Angel Michael Electron (and others), here are a couple of pages from my soon-to-be-published memoirs from the segment of my journey in Kenya: I had read many adventure books about Mt. Kilimanjaro and wanted to travel across the desert and hoped to see lions, giraffes, and other african animal life just to capture some on a cheap 35mm camera I still had. We did that, and boy did we get our fill. We took what is known as a taxi-bus most of the time, basically a cheap Peugoet station wagon that crosses the desert with local working people to Mombasa on the coast instead of going on a tour bus. I swear, as difficult as it is to get maps and other simple information about local places in Africa on the internet without paying for it if you can, forget the tours. Simply point to a destination at a local bus station, get the cheapest bus ticket you can and arrive exhausted at the closest city where you plan to go next. Then rent a room one night in a nice hotel, relax, pull up your sleeves the next morning and go to work. Find out for yourself where your destination is, go to a local market and stock up on food and bottled water you can carry with you. Next, go to a nearby library if they have one. From then on, simply go to the poorest part of town, select a cheap local worker-class mode of transportation, like taxi-buses same as we did, station wagons, third-class trains or buses and let it ride! Youll see more lions and giraffes on any tour they can concoct! Thats what we did and I guarantee you, if you speak the language of the countryside, (un-educated, even pigeon french, italian or german instead of english) and get to know the difference between a come-on and an ordinary daily greeting, you will have the time of your life, learn more, see more, discover more and suffer more than any possible expensive safari or tour guide will ever give you, minus the cost. You can use the money you save to bathe your wounds home from your adventures at another luxurious hotel or resort the day before youre done! Then head back home to The States a happy camper and world-wide traveler! I have to say, meeting real Masai tribal elders for example, or staying overnight in a Masai village loaded up when you leave with beautiful hand-made gifts for very little money, having eaten some of the most exotic, yet delicious food ever, and having made friends who will write to you years later, then you have it in a nutshell. Thats what we discovered in Kenya. I would go back any day. I am sure the same thing can happen today, as it did back in the early 70s in spite of the political mess and the human horror you hear about today. Believe me, not everyone traveling hear or participate in world-horror you hear about today is interested in comfort and luxury, nor thinking about how the money it might bring to them instead, a small village or town, economics messed up or blessed, whatever..... poor doesnt always mean unhappy in third world countries. Amazing what a pair of Levis, a cassette of Pink Floyd or Jimi Hendrix can do in Africa on a moments notice. Even today, reading some of my current e-mails can attest to that being a reality worth trying. So, from Mombasa we took a boat to the northern coast of Madagascar near Antsiranana and a small island Nosy Be, where an aunt of Michel lived. The smell of vanilla beans, the incredible hibiscus and bougainvillea scenes, all extremely exotic and romantic, plus of course the people and the way they greet you wherever you go. On to Antananarive where, remember I mentioned the voodoo vision in Martinique? There it was, people! The marketplace, the government compound, the streets, all of it. I reminded Michel of the vision and asked if he had told his dad about the warning not to go back to Madagascar, He claimed he had written to his mother about it, but had not talked to his dad since. Oh well, I said silently.......thank goodness hes no longer here and the curse is over and done with. .....to be continued.....
Posted on: Sat, 26 Oct 2013 00:52:55 +0000
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