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My first trip September 1999-2000: South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Swaziland and Thailand

My first out of Europe trip took me to South Africa were my family was living. I was very excited and could not wait to do everything I had been planning from Denmark six months before leaving. It actually was  a big relief when i arrived I remember. I have been saving up money for 8 months and was veery ready to see everything. My friend Henrik who came along with me was also very eager to get started with diving, surfing, parashuting, safari, sandboarding, whitewater rafting, bungy jump, hiking and much more…

(Click on picture to enlarge)

Just arrived in Johannesburg South Africa in 1999. Very excitied I remember for my big Africa trip. I have saved up for 8 months and been planning for months how to do it, what to do and where to go.

 

My uncle and I in Durban upon arrival in 1999. I was ready for my big adventure. Now we only had to sort out what cameras to use when going on safari in Durbans concrete jungle. I was waiting many years to come visit my family in South Africa and my uncle always asked me when I would come visit them in Durban. So happy I finally mustered up enough courage and will to leave Denmark and say hello South Africa.   

 

My family in Durban. Sheila, Trevor, Ann and little girl Wicky. My uncle was taking the picture. Sometimes monkeys would pass by steeling some fruit or anything eatable. I always loved when that happend, made me feel far away from home.

 

A big male elefant in Kruger NP. In Africa the concept of the Big Five is what the hunters back in the days descriped the most dangerous and greatest games (animals) in Africa. The Big Five is elefants, lions, leopards, buffalos and rhinos. When going on a safari you will most of the time encounter elefants and buffalos and sometimes also rhinos if you stay for mnore then a day. If you are real lucky you might see lions also. The secret is to search for waterholes and you might find lions drinking or sleeping in the shade close to the waterhole. Spotting a leopard is very difficult and very rear as they are hunting at night and hiding during the day. While staying in Africa for more then 6 months I have only spottet one leopard and that was on my second safari out of 10 while spending more then 30 days on safari in total. In other words if you spot a leopard, you should consider youself very very lucky.   

 

A male lion at a water hole in Etosha NP in Namibia. The lion is also one of The Big Five…

 

A hippo at Swaziland. This was a nice place in the middle of the bush surrounded by forest and mountains. Hippos are known for being lazy and slow, but nothing could be further from the truth. Hippos can run very fast and they are very aggresive and territorial in the water.  

 

A rino at Ufolozi NP. This was one of the best safaris I been on. We were walking around the game reserv in that way you get closer to the games. Sometimes too close – we were chased by a rino  which was a bit too exciting for all of us , but surely a experience to remember the rest of our life… 

 

Baboons are everywhere in South Africa and can be quite a pain in the ass and aggressive if they dont get what they want. I remember many times we had fights with different monkeys in Africa.

 

Giraffe at Umfolozi NP. This is where we started our wildeness trail of walking around the reserve for three days. We

 

Zebras in Africa are just food for the predators but still lovely and actually also taste good as a T-bone steak

 

The greatest view of Umfolozi NP with our guide watching the wild life and the dryed out river because of the season

 

Sibon our hunter. He was the final frontier if animals started to attack – and they did and he ran to the trees as well daaaa…

 

After a hard day of hiking around the game reserv, its lunch time or sandwhich time

 

My friend Henrik at the river site. At night we could hear lions looking for prays down here.

 

The lovelist animal in Africa. A small springbook caught by my camera.

 

A white rino. In short time these are instinct forever.

 

We were a small group of 6 people a hunter and a guide which made the whole experience better

 

Henrik enjoying the view from our lunch spot

 

Drakensberg mountains. I went hiking here with my family and Henrik. A great place to hike around for a weekend trip away from Durban.

 

The Devils Tooth

 

Titiskamma at Garden Route. Here we have started our 45 days long trip around the southern part of Africa. We started out in Johannesburg, and drove out to the coast to see Blyde River Canyon from there we went down to Kruger NP and into Swaziland for another safari, before stopping in Durban for three days. From Durban we continued down the Garden Route stopping in different towns on our way. Its a fantastic coast stretch of surfer beaches, fantastic flora and fauna, small colonist town and nature when its best. Below you find a sample of some of it.  

 

Our camp at Titiskamma in the background. Fantastic to sleep to the sound of the water flushing up right where I stand.

 

Titiskamma beach front. Sometimes the waves would make it all the way up to our camp on the shore.  

 

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The waves could rise about 3 meters high amazing sight when watching it from the shore

 

Titiskamma at sun set – fantastic settings!

 

Bungy jump at Blounkrans Bridge at Storms River. 216 meters. almost 5 seconds free fall. It was AMAZING feeling jumping off the edge of the bridge. I will never forget the jump and the way up again. It was the coolest guys that took us out for the jump and we felt safe at all times. Big peace out to the guys working at the bridge everyday…

 

Henrik after the jump. Happy motherfucker right there… 

 

Cape Town from Robben Island. From this Island Nelson Mandela was inprisoned for 20 years before he was transferred to a prison in Cape Town which is the big flat mountain on the other side.

 

On our way to Robben Island; Henrik with the Table Mountain in the background. Cape Towns big hitter…and now its one of the 7 nature wonders of the world

 

Me at Robben Island. For some reason I started my coke and chips trip in South Africa when travelling around. Henrik just got a yellow energy drink by his back…

 

Ostrich race at Ooutshorn.Here they breed ostrichs for different products like eegs, biltong (which is a South African dried meat just a lot better then the America style), and for tourists to come and see and ride the animal…I did that as well and its very funny and syrealistic to ride a big bird.

 

Henrik at the border to Namibia with the rest of our group in the background

 

Me at the Fish River Canyon in Namibia. We walked all the way down in the bottom to take a swim.

 

Its one of the largest canyons in the world only beaten by Grand Canyon

 

Etosha NP. Always full of life down at the water holes. I think we almost saw all big fives here

 

The road to nowhere. We could drive on these roads for hours without seing anyone and then suddenly some person would show up…. from WHERE!???

 

Sand Dunes in Namabia here we went sandboarding. A lot of fun!

 

Death Valley in Namibia

 

We made it to Botswana alive! Now it was time for Okovango Delta safari

 

Elefant at the camp site in Botswana

 

Kids playing in Botswana

 

One of my favorite photos from Africa

 

Okovango delta the most fantastic place on earth. The best place for great game watching.

 

The Salt Pan in Botswana we had a mud fight here with the girls from Australia I think

 

Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and Zambia. Amazing thunder noise of water running down in the canyon.

 

Sharks Board in Durban. South Africa and Durban has been the first to make the white shark and other spicies of sharks protected. However in order to protect surfers when surfing special nets have been installed in the water to prevent sharks from attacking surfers, but sometimes a shark gets caught inthe net and drowns. This is why they end up on the table and the knife to educate tourists and locals about the sharks anatomy and behavour. 

 

Before flying to Thailand I went with the family to a new game reserv in South Africa

 

THAILAND 2000

After my Southern Africa round trip I was traveling to Thailand. I was told so much about Thailand before hand so I was very excited to see for myself what it was like. I knew I would travel up north for jungle adventure and down south to enjoy all the beaches and see how Phi Phi was like. I thought I had seen it all in Africa but when I went to Asia I had another thing coming. Bangkok was massive, intense and totally exciting and pushed the boandaries for what I had seen so far. Bangkok was like a green house; hot and humite, full of people everywhere and the smell of fried rice, sewer and car toxic made a nasty but unique thick smell that I always look forward to when going back to Thailand. I remember when I arrived in 2000 I had to sit down at Khaosan Road for a while to digest it all as everything was strange but yet familiar. I knew I loved it from the start, but I did not know that my love to Thailand would grow steady the next 14 years for each trip to Thailand.   

My group for Chiang Mai jungle trip for 4 days in 2000. It was only japanese people that did not speak any English.  

 

Visit to a primary school in the north of Thailand

 

Visit to a Karen tribe village in the jungle of Chiang Mai. Note hes got the tea pot shirt which is a popular TV show

 

Joy – my first friend from Thailand, now working in So Cool Travel in Bangkok

 

A younger me in Joys familiys village outside Bangkok (still wearing my bungy jump t-shirt and necklace from Zimbabwe and my Levis which I sold later in Thailand for a couple of nights at a hotel) I remember it as it was yesterday…

 

Phi Phi in 2000 very different from what it is now

 

Phi Phi beach in 2000. Not too many people, but the next years a rapid growth of tourists had seen the light because of the 1998 Hollywood movie The Beach featuring Leonardo Decaprio.

 

Fantastic water and corals. Nowadays the corals is not that beautiful and prestine because of the mass toursim that picked up from 2000 and never seamed to stop.

 

Just beautiful. I remember that I fell in love with this place the very first second I saw this.

Et svar til “My first trip September 1999-2000: South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Swaziland and Thailand”

  1. Joy 4. september 2013 at 14:38 #

    Yes I do remember. Your photo look very nice I like it.

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