South Africa 🇿🇦: The Kruger, and Johannesburg

We spent a week in South Africa 🇿🇦, mainly to go to Kruger National Park, where we stayed for five nights in nice little huts similar to the yurts in Canadian National Parks, but with bathrooms and kitchenettes. There were also excellent restaurants at every site. The park is 20,000 square km (that’s about four Prince Edward Islands)! The campsites are connected by paved roads, so every day we’d get up early, pack up, and drive our rented SUV for hours to the next camp, and look for wildlife. 

We drove and drove through beautiful and sometimes harsh-looking landscapes, dry and hot, seeking the animals. It was totally exhilarating to see gigantic elephants up close, in the wild, and quite shocking to see herds of forty or fifty of them. 🐘We saw dazzles of zebras by the hundreds, flipping their tales incessantly, and many alert ungulates mingling — kudus, impalas, wildebeest.  🦓🦌Brooding buffalos will stare you down for a joke. 🐃The big cats were definitely the most difficult to see, but we were lucky enough to see five cheetahs cross the road right in front of us, one leopard extremely well camouflaged in the grass, and four sleeping lions a few meters from the road. 🐆🦁We saw a few rhinos very close to the road, sadly still highly in danger of poaching. 🦏There were also many hippos in the water and they’re quite daunting. 🦛🦛

Sometimes warthogs and hyenas get put on the park’s homely list, but they are adorable, especially the babies. 🐗Baboons have an edgy silliness. Giraffes just seem like sweethearts, and we quoted the Teen Titans « Leg Day » episode whenever we saw them (Look-a-dem legs! Look at them legs — they’re amazing!). 🦒🦵🏽🦵🏽

We were in and out of the city of Johannesburg quickly (2 nights at each end). Every South African we talked to was kind and helpful, and without fail, they wished us a great stay, and reminded us to keep our wits about us, lock everything, and be vigilant. Joburg is a vibrant, sophisticated city, but with a traumatic colonial history, vast economic disparity, and a dangerously high crime rate. We managed to go to Nelson Mandela Square, a plaza connected to a fancy mall. Accommodations and food were of high quality at very affordable prices by Canadian standards. I hope South Africa becomes more stable, that its living conditions improve, and that more people can visit this amazing place safely. 🖤

🇹🇭 Thailand: land of smiles ☺️😅🙃

🇹🇭We spent almost three weeks in Thailand, in Bangkok, Koh Samet, and Chiang Mai. 

Bangkok is intense. It certainly gets its hustle on. Where you think there’s no space, they make space, whether to set up a kiosk or to snake through traffic. We went to the big mall MBK one day, and when we tried to leave, the roads were covered in a foot of water. There were over two hundred people waiting in line for taxis, so Mike snagged us a tuk tuk, which totally saved the day. We snuggled in the back and just held on tight, hoping the water wouldn’t stop the engine. The driver,« Our fairy godfather », made lanes where there were none, and got us home safely. Although the situation looked difficult, no one was freaking out or laying on the horn, and our driver had a little smile on his face the whole time. 😊 

We stayed in the wild backpacker district again. It’s hot, noisy, and dirty, but there’s plenty to see. It’s very affordable to eat and drink really well. Not sure which beer I prefer, Singha, Leo, or Chang. They’re classic lagers like Keith’s or Moosehead. It’s just so hot there, what’s a Canadian to drink but a cold brew or two? 🍻

A few days in the city was just fine, then we took a cab, to a bus, to a tuk tuk, to a ferry, to a truck cab, finally to a the island Ko Samet. We stayed there four nights and swam every day in the Indian Ocean, the warmest water in which I’ve ever swum. Seriously I’ve had cooler baths. We played in the waves, floated under the full moon, and ate great Thai food. Also, everyday there’s an episode of torrential rain, during which we would read and watch movies in the air conditioned room. The girls keep journals, practice a little math, and play with their little LEGO set, two stuffies each, and the little trinkets they collect sur la route. 🌊🥽🧸 

After Ko Samet we traveled North to Chiangmai, by overnight train. I’m glad we did it, but I’m glad it’s done. It’s loud, rickety, and a long ride. But Chiangmai is worth it. It’s an old city, with hundreds of temples and what remains of the old wall that surrounded it. There are moats that run through it, and it’s quite easy to navigate. The vast markets that open every night have hundreds of vendors selling clothes, souvenirs, knock-offs, and again, the food. It’s delicious and cheaper to have it prepared than to even consider going to a grocery store. 

We booked two special tours from Chiangmai. First, we took a cooking class where we walked through a lush garden sampling ingredients like kaffir lime, lemongrass, galang (similar to ginger), made curry paste with pestles and mortars, then cooked up spring rolls, pad Thai, curries, and soups. So good, all around. We loved it. 🍜🍤🥘🥭🥥🍳

A couple days later, we went to the Chiangmai Elephant Sanctuary, where they have four elephants rescued from different circumstances. Elephant rides and circuses used to be a popular, but the trainers would use harsh discipline on the animals if they were not in the mood to perform, or if something went awry. I was skeptical before I went, but the elephants were not tied, and the staff seemed to genuinely love them. The elephants were gentle as we feed them watermelons and tall grass. These cuties can eat around 250 kg a day! They love a mud bath and a fresh shower in the river, and it was sweet and surreal to interact with them. 🐘🐘🐘🐘

The girls loved to ride around in tuk tuks, and they took took turns sitting next to the drivers. We went to stunning Buddhist temples, some five and six hundred years old. I just about evaporated in the humid heat, but the mango and strawberry popsicles helped. Thailand has been a fun time for us. 

Next stop: 🇿🇦South Africa. We will be able to see how the African elephant differs from the Asian elephant! 

Australia 🇦🇺 and Japan 🇯🇵

We had a week to spend in Australia, flying in and out of Sydney. We had beautiful weather and spent days at Bondi Beach and Manly Beach. We also went to the zoo and aquarium. We were enjoying our time in Sydney . . . then the Luckhounds had some bad luck. Long story short, right before our flight to Japan, Mike hit his head (surfing? boxing kangaroos? epic fight with the missus? I will only tell you IRL!). Concussed with a giant egg, he had to spend the night in hospital in Sydney with the trauma team running him through scans. So wow... not good. 

I had been feeling kind of bad myself — aches, fever, etc. Turns out it was a viral infection. Yay. So Mike had to miss our flight to Tokyo, and the girls and I had to go on without him, fingers crossed that he’d be able to meet us in Tokyo soon after. Rather stressful day: Mike in the hospital, and for me and my girls — an eleven-hour flight to Seoul, quick plane change, then two more hours to Tokyo, not knowing the state of Mike! 

By the time we got to Tokyo, we had confirmation that Mike was on his way, so that was a relief, but I felt like hot garbage. In Tokyo, I went to Emergency and got a prescription for antivirals, which took a while to kick in. So our first few days in Tokyo were spent mostly in our hotel, in the pjs they supply (love that!), recovering. Our poor kids put themselves to bed one night after playing Minecraft for hours and eating a few clementines for supper! Pitiful. 

On Day 3 or so, we went to Harajuku, a cartoony part of Tokyo that’s on blast. Pretty much the worst place to take a guy with a concussion! We had truly terrible food at Kawaii Monster Café, which was visually spectacular and extremely loud. We were so overwhelmed by it that we had to go relax in a cat café. Meow. So chill, much nicer time. 🐈 

Moving on, we bought our rail passes and took the bullet train to Kyoto for a week. There we met Peter MacIntosh, who is a very fun host. Let’s just say he knows Kyoto (See link below!) having lived there since 1993! Pete is a geisha expert, a tour guide, an artist, and sweetheart. We went on his walking tour through the geisha district, then met for dinner with a geisha. It was fascinating to spend time with her and learn about geisha history and culture. 

Kyoto is a cool city, and the people we met were extremely helpful and sweet. We went to peaceful Shinto shrines, ancient gardens, and great restaurants. We did some karaoke. Chloe and Mike had an epic bike ride around the city, and Sylvie and I spent a day on a big shopping street — the two-level Hello Kitty store and the ubiquitous capsule toys were highlights. 

We took a day trip to Hiroshima, to the Peace Memorial Museum and Park. It’s a heartbreaking place, showing how awful and vulnerable people can be. It was hard for us all to go through the museum, reading and listening to exhibits, and seeing artefacts that convey some of the devastation and long term harm the atomic bomb caused the people of Hiroshima.  Also, it’s gutting to know how much nuclear weaponry is still out there, and likely in development. Outside the museum, we thankfully met groups of local students on field trips, reciting poetry and bringing paper crane garlands and other artwork to the Children’s Memorial. There were some outgoing and comical kids who were happy to practice their English on us. 

We also stopped to see the famous water shrine and tame deer on the island Itsukushima (Miyajima). We wandered through a huge temple and enjoyed the architecture and landscape. 🦌⛩ 

We headed back to Tokyo, sad to say goodbye to Peter and his wife Aya, but excited for our Disney plans. It was the first time at any Disney for Mike and the girls, second for me (remember that time, DHS ladies?). The girls in their fresh new Mickey shirts, we spent a day at DisneySea and another at Disneyland. We rode some coasters, cute rides, 3D rides, and ate some junky snacks — highlights were Temple of Doom, Journey to the

Centre of the Earth, caramel popcorn, and a shell-shaped ice cream monaka. The people are so kawaii with so many friends “twinning” their outfits. DisneySea is huge and gorgeous, and the lineups weren’t bad at all. Disneyland was busier and several rides were closed, but still a fun place to be for a day. Space Mountain, Star Tours, and It’s a Small World did not disappoint. 🎢🎠🗺

All in all, we LOVE Japan and plan to return someday. For the food alone it’s worth it: 

sushi, ramen, wagyu beef, yakitori, Lawson egg salad sandwich, I could go on. 🍣🍜🥩🍢🍙  Even the oniri rice triangle from the corner-store is tasty. Arigato! 🇯🇵