We have seen many of the wonders of the world, both natural and man-made, but my favorite moments and memory snapshots of our travels always comes down to the normal, day to day goings on. This woman in Egypt heading home from the market on her donkey is my perfect type of street scene.
Foto Friday comes to you from the Okavango Delta in Botswana, one of the best concentrations of wildlife on earth. I love zebra stripes and have countless pictures of them, in particular zebra butts. What can I say, the stripes are hypnotic!
Malawi is a country that touched us more than many we’ve been to. A gorgeous, land-locked country in South-central Africa, Malawi is one of the least developed countries in the world. With a low life expectancy, a high infant mortality rate and ranking amongst the five poorest countries in the world, life is hard. With an average annual income of only $900, the children of Malawi don’t have a lot of hopes for improving their lifestyle.
While waiting for our train to Alexandria, Egypt, I spotted this woman waiting with her goose. Bored with our wait we talked over several possibilities..was it her pet that traveled with her? Was she on the way to the market to sell the goose? While we will never know the story, the picture always strikes me as a perfect example of what makes travel in other countries so appealing to us…the differences in culture keep us constantly intrigued and inspired.
The sand dunes of Namibia are often considered the highest in the world, and border along the great Kalahari desert. Whether or not this claim is valid becomes immaterial once you see them, be assured the dunes at Sossusvlei in the Namib Naukloft park are well worth the effort it takes to get there.
Egypt – an ancient land filled with one awe inspiring site after another. In our time there we covered much of the country and never grew tired of the fascinating two thousand year old culture and carvings.
The Ngorongoro Crater is one of the natural marvels of the world, two to three million years old, 2000 feet deep and over 100 square miles, it is surely one of the more remarkable places we’ve ever been. Located 110 miles west of Arusha, Tanzania, thousands of tourists flock here every year to see one of the most amazing wildlife displays on the planet.
Bugs, insects, annoyances. However you like to refer to them, they’re the bane of every travelers’ existence. From the deadly, malaria carrying mosquito to the astonishing strength of the the dung beetle. From the vicious no-see-em’s that strike w/ no warning and whose bites itch unbelievably, to the enormous, beetle-like creature shown below. In a rare move, Foto Friday this week is actually two photos. The first shows a close up of this terrifying bug and the second showing it’s true size compared to a bottle of the worlds best hard cider; Savanna Dry. Be glad you’re not camping in the Namibian bush with him tonight!
Malawi was one of the countries we’ve visited that really changed us. Extraordinarily poor, extremely friendly, the people of Malawi will steal your heart. We will feature an entire blog post of the children we met along the way but for today, a sunrise photo over Lake Malawi.
Africa is one of our favorite continents and in a lifetime we could never tire of the iconic sights, such as this Masai warrior walking in the Masai Mara.
