I'm Back! Kruger commentary

Hi Readers!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Annual Zombie Day!  ;)

I'm back.   The hubs got frustrated with not being able to keep up with the blog so I will be finishing up on our amazing holiday in South Africa. 

We know we are adorable.

Before getting into our trip along the garden route, just a quick summary of our Kruger safari trip...

Scary road with trucks barreling at us

First of all, mad props to hubby for taking on ALL of the driving on our two road trips after being in the country and driving on the wrong side of the road for all of like 4 days.    I intended to drive, but soon after we left Joburg on our way to Kruger, I flat out refused. I saw what I'd have to deal with and it was "nope, nope, nope and nope."  If I was the sole driver, I'm not sure I would have forged on.   The road went from a normal-for-Africa highway into a 2 lane undivided 120km/hr road through the mountains.   To make it worse, we took my car, which has absolutely no acceleration and barely makes it up little hills.   This made passing all of the mining and logging trucks absolutely terrifying since you had to pass in opposing traffic on a highway with cars speeding at you.  In retrospect, we should have rented a SUV for the trip and we should have then flown directly from Kruger to the Cape, instead of coming back to Joburg first.  

Little Phil doing an amazing job at driving!

This trip was our first experience with B&B's.   I resisted a little because I'm a Marriott Loyalist and I love my points, but I'm infinitely grateful we decided to do the B&B thang.   It made our trip so much more intimate and meaningful.  Each home on our journey added a special touch and special memories.  It was much more than just being a number and worrying about whether or not I received all my "benefits".

Our first B&B, was Blue Jay Lodge in Hazyview.   We were running way behind due to road construction and getting caught behind a never ending stream of logging trucks.   The owners Phil and Marjorie with beyond accommodating.  Phil met us at the car and personally showed us to our room with a smile.  He then showed us our amenities and explained everything we needed to know about the property and the surrounding area.   He handed us a paper with their favorite restaurants in the area and directions.   The room itself was spacious and included touches like a fully stocked bar and  candles (and matches) by the over-sized tub.  Obviously, my heart was won right there.  Our room also had a porch over looking the garden and pool.  Each room is named after a bird in the area and information on the room's namesake is included in each room.  Very cute!

We missed breakfast our first  morning due to an early safari.   Phil and Marjorie would have sent us with a box breakfast if we had let them know in advance.   The next day they opened the continental breakfast a half our early so we could eat before our tour.   The last morning we actually made it to breakfast during normal hours (even though we were late due to Phil misplacing the keys and locking us IN our room for 45 minutes).   Breakfast also include eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms and bacon in addition to cereal, cold meats and cheeses and fruit and yogurt.

Each evening the couple also hosts a happy hour on their porch where they share stories of the area and their experiences with guests.   We found this a very nice touch and a great way to meet other travelers.

We highly recommended staying with Phil and Marjorie at Blue Jay Lodge.

Some Kruger highlights:

Creepy selfie with an elephant who came by to check us out

tiny baby elephant! So special!

Potholes!

God's Window

  

Hippo Yawn!

Phil is now on his way to Abu Duabi to finish up his trip and I've just spent the last few hours cleaning and catching up on 2 weeks of work.   Time for sleep in my very lonely bed. :(
Stay tuned for reviews on the rest of our trip this week!