiritual experience to see the beauty Heavenly Father has created and put here on this earth. I'll never forget the feeling I had when we pulled up next to the giraffe, he looked over at me and stared me in the eye, and then went back to eating the tops of the trees. Incredible!

Everything else continues to go well. We are teaching the kids how to type in their computer class and today I taught them a little bit about Microsoft Excel and some of its functions. Some of the kids eat it up while others show little interest in what we do. The ones that try though will really set themselves up for a better life with a better job. Well, I love all of you and congratulations to Melissa and Adam and especially Clark and Laura! Take care!

8 comments:

  1. That sounds soooo cool. Much better than watching the frisky squirrels in our back yard.

    Hey did I get a post up before Papa John?

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  2. Is the national park Kruger the same one that George Costanza worked for at Kruger Industrial Smoothing?

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  3. Can't wait for some photos. It sound like an awesome experience. Thanks so much for the update and the overnight post that gave CDT Jake a head start on the comments. I'm thinking about sending him the orange Ducks Stanley Cup towel, but I'm afraid he will turn it into a Chicago Bears towel...

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  4. Great report even though I was slow checking it out. This is definitely Family Letter material but I will let you decide how to put it all together.

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  5. Hey, I'm a Chris Pronger fan from way back when he skated for the Blues. Go Ducks!

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  6. you may want to check out youtube.com and search "battle at kruger". It's and 8 minute video that shows lions attacking a wildabeast, alligators trying to steal the meal, and the wildabeast coming back in force. I thought it was cool. While there you can search Jack Smith Emmett and see some the videos I have uploaded.

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  7. What fun. I'll have to have you come and guest lecture in my Geography 120 class when we talk about Africa. I've yet to visit sub saharan Africa but it is on my list!

    Chad

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  8. Wow. That 'Battle at Kruger' video was pretty incredible. The folks on that safari got their money's worth that day.

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