Day 3: Tsitsikamma National Park

We slept really well in our beautiful room and woke up to a sunny morning at the Happy Jackal. 

During breakfast we met the hosts, Peter and Liz, a retired British couple who have been living and working in South Africa for more than 40 years. It was a special day for them, while we were still eating they received a Skype call from their daughter and son in law, telling them they were going to become grandparents in September. That message made them very happy!

We took off right after the breakfast to go back to Shamwari Safari to pick up Gun and Calle. They were very delighted with their 24 h game viewing stay. As it happened they had been very lucky in spotting the animals in the park. :)

With the in laws and all luggage back in the car we took off along the N2 for a long ride to Tsitsikamma National Park and Storms River. We arrived at the Visitor's Center after three hours. We decided to start with lunch at the restaurant. The view from the porch was magnificent! Then we walked to the river mouth and the "Suspension bridge" which took us a little closer the sea.

Once we returned it was time to continue to the "The Fernery", a remotely situated lodge along the coast where a "luxury cottage" called the Blue Lily was waiting for us. We closed the day with another nice meal at the lodge restaurant. Joakim is indulging the good meats of the country, while I'm happy eating butternut squash on a daily basis. Wining and dining - that's us! :)

Day 2: Time to adjust

Time to sleep in, a porch just outside of our room big enough to also fit my yoga mattress and a traditional B&B breakfast - that's what I call a promising start of a new day!

The task for today was getting Gun and Calle dropped off at the Shamwari Safari lodge next to the small town of Paterson, some 80 km north east of Port Elizabeth. Joakim and I had decided to skip game viewing this time. After having entered the property from the wrong end, resulting in a very slow drive on a gravel road, we reached the place at lunch time. The place looked really nice and we were all welcomed in a very friendly way. Leaving there we managed to exit the right way and soon found a nice place called Nanaga Farm Stall where we had our lunch. It was a nice pick and we ended  up staying for 1,5 h, rounding our meal off in their food store stuffed with all kinds of local produce. :)

We then continued to our next B&B, the Happy Jackal, adjacent to Addo Elephant Park and near the small town of Colchester. The place was so nice and we were somewhat jet lagged so we decided to relax and enjoy some quiet time on the spacious balcony outside our room. We also started to detail our plans for the next 2-3 days, an exercise that renewed our energy!

View of the Sunday River from our balcony. To the left: parts of the roof of the Happy Jackal.

You can't see any, but there are lots of birds singing in the trees just next to our balcony.

In the evening I practiced driving on the left hand side of the road, I believe it was for the first time ever. About time, yes! I drove all the way from the Happy Jackal to the local Grunters Pub, almost a five minute long drive. It went quite well I'd say, but then again roads were more or less empty of traffic... ;)

Nice owner, nice atmosphere at Grunters Pub.

Day 1: Back in ZA!

So, we made it back to what became a favorite destination of ours two years ago. I'm 
happy and excited to take on a new trip in beautiful South Africa!

This time we flew Air France via Paris to Johannesburg, boarding their A380 just before midnight. It actually proved possible to sleep in more or less sitting position during the next 7-8 h. Our plane touched ground at 11 AM and some four hours later we were on our way to Port Elizabeth. We arrived there early evening and managed to get a hold of the rental car we had reserved. The drive to our first B&B place, "50 College Drive" took less than 20 minutes.

All of us were tired, but we managed to pull ourselves together and get out for dinner. We trusted the Lonely Planet Guide and ended up in a nice South African/Seafood restaurant. The food proved very tasty, but returning to our rooms for a horizontal rest was heavenly! :)