 |
| Impala |
I wake to the
sound of lightly running hooves outside our tent at Khumaga campsite in the
Makgadikgadi National Park. I open my eyes and peer out the front door of the
tent to see a line of impala about twenty feet from the tent making their way
along the elevated bed of the Boteti River. Each leaps then makes a high kick
with its back legs like a rocking horse as it passes from left to right. They
are so swift and delicate in their moves the sound they make in the sand is
soft and systematic. If we Westerners count sheep to fall asleep, I now suspect
the Batswana might count high kicking impala. Magical!
We have come
down to the park for two nights to install magnetic white board maps that allow
visitors to use different color magnets or whiteboard markers to indicate
animal sightings or road closings. They were made by Paul and purchased by Meno a Kwena and now the last step in the process is to install them and teach the
park workers how they work.
 | |
| Paul Installing Maps |
We are the only
ones camping at Khumaga as it is not the ideal time to be out in the bush. Rain,
specifically thunderstorms, greet us regularly making for spectacular skies but
also high grasses resulting in difficult animal viewing. Additionally, with all
the good rains and high grasses, the wildlife disperses making them less
concentrated around rivers and watering holes and thus harder to see. The morning
we plan to pack up camp and leave we have a spectacular thunderstorm which is
nice to listen to on the tent but crappy to pack up as the combination of rain and
sand make for a real mess!
The rainy
season also brings out a world of “creepy crawlies” and I had an opportunity to
see my first solifugae. This incredibly fast, yellow, “spider like”, scorpion
eating, nocturnal creature is totally creepy! I know I should give you a more
scientific explanation but let’s just say catching a glimpse of it running
around our campsite at night and hearing
what sounded like two of them chasing each other up over our tent as we tried
to sleep was enough information for me! While Paul was sad to see that one had
gotten crushed under our tent as we were packing up camp (I don’t even want to think about that fact that it was under where we slept!) I did not shed a
tear, but I did take a picture.
 |
| Squished Solifugae |
 |
| Bush Traffic |
 |
| Fish Eagle |
On arrival to camp we
are greeted by a large group of Vervet monkeys. They are swinging through the
limbs of trees. Running around the campsite. Sitting on the edge of the fire
pit as if sitting on the edge of a hot tub, toes in the water. Climbing up and
down the metal braai (read “grill”) like it is a jungle gym. Seeing how close
they can get to us before we chase them off. I affectionately call them “lemon
cream stealers” because the first time I met one, he swooped down into the open
safari vehicle we were in, grabbed a pack of lemon cream cookies, ran up a tree
and proceeded to eat them right in front of us. Cheeky monkey!
This time I
engage in a bit of “monkey see, monkey do” as one abruptly stands and bobs its
upper body up and down. I mimic this. Stand tall, bounce my upper body up and
down. Next, he proceeds to move his head and shoulders left to right (similar
to a dance move from the 1980s). I repeat. This goes on a while. Unfortunately,
while I thought we were having fun, I later read in our animal behavior book
that these are “defensive territorial moves.” Apparently I was staking my
ground under the tree in the middle of the campsite. He later showed his
disapproval by crawling up said tree and pooping on our tent. Thanks for that!
I’m not sure
where January went. Since we returned from our holiday travels, we’ve pretty
much been in the office. We had a German couple that Paul has known since his Bushmen
development days “back in the 70s” camping in our yard for about a week. A
delightful couple with adventurous spirits, who embrace each day with
enthusiasm for all things amphibian and reptilian. So much so that their visit
was delayed because Bernhard was bitten by a stiletto snake. Not knowing what
that snake looks like I grab THEIR book (that’s right, they have authored a
book with the subtitle “more than just creepy-crawlies”) where it advises not
to handle stiletto snakes because they will inevitably bite you (guess he
forgot that entry!). After a few days in hospital, they are on their way again.
Delightful dinner conversation for a week and a nice day trip up to Khwai River
where Bernhard even took a dip (not me, there are crocs and hippos in that river..I have seen them!).
 |
| Warthogs at the Khwai River |
 |
| Bernhard IN the Khwai River |
 | |
| Saddle Bill Stork |
 |
| Getting a drink |
Our other
adventure has been trying to get Paul’s PRDP license renewed. Sadly he let it
lapse (AGAIN! Don’t ask!) so renewal involves starting from scratch. First,
there was the “physical exam” to ensure he is not insane. Second, there was the
finger printing to make sure he hasn’t committed any crimes since he was last finger printed (apparently they
only keep finger prints for 3 months after they are taken so they must be taken
AGAIN – I’m not sure that’s an effective use of a finger print database but,
who am I to say?). Then there is the written test which we have been trying to
complete since January 13. First, Paul wasn’t ready to take it (there is a
manual with crazy rules you have to study)…we postponed until the 17th.
Then his German friends showed up on the 16th so he postponed until
the 24th. Then the “woman who administers the test” was out that day
so the test was cancelled. On to the 31st where a friend was also
planning to take the test so he offered to “get a number” for Paul at 3:30 AM (he
was #70) only to wait for about ten hours and still not have the opportunity to
take the test (they only made it to the first 40 that day). So today we decided
to drive 6 hours (no I am not kidding, three hours each way) to Ghanzi to take
the written test there. Here we encounter no lines and Paul registered,
took the test, had it graded and we are out of there in 15 minutes! Even
though we are exhausted because we’ve been up and driving since 5 AM we do a
little dance of joy at accomplishing this step (and he only got one wrong out
of 45 questions!). Next, the driving test - it might be back to Ghanzi next
week.
Finally, it
continues to amaze me how, despite the fact that I have been coming here now
for eight years, I am still befuddled by some of the interactions. The other
day, for example, I got into this rather comical phone conversation with a
woman who I was trying to give my email address to (to plan a
visit for my students this May). First of all, it should be noted that my alter
ego African name is “Kirsty”. Don’t even bother to try to tell people your name
is Kristy, because they won’t get it. Pretty much everyone here calls me
Kirsty. I just go with it.
So first, in
giving my email address, we struggle with the first name k-R-I-s-t-y then I say
“period” m-a-h-e-r, etc. At the time there is no objection or request for
clarification but about five hours later I get a confused call explaining that the
email address I gave her is not working. We try again.
Ultimately she
says, “I do not know what that is”, when I get to the “period.”
I say, “You
know, like the punctuation mark you put at the end of a sentence?”
She says, “Full
stop?”
{I think,
“isn’t that what you do a stop sign?”} I ask, “Is that what you call the thing
at the end of a sentence?”
She repeats, “Full
stop.”
So I say, “OK,
my email address is k-R-I-s-t-y “full stop” m-a-h-e-r…” That seemed to work as I
ultimately received the email.So, it is true, you do learn something new every day!
That is all I
have to say about January and the start of February…full stop
