The Road To Zanzibar…And Back

We just returned from a wonderful trip to Zanzibar and back.  We spent time in Kenya, with friends in Nairobi, and then went on safari in Tanzania.  Following the week’s safari we flew from Mt. Kilimanjaro airport to Stonetown, Zanzibar and spent a week in three areas of the island.  Eventually, we returned by plane to Nairobi and a few more nights with our friends.  Finally, we made the long haul back to Comox through Amsterdam and Calgary.

Our traveling companions, Ben and Josée made the trip for us.  We enjoyed being with them.  Ben had organised the whole trip and we were happy to tag along for the ride.  Josée’s enthusiasm and energy got us up and going when we were feeling somewhat travel weary.

I have divided the trip into three sections. Click on the links to load each section.  Close that section to return to this page.

1. Nairobi and Arusha (2 pages)

Click  Africa-Nairobi and Arusha (it’s slow to load so be patient)

2. Safari in Tarangire, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Parks-an amazing time viewing the animals with Dickson our guide. (2 pages)

Click  Africa Trip-On Safari  (slow loading so once again be patient)

3. Zanzibar-rest and relaxation after the safari. (2 pages)

Click  Africa Trip-Zanzibar (might load slowly)

Extras: Short video clips

Click below to see video of the cheetahs taking down a wildebeeste

Click below to see the hippo pool.

Click to see Cynthia and the elephant.

If you wish to see an album of pictures from the trip, click here.  Click “Slideshow” above the first picture.

If you wish to know more details, costs etc of our trip contact me at mdaviesret@gmail.com

I hope you enjoyed my attempt to bring our trip to you.

Goodbye for now and God bless.

Some Sad News.

Monty when younger

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to let you know that Monty, Ben and Josée’s two year old pet pig, died early this morning.  Monty first became ill on Saturday, when B and J noticed he wasn’t eating or drinking.  He just lay on his blanket, never moving.  His condition worsened as time went by.  They got him in to see the vet early Monday morning.  As red blotches had appeared on his body, the vet suspected Monty was bleeding internally.  They thought it might be that Monty had ingested some rat poison.  There is none on B and J’s property, but who knows what the neighbours have done around their yards.  Blood work revealed that Monty’s blood count wasn’t good and he was given meds to help.  They told us that by 16.00 Monday, the blood count would tell which way Monty was headed.  B and J were prepared to have him put down.  Around 16.30 his blood count rose which was good…we gained hope… and later in the day we took Monty home with further meds. Sadly, Monty’s condition worsened again, and about 02.00 this morning he died, just before the vet got there.

We stayed for a while with Ben and J.  They were very upset indeed.  Eventually we all decided to go to bed to rest, if not sleep, and deal with Monty at first light.  We got a call at 08.15 from J to let us know that Ben had been out already, in the pouring rain and howling wind, to prepare a grave for Monty. ( Ben had told me he had a spot picked out for Monty should the pig die)  When we got there, Ben had finished the grave.  We loaded Monty gently into the bucket of Ben’s tractor by carrying him in a blanket.  Ben drove Monty to the site, crying all the way.  We gently lowered him into the grave in his blanket, Ben said what he needed to say and then he covered the grave with the tractor.  We gave B and J some time together as we headed back to the house.

We empathise with them at the loss of this loved animal, as we know the feelings and emotions they have.  We dealt with the deaths of our two much loved dogs.  We pray for healing for Ben and J and would ask that you keep them in your thoughts and prayers too.

Ou trip to Africa has been delayed two days due to these circumstances.  The airlines waived the penalty but we had to pay $500 each extra due to the increased cost of the new fare.  We now leave on Thursday, which means that we have slightly less time with our friends in Nairobi, but the safari parts of the trip are as per normal.  I don’t know how much we will be in touch with you as we know not the extent of internet access.

That’s all for now.  Wishing you love and peace.

Martin 

One A Day

I’m sure that most of you remember the movie Pay It Forward which was very popular  a few years ago.  In it, a young boy who was going through a difficult time in his life, was given the opportunity by his teacher, to make the world a better place by performing acts of kindness.  The only thing to be asked in return was that the receiver of the gift would do the same thing, perform some act of kindness.  I remember how much I enjoyed this movie and the simple concept.

I have known all my life, the biblical concept of “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets-Matthew 7:12″.  However, pay it forward has a slightly different twist if I’m not mistaken.  I think it actually encourages the doer to be pro-active in doing what he does in order to promote further similar acts of kindness, generosity etc.  This is not a new concept.  When I looked a little deeper, it was used as a key plot element in a comedy play produced in Athens in 317 BC.

Just yesterday, I received a lovely film clip from my younger son Tim.  When I took a peek at it, I was immediately reminded of the Pay It Forward movie and so began this post.  See if you like it.

Wouldn’t it be great if all of us could perform one of these random (maybe even planned) acts of kindness on a daily basis? Open a door for someone, pick up a dropped item, offer a genuine compliment, a word of encouragement….  I know I’ll be looking carefully for my chance today and in the days to come.

Goodbye and God bless.

2011 in review ( If you are interested!)

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.  If you are interested, carry right along.  All the very best for 2012.  Martin

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 3,900 times in 2011. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 3 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.