Training RoundUp and Kruger Game Sighting

I've been a bit tardy in my weekly blogs due to Peace Corps training (10 days) coupled with a quick trip to Kruger National Park, but am now back at Mountain High Hospital trying to process all of the inputs of the last few days and get ready for the work to be done here.

Peace Corps Inservice Training was a chance to reconnect with the other 30 volunteers from the original capacity building NGO group, learn some new skills-i.e. Zulu and project planning, and journey back to the first world to get a perspective on our Peace Corps experience. The ten days of training had plenty of content and lots of laughs as we retold stories of misunderstandings, misinformation and mistakes. Plus there was plenty of do-gooder tales, missions gone right and wrong, boredom/overwork, and the wrong/right fit for assignments. The volunteers had their chance to complain about unmet expectations and their NGOs voiced concerns about the sloppy Americans with their dirty sneakers and unmade beds. The chance to share experiences made me realize that life in the Peace Corps is truly unique for every person-a mix of personality, placement, country, assignment and serendipity. I also realized that the Bonds hit the jackpot with the work at Mountain High in terms of interest, enjoyment, utilization of skills, NGO need’s assessment, and personal fulfillment. Will the honeymoon last? Hope so! A new realization hit that maybe the most remote rural assignment in South Africa might be the greatest gift of all as the numerous concerns about personal safety and urban hazards in the taxi renks were a concern for many peace corps volunteers.

After our Christmas tour through five of the pristine game preserves in Kwa Zulu Natal (Ithala, Imfolozi, St. Lucia, Mkuze, and Phongolo) we were prepared to be disappointed in the granddaddy of national parks devoted to animal conservation, Kruger National Park. One’s mental picture of Kruger is Yosemite National Park on a crowded summer day with waits to enter the park, smog in the valley from the cars and campfires, and crowds crowing at the waterfalls and bears. Kruger was not that kind of experience and deserves its renowned reputation. The Park is very large, uncrowded with many paved and dirt roads inviting exploration. Friends have asked how long one has to wait to view one of the Big Five (lions, leopards, cape buffalo, rhino, and elephants). In fact, one does not wait to see the animals. Rather, the voyeur sets out in a vehicle and leisurely drives the scenic roads to see what turns up. This trip included a pride of lions stalking the dirt road near the camp looking for prey at dusk, elephants with their young feeding on the foliage, annoyed elephant interrupted chewing amarula fruit and giving warning by breaking a branch in front of the vehicle, rhinos scratching what itched on fallen logs 20 feet away, and herds of cape buffalo glancing menacingly at the viewers. (Cape buffalo are known as “Dagger Boys” due to their unpredictable behavior). Sightings of leopards and cheetahs are more rare but what is truly enjoyable is watching the non-big five herds and their meanderings-giraffes with their young feasting on tall trees, the interesting silhouettes of the park which continue to the horizon in all directions, the grazing antelope (impalas, nyalas, and waterbuck) and the entertainment sections provided by monkeys and baboons.

Kruger has accommodations for every category of tourist. We chose the self-catering rondavals with thatched roof, outdoor kitchen and natural rock pool nearby. Unfortunately we did not read the warnings about storing food properly in the outdoor kitchen and found remnants of our carefully selected granola, cheese sticks and crackers scattered all over the porch when we returned from a game drive the first day. Some very happy monkeys were spotted nearby. The wart hogs and impala lazing in front of the rondaval did not seem interested in people food, however, and were immensely pleasurable to watch as they were in constant motion yet content to enjoy the warm afternoon. Likewise, the birds in this remarkable place. One suspects that everyone who travels here becomes a birder as the temptation is too great and the pleasure too much to ignore the beauty- sights and sounds of the 400 species of birds in South Africa. All are new to Americans and are visual and aural delights. Kruger was filled with iridescent purple-winged birds. The night drive manifested hundreds of yellowed-eyed owls guarding the road as we passed along. The night has a thousand eyes and they are all yellow! Pretoria yielded an amazing red headed black speckled bird with black ring around the neck and grey body as we bird watched from the garden in the B and B two weeks ago before transport to training.

Tonight we are back in our one room flat at Mountain High Hospital. The day we left for training, the electricity was out and the water pump had died (again). The Hospital seems like home and we are glad to be back to do the work we have come to do. Don t worry that we have left our animal friends behind. Toads have moved into our flat unawares and the Bonds will rise up to the task of removing all amphibians from their humble abode before the night is over.