Laidback life in St.Lucia, Kingdom of Swaziland, Safari in the Kruger and paying bribe to a fat corrupt police officer...

Late update because of bad internet on the way.
From Cape Town Andy and I flew to Durban on my birthday. After a 5 hr drive north up along the coast we made it to the small coastal town of St. Lucia. We had 3 superb days there in that little paradis relaxing on the beach, fishing in the Indian Ocean with huge humpback whales jumping near the boat and diving under it. You could even hear them sing underneath you. Unforgettable! And one night around sunset driving through the St. Lucia wetlands we were so fortunate to see two leopards .

From St. Lucia we drove further north to the small kingdom of Swaziland - size of whales. Beautiful driving on the scenic roads through the mountains. Stayed at a lovely *** hotel Foresters Arms which Holger had been so kind to get us some discount at. Included was a 8 course dinner. Fell a sleep fast that night...!

From Swaziland we headed back in to SA again and entered the massive Kruger National Park for 4 days safari. Here we stayed in huts and tents and saw lots of wildlife and nature. Highlights were a big white rhino standing facing our small car and we couldnt get passed it before it eventually moved after 15 minutes. It could easily have flicked us over and it looked like it was going to at one point. Andy got it all on video...
Another highlight was one early morning where we saw a lion family that had just finished a big meal. There was a lioness with 3 small cubs. They were all fat and resting in the grass. Further up the road vultures, hyenas and jackals were finishing up the leftovers of the killing...

Drove back to Pretoria this morning and at a traffic light I accidently went into the wrong lane so changed fast to another without indicating. Was driving about 30. There happened to be a policecar behind me and they waived me over to the side. Short version of the story is that I was forced to pay the fat corrupt officers a bribe because otherwise as they said they would have to take me to jail for trying to kill them......! Bastards..! First they demanded a 1000 R but we managed to talk them down to 500R. There are so many similar stories like that here in SA. They spot the hired cars with tourists in them...
Anyway all part of the south african experience but I was so full of rage and frustrated about it that Andy had to take over the driving...

Fantastic roundtrip of South Africa with Andy. Will be flying back friday evening so see most of you very soon..

Glory days in the Cape Town region....

Andy and I landed in Cape Town saturday on a magnificent sunny day. We headed straight to Table Mountain in our small hired Golf. From the flat mountaintop we enjoyed the panoramic view over the city, the ocean and the mountains. The famous Robben Island could be seen as well. Mandela was imprisoned there for 17 years!
Sunday we set off at 5 am and drove in pitch darkness along the coast to Gans Bay (near Hermanus) where we did a shark-cage diving . Sailed out at 8am to the straights around Dyer Island. Here we jumped into a shark-cage when the Captain gave the signal and went face to face with 4 different Great White Sharks. Was an unforgetable experience! Boyhood dream realised for me. Absolutely brilliant adrenalin rush! We saw 11 in total so got some good photos from the boat. Sea was quite rough so pretty much everyone onboard were pale as ghosts in the end. I was among the ones who had to go over the side and share my breakfeast with the inhabitants of the Atlantic Ocean... it helped..
On the way back we made a stop at Hermanus where we had a nice lunch at the seaside with views to Southern Right Whales now and then...

Yesterday we drove out and saw Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point. Spectacular costal and mountain drive getting there. Made a stop at a penguin colony on the way there. Weather was gorgeous again so we took a swim at one of the nice sandy beaches in the crystal clear water.

This morning we were supposed to go to Robben Island but unfortunately it was cancelled due to strong winds etc..Really a shame as I had been looking fwd to that. But Im sure I will be back in Cape Town some day as it is a lovely place. Instead we took a drive in to Stellenbosch and the famous winelands.

Tonight we will be going to the Waterfront and have some good seafood and explore some more of the Cape Tonian nightlife. Flying up to Durban tomorrow on my birthday and from there we will drive up the coast to the small costal village of St. Lucia which is supposed to be a little paradise..

Happy days!

Gardening, Classical Concert and Apartheid Museum.

The last few days have mainly gone with gardening around the property here in Pretoria. The other day I cut down a lot of bamboo-trees and yesterday I planted a couple of beautifull palm trees. Last night we went to a classical concert in Johannesburg. The concert hall was packed and we witnessed the symphony orchestra with a 24 year old soloist from Russia playing the piano. He played some parts of Beethoven and absolutely blew me away... he was so talented! '

Today I drove to Johannesburg to see the famous Apartheid Museum. Had heard so much about it and it didnt disappoint. It was really impressive!!! On arrival you see 7 high pillars standing outside the building. Its the pillars of the constitution which says " Equality" "Responsibility" "Democracy" "Diversity" "Respect" "Reconciliation" and "Freedom". Apartheid (as you know) was the system of segregation or discrimination on the grounds of race in force in South Africa from 1948-1991. The museum showed the isolation suffered by so many south africans as a result of racist legislation and as a visitor you were classified according to race from when you payed entrance and separated from others while being steered through the exibits that offered stark reminders of the desolation fostered by the apartheid laws. I spend 3 hours there but you could easily spend a day there.. So many things to read, films and photos to watch and radio from historical events to listen to..

Roundtrip of South Africa ahead! Tonight Im gonna go to the airport and pick up my good friend Andy from Manchester who will be joining me down here. And tomorrow morning we will then fly to Cape Town... Really looking forward to see that region of SA and some coastline. Having been inland all the time I havent seen ocean for a very long time...!

Kalahari huntingsafari & Kimberley diamond fields...

Back from another week in the bush. This time we were in the Kalahari desert with 4 guests (1 1/2 hours outside Kimberley on the map ) and its about 8 hrs drive here from Pretoria. Driving down there was just a complete change of scenery consisting of deserted long straight roads and an endless horizon. Dont think Ive ever been that far out before exept some places in Australia maybe. Before driving in to Kimberley we passed a big lake which was all coloured in pink in one end. Turned out to be thousands of Flamingos. Quite a sight!When we finally arrived after the last 60 kms on gravel road we came to this superb **** lodge. At the gate we were met by the danish flag and the south african flag next to each other at two flagpoles. The lodge was runned by a south african couple who were really friendly people and the homemade food they served morning, lunch and dinner was fantastic!! Ive been living like royalty on that front so another week like that I would end up with a good frontpack and look like some of the big Boers down here.. Managed to go for a couple of runs though followed up by a refreshing dive in the big pool...From the lodge you had a spectacular view over a great wide grass plain where rhinos, giraffes, buffalos and various antelopes could be seen. Not a bad place to sit during the lunchbreaks in a comfortable chair with binoculars and a book!It was freezing cold in the mornings because its in a desert. Especially two mornings it reminded me of a cold winter back in DK. There was ice on the water outside. But during the day temperatures went up and it was nice.

The huntingpart went well too. Between them the four hunters got 15 animals: Blue and Black Wildebeests, Steenbucks, Oryx, Zebra, Springboks (SA´s national animal ), Red Hartebeests and Kudus. I was driving the whole time again which of course offered some
nice sights of wildlife and now and then a big herd of buffalos stood on the road not wanting to move.That Toyota Hillux 4x4 has become my "second home" down here... Must have spend something like a week in that if you count all the hours together while Ive been in SA. Managed to have 3 punctures over those 6 days so I got to change a few tyres with the tracker.

On the way back yesterday we visited an old diamondmine in Kimberley. Kimberley is famous for "The Big Hole" which is often called the worlds deepest man made hole. Its a huge pit, almost circular and 215m deep, right in the middle of the town. There was a great platform from where you could look down in the big hole. The diamondrush started in 1871 after a young boy had found one on the bank of the Orange River. At one point Kimberley became the second largest city in SA because of the flood of fortune hunters from all over the world. 2,722kg of diamonds were mined until it closed in 1914. Approximately 22,5 million tons of earth were moved and the underground Kimberley mine was mined to a depth of 1097m. On one of the signs in the museum where you could read about the diamondrush
it said:
" Unkempt and unconcerned with comforts, the rich and poor alike rushed to the Diamond Fields with stars in their eyes and greed in their hearts. Sweltering days, thunderstorms and frosty nights did
not deter the diggers who laboured to turn their optimism into wealth. Some dug op a fortune, others dug their graves".

A week in Pretoria...

Another trip coming up. Tomorrow Im driving down to Kalahari where we are taking 4 guests from Denmark on a hunt for 6 days. Picked them up at the airport this morning. There is about 800 km down there so Im leaving at 7am with all the luggage etc. Our guests are flying down there. (On the map its a couple of hrs drive west of Kimberley)

Have had a good week here in Pretoria helping out with various things around the property and taking the trophies from the last hunt to the taxidermist. In the afternoons Ive taken the two labradors for a good run in a park nearby. I often go for a run by myself before I take them out as they are male-dogs and want to stop at every tree doing their thing. Today i decided to run to "The Loftus Versveld" which is the main stadium here in Pretoria and its gonna be one of the venues for next years World Cup. Four games will be played there. A friendly official locked me into the stadium for a look around and a few photos. Nice ground but I must admit compared to European standards it has seen its better days. But new nice stadiums around South Africa are also being built so they seem to be ready for next years big event. The world cup fever is here for sure...!

The greyish bird on one of the photos is the blue crane which is South Africas national bird. I spotted it on my run in a bird sanctury situated not far from here.

Just had a delicious 3-course dinner at our Manor House with the guests. In Kalahari we will be staying at a fantastic lodge. So it will be different from the tents in Limpopo. But more about that when I get back...

(Congratulations to Mary and Henrik with their wedding today. Hope you had a great day. Looking forward to see you both when I return to DK)

A week in Limpopo....

One night you are at a opera concert arriving in Rolls Royce next thing you are on your way to Limpopo for 6 days hunting staying in a tented camp in the bush. That has pretty much been my week and its a good example of how varied the days can be working for Jensen-Safaris. It was great being back at the camp in Limpopo again situated on the bank of the Limpopo River. We had two hunters from Copenhagen down this time and we had a really good laugh with them. We were taking the piss out of each other pretty much from 6am to 9pm every day. By 9pm you are knackered after all the fresh air, food etc and you sleep like a log. Furthermore the silence is incredible out there exept all the sounds from various nocturnal animals. Was woken up the other night at 3am by a leopard growling from somewhere. Besides that it was mainly noisy jackals that woke me up.

The hunt went very well. I was driving the whole time. Cant remember the last time Ive been driving for that many hours so many days in a row. The drive from Pretoria out to Limpopo is even a 4 hrs journey. For those of you who might not like hunting I can tell you that the hunts are being carried out very professionally and everything from the animals we shot are being used. For dinner one night we even had the fillets from one of the animals prepared over the campfire. Now thats hunting for you! The two guys shot 2 steenboks, 1 impala, 1 red hartebeast, 1 waterbok and two eland (the largest of the antelopes species). They are massive and can weigh over a ton. The ones we got were about 800 kgs each!! One of the days we were hunting for wilderbeast in another area without luck.. but the drive arrive around looking for them turned out to be a great pleasure as we saw several giraffes and a group of 5 white rhinos. Not a bad job being a driver when such animals are to be seen and are crossing the road in front of you. And I got to witness a scenery of about 50 vultures circling around high up in the air because they had spotted something dead on the ground. Turned about to bea dead cow on a farm.

When Holger drove back to Pretoria with the two guests I stayed in the Camp for one more night. Holger had offered me to try and get an impala. In late afternoon I sat in a camouflaged tower by a small lake for a couple of hours. No luck there but lots of different wildlife to be seen - monkeys, various birds and warthogs came down to drink. Early next morning the owner of the land where we are hunting came by and took me for a walk through the bush. It was dead-exiting! Just walking behind him in the thick bush watching him in action being able to tell all the tracks and using all his senses was a great experience. After an hour or so he spotted a group of 3 beautifull male impalas 100 m away. We ended up crawling down on all 4 to get closer. Me right behind him with my riffle in one hand. Pretty hard work I tell you to crawl down there in the warm sun doing all you can to be invisible and deadsilent. Could have done with some leopardskills there but we managed to get in to about 80 m. After a few manouvres to get comfortable and to try and get the breathing and pumping adrenalin down to normal I had a shot at the biggest of the 3. We both thought it had been a perfect hit but when we walked up there was a broken small branch on a bush which had caused the bullet to change its direction. Luckily the animal hadnt been wounded so it lived to tell the tale. It would have been a perfect end to a great week in Limpopo having shot my first impala. But on the other hand the whole huntingexperience and being so close was definitely one of the most exiting and memorable experiences Ive had in Africa!

Back on the "base" in Pretoria again. Spring is here. Not that I can complain about the south african winterweather so far as it has been sunny weather every day. But you can definitely feel the even better temperatures coming. Next trip is on sunday where we are going to Kalahari for 6 days with 4 new guests.. Stay tuned.

Livingstone Island, Rafting on the Zambezi River and micro light flight over Victoria Falls..

In Zambia I visited Livingstone Island from where David Livingstone saw the falls for the first time and named them Victoria Falls. Of course the natives have seen them a long time before him but he has been given all the credit. His comments when he saw the falls was apparently "Scenes so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight”. In native language the falls are called Mosi-oa-Tunya which means The Smoke That Thunders. A very saying name because the mist rising high above in the air is very charateristic for Vic Falls. Livingstone Island is situated at the edge of the falls and the view from there was spectacular! Got to the island by a small boat so luckily there were no engine problems... Back at the mainland we sailed from the beautifull 5-star Royal Livingstone Hotel. Bought a cocktail at the bar to be able to sit and enjoy the view. Ended up spending the rest of the day there in a very comfortable chair - with my book, view to the falls on the left and view to a couple of hippos on the right. 10 dollars well spent in that bar!

Tuesday I went White Water Rafting on the mighty Zambezi River through a massive gorge. There were some really good rapids so it was good fun!

I said my goodbyes to Zambia early wedensday morning flying over Vic Falls and the surrounding areas in a micro light flight. Was a fantastic little maschine and besides the unreal views of the falls you could see elephants, crocs and hippos from the air.

Back in South Africa again. Sunday we are off on a 5 day hunt in Limpopo...

Chased by a big male lion in Botswana...

The 3 days in Botswana were magic! Went there from Zambia by crossing a river with a little boat. Must have seen over a hundred elephants and other various wildlife. Sailed down the Chobe River which divides Botswana and Namibia for where you were surrounded by hippos, crocs, buffalos and a spectacular birdlife... Best of it was probably the big herds of elephants that came down to the river to drink or for a swim and mudbath. There were green wetlands and savanna as far as you could see with zebras, giraffes and buffalos etc grassing...

Drove in a 4x4 jeep into the bush where we stayed in tents. It was fantastic sitting around the campfire at night listening to the sounds of Africa and on the first night when having dinner we heard two male lions roar not far away. The same sounds from lions and elephants walking through the bush woke you up in the night but besides that I slept like a log out there. One of the mornings there were fresh liontracks 20 m from the camp>toilet<, so you had second thoughts going there during the night with your little torch when it was pictch dark.

At sunset one night I sat watching a herd of 27 elephants taking a mudbath and enjoying themselves. It was a great sight! Despite hearing the lions during the night they were really hard to find at daytime because they were very shy. But thanks to the gods of good fortune on the last day before heading back to the boat again we spotted a big male lion and a lioness lying on a hill behind some thick bushes taking in the sun. They were a bit far away so decided to drive up there though it was over big rocks and through the nonefriendly thornbushes. Came in to about 30 m from them and turned off the engine. Sat watching them through the binoculars and took a couple of photos. Suddently the male must have had it because it got up and ran towards us with a quite determined look in its eyes. You feel pretty small in a situation like that! Managed to reverse out with the adrenalin pumping away and the lion stopped its launch eventually and walked back after having been pretty close!! Wether it was a territorial or a hungerthing I dont know but it was definitely not thinking about a cup of coffee if it had joined the jeep. Adrenalin was still pumping for quite some time after that... Sorry no photos because it all went so fast and I certainly wasnt thinking about photos at that time... but what a memory to take back from Africa...