Hi Everyone,
Boy does time fly! We have just arrived in Mexico City!! The planning didn't leave much free time but we are still just going with the flow!
With not too much set in concrete until February we are ad-libbing our way through Central America (along with those infamous hurricanes)!
Back to our fleeting visit to the UK. We were met at Heathrow by Robyn and Ken with a welcome sign as well!! Then it was off to Sutton to enjoy the company of Audrey and Eric (unfortunately the time here was way too short. The next year off will definitely allow for more catch up time!!). Thanks to all of those that turned up at our catch-up drinks in London it was wonderful to see you all (and some great surprises!!).
Italy has been great. We have had a wonderful ten days there. It has been nice to enjoy the luxuries of being in one place for a period of time (and some of Vic's dads cooking of
course!). The first week was spent in Lake Como and we had visits from Marcus's brother Peter and our friend Martin. The time was spent enjoying the lake and its villages. We even managed a day trip into Switzerland (albeit only briefly). The last few days were spent on the coast in the Cinque Terre region and we were joined by Marcus's mum Irene. We took walks along the coast between all five villages enjoying plenty of coffees on route!! We headed north from where we were staying at Deiva Marina to Portofino and witnessed how the other half live, some of the super yachts are just incredible.
Our photos have been uploaded (they are a lot more excessive this time but many people shots!!). Movies of our time in Africa can also be found on our website under the sub-album 'Movies'. Enjoy!! http://www.travel.rameke.com/
We hope all is well with everyone and look forward to hearing from you soon.
Take care
Love Victoria and Marcus
PS Our Africa Highlights:
1. Hot Air Balloon in Maasai Mara - landing in the migration.
2. Reaching the summit of the roof of Africa - Mt Kilimanjaro (5895m).
3.To spend time with a family of Mountain Gorillas - with only 700ish left in the world we were very priviledged to have this experience.
4. Chobe NP
5. Victoria Falls
Tuesday, 7 October 2008
Made it to Mexico! 27/09/08
Tuesday, 16 September 2008
London, Italy, Switzerland, Italy, Mexico City 16/09/08
Narrator: Marcus and Victoria returned triumphantly to London, UK on Thursday 11th of September. They met up with friends and family on the 12th and then they took off for Lake Como, Italy the following morning. But their journey does not stop there.
On 25th of September, they're off to Mexico City for their South American adventure which will involve Machu Picchu, Antarctica, Rio de Janeiro and lots more.
To be continued...
On 25th of September, they're off to Mexico City for their South American adventure which will involve Machu Picchu, Antarctica, Rio de Janeiro and lots more.
To be continued...
Madagascar update 07/09/08
Hi Everyone,
Just a quick update. Sorry no photos as yet … will get done when back in the UK. The internet in this part of the world is way too tempramental!!
Well we made it safely to Madagascar after all the problems with our flights and so far are having a wonderful time. It is coming to a very quick end unfortunately.
We organized a tour when we arrived in Tana to take us down the country. Ended up having our own private car with guide … not really a backpackers way to travel but needs must!!
We have spent the 10 days walking and camping throughout national parks and absorbing ourselves in the local culture and of course watching the local Lemurs and Sifakas.
(Some of the trekking we did to find the little blighters was more strenuous than finding the Mountain Gorillas!)We have just had a week on Ile St Marie and island of the east coast of Madagascar … have had a lovely time and finally got time to work on our suntan … Marcus has gone particularly brown and I … well … just freckly!! We have scootered around the island, watched humpback whales playing offshore (mums and their new offspring) and taken in a dive off the coral reef … listening to the sounds of the whales as we went … really fantastic!
Hope all is well at home. Looking forward to hearing from you soon about what is happening at home.
Sunday, 14 September 2008
Gorillas in the Congo...
I guess this story might explain why we were not allowed across the border with the Congo for the gorilla’s or to just go across the border crossing that afternoon!
“Government forces and rebel troops are rearming and recruiting for conflict in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the BBC has learned. US and European Union officials are warning the situation is increasingly tense despite a January peace deal.”
WE MADE IT! 5895m … The Roof of Africa!
Hi Everyone,
We have just made it back down to civilization after six fun filled days on Mt Kilimanjaro (Africa’s highest mountain). We made it!! We left Kibo hut at 11.20pm and reached Uhuru Peak (5895m) at 6.24am the next day. It was crazy walking through the night but we were rewarded by being at the summit for sunrise, which was something particularly special!
It was terribly cold the fingers and toes were numb … those first few rays of sun were such a positive for us. The walking went well and apart from a heavy head for a few hours at 4700m we had no problems with acclimatisation.
Once we were back down at Kibo hut our day didn’t stop there. We are always up for a challenge so when our guide asked us if we wanted to descend to 2700m instead of 3700m making for an easy walk out the following day we said ’sure’. We ended up walking until 6.30pm, having been up since 11.00pm the previous day. Our bodies were fatigued and our knees sore from all the downhill but we made it and sure enough were the first out the following morning and were back at the hotel in Moshi with plenty of time to sort out our bits and pieces and soak up some rays next to the pool. Not to mention the massage the came later in the afternoon!
Thanks Julian and James for all your tips and advice!
Enjoy the photo, we should have more up on our web site in the next few days. We are heading back to Nairobi for a couple of days before we head off to Madagascar on Thursday
On our way to Nairobi! 13/07/08
Hi Everyone,
We are just touching base with everyone again.
All is still going really well! We have just completed a two day tour of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. The weather turned on us a little bit but the game viewing particularly of Lions and Lion Cubs was fantastic! Since we last wrote we have enjoyed the beaches of Lake Malawi and the company of many local children. We completed a 30km walk up to a place called Livingstonia in the highland area of Malawi (the blisters were not a pretty sight!).
We have had quite a few problems with our truck and it offically gave up in a little village about 4 hours out of Dar es Salaam! We local bused it into town …the trip took about 6 hours and we had been on the road for over 12 hours that day!! Entertaining!! We enjoyed three days on Zanzibar … not long enough at all but managed to get in a day of diving and found time to enjoy the beaches as well as soaking up some of the culture of Stone Town. We have a couple of lazy days up to Nairobi and then head off on the final two weeks of this trip up to Uganda (and hopefully the Gorillas … talk is of them moving deep into the Congo jungle and out of reach for tourists … too many poachers!!) We will have to see but our fingers and toes are crossed.
Hope this finds everyone well. We have updated our website with a few more photos … still sorting the Serengeti (We took close to 700 photos in two days)!! but will post as soon as we can.
Love to all and thanks for the updates at your end. It is nice to have progress from home.
We are just touching base with everyone again.
All is still going really well! We have just completed a two day tour of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. The weather turned on us a little bit but the game viewing particularly of Lions and Lion Cubs was fantastic! Since we last wrote we have enjoyed the beaches of Lake Malawi and the company of many local children. We completed a 30km walk up to a place called Livingstonia in the highland area of Malawi (the blisters were not a pretty sight!).
We have had quite a few problems with our truck and it offically gave up in a little village about 4 hours out of Dar es Salaam! We local bused it into town …the trip took about 6 hours and we had been on the road for over 12 hours that day!! Entertaining!! We enjoyed three days on Zanzibar … not long enough at all but managed to get in a day of diving and found time to enjoy the beaches as well as soaking up some of the culture of Stone Town. We have a couple of lazy days up to Nairobi and then head off on the final two weeks of this trip up to Uganda (and hopefully the Gorillas … talk is of them moving deep into the Congo jungle and out of reach for tourists … too many poachers!!) We will have to see but our fingers and toes are crossed.
Hope this finds everyone well. We have updated our website with a few more photos … still sorting the Serengeti (We took close to 700 photos in two days)!! but will post as soon as we can.
Love to all and thanks for the updates at your end. It is nice to have progress from home.
Not in Zimbabwe but enjoying Vic Falls!! 28/06/08
Hi Everyone,
Yes, we are still here and NO we are not in Zimbabwe!! The day before we were meant to cross the border the company decided to pull out so we are currently in Zambia and doing all the bits and pieces from this side. We went out on a helicopter flight over the falls today and it was just spectacular!! The water level is still to high to swim in the Devil’s Pools … so there might have to be a next time!!
The last couple of weeks have been full of excitement. We enjoyed a drive through Etosha NP in Namibia where we saw lots more animals we were also fortunate to camp in the park on our final night and got an awesome African sunset with a giraffe at a watering hole. We spent three days bush camping in the Okavango Delta in Botswana and then enjoyed a scenic flight over it. The water levels still need to rise so there was a lot more land than we had expected. We did game walks with guides and that was the highlight … no barriers or safari vehicles to save you!!
We also had an elephant in extremely close contact with our campsite. We were taken into the delta via Mokoros (the local dugout canoe). Ours was a little temperamental (but very authentic) and all my stuff was soaked through on arrival … ahh well … it dried!!
We have just come from Chobe NP in the north of Botswana. We enjoyed a sunset boat booze cruise on the Chobe river into the park on our first night there and were very spoilt with Elephants and Hippos!! But there was more in store for us and one of the highlights of the trip so far has to be the overnight in Chobe NP. We were treated to a fantastic game drive into the park (the guides even went off the road to hunt down the game). The animals were plentiful and the highlight – two male lions!! We then entered into our bush camp which included candlelight dinner (tablecloths and china plates … something we have not enjoyed for a while). We were waited on and even woke up to hot water in a canvas bag outside our tent to wash with and all that was after an awesome nights sleep in proper camp beds with a duvet!! (Not our half body, tiny 1.5cm thick mattress).
The camping is going well and we haven’t upgraded yet!! Our group is changing over the weekend and the ones heading up are waiting in anticipation of who will be joining us … it has been a lot of fun so far and a great group so we have been very lucky.
Love to all and we will continue to be in touch as we can.
Thanks for the emails it is lovely to hear your news when we get a chance to be online.Victoria and Marcus
Yes, we are still here and NO we are not in Zimbabwe!! The day before we were meant to cross the border the company decided to pull out so we are currently in Zambia and doing all the bits and pieces from this side. We went out on a helicopter flight over the falls today and it was just spectacular!! The water level is still to high to swim in the Devil’s Pools … so there might have to be a next time!!
The last couple of weeks have been full of excitement. We enjoyed a drive through Etosha NP in Namibia where we saw lots more animals we were also fortunate to camp in the park on our final night and got an awesome African sunset with a giraffe at a watering hole. We spent three days bush camping in the Okavango Delta in Botswana and then enjoyed a scenic flight over it. The water levels still need to rise so there was a lot more land than we had expected. We did game walks with guides and that was the highlight … no barriers or safari vehicles to save you!!
We also had an elephant in extremely close contact with our campsite. We were taken into the delta via Mokoros (the local dugout canoe). Ours was a little temperamental (but very authentic) and all my stuff was soaked through on arrival … ahh well … it dried!!
We have just come from Chobe NP in the north of Botswana. We enjoyed a sunset boat booze cruise on the Chobe river into the park on our first night there and were very spoilt with Elephants and Hippos!! But there was more in store for us and one of the highlights of the trip so far has to be the overnight in Chobe NP. We were treated to a fantastic game drive into the park (the guides even went off the road to hunt down the game). The animals were plentiful and the highlight – two male lions!! We then entered into our bush camp which included candlelight dinner (tablecloths and china plates … something we have not enjoyed for a while). We were waited on and even woke up to hot water in a canvas bag outside our tent to wash with and all that was after an awesome nights sleep in proper camp beds with a duvet!! (Not our half body, tiny 1.5cm thick mattress).
The camping is going well and we haven’t upgraded yet!! Our group is changing over the weekend and the ones heading up are waiting in anticipation of who will be joining us … it has been a lot of fun so far and a great group so we have been very lucky.
Love to all and we will continue to be in touch as we can.
Thanks for the emails it is lovely to hear your news when we get a chance to be online.Victoria and Marcus
Namibia update 16/06/08
Hi Everyone,
Well we are now in Namibia and having a wonderful time on the truck!! The group is really good so we have been lucky (four other Kiwis which is great). We are with this crowd until Vic Falls then in for a little bit of a change.
We had four great days in Cape Town. Climbed Table Mountain, visited Robben Island (where Nelson Mandala was held) and took in a wine tour of the region (ended up being a private tour for the two of us and by about four in the afternoon Vic was feeling it!!) Great fun though. Also
made it down to the Cape of Good Hope on a peninsula tour.
The camping is going well although the three nights just spent in a dorm has been a nice break. The days here are realy warm but the nights particularly cold … so the thermals are being pulled out!! We are on our way up to Etosha NP and that will be our first safari tour after Kruger … looking forward to some more animals and some more photo opportunities.
We took a township tour in Swakopmund (where we have been for the last couple of days) and had some great interactions with the locals … Marcus particularly with the children!! We finished off today with Quad Biking in the sand dunes … was fantastic!!
Enjoy the photos …
Lots of love,
Victoria and Marcus
Well we are now in Namibia and having a wonderful time on the truck!! The group is really good so we have been lucky (four other Kiwis which is great). We are with this crowd until Vic Falls then in for a little bit of a change.
We had four great days in Cape Town. Climbed Table Mountain, visited Robben Island (where Nelson Mandala was held) and took in a wine tour of the region (ended up being a private tour for the two of us and by about four in the afternoon Vic was feeling it!!) Great fun though. Also
made it down to the Cape of Good Hope on a peninsula tour.
The camping is going well although the three nights just spent in a dorm has been a nice break. The days here are realy warm but the nights particularly cold … so the thermals are being pulled out!! We are on our way up to Etosha NP and that will be our first safari tour after Kruger … looking forward to some more animals and some more photo opportunities.
We took a township tour in Swakopmund (where we have been for the last couple of days) and had some great interactions with the locals … Marcus particularly with the children!! We finished off today with Quad Biking in the sand dunes … was fantastic!!
Enjoy the photos …
Lots of love,
Victoria and Marcus
Great White Shark Encounter - 03/06/08
Hi all,
We have now encountered the Great White Shark, Vic’s comment about it was: “Like watching paint dry!” (In her defence that was when there were no sharks around!)
But it was a realy amazing experience for both of us to get up close with these huge animals (our largest one was about 4m!!).
Check out our home made Great White Shark Encounter movie …
We are now safe in Cape Town - Peninsular tour tomorrow and we will hopefully fit in a winelands tour as well!!.
Love
Victoria and Marcus
We have now encountered the Great White Shark, Vic’s comment about it was: “Like watching paint dry!” (In her defence that was when there were no sharks around!)
But it was a realy amazing experience for both of us to get up close with these huge animals (our largest one was about 4m!!).
Check out our home made Great White Shark Encounter movie …
We are now safe in Cape Town - Peninsular tour tomorrow and we will hopefully fit in a winelands tour as well!!.
Love
Victoria and Marcus
Swaziland, Lesotho and Zululand … 30/05/08
Hi Everyone ….. Us again!!
We are staying in a place called Storms River on the coast of South Africa not too far away from Cape Town – they have ‘free’ wireless internet so we are taking total advantage!!
Our trip so far is going great! We have enjoyed time in Swaziland, Lesotho and parts of South Africa (a country of extremes … such poverty and such wealth).
Our highlights include a day out on a quad bike in a remote rural valley in Swaziland mixing with the locals and seeing once again how simple peoples’ lives can be! We also enjoyed a nice trek through the Milwane Wildlife Sanctuary that ended with a very close encounter with a Hippopotamus (Africa’s number one killer of humans!).
In Durban our trouble started with a change in our plan! Should have stuck with the original one!! Cheaper accommodation and more central but even the bus driver was a bit nervous dropping us off (an he was black!) we should have realized there and then but it was the cockroaches, the stench of pot and the map of the ‘no-go’ area that put the icing on the cake! The night ended with us two and all our belongings strapped to us (as tight as possible) on the corner trying to wave down a taxi in the dark streets of Durban … this must have been some sight to the passing locals … but to us we were happy to get that taxi and make our way safely to our originally planned accommodation … out in the suburbs!!
From here on in it was totally fine and we had an awesome time taking a self guided walking tour of Durban (in the daylight). The highlight … a slight deviation into the ‘no-go’ area (mum don’t worry the main street was always in sight!) but it was a herb market and as we wandered we were waved into a stall and told to sit down by a traditional Zulu medicine woman who explained what she was doing and what the particular plants and bark from trees were being used for (no photos sorry there were too many contraband items there including snake skins and elephant horns) this was a truly amazing experience and they were some of the most friendly people we have met here so far.
We headed up to Lesotho for a day trip (instead of dives) but was excellent and reminded us of NZ! The scenery was just like home beautiful and majestic. In Lesotho we visited a Besotho village and had lunch at the highest pub in Africa!!
We have enjoyed a relaxing time in Chintsa (and the most amazing sunrise from our tree-top tent). On the beach we were lucky to be entertained by a pod of wave surfing dolphins and later at the local school by the children (check out the videos on our site).
Today we have been zip-gliding through a canyon over rivers and trees.
Check out the updated photos and videos if you get a chance.
That is about it from us at the moment. Thanks for the emails is lovely to hear from you.
Love to all,Victoria and Marcus
We are staying in a place called Storms River on the coast of South Africa not too far away from Cape Town – they have ‘free’ wireless internet so we are taking total advantage!!
Our trip so far is going great! We have enjoyed time in Swaziland, Lesotho and parts of South Africa (a country of extremes … such poverty and such wealth).
Our highlights include a day out on a quad bike in a remote rural valley in Swaziland mixing with the locals and seeing once again how simple peoples’ lives can be! We also enjoyed a nice trek through the Milwane Wildlife Sanctuary that ended with a very close encounter with a Hippopotamus (Africa’s number one killer of humans!).
In Durban our trouble started with a change in our plan! Should have stuck with the original one!! Cheaper accommodation and more central but even the bus driver was a bit nervous dropping us off (an he was black!) we should have realized there and then but it was the cockroaches, the stench of pot and the map of the ‘no-go’ area that put the icing on the cake! The night ended with us two and all our belongings strapped to us (as tight as possible) on the corner trying to wave down a taxi in the dark streets of Durban … this must have been some sight to the passing locals … but to us we were happy to get that taxi and make our way safely to our originally planned accommodation … out in the suburbs!!
From here on in it was totally fine and we had an awesome time taking a self guided walking tour of Durban (in the daylight). The highlight … a slight deviation into the ‘no-go’ area (mum don’t worry the main street was always in sight!) but it was a herb market and as we wandered we were waved into a stall and told to sit down by a traditional Zulu medicine woman who explained what she was doing and what the particular plants and bark from trees were being used for (no photos sorry there were too many contraband items there including snake skins and elephant horns) this was a truly amazing experience and they were some of the most friendly people we have met here so far.
We headed up to Lesotho for a day trip (instead of dives) but was excellent and reminded us of NZ! The scenery was just like home beautiful and majestic. In Lesotho we visited a Besotho village and had lunch at the highest pub in Africa!!
We have enjoyed a relaxing time in Chintsa (and the most amazing sunrise from our tree-top tent). On the beach we were lucky to be entertained by a pod of wave surfing dolphins and later at the local school by the children (check out the videos on our site).
Today we have been zip-gliding through a canyon over rivers and trees.
Check out the updated photos and videos if you get a chance.
That is about it from us at the moment. Thanks for the emails is lovely to hear from you.
Love to all,Victoria and Marcus
Kruger and the BIG five 21/05/08
Hi All,
We have just completed two days in Kruger NP and have had an absolute blast!! The only member of the Big 5 that we haven’t seen yet is the Rhino but have seen heaps. (The Big 5 include Elephants, Leopards, Rhinos, Buffalo and the Lions). Spent the days on a safari wagon and soaked up the experience. On the way to the park from Johannesburg we enjoyed Blyde River Canyon. We are currently in Nelspruit and head into Swaziland tomorrow.
Have updated our page with photos … trying to be good and keep them to a minimum but hard! Enjoy.
www.travel.rameke.com
Love hearing from you will reply as soon as we can. Och Ni som vill svara pa svenska istallet sa gar det alldeles utmarkt, jag kommer fortfarande ihag svenska
Love to allVic and Marcus
We have just completed two days in Kruger NP and have had an absolute blast!! The only member of the Big 5 that we haven’t seen yet is the Rhino but have seen heaps. (The Big 5 include Elephants, Leopards, Rhinos, Buffalo and the Lions). Spent the days on a safari wagon and soaked up the experience. On the way to the park from Johannesburg we enjoyed Blyde River Canyon. We are currently in Nelspruit and head into Swaziland tomorrow.
Have updated our page with photos … trying to be good and keep them to a minimum but hard! Enjoy.
www.travel.rameke.com
Love hearing from you will reply as soon as we can. Och Ni som vill svara pa svenska istallet sa gar det alldeles utmarkt, jag kommer fortfarande ihag svenska
Love to allVic and Marcus
South Africa next stop 13/05/08
Hi Everyone,
We are on our way!
A big thank you to Kerrie and Hugh who have put us up during the last couple of days. We have had a wonderful time here in Dubai enjoying the 40 degree temperatures (Marcus more so than Vic). We spent our first day touring the city which we must add is just one big construction site but ohh what potential!! Definitely look forward to visiting again in a few more years. We walked through the old town enjoying the Gold Souk and the Spice Souk. We took a Dhow River Cruise on the Dubai Creek and saw all the trade ships. Today we enjoyed a 4×4 desert safari off roading over amazing sand dunes and then watched the sun set over the rolling hills of the desert, we then headed to a Bedouin campsite in the middle of the desert where we road a camel and enjoyed the entertainment of belly dancers and sheisha pipes.
Photos have been uploaded … enjoy!
http://www.travel.rameke.com/
Not sure when we will be on line again. Off to South Africa tomorrow morning.
Take care everyone.
Regards
Victoria and Marcus
We are on our way!
A big thank you to Kerrie and Hugh who have put us up during the last couple of days. We have had a wonderful time here in Dubai enjoying the 40 degree temperatures (Marcus more so than Vic). We spent our first day touring the city which we must add is just one big construction site but ohh what potential!! Definitely look forward to visiting again in a few more years. We walked through the old town enjoying the Gold Souk and the Spice Souk. We took a Dhow River Cruise on the Dubai Creek and saw all the trade ships. Today we enjoyed a 4×4 desert safari off roading over amazing sand dunes and then watched the sun set over the rolling hills of the desert, we then headed to a Bedouin campsite in the middle of the desert where we road a camel and enjoyed the entertainment of belly dancers and sheisha pipes.
Photos have been uploaded … enjoy!
http://www.travel.rameke.com/
Not sure when we will be on line again. Off to South Africa tomorrow morning.
Take care everyone.
Regards
Victoria and Marcus
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