Silver Whisper, Africa, Details, Options??

[joek]

TLCOhio,

 

I'm sending you an e-mail about our safaris and some links for Africa

[carefreecruise]

From this past weekend's USA Today, they have this headline: "What to expect on your first African safari" with these highlights: "Nothing prepared me fully for the actual experience. You don't need to bring a lot of anything. Take half (or less) of what is suggested. You'll be flying in small planes between camps, you need to limit the weight of your luggage to 33 pounds. Every lodge and campsite on the trip offered professionally done-the-same-day laundry, included in the price. You could get by with what you wear on the plane and two changes of clothes, period. Avoid bright colors (tsetse flies love blue). Khaki and tan are the way to go, even if they're not your colors. You expect to see all sorts of animals in the wild. That's what a safari is all about. But you'll sometimes be mere feet away from elephants, zebras, lions, hippos and other game. Do not get out of your Land Rover to get any closer. The animals won't like it. And neither will your guides."

 

Great, useful ideas and insights. Here are some more: "Sleeping in tents is not what you think. They're deluxe tents, with firm mattresses, hot and cold running water, exemplary service, fine furnishings, and thoughtful touches everywhere. Nothing in my tour operator's 'Planning Information' booklet to suggest the range and quality of the cuisine we'd be enjoying. For dinner, all it says is you get a 'sit-down, three-course meal'. It was incredible how, in the middle of nowhere, the camp and lodge chefs were able to create delicious gourmet meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, expertly served along with fine South African wines. No copywriter could adequately describe how warm the East Africans I met are. I've traveled everywhere, and I've never felt so welcomed. In every camp and hotel, at the airport, in the villages we visited, they are simply the warmest, most accommodating people I've ever encountered."

 

This piece really gets one excited for doing some safaris during our March-April 2015 Africa adventure. This includes stops in Kenya, Zanzibar, Madagascar, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana. Clearly, not all camps are exactly the same. BUT, this writing gives a good and exciting preview for roughing "IT" in Africa. Check out the full story. I've copied and saved this writing to my laptop for the our trip file.

 

Full story at:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/destinations/2014/07/26/africa-kenya-tanzania-safari/13169543/

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 150,895 views. Nice to be hitting this high of a level for viewership. Appreciate the interest and follow-up questions/comments!!

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Can’t wait to hear about your adventures. We are booked on the Cloud with the exact itinerary in December 2015. We just finished booking a 10 day custom safari pre-cruise with Bushtracks. And would like to hear about anyone who does the mid voyage safari. Just starting to find out about Cape Town and looking forward to hear about your experiences....

[duct tape]

There are a number of excursions for safaris, overnight and/or day trips.

[TLCOhio]

TLCOhio, I'm sending you an e-mail about our safaris and some links for Africa

 

carefreecruise: Can’t wait to hear about your adventures. We are booked on the Cloud with the exact itinerary in December 2015. We just finished booking a 10 day custom safari pre-cruise with Bushtracks. And would like to hear about anyone who does the mid voyage safari. Just starting to find out about Cape Town and looking forward to hear about your experiences....

 

Appreciate the e-mail' date=' tips and ideas from Joe[/b']. Have received it, but not yet had time to respond. Am off on Friday to Charlottesville, Va., to see our two wonderful grandsons, ages 2 & almost 4. Fun!! Look forward to getting together, sharing more on travel, etc., with you and Esther.

 

YES, for carefreecruise, I will be happy to share more from our March-April 2015 adventure. Right now, however, my wife is very, very concerned about the whole mess over the health issues in western Africa with the lethal Ebola virus.

 

Kenya is a good distance from western Africa, but my wife is a Registered Nurse and legitimately worries about these types of serious issues. Ebola is not something where there are any pre-trip shots that you can take to protect you, nor any treatments that are highly effective in curing this virus.

 

From the Reuters news wire this evening, they have this headline: "Liberia shuts schools as Ebola spreads, Peace Corps leaves three countries" with these highlights: "Liberia will close schools and consider quarantining some communities, rolling out the toughest measures yet imposed by a West African government to halt the worst outbreak on record of the deadly Ebola virus. Highly infectious Ebola has been blamed for 672 deaths in the West Africa nations of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone"

 

The health issues and systems in Africa are not the best and one needs to consider carefully these questions.

 

Full story at:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/31/us-health-ebola-idUSKBN0FZ2P120140731

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Back from doing a 14-day Celebrity Solstice, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure on this ship and getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for much more information and lots of wonderful pictures on these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 68,900 views for this fun posting.

Edited July 31, 2014 by TLCOhio

[TLCOhio]

I can understand your wife's concerns. My husband travels to Ghana for work purposes and I am very worried when the next trip comes up. Ghana is far away from the Ebola Outbreak, but I am still worried. May be it is a "woman" thing to be over cautious about potential threats! Which brings me to the topic of terrorism. Read this article in the Economist:

http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21604624-rising-tide-violence-coast-affecting-whole-country-frightening

IMHO, this may be a bigger threat than Ebola when considering holiday options in Africa. Sitting here at the bottom of Africa, I can honestly say that if you and your wife decide to cancel your cruise, please don't abandon your plans to come to Africa. A holiday in Southern Africa is truly special and you can take in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia.

 

Arusha: Your most immediate health concern in East Africa is malaria. Check with your doctor or travel medicine clinic for malaria preventative medication that you'll need to take before' date=' during, and after your trip. Most accommodations will have mosquito nets around the beds, and packets of mosquito repellant wipes among the toiletries. If you are visiting the Ngorongoro Crater, the accommodations there don't have nets because it is too high and too cool for mosquitoes. I did not encounter any mosquitoes anywhere on my trip! [/quote']

 

Appreciate these comments from Arusha on the potential health concerns in East Africa of malaria made on the Africa CC board. Plus, the very good Economist article on the topic of terrorism. Excellent background. Am sharing here on this CC board to benefit others doing such planning.

 

From the June 21, 2014, Economist with this headline: "Frightening tourists away", these were the most important highlights for me: "Two nights of terror attacks on Kenya’s coast June 15-16 left at least 65 people dead, prompting the Shabab, a Somali militia of extreme Islamists, to boast that it had turned the country into a 'war zone'. The killings mark a change of gear. Previously the group has mainly committed sporadic acts of cross-border terror. Its latest massacres come closer to resembling a domestic insurgency. Kenya’s president, Uhuru Kenyatta, seems to be blaming his political opponents for encouraging the violence. Witnesses spoke of militants flying the banner of the Shabab and targeting non-Muslims. The attacks echo those perpetrated by Boko Haram, the extreme Islamist insurgents in northern Nigeria, whose large-scale raids and the abduction of women and girls have grabbed international headlines and humiliated the government. In the aftermath of the attacks, the Shabab achieved both aims. Kenya’s tourism, which has provided 15% of GDP in recent years, is in tatters. Warnings last month by the British and other foreign governments prompted flustered tour companies to evacuate clients from Kenya’s coastal tourist hub, Mombasa. The response of Kenya’s government has baffled observers as much as the slaughter has shocked them. No high-level officials have been sacked as a result of the disastrous handling of September’s assault by the Shabab on the Westgate Centre. Since then Somali militants have switched to softer targets, such as commuter buses and open-air markets. The Shabab says its campaign is a response to the continuing presence of Kenyan troops in southern Somalia, where they have occupied the port city of Kismayo and its surroundings since invading in 2011 in an effort to defeat the group"

 

Sobering background and helpful insights. BUT, we will keep planning ahead and prepared to make a final decision in November.

 

Full story at:

http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21604624-rising-tide-violence-coast-affecting-whole-country-frightening

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of nice visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 179,689 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[TLCOhio]

Terry, We are on the Crystal Serenity and will be in Madagascar on March 23 and 25, 2015. What cruise are you on? Our ports of call are Ambodifotatra and Taolanaro. We're looking forward to an excursion to Nahampoana Private Reserve to see the lemurs. Would be interested to know what information you may have gleaned from the zoo director. While we like to walk around our Cleveland zoo, I love the Columbus zoo for the grandkids. So much easier for them to see the animals.

 

As a follow-up to these questions from this Cleveland area friend, Karen, from another CC Board post, I wanted to do this update.

 

1. Our 2015 Africa plans have been "adjusted" during the past few weeks. My wife has been very concerned about the health and safety issues there in this part of the world. Part of the current "health" issue is focused more in western Africa, but we do not know where this whole challenge is headed and going. Africa, in general, has serious health care infrastructure short-comings. Plus, Kenya, in part, has had some major "safety/security" questions. We would have had to board our ship in Mombasa and that was part of the big, uncertain question mark. Your cruise does not stop at Mombasa for certain reasons. Things are better and safer in and around South Africa, Botswana, etc.

 

2. We have shifted to doing a Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Silver Cloud Amazon-Caribbean combo back-to-back sailing over 26 days with Silversea. This includes a large amount of time sailing up and around the amazing Amazon River of Brazil. We have never been to those unique parts of the world and it is fun doing that future research!! Much shorter and easier air flights getting to Barbados and coming home from San Juan. Plus, we'll escape the Midwest cold at the right, best time!!

 

3. Yes, have lots of key information from the former Columbus Zoo Director. Have those detailed notes and will try to get those typed up. Great background that he shared with us. Look forward to sharing that information on these CC Boards. Just been busy shifting things to our Amazon-Carib adventure, plus work and family duties.

 

We still want to visit in and around Africa, but we will have to aim for 2016. Silversea has not yet posted their early 2016 offerings for Africa. Look forward to seeing those options and potentials.

 

THANKS for all of the information and sharing! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Back from doing a 14-day Celebrity Solstice, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure on this ship and getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for much more information and lots of wonderful pictures on these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 76,604 views for this fun posting.