International Ostomy Association

As dawn breaks over the Serengeti on March 1st, when all good Welsh people celebrate St. Davids Day, I was fortunate to enjoy a marvelous experience.

As the sun rose over the Masai Kopjes ( where a great deal of the Lion King was filmed ) our hot air balloon also arose into the skies. I could see for hundreds of miles in every direction. At treetop height we passed over acacia trees looking down at the nests of eagles and vultures. We floated silently over the Serenoa River hearing hippos snorting and watching them yawn. I saw giraffe, waterbuck, buffulo, gazelle, topi and other antelope all about to get their breakfast and then there came the herd of elephants. And as our baloon silently made its descent, we see warthogs running through the grass. What a magical adventure. Now its off to the airport to start the flight home - Urusha, Kilimanjaro, Nairobi, Zurich, Frankfurt, Montreal and at last Toronto.

I wish you all the very best and will be in touch after I have got home and recovered from the journey.

What an absolutely magical experience this whole safari has been. We have been thrilled to be in the company of herds of zebra, elephants, impala, giraffes etc and I have lost count of the number of prides of lions that we have seen. We have literally been out of contact - no radio, no television, no telephone and no internet. It has been a really exciting adventure. Our safari ends tomorrow with a balloon ride over the Serengeti and then its the start of a two day journey home with an overnight stay in Zurich. I have a ten minute limit on the computer so this is all for now.

Will be in touch as soon as I get home.

Hope that all is well.

Di

This is the most magnificent experience we have ever had !  We are on safari at the Beho Beho Camp in Selous reserve; where we arrived by charter flight on a Cessna Caravan 12 seater plane (single engine) two days ago.  Our first afternoon we had a game drive and saw many giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, some warthogs, buffalo and many exotic birds.  Yesterday we had a Winnie the Pooh grand adventure.  After an early morning wakeup (5:30) with biscuits and tea we set off as the sun rose for the full day. The vehicles are Toyota land cruisers that have been specially adapted with no windshield or doors.  One person sits with the driver, the next two seats are elevated, the last three seats are higher still.  There is a canvas roof.  Everyone has a tremendous viewing capacity.  In addition to the animals we had seen the day before, we sat for a while watching a male lion having a siesta on the river bank, and later we saw hippos blowing and submerging in pools and a lake.We drove till about 11 am then had a short cruise in a six seater flatboat on a lake.  There has been a lot of rain recently in this area, so water levels are higher than normal, covering the banks where crocodiles normally lie.  Therefore we saw only a few crocs but lots of hippos and birds. On our return to shore, we were served a cooked bacon,eggs , sausage, toast, tomato, baked beans and mushrroms full British style beakfast.  Just as we were finishing, ominous thunderclouds appeared and rain began.  We donned our ponchos and continued to drive.  The tracks were very muddy and it soon became obvious that driving was becoming more difficult.  Over the walkie talkie our driver received a message that the river we had forded in the morning and which was between us and the camp was now in full flood. We later learned there had been 4 inches or rain there.There were two land cruisers holding our group plus a truck with the catering people and supplies trying to figure out what to do. We ultimately travelled over a very bad track, pulling out two of the three vehicles when they got stuck, and reached another crossing point on the river.  It too was impassable. By now it was 5 pm, dark was imminent, and it is forbidden to be away from camp after 7 pm. Another truck and Landcruiser came from camp to the opposiie side of the river, bringing a flat bottomed boat but no lifejackets or motor were available. Our driver managed to throw a line across the river, which was attached to the boat, as was a winch cable from the Landcruiser. Slowly the boat was pulled across against a very strong current, and deep muddy water full of logs, and debris. Four people at a time were able to cross, and in true safari style we were given snacks and gin and tonics on the opposite riverbank. We arrived back at camp muddy and tired about 6:30 pm, had showers, and then had a lobster dinner by candlelight.  We were impressed by the 'can do' spirit of all the camp people and guides, and all of us felt this was the best day ever!

This morning we had an unexpected knock on the door of our stone thatched roof cottage. One of the resident elephants was near the path to the dining area, so a guide had come to escort us to breakfast.  While we were eating on the veranda ,a naughty teenaged elephant named Joseph decided to pay a visit. We all had to be very quiet and still.  The closest he came to anyone was about 6 feet and the guides were beginning to think they might have to use pepper spray as he was starting to damage the gardens and push on the the support pillars of the veranda. We took some excellent photos. We are still several hours later unable to walk unescorted because he is still roaming around the area.

This afternoon we will go on another game drive--our last one in this area before we leave tomorrow. We will be in tough when we can.

 Best wishes, Di and Liz

After a long but quite comfortable journet, we have arrived in this interesting city of Dar Es Salaam. By no means a western city, very few high rise buildings, it has its own definte character wich is quite a change.

All went well with the travel. My titanium hip of course rang the bell and I had the usual "pat down" experiences- one in Toronto, one in Montreal and then one when we changed terminals on Zurich, Switzerland. The one in Zurich was most interesting. I was taken to a small steel room between two of the immigration centres where a young lady first passed the wand over me. Of course, the wand beeped down my left side so I was told that I would now be patted down. I don't think that she missed one inch of my body but I am now well prepared for this, so just chatted away as she continued patting me down. When I travel, I align the clip of my appliance underneath the zip of my pants so that it does not stand out on its own. I had no problems. Funnily enough I was trevelling in GEOXX shoes that I bought for the trip. These I had to take off and they took them away to be examined. Of course, this adds time to your check in process but I allow for this and remain patient.

We are staying right downtown at the Movenpick - a Swiss hotel - and we have been told to expect some disrupions tomorrow as George Bush arrives.

I believe it must be the President Bush. If I can I will let you know but we leave on Friday and I don't know what oportunity I will have to write again. If the opportunity arises, I will take it and be in touch.

I am off to enjoy the lovely sunshine.

I wish you the very best.

Di

I am off on an exciting adventure – realizing the dream of a lifetime – a safari in Africa. Mt friend Elizabeth and I decided if we didn’t do it now, it would not happen so we are off tomorrow weather permitting. Our original venture was to begin in Kenya and then move into Tanzania. As I am sure you know there has been a great deal of violence in Kenya and our Canadian government has told its citizens, not to travel there so our safari had to be rearranged.

There are eight of us going on this safari with a guide, a naturalist, from the Calgary zoo. Tomorrow I leave from Toronto, Elizabeth from Calgary, we meet in Montreal and then fly to Zurich, Switzerland and then to Dar El Salaam.

One of the problems for me has been dealing with the weight restrictions. We are flying from camp to camp on small planes and have to take all our luggage with us. The total weight that we are allowed – all baggage including carry on, is 15 kgs – 33 lbs. When you add in sun screen, mosquito repellent, all your toiletries, camera, binoculars this does not leave much for clothing.

The most important thing of course is my ostomy supplies. There are none available in Tanzania so it is essential that I take enough. I wear a two piece system which I generally change once a week.  The climate varies in Tanzania and some areas on the equator are very humid. After much thinking, I have decided I will take 8 faceplates, 20 pouches, and 8 seals that I use under the face plate. If it isn’t enough I am in trouble. I will let you all know.

Our guide tells us that most countries in Eastern Africa  depend on slower satellite technology for Internet service. The result is that Africa remains the least connected region in the world. Wireless internet is slowly being introduced, but no matter what the service level, transmission rates are  slow and erratic. There is internet access in some hotels but once we leave Dar El Salaam we are on safari and will not be staying in hotels. If I have the opportunity to update my blog I will do so; otherwise it will have to wait until return home.

I wish you all well.

Di