Out of Africa, Part 6 - Island Explorations

Monday, July 20 - Safari Blue

This day Jim and I took advantage of an opportunity Jason knew about but has not yet experienced. It reminded us of the day-long excursions you can take do when you are on a cruise. The day trip is called "Safari Blue," and includes a trip to a private island, snorkeling, lunch on the island, unlimited beverages - a whole day of tropical paradise. We made the reservation the day before, but on Monday morning were somewhat skeptical of our decision since the sky was very dark and threatening and a light rain was falling. And the air was actually chilly! But we had committed, so off we went. Jason drove us to the starting point where the boat was "docked." We had to wade pretty far out into the water with all of our gear to get on the boat. Hmmm . . . What would this day be like?

As we headed out onto the rough water I happened to be sitting in the worst spot on the boat - the exact place the water splashed in each time we hit a huge wave. It would not have been a problem, of course, on a hot sunny day, but it was freezing - everyone was huddled under their towels to keep warm, and I was just sitting wrapped in my soaking wet kanga. For someone who doesn't even love swimming and water sports, I could be in trouble . . .

The first stop was a giant-sized sand bar where we disembarked and those who wanted to snorkel gathered up their gear and headed off to a huge coral reef.

Jim was off in a flash - I chose not to go (can't wear my hearing aids or my glasses in the water . . . what good is it to snorkel if you're so near-sighted you can't see anything?)

I relaxed on the beach and watched the guides cut open coconuts with their machetes.

Then I enjoyed drinking the coconut milk and chomping on pieces of fresh coconut. Things were beginning to look up . . .

Soon we got back on the boat and headed for the island. First a stop for swimming in the cove, then off to an amazing fresh seafood feast. We had two plates each - one with rice, sauce, and vegetables, and the other with 6 or 7 kinds of fresh fish (tuna, squid, octapus, prawns, lobster, etc.) This was followed by a fresh fruit tasting - we enjoyed many fruits we had never tasted before. The custard apple and passion fruits were two of my favs! Delicious! And by now the sky had cleared and the sun was shining . . . we were definitely glad we had come.

The rest of the afternoon included relaxing on the beach, a hike to climb the giant baobob tree, lots of beer and soda, and viewing a pair of porpoises playing on our sail back. It ended up being a wonderful day, and yes, it really was a tropical paradise.

Perfect ending of an almost-perfect day: sailing back in the sun, with a Stoney to sip on . . .