the world at his feet

Zagreb

2011-09-17T16:26:00.000+02:00

From Budapest I took a bus to the border because I was convinced that it would be cheaper if I would split up the journey at the border. When I arrived I had to note that there was no bus to Zagreb and only one train a day. It was the same one I avoided in Budapest. After waiting 5 hours at a miserable train station I got into the train. Because the train lines were occasionally suspended we had to switch into a bus midway.

Zagreb is the capitol of Croatia and has a bit more than one million people. Trams go throughout the city and are easy to use. Supermarkets have many products including 2 liter plastic beer bottles. I found a nice place to stay and walked extensively throughout the city center and beyond. There is some nice architecture to be found and shady parks. Very civilized place.

At the border between Hungary and Croatia I was hassled by the border police because my Passport was ripped on the page of the picture. She let me through, but told me very clearly that she could have denied me access easily.

That's why I went to the Swiss embassy and got a new temporary Passport. It set me back 100 CHF, but it was worth it because in the old Passport there were only 4 out of 38 pages empty.

After 4 days of fooling around town I went on to Slovenia to kill some time because I had some spare time until I had to catch my flight from Venice to Frankfurt.

Bratislava

2011-09-17T16:05:00.000+02:00

After two hours of walking around to find a hostel that made any sense, I found a bed. I needed to do laundry and I was sweaty. I didn't like Bratislava much and decided that I am going the next morning. Eastern European cities in general look pretty similar and I missed exotic places. And that's when I made the decision of leaving Europe earlier than initially planned. Turkey for the next 4 weeks was what I called the "Promised Land". But I still had two promises to keep. Meeting Victoria in Germany and meeting my brothers in Kosovo.

I took a short stroll around the city in the evening and one by accident in the morning and wanted to by a bus ride to Zagreb. But there were no direct buses. Option one was to go back to expensive Vienna and look for a train or bus, the other option was going over Budapest. I choose the lather and slept one night in Budapest.

Enns

2011-09-17T15:51:00.000+02:00

In the city were Josef Fritzl raped his daughter throughout her youth locked up in the basement I was picked up by Christina. A girl I met in Mombasa a year before. She just finished her education and had vacation. So we had a lot of time to spend together. We often went out with her dog Evan. The weather during the week I was there was terrible at best and we weren't able to go out a lot. Her parents lived close by and I got the rather unexpected privilege to go to her moms place almost daily.

She was nice and was happy to host me. Her other daughter had a little baby. I usually never play with babies, but Mathilda was agreeable.

Next to watching TV and drinking beer we also made some day trips. Once we went to the city of Linz which looks like you would expect a city like Linz to look like. Old town, a modern district, the Donau and cleanliness. In the city center we visited a temporary art exhibition which was sophisticated.The Hoehenrausch 2.0 takes place on the roof tops of a whole street block. We also visited some friends of her, but because during my whole stay there was terribly loud music playing I didn't understand them. Austrian German can be thick as well.

On another occasion we went to Steyr, beautiful little university town with two merging rivers. There we met a friend of hers who we ate lunch with. He is my hero, because he quit his job just an hour ago, because of a loud dispute between him and the boss.

We also went to Christinas parents country house which was beautiful. It is pretty much in the middle of nowhere, but that is exactly the reason why it seems like in a pristine state. Just next to the house we saw some dears.

I had a really nice stay and thank you Christina.

Vienna

2011-09-09T15:39:00.000+02:00

The first time in the first world since 14 months. The Golden Apple as the Ottoman empire called it has been the center of the world from 1867 until 1918. The city has a population of 1.7 million people and is rich in Baroque architecture. The St. Stephansdorm is at the center surrounded by the old town. Subways, trams, buses and river boats make it easy to get around. But since they are costly I walked to most of the places. The first time during my journey I visited a country where people more or less speak my language.

The hostel kind of sucked and was expensive (20 Euro). The commercialisation has visibly reached every part of life and people seem busy earning money or are spending it most of the time. Shops line every street. Vienna also attracts many foreigners from Asia or Africa.

The United Nations have a branch on a Island of the Donau. The IAEA is based here. I tried to get in, but I was to late.

The main attraction though is the splendid architecture throughout the city center. Roman, Baroque, Renaissance and modern buildings seem to coexist very neatly. Vienna generally seems to translate into modern times with a lot of ease.

Last day I was off to a town called Enns in Austria's middle to visit somebody I got to know in Mombasa. The 1 hour train set me back 20 Euro...

Budapest

2011-09-09T15:03:00.000+02:00

The mighty city of Budapest has a rich history that reached its peak during the Austro/Hungarian empire. I was dropped in the suburbs, but the efficient subway takes you to the city center. I got welcomed in the hostel by some dodgy looking, but very friendly people and a free bottle of wine and other goodies. I took two very long strolls through the city and marvelled at the Hungarian Parliament, Castle Hill, the wide Danube, the Great Market, the Jewish District and more broadly the city's architecture.

The Hungarian language is not related to any other language in the world. Oddly only Finnish has some similarities. But people speak well English or German as a second language. Thus they cater their international tourists very well.

Buda and Pest separated by the Danube river. Many luxuries river boats go all the way from Germany to the Black Sea. After 2 nights I left towards Vienna, but 2 weeks later I came back for one more night as a stopover.

Cluj

2011-09-08T11:23:00.000+02:00

After a short ride I arrived in Cluj Napoca. Soon I found out that there was the Transylvania Film Festival that will start the next day. It lasts for 12 days and features low budget movies from throughout the world. There were playing maybe 20 different movies in one day in the many cinemas/ rooms with projector in the university city. I decided to take a holiday from the holiday and do something else than the usual stuff. In the 12 days I watched about 40 different movies and documentaries.

There were many students out in the streets and good concerts and parties in the evenings. Cinema culture during the day and concerts in the evening. I got to know many people who were travelling, but also very polite Romanians. The attitude of the locals is different from the capitol, most evident in the amount of smiles you get.

I got to know a delightful lady which is studying psychology in Cluj and we met every evening to go out. Sadly she was in the middle of exams, but I still very much enjoyed her company. She made me feel like a teenager again. We went to several concerts together which were very different from what mainstream culture in Switzerland has to offer. Once we went to a gig of the Turkish band called "Babazula". The energy of the singer sweating, singing and playing some odd looking guitar was overwhelming.

Some other time we went to the "Hungarian Theater" where a friend of her was performing in art mix between video, live classical music with a DJ mixing in the beats. Probably should be best observed with some kind of influence. Truly great stuff.

Apart from others I met one other guy that sticks out. He was claiming to be from Jordan and now being a fashion designer in London. He was gay and unorthodoxly dressed so it made sense. He slept in our hostel without checking in, he had a tab at my favoured bar that he never paid, so the poor student behind the bar had to work a day without salary, he burrowed 800 USD from a South Korean (apparently the SK was not aware of how much he actually gave to this guy) and many more free cigarettes and beers while going out. Eventually the South Korean got suspicious and confronted him outside a club, where the "fashion designer" was arguing with some locals about a separate money issue. Afterwards he claimed that he doesn't have any money left and the South Korean snapped and hit him several times and found 400 USD in his pocket. The police later on explained that he is a famous Roma, who goes from city to city and scamming people. Not even the Romanians noticed that he was Romanian. I am sightly impressed by his performance that lasted several days involving about a dozen people.

Finally my camera broke again (this time the lens) and I bought my 6th camera of my trip. Then I was on to Hungary.

Sighisoara

2011-07-23T16:54:00.000+02:00

I arrived in the afternoon, I supposed to leave in the morning, but I had to wait 4 hours at the train station. The waiting part is a pattern in Europe. Especially if you don't have a smart phone. Sighisoara is a small town with an elevated old town. I was the only guest in the Burg Hostel and enjoyed the privacy. To walk around the old part you need about 3 hours. The church and the cemetery at top offer the best views. The narrow streets of the old town have some nice angles and are overgrown by bushes. Many American tourists were there during my stay. I also had a lengthy chat with a Romanian Film Artist who is making a video for tourism about Sighisoara. He comes here at least every second day to take some new shots. Apparently he wishes to go to Hungary where salaries are slightly higher. Sadly for him the EU has not yet granted Schengen status to Romania. People often speak German and the town is very relaxed. The food is very good.

Brasov

2011-07-23T16:23:00.000+02:00

To be found in the south of the Carpathian mountains. Hilly, green landscape gives you the feeling of being on the countryside. It is in the Transylvania region. The duke Dracula used to live in castle near by. It is just rubble nowadays. But a different castle is now promoted as the original residence of Dracula. The cute little Bran castle gives the impression of being in a fairy tail.

Even though it is just a small village they have a 3D cinema that plays the same Dracula movie 24/7. Later on I visited with a Japanese cannabis farmer the Rasnov fortress. As a structure not impressive, but the location on top of a steep hill makes it special.

Brasov itself has no castle, but a nice old town with various defences and gates. Bears come down from the hills every evening to feast from the garbage residents leave in their containers outside their homes.

Bucharest

2011-07-23T16:22:00.001+02:00

Another very soviet style city. Here they built the second biggest house in the world. Only second to - surprisingly non soviet - the Pentagon. It is used as the Parliament and Chaucescus home. He ruled here after the fall of the Iron Curtain. The road in front of the Parliament is exactly one meter longer than the Champs de Ellises - not a coincidence.

Bucharest is not really popular throughout Romania. The revolution that brought down the dictator, didn't start here, but further west. Huge buildings dominate and a make up the impression tourists take with them. I went out with a Bulgarian couple - the guy turned out to be a Racist who sympathies with Adolf Hitler. I couldn't help him because he would not even listen to his embarrassed girlfriend. So I helped myself by ordering more liquids.

Beautiful monasteries and golden roofed churches are to be found behind the main avenues.

I didn't enjoy my stay here too much and left after 2 days with the train to Brasov.

Chisinau

2011-07-23T16:22:00.000+02:00

Moldova is not famous, nore is Chisinau. This is for a good reason. Moldavians are not allowed to travel to the Schengen countries. The only places in the neighbourhood where it is easy to get in is Turkey, Ukraine and Belarus. Not the usual tourist destinations. Moldova is isolated and offers little job opportunities. I got the impression that there is a common feeling of depression - of have given up. There are two big obstacles for them to enter the EU: They have a reputation of illegal activities such as human trafficking, drug smuggling, money laundering and a generally corrupt society.

Second: The breakaway region of Transnistria is effectively a separate country within the borders of Moldova. Transnistria is strongly pro Russian. They have suspended all trains with exception of a daily train to Moscow. With a dispute like that looming they wont get any approval by the EU.

I established that they are not proud people, with one exception. The Soviets have build vast tunnels, which would function as a bunker for the elite during war. High ceiling salon await the visitor. The entrance door is camouflaged and looks like Batman's Cave. Nowadays it is a vast wine cellar. I tried a wine supposedly from 1987. It was very sweet and not so good. I stayed at a hostel near the MALLdova. The staff spoke good English and all spend some time in the US because they have won a National English contest. But now that they are back they shouldnt be around tourists telling stories of other countries all time. Its not healthy.

I met the funniest Japanese person till date and had a lot of fun drinking wine with ang getting on the Buchaerst bus together.

The city consist of two main roads - make that one - that is lined with a few too big buildings and exchange booths. No hustle, no bustle.

Odessa

2011-07-23T16:19:00.000+02:00

The market is a busy sprawl with a slightly concerning odor. Some sort of Feta cheese seems to be their main product. Odessa seems to be a place where life quality is still high. Even though prices have apparently sharply risen in recent years.

The background of the James Bond movie "From Russia with love" always sounded appealing to me. I arrived after a smooth night train from Kiev.

I checked into "Babushka Grand Hostel" which turned out be very wise. The manager is from California and is on the run from the US Government. He used to supply famous people in California with electronic equipment - for example Clint Eastwood. He got caught leaving the US with 800000 USD in a suitcase. His assets (several million) in a Swiss bank got frozen recently after a successful request by the US Government. He now has less money than backpackers, but is quite happy with his situation in the Ukraine. Is girlfriend is 25. He is now suing the US Government because they are withholding his money.

The night life in Odessa is extraordinary and most people at the hostel were cool. In one club we got in trouble with the Russian Mafia. A Scottish friend decided to go on stage after he took off his clothes. We got shown to the door.

Occasionally cruise ships stop in the still busy Black Sea port and the tourist descend into the city. The city itself is ok - the parks are run down. But it has a lot of charm. At the seaside Ukrainians go sunbathing and occasionally into the still rather cold water.

Kiev

2011-07-23T14:17:00.000+02:00

The capitol of the Ukraine is very much Russian. A statue called by expats the "iron tits" is a huge structure dominating the skyline. It is the main feature of whole park dedicated to mother Russia. Propaganda music is played over loudspeakers. Soviet weaponry is permanently displayed - everything from MIGS, tanks, helicopters and so on. Dotted all over the place are monuments that commemorate the Workers Partys struggle.
The main square in the heart of the city is were the non successful orange revolution took place. People are sunbathing happily after the rather harsh winters that besiege Kiev annually. Women show up in the shortest skirts possible and let there tits hang out. Almost no fat women are visible. The constant beauty is a bid intimidating and eventually annoying. President Janukovic once famously invited investors attending the WEF in Davos that they should come to Kiev during summer and fall in love with the women and country.

I walked to much, because I underestimated the size of the city. There countless places worth visiting. Mostly because of the size. But there are also monasteries with sarcophagus, countless gold roofed churches, Ladas passing by and good vistas over the surrounding area since Kiev is slightly elevated.
I also visited the Tschernobyl museum. I rather small shrine to commemorate the poor guys who had to clean the mess. The aftermath is still swallowing 5% of there annual GDP. I wanted to visit Tschernobyl, but the prices are over a hundred dollars.
Kiev is good fun - it is different: its a small time warp.

Lviv

2011-07-23T12:30:00.000+02:00

After a horrible night bus from Krakow with 4 hours of waiting at the boarder. I arrived at a place that was far from being a city. First I got barked at by a vicious looking street dog. Then I found out that nobody speaks English. Everything is written in Cyrillic, so I also couldn't read anything. Eventually I found a bus that supposed to go the center. After walking from the center to the real center I found an ATM and a hostel. Then I slept a few hours and took a look at the city. Even though the western part of the Ukraine is very much in favour of Western European culture, the city looks Russian. There are some tourists, but they are on the sidelines. No EU money has not flown in yet and this is visible. The city it self is far from being a bijou with a few exceptions.
The part I liked the most was the cemetery. Overgrown by the forest lie countless gravestones from the past centuries. Some gravestones are very elaborate while others are wooden. Ukrainian nationalists got furious, when the government decided to start repairing works on the cemetery, because many supposedly Soviet heros are buried here.

Also just a few days before I arrived, the pro Russian government celebrated Victory Day. A holiday in honor of the Nazi defeat at the hand of the Soviets. But Ukrainian Nationalists complain that at that point in history the misery didn't stop. There were clashes and the Russian consul was not able to reach the monument. It was in the international newspapers.
I met very cool people in the hostel and went out every night. A delicious pizza costs 1.5 USD and a beer 0,5 USD. The national dish is Borscht. The main ingredient is beetroot and a oily bouillon. Some varieties are very good.
The clubs are cool a mostly full. We had a lot of fun and ordered vodka by the bottle.
I also visited my first opera in my life - Verdi. It was all subtitled in Ukrainian, so I couldn't follow, but it was still a cool experience.
After several really happy days I took the night bus to Kiev.

Zakopane

2011-07-23T12:06:00.000+02:00

2 hours south of Krakow lies the skiing area of Poland. Apparently it would be very cheap to spend a winter holiday there. I arrived in mid summer. Hiking was the objective. There are very green, hilly fields and dense forests. Bears still roam the area. The Carpathian mountains are part of the Alps and reach all the way to Romania.

There were a respectable amount of tourists, but mostly of the older breed. I met up with the owner (Slavek) of the hostel (Ars hostel) in Krakow and some guests I met the previous night. We took a bus close to the Slovak boarder and hiked up along a river to see some lakes at the top. Snowy mountains made me feel nostalgic about the Swiss mountains. We got drunk at the top and hiked back down. In the evening I was very exhausted.

But the next day I did a hike by myself. I took a cable car to a ridge, where many schoolchildren were enjoying some sort of entertainment park. After I got out of the mess and found a beautiful landscape with views of the valley and the mountains. The houses are usually new and kept in the traditional chalet style of the alps. In the evening I went back to Krakow to catch my night bus to the Ukraine.

Krakow

2011-05-16T19:26:00.033+02:00

Krakow was the center of Polish academic, cultural and artistic life. Today it is an economic center and a major tourist hub throughout Europe. It once hosted a significant Jewish population, that was more or less protected by the rulers of Krakow over the centuries. Of course WWII changed everything. The Nazi took over and built walls around the Jewish district. They were forced to work in German ammunition factories and were living under miserable, overcrowded conditions. They starved to death or died of diseases. The lucky ones that survived ended up in the infamous concentration camp Auschwitz.

Auschwitz was the biggest death camp during the 2nd World War. I toured the remaining compound and got a good impression about how things must have been like. The most surprising part for me was the immoral efficiency how the camp was run. The whole place had the character of a factory. New arrivals that were not considered fit for working went straight away to the gas chambers. They were let in the believe that they were about to get a shower. Everybody had to strip naked. Afterwards they were let into the gas chamber. Gas containers were dropped from the ceiling and 20 minutes later everyone was dead. The panic must have been horrific. One gas chamber had the capacity for 2000 people. The bodies were burned nearby in cremation compound. The ashes were used as fertilizer. The Nazis had big plans about expanding the ever growing camp shortly before the Soviets arrived.

The people that were seen fit to work lived in small barracks. They were overcrowded and had no heating during the winter. Diseases were rampant. The workers hardly ever got food and usually only lasted 3 months under the harsh conditions. Their hair was cut at the beginning and waved into clothes. All personal belongings were collected and donated to German citizens. Gold teeth were extracted and melted.

The most pervert thing was that the camp, was insured by the Allianz Bank.

In Krakow I visited the Schindler Factory. The good face of the German occupation. He protected his workers from exploitation, put his own life into danger to help the needy. He saved many people from the concentration camp.

Krakow city is a beautiful, relaxed urban sprawl. The main attraction is the Wawel castle, which overlooks the river Vistula. It is home to many sarcophagus of past rulers. Definitely one of the best castles in Europe.

I went out every night and enjoyed some good and surprisingly cheap parties.

Wroclaw

2011-05-14T19:26:00.043+02:00

Also known as Breslau, Wroclaw is the 4th largest city in Poland and has the typical history of Eastern European countries: Middle Ages, Renaissance, Reformation, counter Reformation, Napoleonic Wars, WWI, WWII, Communism, Liberation and EU/NATO.

The old city is elliptical shaped and has walls or the river Oder around it. Some small river islands in the north are home to various churches, cathedrals and monasteries. The city is pretty vibrant and is never really sleeping. I went out with some Spanish Erasmus student who I met at the hostel. They were getting drunk on the cheap liqueur they bought at the shop. They had no money in their wallet while leaving - only a condom and a lot of hopes. All Erasmus students have no money, but the Spanish are the worst. Even though they get 300 euro each month from their government.

Polish discotheques have two faces. The girls look very nice and feel like on a catwalk while dancing. The men are either getting drunk or are already passed out. It must be hard for Polish girls. I was dancing until the early morning.

The true jewel of Wroclaw is the main square. The Town Hall is among the best in Europe. The city was badly damaged during WWII, but they have really recovered well. The EU is poring in a lot of money and is trying to turn the student city into a industrial hub.

Poznan

2011-05-12T19:25:00.043+02:00

Poznan, a city in western Poland is the place where I heard first about Osama bin Ladens death, while eating cornflakes. The main square was to big for the developers of the past, so they built the Town Hall (Renaissance style with baroque tower) and several other buildings into the middle of the square. Not very odd for Poland, but it seems wrong. While I was there the Polish People celebrated there Independence day. There was a small fair on the main square and a military parade with old uniforms. All the schoolchildren were forced to take part and were visibly bored.

I walked around till exhaustion. I visited an old wooden church, the cemetery, monuments about past wars, Lake Malta and Ostrow Tumski. A small island considered the birth place of the Polish culture. The cathedral dates back to the 10th century. Pope John Paul is celebrated everywhere and by anyone. The Polish people think of him as the new face of Poland after the dark years of Communism.

Further more also the Champions League final and the Polish cup final took place during my time there. I missed the first half of Barcelona against Manchester because Warsaw and Poznan went into overtime.

Gdansk

2011-05-05T19:25:00.031+02:00

The principal port city of Poland is on the Baltic Sea and is the biggest city of the broader Tricity area including Sopot and Gdynia. Gdansk has a very rich history and it shows when you walk the streets. Sadly during WWII almost everything was destroyed, but the Poles have put good effort into making the city look authentic.

In 1308 the small village was in rebellion and the Polish king asked the Teutonic Knights to take care of the problem. The knights killed many and replaced the remaining ones with German settlers. They built a castle, fortified the town and changed the name to Danzig. 1361 it became part of the Hanseatic League. In 1440 the city participated in the foundation of the Prussian Confederation - an organization opposed to the Teutonic Knights. This resulted in a 13 year war and the Prussians came out on top. Danzig became part of the Polish kingdom, but was automomous and prospered. In 1577 the new king of Prussia and Poland sieged Danzig for 6 months and eventually killed all the mercenaries fighting for Danzig. But since he couldnt enter the city by force a compromise was made. Danzig had to pay their king and enemy the enormous sum of 200000 gulden as a payoff.

In the centuries to come Danzig or Gdansk belonged to the Polish-Lithauanian Commonwealth, Prussia, sometimes independent, Imperial Germany, Nazi Germany, Soviet controlled Polish People's Republic of Poland and finally to the Republic of Poland.

I got there late in the evening after a half a day at the bus station in Warsaw and and a half a day in the bus. Oil reffineries outside of the city point out the importance the port of Gdansk has these days. The old town is very nice with plenty of tourists strolling around or following somebody with a flag.
Buildings that stand out are the Mideivial crane that used to be used to put the masts into the newly built ships or load cargo. The biggest crane (30m) of it's time was propelled by men in a big wheel. Just like mice in a pet zoo.

During the communist period the Gdansk shipyard was the birthplace of the Solidarnosk movement. The first Workers Union east of the iron curtain. The shipyard lost some of its importance since the fall of the wall, but is still being used. A big monument and a decent museum tell the story.

In the torture house all the methods of torture during the Dark Age are well illustrated. There are some really cruel fantasies, that have been put into place.

I spent my time sightseeing, hanging with the people of the hostel and going out in the evenings. One side trip to the carneval of Sopot finished it of.

Warsaw

2011-05-01T19:24:00.000+02:00

Polish capitol, sight of the Warsaw uprising, capitol of a country that ceased to exist for 120 years, birthplace of the Warsaw pact, center of the once biggest empire in Europe, empire that prevented the Ottoman empire to sack Vienna and Timmys first stop in Poland. A huge sprawl awaited me after taking a truly horrible night bus from Riga. Slept only one hour. The hostel I checked into is run by friendly Anarchists.

During the WW II 80% of all buildings were destroyed. Everything basically had to be rebuilt.

The Warsaw uprising happened during the period the Nazi were retreading and the red army advancing. The Polish resistance wanted to be in charge before the Soviets arrived, so the Soviets wouldn't be able to claim that they liberated Warsaw. Controversially the Soviet waited outside of Warsaw for 63 days and let the remaining German forces crush the uprising. After the Soviets were sure that any spirit of resistance was broken they marched in, claiming liberation and staring foreign rule for the next 45 years.

The Warsaw Ghetto uprising is another unique story from this turbulent time. Like in many other cities throughout Eastern Europe the Nazis built walls around the Jewish district and herded all the Jews inside. They basically let them starve or die of vicious diseases. Then the plan was to bring the survivors to extermination camps. In 1943 the biggest Jewish revolt during the Holocaust took place. They tried to fight back. But they were poorly armed and outgunned by the well equipped Nazis. They were slaughtered.

These days Warsaw is much friendlier. Skyscrapers are next to seemingly historic buildings. The old town is rather small, but neat. I went to the zoo and saw many animals familiar from Africa, but a bit more close up. Poland is going to host the European Championship in 2012 and the first game is going to be played in the stadium they are building at the moment. I went to the dentist the first time since I left Switzerland and found out that I have no issues. The woman didn't speak English, but gave me a thumps up. The equipment they used was old and they put cotton with liquid fluor into my mouth at the end of the procedure. But hey, it was cheap.

Riga

2011-04-28T19:24:00.000+02:00

The last stop of the journey with my parents in the Baltics. The capitol city of Latvia is a gem of Art Nouveau architecture. A very European city with a well preserved historic center. The city's main marketing theme is that Riga, as a former member of the Hanseatic League, is still very much a medieval city. We ate several times in basement restaurants that looked authentic and also only served food, which would have been available 500 years ago. Circled by walls Riga easily translates into modern times. Outdoor cafes are the norm.

My grandma on my mothers side got increasingly sick during the time we were there. My parents were considering heading home early because she was about to die. Because the time difference between the booked flight and the next option was only 2 days we decided that they should stay.
We went to the cinema, visited the market which is housed in the old Zeppelin hangars, the traditional soviet cake and spend some time in the sun along the channel in the city center. We discovered remote parts of the city to see all the beautiful architecture. Rigas art nouveau is among the best in the world.

We also made a day trip to Juermala, which is the beach town of Riga. Foggy and cold is not how I picture a beach. But the locals digged it. And my parents liked it as well, as you can see in the picture.
Eventually we had to say goodbye. Afterwards I checked into a hostel for the night and checked the Internet. My grandma died about the time my parents had left for the airport. Rest in Peace Grossi

Pasvalys

2011-04-25T19:23:00.000+02:00

I do not remember the name of the country style mansion where we slept. It was in the middle of nowhere. A three stories villa with high ceiling roofs. A huge garden around it and many workers trying to renovate the place which was already in a very good state, all financed by the European Union.

The next day we went to Latvia to a place called Rundale Palace. A baroque mansion built in the 18th century. We discovered the elaborate rooms and bedrooms of the dukes that used to live here with plastic bags wrapped around are feet. A true masterpiece in the middle of nowhere.

We also visited some ancient hills that were artificially put together by medieval villagers, to built their houses upon them. Afterwards they fortified the hills with wooden defences similar to the one visible in the movie The Thirteened Warrior by Antonio Banderas.

Vilnius

2011-04-22T19:23:00.000+02:00

The capitol of Lithuania is a big place with many one way streets. We had to hassle a lot until we found our hotel. Which we upgraded to an apartment. We spent 3 nights here and were able to rest for a change. The schedule we gave ourselves was quite ambitious. But because of that we were also able to see a lot. There are many historic buildings throughout the city. Soviet buildings are almost not to be found in the center. Many orthodox churches with golden roofs are scattered everywhere. People are generally quite religious and do the cross on the chest, if they pass anything of religious value.

We ate at good restaurants and had wild pigs and other stuff we don't really know back home.

We also visited the obvious castle from where its easy to overlook the city center. Cars try to squeeze through the narrow streets. The Cathedral of Vilnius at the foot of the castle hill resembles a roman temple. After three days we went on to the country side again.

Kaunas

2011-04-21T19:23:00.000+02:00

After a too long ride from Nida and some rain on the way we arrived in the university city of Kaunas.

As second largest city in Lithuania it is the centre of economic activity and Lithuanian culture. First we had to mess around with the one way streets, than we had to organize a map and finally managed to find the hotel. It was a pleasant surprise to see, that the hotel was a ritzy place and had all the amenities you could think of. I took bath in the bathtub. We took a short stroll, but were already to tired for sightseeing.

The next day we went to the Trakai Island Castle which is a fairy tell castle, with a museum inside. I enjoyed that very much and recommend to visit it.

Nida

2011-04-20T19:22:00.000+02:00

Nida is situated on the Curonian Split, a narrow piece of land reaching from Russia (Kaliningrad) all the way to Lithuania.

After taking the ferry to the island we headed to Nida. A village with 1600 inhabitants who live in funny houses at the Russian border. We stayed in a rather narrow room. The temperature was still quite low, but we managed to get out several times. First we visited a little bird sanctuary. The noise of all the birds was overwhelming. Later we visited the border to Russia. Some fierce fighting took place in the 20th century. Then we visited the Baltic side of the peninsula, which is much more windy than the Curonian sea side.

All settlements here are on the eastern side. One ill fated village got buried under a moving sand dune. It is now a small park with great views from the top. Thomas Mann spend some time here in the early thirties.

After just one night we went on to Kaunas.

Palanga

2011-04-17T10:47:00.000+02:00

In the morning we drove to Liepaja which is a major port town which got a lot of attention from the Soviet government. They set up their Baltic naval base and built warehouses for nuclear weapons just north of the city.

The city is trying to reinvent itself and is doing pretty good at it. We enjoyed the main sights with the exception of the naval port, which can only be visited with an appointment. Nice churches, a lively market and pedestrian friendly common space surprised us positively. After another warm soup we headed south to Palanga.

It is the Latvias busiest sea side resort and has a beach that lasts for 18km. There is also a wonderful city park in which we could even see deers grazing. Only a few of the many restaurants were open when we passed because the high season starts later. We drank a few beer after strolling the city and ate good.

Kuldiga

2011-04-14T19:21:00.000+02:00

My mother had to drive all day from Karli around Riga up to the most northern point of the Bay of Riga and then down an outrages road down the west coast to Kuldiga. There was not much to see initially besides a huge dam south of Riga. After getting lost while driving along the bay we stopped at several places up to the tip of the peninsula. There mom took a short bath in the water which was close to freezing.

The road south from there has not seen any EU money yet and was in a poor condition. After driving carefully (slow) we finally arrived in Kuldiga. The apparent hotel, which was more an apartment didn`t look like much, but inside we found a newly furnished flat with all the gadgets you wouldn't expect. We cooked ourselves and had a family evening while dad was talking about his youth, where he travelled and how he met my mother.

The town is rather small and is full of one way streets. There is the common pedestrian, shopping street and a old castle consisting of a hill with signs of what used to be here.

There is also a river passing through with a long dam. By now most, if not all of the snow had disappeared.

Cēsis

2011-04-12T09:53:00.000+02:00

In the middle of Cēsis is the castle park. It has been nicely renovated and is at a lake. The town has the usual cathedral and narrow alleys. Modern gas stations are next to crumbling wooden houses. There were quite a few tourist buses, but still very much on the sideline.

After a few hours we went on to Karli a village consisting of a hand full of houses. There was a nice old mansion that has been polished to meet the demands of the few tourists that pass through here. The Latvian owner talked a bit about the history of the house and more interestingly about the recent history since Latvia joined the EU. At the beginning they implemented some business friendly reforms and suddenly this chronically, economically depressed country at the Baltic Sea grew in the high single digits for several years until the US bubble collapsed. Now they are trying to get back on track. The mansion is in the middle of nature and a very relaxed place. We ate good fish for dinner and headed out early, since the longest journey of the holiday was awaiting.

Tartu

2011-04-12T09:28:00.000+02:00

A university city in the interior. While Tallinn is the political and the financial capitol , Tartu is the intellectual and cultural center. The Livonian Knights took over the settlement in the 13th century during their northern crusades. Tartu also became a city of the Hanseatic League, a multinational merchant association. Later on a Polish Lithuanian alliance took over followed by the Swedish. Eventually imperial Russia took control. Afterwards the usual Nazi and Communist story laid their mark.

We arrived after spending some time in Viljandi, a city west of Tartu. A nice lake shore town with a lot of old people because everybody with ambitions goes to Tallinn or Tartu.

In Tartu we took a short stroll through the old town, which was OK. Brick buildings dominate while the wooden houses are only visible in the outskirts. We ate at an gunpowder cellar which was built by order of Cathrine the Great. It boasts a Guinness record of having the highest pub ceiling in the world (11m). After drinking some beers - even my mother drank a bit - we were tired and retired early. Next day we were off to Latvia and drove through the beautiful landscape which is populated only very sporadic. Bison's, bears and deers still roam this area. But we only saw some deers and a lot of stork nests. An ancient believe is that if a stork decides to nest next to somebodies house, they will have more luck at getting children. So every house has an elevated platform ready for a stork looking for property.

Pärnu

2011-04-11T19:18:00.000+02:00

Pärnu is unsurprisingly on the Pärnu Bay. The cold wind blows in from the frozen sea upon the beach. Only a few people are around and everybody is thinking about getting somewhere else. The view is quite nice, but the chill is just to much. The city itself is mostly built with wooden houses. Some of them two stories high. Even some churches are wooden. They also have a modern mall. Restaurants are running in low gear since the high season is still to come. Our hotel had the atmosphere of a hospital.

The cold weather reflects in the characters that get bread here. Everybody is rather reserved and take a close look a foreigners. Even the receptionist looked a little surprised. Old soviet style sanatoriums line the beach and a newly built modern spa resort at the end of the beach. Next day we headed inland in the hope to avoid the cold Bries.

Haapsalu

2011-04-10T20:00:00.000+02:00

This seaside resort on the west coast of Estonia is famous for curative mud and is where Estonians go to during summer to hang out at the beach.

When we passed through here, there was snow on the beach and people were ice fishing.

I was still struggling with my blister and broke through the ice once. My dad was freezing as well. We just stopped for the day and then moved on. But we took a look at the old castle that dominates the town.

A legend goes that a priest fell in love with a young girl. He gave her boys clothes to be able to take her into the castle. But one day she was discovered and dumped alive between two newly erected walls. During full moon nights in August, according to the legend, you can see her shade shimmering through. That's why each year there is a small fair in her honor.

Warm soup, gas pedal....

Tallinn

2011-04-09T19:45:00.000+02:00

The capitol city of Estonia is the most northern place in Europe where you can find beer at a reasonable price.

So it is the logic point of entry for a backpacker visiting New Europe from the top down. Is was the beginning of Summer and the weather was still very chilly. The salt water in the bay area was frozen.The imperfect setting to meet my parents for the first time in 28 months. We unspectacularly met at the airport and checked into a prebooked apartment my father had organized. He had planned the whole itinerary for the 2 coming weeks and booked all accommodation in advance. We also had a car which made us independent of bus schedules or slow trains. So I just laid back for the journey to come and enjoyed the show. Tallinn is a typical medieval with a turbulent history.

During the Northern Crusades Tallinn was under Danish rule and later on under Teutonic Knights. The ladder have laid their mark on all Eastern European countries at some point in time. They built castles and spread the word of god with weapons.

More recently they were occupied by the Nazis and later by the communists. 1991 they reemerged from darkness and became a member of the EU, NATO and the capitalist world.

We walked around town a lot, stumbled up some old churches, checked out a museum, ate at delicious medieval restaurants, and drank the local spirits. It was nice to see my parents again and we had a lot to catch on. Generally I think that they haven't changed and I also feel the same before I left.

London

2011-04-07T00:41:00.000+02:00

Once the epicenter of the world. The world once belonged to this country. They laid foot in all parts of the world and drank Earl Grey next to the Himalayas, the Caribbean Sea, while fighting pirates at sea, in the sand, next to giraffes and in a Chinese noodle shop.
The historic significance is all over you face in this city. But even so, they are able to translate perfectly into modern times. Skyscrapers next to stone churches. All different ethnicity's are represented - mostly Asian.

I landed after a stopover in Dubai at Heathrow. I put my backpack in a luggage storage facility out of the space age attended by an Eastern European women and I paid a similar amount as I usually pay for accommodation. Then the tube brought me to Piccadilly circus. I walked around and soon noticed that all pedestrians in London seem to be tourists. I visited Trafalgar square, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Parliament, Buckingham Palace, The National Art museum, Tower Bridge, Hyde Park, Harrods, downtown, the walk along the Themes and many more not so famous things you are bound to bump into - basically did what every tourist does. In the evening everybody heads to the pubs or home into the suburbs.
I ate from the supermarket which almost allows you to eat enough for the same amount as in a restaurant in Africa.
In the evening I had blisters from walking the whole day and slept on a bench at the airport. Next day I was off to Tallinn.

Ezulwini

2011-03-24T09:36:00.000+01:00

Sharman whom I met in Maputo works in Swaziland to prevent HIV from spreading. Swaziland has the highest percentage of HIV in the world - 40%. She told me about Lidwala lodge in Ezulwini Valley. In this valley the Swazi monarchy is based. During my stay the government was running out of money 3 months into the year and couldn’t pay there officials and nurses anymore. They were taking their anger to the street - peacefully.

Volunteering is big in Swaziland and people are willing to pay for it. The average price is something like 600 Euros per week, accommodation and food included. On top of that they pay a lot for tours, alcohol and random stuff. The NGO’s are run like business and are big money for the owners. I got to know Marie from Denmark, who is working there in conservation. We spent three weeks together laughing and holding hands.

During the day she was working so I had nothing to do. That’s why I made a giant nutcracker with some spare wood from the back and my Swiss Army Knife. It took me 4 days to finish it. The inspiration for the nutcracker I got from Sapa, Vietnam. There they use it to crack the rice seeds out of the void. Since rice is not big around here Marie brought up the idea of a nutcracker.

Marie’s mother was visiting her for a week and I wanted to leave, so we said goodbye. My plan was to go to Durban. But this has been the plan for the last 3 days and I am still in Swaziland - Swaziland Backpackers which dangerously resembles Mombasa Backpackers. I have to catch my flight.
Eventually I went back to Lidwala for a couple days until I definitly had to leave and run to Cape Town - my last stop in Africa for now.

Tofo

2011-03-24T09:35:00.000+01:00

A bit short on time and fearful of too much backtracking I decided to go only as far north as Tofo/ Inhambane. A beautiful place in paradise. Friendly locals, a lot of good parties, the perfect beach, a true bungalow style backpackers and good people made my stay there very special. The nearest ATM is reached in 3 hours and I had to do that twice.

Tofo consists out of the market, some low key restaurants around it, 2 dive schools, and a dozen bars. The barkeeper at Fatima has been working there since 15 months. I met him in Maputo because he has overstayed his visa for 3 months and now wanted to walk past the Mozambique border officials to the South African side. South Africa has to accept any South African - even if he does not have an exit stamp from another country. He did that successfully and we met up in Tofo again. We were wingmen’s for 2 weeks and had the best time. We sipped away each afternoon on the sundeck drinking Tipo (rum, 500ml, 1.60$). The coolest people came through and the parties were a great fusion of cultures. One night Michael got a gun to his head because of rivalry between the different nightclubs. He lost is mojo afterwords and became an asshole. He had a 4 minutes fist fight with his best friend. The next morning both of them didn’t know the reason for it. The owner kicked him out of the hostel because of excessive partying, but first he had to settle his 3’500$ tab. Paradise turned to hell and I left.

During my stay I had an arty phase. I painted, I drew faces into the vast beach that corrected the perspective from the beach, I mutilated a pineapple and I built a house. Good times.

Maputo

2011-03-24T09:19:00.000+01:00

I was in Maputo for 6 days and managed to stay in 3 different hostels and get harassed by the corrupt police 3 times and was asked to come to the police station twice. Twice I agreed that we should go right know and that I am ready and twice I was released without charges. The corrupt police stop everybody who looks foreign and try to frighten them with all kind of shit if they can’t produce any papers. It’s so common that everybody has a story to tell after visiting Mozambique. Especially if you have a car you are bound to get in trouble.

After crossing the border we tried to get to Punto d’Ouro. On the sandy road everybody told us that we will not be able to pass the last stretch. We believed into are drivers ability and luck. We got stuck. Some guys helped us to take the car out of the sand, after greeting us with “Where do you guys think you are - fucking Miami?” . We drove back to Maputo, now knowing about the ferry service across the bay of Maputo. We arrived late on Saturday in Fatima’s, after 10 hours of useless driving in South Mozambique.

There we got drunk instantly and joined up with Sharman and an Australian girl. We went to the train station, which was built by the Portuguese some 100 plus years ago. The bar is where the ticket counter used to be. The dance floor is next to the tracks. It is really cool and expensive.

Maputo itself is quite nice for an African city - as modern as Nairobi. Some colonial buildings still exist, but there are still many houses in a decaying condition in the middle of the city. The markets are all over the sidewalks. People speak mostly Portuguese and understand Spanish pretty good. Poverty is visible throughout the country.

At weekends people drive their cars to the Costa del Sol just north of the center and park at the beach and use their hut as a bar. A spectacle in it self.

It was time to say bye to Michael and George with whom I had a great time. I hope you guys come to Switzerland one day.

Krueger National Park

2011-03-24T09:18:00.001+01:00

George’s parents have a time sharing business so we were allowed to stay at this lodge for 4 days. But since we came a day late we were there only for 3 days. The ride from Coffee Bay to Komatipoort took us 20 hours. The Swiss guy without a driving license in the back and the South African and New Zealander sharing the burden of driving through the RSA. During the night we ended up on really small roads with owls instead of tarmac. At 2 o’clock in the night we arrived and checked into the wonderful bungalow with air-condition, modern kitchen, braai place and with direct view of the Krueger Park. Rhinos, elephants and impalas showed up to drink.

We drank goon and ate as good as possible. The black people who work there live outside the lodge in a compound. We brought wine and love and they thanked us with their best hospitality. They even played us some songs with there funny instruments made out of plastic bottles and wood.

The phantom like two young American girls we never met and the rest of the people who hang out there are middle aged or older, mostly white but also some black people. George who has been in England for the last few years couldn’t believe how much South Africa has changed in recent years. He had never seen black people playing tennis in a posh place like that. He liked it a lot.

The next day we went into Krueger NP. George has been there about 30 times before. He knows it very well and was good at spotting. Once again I saw the Big Five with the exception of the leopard. I am staring to doubt that this animal actually exists. Krueger is nice, but I still think that the savanna National Parks of East Africa are in a different league. The bush of South Africa allows you to see 20 meter in both directions, while in the Masai Mara you can see a kilometer. You just constantly pass game without seeing it.

The next day we were of to Mozambique.

Coffee Bay

2011-03-24T09:15:00.000+01:00

Some ship back in the days once sank in the bay of Coffee Bay. The ship was loaded with coffee beans. The boxes were found by settlers at the beach and they decided to name this bay Coffee Bay. This laid back, low key place is in the province of Transkei. Transkei used to be reserve for the black people during Apartheid. Basically there are no white people around. It is a hilly area which is difficult to use for farming. But the views are phenomenal and the dramatic cliffs at the shore overwhelming. We camped at the water, drank goon, bought mussels from the local fisherman (after not finding any ourselves) and hiked around the area. The grassy hills with a healthy green go as far as you can see. The houses are very scattered and built in the distinctively African style - round with straw on top. One house sadly burned down one day. About 5kg of mussels cost about 6$ to buy. To prepare them you put a little water into a huge pot, a lot of garlic and butter. Then you steam the mussels until all of them have opened aka died. Delicious!

Chintsa

2011-03-24T09:12:00.000+01:00

By mouth propaganda the nicest backpacker in South Africa is quite cool. Each bungalow has a kitchen on the lower side and the dorm on the second floor. That’s where we drank the first time and then we went with Stacey to the main bar where we got hammered. Hung-over we woke up, fixed ourselves an Aromat toast, realizing that we haven’t seen the dunes and the beach - we took a short stroll down. Only to return 15 minutes later with another 400km ahead of us.

Addo Elephant National Park

2011-03-24T09:11:00.000+01:00

The village of Addo is just big enough to call it a village. We found a butchery, a bit of liquor and a nice hostel with a cozy living room with TV. So we watched "The Dude" and "American Beauty".

The next morning we headed into the Park - at South African prices. Lions, kudus, zebras, ostriches, turtles, a jackal are also there, but they will always be in the shadow of the 2'000 elephants living here. At one point we could see about 300 elephants at the same time taking a bath. I never saw anything like it. The park used to be 10% of the current size, but the government is buying up land around the park to expand it. It now stretches all the way from the sea to the steep plateau. An aerial view of the park shows the patchy shape of the park.

After our nice, little safari we still had to drive 300km to Chintsa, since it seemed impossible to reach Coffee Bay before we would have turned into complete lunatics.

Jeffreys Bay

2011-03-24T09:08:00.000+01:00

This is the best party place at the whole coast of SA. Filled with travelers from all over. Some pro surfers, a few hippies and overlanders make it a mix of everybody you can meet. I didn’t see many people surfing, but I saw many people with surf boards. I didn’t see many people at the bar, but many with boxed wine and the in South Africa ever present Swazi marijuana.

We stayed two nights and partied hard, didn’t visit the city at all, played sand golf on the beach and ended up with many stories I don’t want to share on this blog.

Next we were of for detoxing in Addo Elephant National Park.

Plettenberg Bay

2011-03-24T09:04:00.000+01:00

Plet is a short minibus ride from Knysna. White people don’t know anything about minibuses and hardly ever use it. I never saw a white South African in a minibus. It took me a while to figure out that minibuses are not leaving from the taxi rank because they have to pay a fee to the owner of the rank. So you just go to the main road and hold a 10 Rand bill in your hand and wait. That is much cheaper than the BazBus most tourists use to get a around South Africa. It’s about 10% of the price.

Plet is a town in the hills next to an once more beautiful, endless beach. Nice houses surround the lagoon and try to get a clear view of the horizon. I stayed in the tent once more because South African hostel prices are ridiculously expensive (20$ for the dorm).

I had some really nice evenings at the braai fire and met cool people to hang out with. The last day I went to the National Park on the peninsula just 10km west of town. Seals live there among birds and smaller animals. A cave served the earliest inhabitants as a home and the ANC as a hideout during their struggle for power. The hike was quite cool with ever changing environments. Cliffs, bush lands, trees, dunes, clouds and the sea were playing with the colors and made this hidden jewel definitely worth visiting.

After a 10km walk back along the beach and playing with a tennis ball for 9.5km we met George and Michael again and the three of us were of to the surf city of Jeffrey’s Bay.

Knysna

2011-03-24T08:59:00.000+01:00

Knysna is set in a bay area with a 100m wide gorge where the tide goes in and out all day long. Each cycle includes the equivalent of 20’000’000 elephants running in and out. As an engineer I was fantasizing about the potential of a tide power plant which could provide electricity to a lot of people and create jobs in a country with 30 percent unemployment. Increasing sea levels could be controlled and low lying properties saved. But the powerful yacht club is apparently against it and all rich decision takers in the city are yacht owners. The views from the heads east and west of the gorge allow you to see where Vasco de Gama sailed past and the whole lagoon inside, the smart neighborhoods and in the hills the townships. It was here where I met Michael and George. They know each other from England where they used to work in the same bar. Michael showed George is home country New Zealand and now George was returning the favor with taking him around South Africa. For the next two weeks I was traveling with them all the way up to Mozambique. There good guys with edges.

Wilderness

2011-03-24T08:58:00.001+01:00

This is a village that used to be on the train line to Durban. The train lines have been covered by mudslides and vegetation. The amazing waves smashing in for a stretch of 30km is the main attraction. During low tide a lot of sand is exposed and the combination of wind and waves are steaming the waterfront. My hostel was elevated at the end of the village with a terrace overlooking the whole spectacle. A kitchen with sea view and the dorm bed just next to the terrace made me feel like living in a penthouse. I met a gay Spanish and South African couple who invited me to there house and took me to some nice bays. (Had to avoid a Spanish move)

I mostly chilled after all the hustle of Cape Town and Stellenbosch and spent some nights sober.

Mossel Bay

2011-03-24T08:36:00.000+01:00

We arrived in the afternoon after enjoying the wonderful view throughout the coastal area, which sometimes looks similar to how you would imagine the “Yellowstone Park” to look like.

Mussels Bay is the first major city on the “Garden Route” which leads up to the “Wild Coast” . Mussels Bay may used to have charm but the refineries outside of town have had an impact. People are fishing less and working in big companies. The city itself is laid back and also clearly segregates rich whites from blacks. We took a dorm bed in a train that has been put to rest at the coast. Quite funny. Talking of which - burping Stacey was also there and after quickly checking the tourist attractions and the Sea we started drinking and kept it up till late. The bars were quite empty, but we encountered some characters like a sixty years old break-dancer.

But it is not a place where you stay more than one night. So we drove of to Wilderness, where he dropped me because he was in a time situation.

Stellenbosch

2011-01-23T12:31:00.003+01:00

The wine region and university town just an hour with the commuter train north of Cape Town lays Stellenbosch. I met Jacques Kratz in Windhoek who studies here and I met him here again. I was there one week before Uni starts and all the kids arrived one week early to get organized and to party. South Africans like to drink in general but in Stellenbosch there are no checks because the kids are on a loose leach for the first time. Fraternities and normal clubs and bars offer everything students want. Boxed half liter wines for 2.5$ and everything from pizza to foam parties.

I camped at an interesting backpackers which is also frequented by overlanders heading to the northern countries. Wine is the obvious beverage and the owners were exceptionally relaxed. I met farting Stacey from Canada, Jacques Kratz’s gang, South African gypsies and the average people from London.

The vineyards are scattered throughout the region and public transport is bad. All white people are rich or studying and all the black people live in the township next door and try to get a slice of the money cake parents give to their loved ones. Most poor people walk wherever they want to go so local public transport sucks. So I hiked from vineyard to vineyard. Fences cut of paths all the time, high walls hinder you to see the magic landscape. It’ s difficult to be a pedestrian in an area where white folks want to feel secure.

The museums gave some insight about how live looked here during the last 300 years. Slavery, horses, rural life and business opportunities have been the driving forces behind this now wonderful region. But in the past a lot of things went wrong here and you can still see it.

I met a guy from Whales who gave me a lift to Mussels Bay. He is a basest and played in front of 30’ 000 people in Glasbury, England.

Cape Town

2011-01-23T12:31:00.001+01:00

After the 20 hours haul from Windhoek to “The Mother City” , I was delighted by a place that proved to be the nicest city I have seen in Africa. Initially a Dutch settlement to cut the journey from Rotterdam to Jakarta in half, it turned British and grew larger while the Dutch moved on to “The Great Trek”. Colonial houses remain largely in tact and are major tourist attractions. Surrounded by the “Table Mountain” and “Lions Head” the city center is at the most south-eastern point of Africa. Basically a European city with an African twist. Long Street is the cheapest and hippest place for young people. Bars, clubs, boutiques, Kebab take always and liquor shops are everywhere, while dealers, parking safety “officials”, drunken people and thieves hanging on the street below.

The “Waterfront” is the posh shopping area for privileged citizens and tourists. It was completely reshaped for the World Cup and is only a short walk away from the famous Cape Town Stadium which is now home to the Kaizer Chiefs. Old Dutch style houses are responsible for the charm the Waterfront has. Smart restaurants make it sophisticated and the lack of traffic enjoyable. Cruise ships, whole oil rigs, plenty of fishing trawlers and yachts are scattered all over. There is a ship yard in the middle of the pedestrian area which allows unusual insight.

The whole southern coast of Cape Town is a big waterfront with smelly seaweed, nice parks and smart mansions. You pass the Stadium you walk through a beautiful golf park with lakes and neat gardens and end up a Sea point. If you would walk all the way you’ d end up at the actual “Cap of Good Hope” where penguin’s seals and baboons live.

I walked up the Table Mountain all the way from Long Street and all the way back. It took me 7 hours and was very hot. The sun is out most of the times and a wind is always present. The view from on top is astonishing and took the last breath I had left.

A cosmopolitan city at the end of the world (the closest industrialized country is about a 10 hours flight away) reminded me a lot of Buenos Aires. I love the two cities equally.

Windhoek

2011-01-23T12:30:00.002+01:00

Windhoek has had a turbulent history. Apartheid was sort off also introduced here. Black people had to live in certain areas and were moved with force several times throughout history. Black people are still very poor and live in townships outside the city. It is here where some guy threatened to kill me - that is a first timer for me. The city it self is not to bad. The commercial area has taking over. Shops and malls litter the place. The colonial buildings are quite nice and look similar to the north coast of Germany.
We gave the car back and tried to settle the bill among each other and sort of succeeded - but alcohol was necessary. After a short stroll around the city we retreated to the hostel and joined each other for our last night together. The next day C&C flew back to Switzerland. I had a really nice time with you guys. I experienced more than I usually experience in a time frame of two months in one month. Thank you.
Later on I spent a whole week in the card board box and got drunk with the Jaques Kratz (Namibian) and chilled in the pool. Needed a break. I decided to skip the south of Namibia and the west of South Africa due to a lack of public transport and interest. Cape Town was next.

Swakopmund

2011-01-23T12:30:00.001+01:00

On the way down to Swakopmund we stopped at Seal Point. Here 100'000 seals live throughout the year. They stink because some of them died and rot in the sun and because they shit where they live. They regularly head out to the sea to fish and surf the waves. There is a constant noise level because they fight for the "best" spots. An amazing truly breathtaking place.
We thought about staying at Henties Bay, but decided otherwise and went all the way to Swakopmund. Apparently the Mallorca of Namibia. But the thing with Namibia is that everything always seems to be deserted. 2 million people live on a piece of land that is double the size of Germany. Swakopmund has some colonial buildings, but the main attraction is the sea, the waves and the beach. The water is too cold to bath, with the exception of apparently some Finish people.
We ate good at a nice restaurant and chilled most of the time in our "REKA home". We tried to explore the crazy nightlife of Swako, but we only encountered some teenagers with pimples. So we played some pool while Carla was fighting of the men - women seem to be scarce in this town.
In the morning we took a look at the dunes that are just south of the Swako and then headed to the capitol city of Windhoek.

Skeleton Coast

2011-01-23T12:25:00.000+01:00

There is nothing here. It is the end of the world. There are only some welwitschia plants left, but they also disappear after a while. We entered the "Skeleton Cost National Park" where sand and stone dominates. Animals are not visible. We descended the long way to the Atlantic Ocean on a dirt road. On the cost itself their are many shipwrecks off the many unfortunate explorers and merchants that underestimated the "Humboldt Stream" that brings cold water from the Antarctica. It is a scene that could be on the moon. I enjoyed this place very much and felt small compared with this vast desert. Occasionally you see old rusting oil rigs or cranes that have been washed many kilometers inland over time. The water is terribly cold and currents can be expected. It is astonishingly unfriendly to life and special because of that. Nobody could survive here. After about 6 hours in this desert we left the Skeleton Coast National Park and entered the Skeleton Cost Recreational Area which is more suited for tourists. We found a camping place in the middle of nowhere where mostly Afrikaans people from the RSA go for fishing holiday. Fog is constantly covering the scene close to the ocean and it can get quite cold during the night. We ate a rather shitty meal and made fun of the culture less Afrikaner who where drinking all the time and apparently tried to look stupid while listening to horrible pop music. We thought of it as a cultural soap opera. C&C&T agreed that we should get out of here first thing in the morning.

Damaraland

2011-01-23T12:24:00.002+01:00

The Damaraland is the gateway to the Skeleton coast. Life is really though here. Hardly any people manage to survive in this environment anymore. There are still free living animals around outside any National Parks. We saw baboons, antelopes and heard about elephants patrolling the area. Otherwise the only way to make money is to sell stuff to the tourists who occasionally pass by in their rented Toyota Hillux. Fake ancient stone paintings are advertised throughout the road. We lost one tyre on the way and managed to fix it more or less among ourselves. Even though one guy helped us a bit and at the end wanted some petrol for his services. We only had diesel. We found a lodge hidden in a small valley where campers mostly stop. The river beds are dry and there is hardly any vegetation left. We stopped here for two nights two rest from all the driving and chill at the pool and sip some beer with an occasional stroll up some hills to enjoy the views.
It is the kind of area spiritual people would refer to as being spiritual. Only wind makes noise otherwise there is nothing. It is close to the end of the world - but this should be are next stop.

Etosha National Park

2011-01-23T12:24:00.001+01:00

We arrived in the posh Ongava lodge in the afternoon. We were let in and had to drive through their own little private game park. Where we saw the first wild animals since the lower Zambezi. But this time in abundance. The lodge was beautiful with a view of a waterhole, swimming pool and a bar that was up to the expectations of my Swiss co-travellers. We camped in the back, basically behind a fence that was separating us from the cats outside. Pretty cool.
The next two day we drove around in the Etosha National Park. Full of giraffes, some cats and small game. We had a good time safariing on ourselves. For C&C in was their first game experience and their enthusiasm made me enjoy it even a bit more than expected.
We spent New Years Eve at the lodge and ate from the buffet. The food was quite average - eventually we went to bed before twelve to leave early bird in the morning to drive to the other side of the park. There we slept one more night at another road side hotel. Carla was understandingly quite tired from all the driving behind us and the many kilometres ahead of us didn't help. Next place of interest was the Damaraland.

Grootfontein

2011-01-23T12:23:00.002+01:00

Racism is big in Namibia. The whites and the blacks mutually hate each other. A veterinarian fence cuts the country in two. The northern "black" part is much smaller than the big, more fertile "white" part in the south, even though there are many more black people than white. The veterinarian fence makes it impossible for the northerners to sell cattle to the port cities in the south because they don't have the refrigeration chain in place. But only from the southern part it is possible to tab the lucrative European meat market. In general the northern part is full of disenfranchised blacks and the south is full of white farmers with huge lands.
Why do I write about that. Because the first man we got to know on the southern side was a German racist talking shit about black people all the time with a silly accent from Saxony. He annoyed us with a persistence that only was exceeded by his ignorance.
The place it self was more or less a farm/ butchery/ game park/ hostel. We were the only guests. We bought some game meat from him (zebra) and braid in the evening after a rough ride through the pampas. In the morning we ate breakfast on top of a little tower he built. He was snooping around and found us and started to annoy us even more. We packed our stuff and got out of this place.
Grootfontein (according to the map a big city) was small and boring. After spending too much time in the bank we were off to the "Etosha Park".

Divundu

2011-01-23T12:23:00.001+01:00

We got our car, checked the equipment and started to drive through the "Capriri Strip". This strip used to be really dangerous because the Angolan civil war spilled into this region. Today it is demilitarised but the people haven't come back yet. Every 50-100km there is a very small village on the side. The road is pretty much straight and can get slightly boring. Carla confidently drove along the road, where signs warning of elephants and other cars are the main attractions. After arriving in Divundu we took the turn off to drive to a hostel in the bush.
The world famous Okavango passes through Divundu into Botswana where it forms the delta. We camped on top of the Hillux and cooked our own food with the provided gas cooker and ate with the Okavango at our feet.
The hostel itself is pretty cool with lovely features. The toilet seats are as big as the throne of Queen Elisabeth with a open view of the river. Hippos in the background.
I enjoyed it very much there, but we had to go on and kill some kilometers. Another grueling 600km were waiting for us the next day.

Katima Mulilo

2011-01-23T12:22:00.000+01:00

Splashing time. Katima Mullilo has nothing to offer besides big supermarkets, gas stations and ATM's. We bought what we needed and decided to head twoards a lodge on the Zambezi which would be listed under 'upper class" in the LP. It was a truly nice place with swimming pool, restaurant, air-con bungalows and a huge, fat warthog called Wally. Wally weighs approximately 100kg and thinks it weighs 10kg. Spoiled like a puppy it wants to play with customers all the time. Customers obviously get frightened and back off. Wally then charges and then you better hide because it has big teeth. It hit Christian once in the leg which made him make a scream of fear and panic. It chased me as well. I ran as fast as possible, but I couldn't get rid of Wally. I ran around the restaurant table several times before admitting that this vicious beast is as fast as me. I knocked down chairs in his way and took refuge in the reception. I told the receptionist that I couldn't deal with this shit. She shrugged of any concerns of paying customers and told me that I just have to show Wally some love. Afterwords Wally attacked a wedding ceremony which dispersed in all directions.
The rest of our stay we barricaded us away from the beast and enjoyed the tranquility off the place and the luxury of C&C room.
The next day we collected our fully equipped Toyota Hillux, that would take us around Namibia.

Sesheke

2011-01-23T12:19:00.002+01:00

The last outpost of Zambia before Namibia's "Capriri Strip" begins, this little village lives of the fact that they are the gateway to Namibia. The hotel was alright, but the weather was rather grey. The advertised hippos were neither visible nore audible. We played cards and drank beer. The friendly hotel owner of Dutch descend cooked a wonderful meal for us and a Zambian business man who has spent Christmas in this place alone away from his family because he was waiting for spare parts for a gas station which has been broken for 3 months. He was really kind and we had a good chat with him.
I was desperate because I was out of cigarettes. I found a young doctor at the bar and hired him to drive to the center for me and buy me some cigarettes, He did so and I paid him with a prolonged conversation about Africa, Europe and the differences.
The Dutch owner constantly complained that the real boss around this place is his Zambian wife. "you better do what she says!".
The next day we were off to Namibia. Basically we went to the other side of the Zambezi river.

Livingston

2011-01-23T12:19:00.001+01:00

Home of the mighty Victoria Falls, Livingston is a major tourist place throughout Africa. The falls can be viewed from Zam or Zim, but even though the falls are better seen from the Zimbabwean side, we settled with the Zambian side. Visa cost are out of control in Zim and you have to buy a new one for Zam if you come back.
Anyway, the falls were beautiful anyway, even though there is not much water during December. We spent Christmas at the falls and went to a fantastic Indian restaurant in the evening.
The backpackers was OK, providing some good meals, cerveza, pool, ping pong and some other convenient stuff. Just to splash a bit we went to a 4-5 star hotel and drank a beer. The pool was bigger, the place nicer and the staff politer - but it missed character.

Lower Zambezi

2011-01-23T12:18:00.000+01:00

The Zambezi River comes all the way from Angola to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique. We visited it at the Zim-Zam border and set up our tent at the shore with the hippos in sight. Actually Christian and Carla (C+C) rented a tent which was more a house with toilet, shower, two double beds and a roof on top of the tent. I set up my weekender just next to it - the servants quarter.
We stared out at the nature a lot, occasionally went to the pool, drank all day, talked about the last two years and played Janisch. Joking about the Afrikaans tourists with their apparent lack of culture and a river safari rounded it up for us. Elephants and hippos outside the water were the major attractions.
Good times

Lusaka

2011-01-23T12:16:00.000+01:00

After an eight hour bus journey I arrived in Lusaka, the capitol of Zambia. There is Cairo street where all the high rises are and the businesses. West of the center the townships start. East are the "smart" white neighbor hoods and two shopping malls. White people are almost never walking. They use their Toyota Hillux to get from their mansion to the shopping mall and back. Most of them are South African, but there are also British and other random settlers around. I had to wait for my brother and his girlfriend for 10 days. So I updated my blog, bought some necessary gear and spent most of the time in the hostel. It had a pool and a bar which suited me very well. After playing chess, reading books, cooking and sleeping in the tent for 10 days Christian and Carla finally arrived. I never saw Carla before since I have left Switzerland before she met Christian. So we got to know us in Lusaka, which is not the best setting. I took them for a walk around with a visit at the National History Museum and told them what I knew about street wisdom in Africa.
Eventually I was happy to leave Lusaka, because it is a rather messy place with little to see.

South Luwanga NP

2010-12-11T16:34:00.001+01:00

After the long ride from Chipata we arrived late and I didn't make it to the Flat dogs Camp. So I slept in Mfuwe town (road with shops on the side). The next morning I got supplies and left for the hostel that sounded so good in the LP. It turned out to be very cool. Backpackers are allowed to camp in the canopies of the trees, overlooking the grass with all it´s wildlife. Baboons and smaller monkeys are roaming the area and peacefully eat what they can get or fight each other in a noisy spectacle. A couple of giant lizards are also around.
From the riverside you can look out at the hippos that are there in great numbers and making bass sounds all they long. In the evening time they come out of the water to eat the grass below the tent. So you can actually see these massive animals moving around. They are vegetarians and aggressive, but if they are afraid of something they run to the water. Because of their size and power they can run people over while running and kill them.
Elephants are also dangerous and people die regularly in this area, because the elephants have decided that the villages are part of their food gathering circles. The houses are usually just huts and if the elephants smell food they will use their power to get to the source of the taste and in the process killing the residents.
In the morning antelopes eat grass at the shore. I once saw a buffalo and apparently the river is littered with crocs, but I never actually saw one.
A few days in a row their was a huge massacre of insects. They were flying around the lights the whole evening until most of them died. The grounds were full of millions and millions of dead insects. This happens only once a year and I was lucky to wittiness it. Locals love this time because they collect the dead insects and eat them with Nshima, yummy.
I stayed there for a week and cooked my own stuff in the kitchen, which was surrounded by monkeys. I read a couple books and mostly stared out to the hippos. People that come here are either equipped with their own wheels or fly in. The lucrative lodges are owned mostly by South Africans and prices for game drives into the park are expensive. So I actually never went into the park and the title of this blog could be considered misleading. But there was so much game in the lodge and in the river, that it didn't make sense to pay for it.
The rainy season showed it´s ugly side and my stuff and myself got completely wet. I actually had to evacuate my tent and sleep in the toilet because it was getting messy. My tent is only suitable for summer and is actually called "The Weekender". I bought some plastic in the village to cover my tent.
I general I had a really nice time there and enjoyed the wildlife a lot. On my way back to Chipata I hitched and the guy had to replace two tires in 6 hours.

Chipata

2010-12-11T16:33:00.001+01:00

Chipata is the first town that pops up if you cross over from Malawi. Rather undeveloped with the exception of South African supermarkets and international banks Chipata is cruising into the 21st century.
The banks only accept Visa, which made it necessary for my mother to send some money via Western Union. This whole process took virtually a day, which can feel endless in the dullness of the country side.
I slept at the bus station which was always bustling and each guy that walked into the bus station and slightly looked like he´s there to take a bus was virtually attacked by about 15 competing bus company employees. It was funny to watch because they were mocking each other, yelling and fighting. Each passenger was completely upset after finally siting down in the coach.
There are some volunteers in this region, mostly from the Peace Chor. They sometimes come down from their villages to enjoy the cosmopolitan groove of Chipata. Otherwise there is not much happening.
I wanted to go to South Luangwa National Park which is only possible by minibus. And of course they only leave if they are full. So the drunk guy in charge of getting the bus full was telling me the night before to be there "8 o´clock sharp". Because I am Swiss I showed up 7.30. Of course there was nobody around and I had to wait 7 hours until the minibus started to move. The road up to Mfuwe is bad and took for ever. I was squeezed in the back of the minibus between well fed Lady's with my backpack on my lap and pot holes shaking the whole circus.
The villages on the road side are very small and very African. People live in poverty and are struggling to survive. "Economical suicide" is a big topic in this area.

Lilongwe

2010-12-11T16:32:00.000+01:00

My last stop in Malawi before my visa ran out was the capitol city. A rather unremarkable city with not much more than supermarkets and malls to go to. I stayed at a diocese which was maybe the highlight of Lilongwe for me. There was a little church, a kindergarden, a guesthouse and cemetery around the corner. Lilongwe is just not the travellers dream - scattered, without character. I better move on to my next blog entry before I bash harder than necessary.

Blantyre

2010-12-11T16:31:00.000+01:00

Blantyre is the economic center of Malawi. It hosts some high rises and modern buildings, but if you walk from downtown for 10 minutes into a direction you’ll end up on farmland. I didn't get better so I decided to go to the hospital which by coincidence was right next my guesthouse. The Indian doctor tried to do some test, but was only able to exclude some theories after getting the results. He decided to carpet bomb to make sure I'll get better. I did get better and was eating at a Middle Eastern and an Ethiopian place most of the time. Really good food. Eventually I had the energy again to walk around and found out that there is nothing to see and decided to head to Zambia without extending my Malawian visa.

Zomba

2010-12-11T16:30:00.000+01:00

The Zomba plateau is the main attraction around here. But even though I stayed there for 3 nights I was not able to see anything about it. The New Zealander left me after one night to rush down to Cape Town. So I was there with fever well over 39°C. It was raining and I never found a good restaurant. I didn’t eat anything anyway. Things where getting nasty and I moved to Blantyre to be close to a real doctor. I would like to write more about Zomba, but I only know about the supermarkets and the internet café.

Liwonde

2010-12-11T16:29:00.000+01:00

It took us for ever to reach the Safari Camp outside the gates of Liwonde National Park. The car was overloaded and we hit stones all the time. Since it was rental car we were a bit worried. We camped near the Lodge and cooked some vegetables we bought on the way. Elephant and hippo footprints and turds were surrounding us, but during the night no animals showed up. But it was possible to hear them. Sadly it rained during the night and everything got soaked. I was getting increasingly weak because of small appetite during the last few days and felt like I am going to be sick soon.

We did a canoe safari in the morning, which took us into a swamp with high gras. We saw a big group of elephants 50 meters away and observed them for while. The guide was extremely afraid because in the thick vegetation its impossible to move fast with the canoe and the elephants hate humans because they were poached in Mozambique during their civil war. We moved on and made are way up river. A group of hippos was chilling in the cool water after grassing all night. Some antelopes and war hogs were grassing on the shore. The wildlife was nice, but rather scarce. The morning mist over the water and in the rainforest was a nice sight by it self.

After a snack in the camp, we took the car of the German girls and visited the National Park by road for one hour. Baboons, different types of antelopes, more war hogs were all we saw. Then we had to leave because the girls had to rush to Blantyre and drop the New Zealander and me of in Zomba. The suspension of the car rear, right wheel broke and the tyre scratched on the chassis. To get rid of weight the girls went on by themselves and we took a minibus to Zomba.

Cape Mclear

2010-12-11T16:28:00.000+01:00

After arriving in Monkey Bay we (a couple from San Fran and a well travelled New Zealander) jumped on the back of a pick up which drove us to Cape Mclear. It used to be a hippy place in the early 80s, but lost its footing afterwards. Now it’s rebounding a bit and already has one up market hotel. People are still struggling and are desperate to sell you crap. We rented a nut shell, snorkeling gear and two paddles as thin as a stick and paddled out to an island. Close to the marine park we saw abundant fish life right in front of us. It was the second nicest snorkeling experience of my life - really cool. After paddling back we found a cheap bar and drank some beers. In the hotel we met two German doctors, who are travelling after their internship. They had a shitty car and they invited us to drive us down to Liwonde National Park the next day. We were in Cape Mclear only for a short time, but we saw most of it. A nice little place.

Lake Malawi

2010-12-11T16:18:00.000+01:00

The Ilala is an old ferry that has been built during the British occupation of Malawi. It is the only ferry on the lake and many villages depend on it. Besides of passengers it is vital for the “sipa” trade. It has three decks and two different classes. The cheap one sucks and you are close to the engine and the cargo. The first class is on the upper deck which is perfect to enjoy the sun. A bar serves the thirsty and a restaurant the hungry. But even the first class fails to deliver beds to the passengers, so you end up sleeping on the wood of the deck. Rats and cockroaches are common. We were playing chess or cards, chatting, reading or bitching about the speed of the ferry. It is actually not too slow but it hardly ever turns on the engine. In each place you stop (there are about 8 places you stop in 4 days) the unloading and loading takes easy 8 hours. The reason it takes so long is that with the exception of Nkatha Bay and Monkey Bay there are no deep sea ports. So the Ilala has to lower the 2 small boats on the side and then they have to fill them up with cargo, go to the beach, unload, come back, etc. It takes very long and if the waves are to high work gets suspended till better times.

On the way you see some random sights like the islands in the middle of Lake Malawi, Mozambique, nothing but water in the middle of Africa or naked kids paddling out to the boat on a tree trunk.

Nkhata Bay

2010-12-11T15:57:00.000+01:00

After a smooth shared taxi drive I was in the middle of the small fishing village of Nkatha bay. Lake Malawi sends small waves to the shores and people sell “sipa” (tiny sun dried fish) on the main road. Huge bags full of sipa are getting loaded on trucks to be sold in Mzuzu and Lilongwe. One 80kg bag costs about 20$. The whole center of the village smells like fish, not badly but like fish. People are friendly and you only get harassed by the cool Bob Marley type Rasta boys, which use American slang. There business is selling Marijuana and art to tourist to get drunk in the evening. I have never seen a village so focused on alcohol (sometimes ethanol mixed with water) as Nkatha Bay. If you go out during the night (actually also during the day) and go into the cheapest bars you see people past out, guys struggling to stand or people trying to get to that stage while ordering beer or drinking sachets with 40% alcohol. There are no women in the bars with the exception of the occasional prostitute. “Shake-Shake” is the cheapest beer in town. You get one liter for less than half a dollar. It is based on maize and has to be shaken before drinking. The empty Tetra Pak cartons are scattered all over… ok, enough about the alcohol problem of this village, but it is really extreme.

I checked into the Big Blue Star which is nicely located on the lake shore and has a sundeck, hammocks, TV, a bar with panorama view, good but pricey food (read 6 dollars for a pizza) and chilled out atmosphere. There was a Swiss guy, that has been travelling (he worked on the way and went back to Switzerland several times) for the last 5 years with his motorbike around the world. Then of course the Peace Corps volunteers who are talking about them selves and having sex with the local community, as there would not be a huge HIV problem. Some English doctors who are travelling after their internship, a random 60 year old Austrian sex tourist, a chilled out Israeli spending his military money, a interesting, elderly Japanese guy who made me want to visit Japan even more, a gay, Canadian receptionist who has a cocaine problem and many more. A nice zoo to research human behavior under the influence of alcohol.

I always ate in the village either at the Hot Spot which serves 1.75$ rice with beef stew dishes, the Indian place who has curries for 3$ or the Christian place who has a version of Spaghetti Bolognese also for 3$.

If you buy French fries from the street you can have a plastic bag full with a bit of salad and an extra splash of old oil for 33$cent. A beer is generally 66$cent. Malawi is good to your wallet.

The hostel also has a canoe to use, which I took around the bay area several times. Local kids love to swim in their lake and the mothers are doing laundry at the rocky shores. The lake is also good for scuba diving and has (if I remember right) the greatest amount of fish species in a fresh water lake of the world.

Great times, but after 10 days the ferry arrived (1 day late) to take me all the way down to Monkey Bay.

Mzuzu

2010-12-11T15:56:00.002+01:00

Mzuzu is the main city north of the capitol Lilongwe. There are many banks, a huge market, some restaurants and a backpacker. Finally my week of failures came to an end within a half an hour. I found a Standard Chartered Bank which supports Mastercard and a backpacker with some atmosphere. Even though it was not the nicest place ever I managed to spent 3 nights there. A lot of Peace Corps Volunteers hang out there so it doesn’t get boring. Peace Corps people – generally spoken - are in love with them selves and have nothing else to speak about. The way I understood it, they are as inefficient as all NGO I heard of. Sometimes I think all these programs serve the volunteers interest more than the peoples. They get to travel a bit without spending a lot. A good part of the money that is being spent ends up in the hands of some local fat people who can get a bit fatter. NGO have generally failed and are now a days mostly run like businesses. There are maybe some innocent ones, but in time they will get corrupted as well.
I rested a bit in Mzuzu after all these bus rides that took me from Zanzibar to Mzuzu in a week. Then I went to the Promised Land – Nkatha Bay.

Karonga

2010-12-11T15:56:00.001+01:00

After 3 hours on the Tanzanian side, a border crossing full of touts and an 1 hour shared taxi drive to Karonga I needed some money. All the ATM refused my Maestro Card and I had forgotten my VISA code. I had some Tanzanian Shilling to exchange. But the banks don’t want them and the guy behind the foreign exchange office in the National Bank of Malawi advised me to try on the black market instead. So I did and had at least some cash. Karonga is a boring place with a lot of dust, no cheap lake side hotels and no attractions whatsoever. The next day I wanted to go to Livingstonia, which is located in the mountains west of Lake Malawi. At the turnoff I got out and quickly found out there is no public transport and that hitching is difficult and a taxi expensive. So I was sitting in the bus again. This time to Mzuzu. The buses are cheap and crowded – fish smell surrounds you mixed with sweat and the occasional drunk smell like a barrel of cheap rum.

Mbeya

2010-12-11T15:53:00.000+01:00

In Mbeya I should have met up with a South African I got to know in Mikadi. He works there in a brewery and has his house just next to it. Some years ago he was working as a subcontractor for a German brewery and basically stole all the engineering drawings for the production lines. Now he is the only guy in Tanzania who has the knowledge to repair them or set up new ones.
Anyway, I followed his description how to get there and took a 10$ taxi to his home after getting some supplies from the supermarket. Though nobody was home even though he assured me that he works there 24/6. The taxi driver was kind enough to ring him for me and I had to find out that he is 100km north for a few days. 10$ to get back to the city center. Damn. I ended up cooking my pasta in the backyard of a shitty guesthouse and left the next day in the hope of some better time in Malawi.

Mikumi

2010-12-11T15:51:00.000+01:00

After a long night on the ferry to Dar and a rather boring bus ride to Mikumi I found my self in a trucker stop in central Tanzania. Some guesthouses and normal shops are lined up next to the road and every 2 minutes a overloaded truck roars through. During the night the empty village fills up with loads of trucks and after they got drunk at the bar they have sex with the local prostitutes.

The reason I came to Mikumi is Mikumi National Park. A German guy in Dar Es Salaam told me that you can go to the entrance gate, pay the 20$ and then sit next to a waterhole a see many animals. He even saw a lion killing a buffalo.

First of all he gave me wrong directions and I walked on a road for about 90 minutes pushing away doubts by the local community about the information I got from this guy. Eventually I had to accept it and walk back. Then I followed the advise of them and found the entrance gate when a bus droped me of in the middle of the park. Then I had to find out that the park authorities have pumped the water out of the waterhole because animals were getting to close to the people. So no animals and only expensive game drives. I went back to Mikumi village and drank beer. After 2 nights in this shithole I left towards Iringa where I saw the biggest wildfire of my life.

Stone Town

2010-10-25T10:24:00.001+02:00

Zanzibar is now a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania. The Persians settled here to serve East African ports. After them the Portuguese gained control for 200 years until 1698, when the Sultanate of Oman conquered it. They started to plant spices on the plantations outside the main city Stone Town. But most of the products came from East Africa. Ivory and slaves where the most profitable goods. During the 19th century Zanzibar became a British protectorate because they were against the slave trade and hence more popular. After a pro British Sultan died in 1896 and the successor didn't like the fact that the British were defacto governing the island. This led to the Anglo-Zanzibar war. It lasted 38 minutes and is now known as the shortest war in history. The Royal Navy pounded the Beit al Hukum Palace and afterwards a cease fire was in place. 1963 eventually Zanzibar gained independence. A month later the bloody Zanzibar Revolution ended in genocide. Thousands of Arabs and Indians were killed and even more expelled. Tanganyika played the cards rights and was able to merge with the Republic Zanzibar and Pemba.
Of course these days Zanzibar is a major tourist place, serving lobster to fat people. But the charm of Stone Town is still there. Arab women hush through the narrow alleys, baskets of colorful powders are being sold, the architecture impresses with Portuguese, British, Arab and Indian influences, and the atmosphere gives the impression of multicultural harmony and religious tolerance.
Zanzibar is rather expensive. I managed to find a room for 10$ in hotel that currently got renovated. The owners were all young guys with rasta and getting stoned most of the day. The last night one of them had a local Muslim girl in his room. After screaming at each other in the room, they spilled into the hallway where she was holding up a knife and he was bleeding from his hand badly. The next day I asked him what happened. Apparently she refused to have sex with him and then he decided to "force" her.
There are many museums and palaces of Sultans in Stone Town which are pretty good. I checked them all out and the for example the old slave market. That's where the slaves that came from East Africa were sold to Arab people or were brought into the slave trade triangle between, Europe, Africa and America. Today there is only a basement visible where they were stored, a monument and a church with the altar on the exact place where the whipping pole used to be.
After the British Empire outlawed slavery in 1833 some Sultans secretly went on with the slave trade and stored the slaves in a cave 10km north of Stone Town. But after he died nobody wanted to take over the business.
In the evening people go to the food market at the oceanfront and eat fish, beef, Zanzibar pizza and many other things. Competition is fierce.
I usually went to the Reggae bar which is a dirty, cheap local place where locals get completely wasted. But they sell by far the cheapest beer in this Muslim town. But crime is not a big issue.
On a spice tour I got to know a guy from New York, who normally does stand up comedy in the bars of Hells Kitchen. No subject was taboo.
I usually stayed in the park during the day where I got to know a Kenyan, who told me the story of his life. To make it short, he sleeps in the park, he has no money at all, struggles to get a job because the few jobs that are around will go to Zanzibar citizens, he used to fish on a dhow for 20 US cents a day and much more. He was well educated and had a nice personality. I spend about 3 hours each day with him.
The last 2 days I was on the island presidential election were in preparation. Big groups collected all the citizens and they then gathered on a plaza where they hailed their candidate. He won well over ninety percent in Zanzibar.

Dar Es Salaam

2010-10-25T10:23:00.001+02:00

Dar es Salaam - not the capital city of Tanzania (Dodoma is) - is the economical heart of Tanzania. The biggest port next to Mombasa on the east coast of Africa, supplies the Hinterland, but also whole countries like Malawi, Burundi, Rwanda and Zambia. The cargo gets offloaded and packed on to trucks which are seen all over Tanzania.
Dar es Salaam means "harbour of peace" and got important when Sultan Majid bin Said of Zanzibar decided, that a port on the mainland of Tanganyika would be helpful. When he died the importance of Dar Es Salaam declined again. But only two decades later in 1887 the German East Africa Company established a station there and trade came back. In 1900 the construction of railways began and boosted the local industry.
The British captured Tanganyika during the First World War. Indians were brought in to built the railways and became part of the population. 1961 after experiencing rapid growth Tanganyika became an independent country and Dar es Salaam served as the capital. Even after Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form the current country called Tanzania. 1973 Dodoma was made the capitol city, but still lacks the importance of Dar Es Salaam.
I arrived in the huge bus station, which is conveniently 10km out of the city. Traffic jams are omnipresent. After the minibus drive I took a short ferry to cross the harbour and a tuktuk eventually brought me to Mikadi Beach. Just a couple of kilometers outside the city center there is a wonderful beach, with clean water and bungalows. A good base to get to know a zombie city like Dar Es Salaam. My foot got really bad and I didn't move to much during the first few days. Weekends a lot of local people from the city come to swim in the ocean. Actually they don't swim, because they never learned it. Tragically a kid died during my stay. He drowned even though there where no waves nore currents.
The owners are a really nice Chilean-Zimbabwean couple with cute little girl with whom I played a lot. Mikadi is also a stop of the overland tours coming from Cape Town to Nairobi to visit Zanzibar.
The city it self is rather dull with no real historical part. A lot of rich - mostly white - folks live north of the city heart in smart neighborhoods in mansions behind high walls. I met up with two girls, who I got to know in Mombasa and went to Western style bars with views of the bay. Quite nice, quite expensive.
My foot got better, I got a visa for Malawi (100$ for one month) and read a lot of books. After one week of camping beneath the palm trees, swinging in the hammock, white sand and amazing sunrises I was ready to go to Zanzibar.

Lushoto

2010-10-25T10:22:00.000+02:00

At the end of the 19th century during the German colonial period Lushoto at a big influx of German settlers. During the 28 years of German rule a lot of plantations were built and missionaries successfully tried to spread there religious believes. The weather climate is more European since the town is in a hilly area above the Wiliams Valley (Wilhelmstal) named after Wilhelm I.

After a long bus ride I stepped out of the bus and while doing that I screwed up my right foot. It was not that bad initially, but I had a lot of pain while walking. But since the whole idea of coming here was to hike the hilly area I decided to walk to a famous viewpoint anyway. After an hour or more I was limping badly and was able to rest on top of a cliff with a beer in my hand and a magnificent view of the valley beneath. Then I walked back and got a lot of attention because I was a white, limping, barefoot tourist in agony. Back in the 2$ hotel room I decided that hiking wont make things better. The town itself has the most colorful market I have seen in Africa. It is not big, but the local people, especially the women, wear the traditional, distinctively African clothes which mostly consist of thin towels. Men are usually drinking in bars and are chronically unemployed. After two nights I had to leave because there was not more to see in my walking radius and I was ready for the beach and some treatment of my foot.

Moshi

2010-10-25T10:20:00.000+02:00

The bus is shaking heavily as we slowly advance to the Tanzanian border. Sand is coming in through the windows and covers everything. Tsavo West National Park is on right side, but no animals visible. The border - the Kenyan officials jokes that he now has to arrest me because I overstayed my Kenyan Visa by 30 days, but he lets me pass. A tarmac road welcomes us on the Tanzanian side. We swiftly arrive in Moshi.
Moshi is on the foot of the world famous Kilimanjaro (5895m) which is also the highest peak in Africa. Snow still covers the summit, but will vanish in the decade(s) ahead. It is mostly invisible because of clouds produced by the evaporating snow.
Moshi is remarkable unremarkable. A city of 150'000 people, mostly sustained by hard currency from tourists. A five day hike to the summit costs anywhere from 800$ to what ever people are willing to pay. After checking out the city on the day of arrival I walked up the slopes towards the Kilimanjaro. The classic African, reddish dirt road took me through villages, lush forests, to small scale farms and picturesque creeks. A nice "safari" with the peak visible at all times, until the sun got to strong and the volcano decided to cover its nudity.
In the evening I went out for some beers in local bars and left after 2 nights spend.

Wasini

2010-09-30T15:39:00.000+02:00

Wasini island was once considered by the Reagen administration as a Navy base for the Indian Ocean. Thankfully he dropped the idea. Wasini is like Lamu 50 years ago. Lena and me were the only Mzungus for the whole stay. We stocked up on alcohol in Shimoni, which lies on the mainland, because there is no alcohol on the island. Another conservative place with friendly people.

Lena is great fun and made me laugh a lot. We asked the funny hotel staff for the way to the beach. We followed their directions and ended up walking through seaweed for about 3 hours before being absolutely sure that there is no beach. We rested in a nice elevated lodge and watched the flood coming in. Then we strolled through the second village of the island bought some bananas and walked back through the center of the island since the tide was high. At one point we thought that we had to wade through the mangroves - so we did. But while standing in the mud in murky waters we saw some other people walking along the beach. We assumed they knew where they were going and hoped that they wont see the two stupid Mzungus standing in the middle of nowhere - they didn't. We followed their tracks and found our way. A beautiful walk with a beautiful lady.

In the evening we knew that Wasini doesn't have a lot to offer so she brought up the idea to go to Mombasa Backpackers, since I was telling stories about this place all the time.

We spent three more days at Mombasa before she had to go back to the slum of Nairobi to spend the money she raised from friends back home. A good women doing good things.

Diani

2010-09-30T15:07:00.001+02:00

The stilt hostel is well in the second row of Diani beach hidden behind high trees. The stilt houses are very cute but a bit out of my league so I camped in my tent close to the main road, but still in the forest. The cool thing is that the trees are almost constantly frequented by monkeys. They were also checking out my tent while I was sleeping in it and throwing sticks on it. The main building is a bit elevated and lets you enjoy the breeze. Each evening the "bush babies" that look like lemurs showed up to eat two bananas out of the guests hands.

I met some cool people here, above all Lena from Austria. Sadly she left after two days to go to Lamu. I chilled most of the time in the fantastic "40 thieves" bar at the beach. Then there were Henry and Tom who are 2 years before becoming doctors in England and did an internship in a Rwandan Hospital. They were good fun and we went on the piss together. People were showing up during the whole week and most of them made sense. One English girl didn't. She was visiting her boyfriend at the Kenyan coast after been separated for 2 months. He gave her the shoe after she arrived. But she couldn't quit her love to him and was hopeful since they were sharing the same hotel room. But one night he left with 3 prostitutes without saying goodbye. She just did what English can do best - she drank. This ritual repeated it self during my whole stay, until she finally gave in to her emotions and cried. The last thing I heard is that she flew home.

Lena showed up again 5 days later after visiting Lamu. We met up and spent one more day in Diani and then left to the remote region at the Tanzanian border to the Island of Wasini.

Tiwi

2010-09-30T14:45:00.000+02:00

After staying in Mombasa Backpackers for another few days I hitched a ride with some friends who live in Dar Es Salaam. Mzunugus trying to sell condoms to rich people and handing them out for free to the poor. The main problem with the condom business in East Africa at the moment is a simple one. US AID bought condoms from China. A huge amount apparently sufficient for years. But they bought the ones that are being used in the Western world. Which means the diameter is 50mm. While Asians usually use 48mm and Africans a stunning 52mm diameter. Now the Africans have to use the tight 50mm condoms and because of Newtons law they break a lot. Well and yes the other BIG problem is AIDS.

We arrived at the beach and hassled are way through the beach boys who had dollar signs in their eyes. After drinking some beer the weather had changed and was not suitable for swimming anymore. The camping ground is right at the beach between the palm trees. We made a deal with one of the beach boys to bring us vegetables, fish and a pan. Surprisingly he returned. We cooked and ate the sandy fish which I prepared in the way I learned in Lamu. The Hungarian boss of the group was pretty drunk, his US wife past out early. The attorney just sat there without words. I felt really sober in comparison.

The next day I woke up hung over and alone - the other tents were gone. I decided to stay some more days and not to meet anybody. Solitude is a concept the beach boys don't respect. Constantly I was told another sad story about economical misfortune or post election violence. I feel bad for the guys and understand there resignation, but they just keep coming. But after they got the message that I wont buy anything from them, they sort of gave me the space I desired. Tent, camp fire, beer, stars, ocean and palm trees.

Pate and Manda Toto Islands

2010-09-30T12:35:00.000+02:00

Mangroves are dominating the scene, the blue calm water splashes on the sides, the wind is pushing us forward, three sailor balance the boat, the captain is smoking weed and steering this nautical wonder based on centuries of Swahili culture. Water is coming in, the sailor has to get it out with an old bucket. The Mzungus are chilling. The sun is blazing down on us. Timmy is wearing the turban from India to protect his increasingly unprotected head skin. The wind is gone - we're in the middle of a channel between two Islands. A big ship with too many passenger passes us. The captain throws a rope. We're getting pulled up the channel. The channel ends. The favourable wind pulls us directly to Pate. The sea is getting a bit choppier, but in a good way.

Pate Island comes closer. No sign of civilization, besides a dock with 3 vans on it. The boat is trembling - we have arrived on the seashore. The sailors bring out there cooking equipment. Charlie is getting stoned with Teea. Fish is cooking on the wooden grill, donkeys yyyaaaahhh from the tree next to the dock. The water was refreshing and the food is ready.

No movement in the group, everybody has licked there fingers and is concentrating on digesting. Dawn is coming up: Charlie wants to see some relatives he has on this island. It is a 20 min walk through the bushes on a beaten path. The village is pristine. The elder people are sitting on benches. The kids are playing with tyres. The mzungus feel out of place and stick to each other. The kids curiously check us out - we start to play with them. They roll there tyres up and down the village and eventually out of it. Digital cameras flash, kids are screaming to see them self on the display. Everybody settles down to see the sun doing the same thing. Cool. We have to head back to the beach and set up the tent before darkness kicks in. On the way we collect firewood. Mzungus open wine bottles and sit around the fire. The tent has written "UNICEF" on it. A cold night is coming up. I sleep outside the tent next to the dwindling fire.

Morning has broken, headache. The tide is low and the boat stuck in the sand. We have to wait for high tide. Sleeping, chatting, bathing are the preferred time killers. Tide is here. We are sailing to Manda Toto with headwind, which means we have to zig zag are way back. It takes a long time. The sun is relentless. Finally, Manda Toto is just in front of us. Sand between the toes. After taking a dip we make sure we wont run out of wood like the night before. In the evening we try are luck with fishing. The fishing line is wrapped around a wooden plate and has the essentials: hook and weight. Timmy looses confidence while standing in the mud, in the dark and getting hooked in the roots of the mangroves regularly. Impatience, frustration - shit don't work man. We decide to relocate to the beach. Small waves are gently covering are feet. After two hours we catch18 fish, small but big enough and two of them from me. Feeling manly. After cutting out the intestines and covering them with oil, salt, lemon and garlic they are on the grill. Everybody seems happy with the situation. We are the only ones on the Island. Crabs invade are tent regularly, the girls are screaming, the boys are laughing and hiding their disgust of the archaic looking animals. No liqueur around means everybody sleeps early. Timmy sleeps badly and wakes up before dawn. He takes care of the fire. He heads of to walk around the island. Long stretches of beaches ahead. Dead mangroves cast a long shadow in the perfectly flat sand. Further ahead the beach gets more narrow pushed together by the force of the Indian Ocean and the wind shaped rocks of the island. Beautiful. Mangrove forests ahead. I enjoy the loneliness. I wade through the shallow waters. Crabs, sea worms, mosquitos but mostly crabs. Tide is coming and makes me think I should turn around. Nope, not happening. I can walk out a hundred meters without being knee deep in the water. The light is amazing. Water is getting deeper, the mangroves suddenly thicker. Am I close to where I started? Decision time: Do I go through the mangroves, which could get ugly very fast or do I go through the deep water and try to pass? I am in the water to my chest. Maybe this was not such good idea. The depth is steady. I am advancing. Feels like being in a Vietnam movie walking through a river with the camera (gun) in relative safety above the head.It's done, I'm back, everybody is already up and ready to leave. We board and head back.

Lamu

2010-09-30T11:59:00.000+02:00

Lamu, Kenyas oldest living town, is protected by UNESCO World Heritage status. It is a old Swahili trading hub. Their culture and language is now dominating East Africa's societies. Tourism has picked up and is able to cater semi demanding travellers.

The road to the ferry pick up point is in a bad shape and buses have been regularly robbed by Somali gangs. The government has solved the problem with stepping up security and placing two corrupt soldiers with AK47 into every bus. The seafront is also the harbour for the Swahili dhows that ankor there after week long fishing trips all the way up to Somali waters. Apparently they sometimes see pirates, but the Somalis don't bother about the little fish.

I met Teea from Finland right after arriving, whom I knew from Mombasa Backpackers. She was in a week old relationship with Charlie - A Swahili, Muslim dhow captain who smokes weed all day during Ramadan. Since Lamu is rather conservative it is hard to find a drinking hole. The Lamu Police Cantine was the best thing around and is used by the local Christian alcoholics and the occasional tourist. The bartender and the fridge is behind bars. Local people pass out early around here because they love their coconut rum.

The narrow alleys of old town are cool and full of life. Men in pyjamas walk with women hidden behind full body, black robes. Donkeys (the only transport on the island) carry cement, flower, bricks, rice, vegetables and other things to their next destination. The market place in the center of town is the loudest part of town, where people bargain and gesticulate.

As a tourist you get hassled a lot by the beach boys. They are hard to describe. Above all they want to sell you something, but they also want to be your friend and try to be as cool and chilled out as possible. Annoyingly indifferent to anything in a not genuine way. At least Teea's boyfriend was cool. Maybe because he was currently getting laid with a Mzungu. So we hanged out together most of the time and ate at his familys place. After 2 days of chilling we decided to go with him and his dhow to some islands in the Lamu archipelago. 3 days and 2 nights on a Swahili boat trip for 60$ per person with food. Since it is easy to organize other participants if your skin is white, I found a South African and an English girl in no time and we were ready to go the next day.

Malindi

2010-09-30T11:49:00.000+02:00

The Portuguese Capitano Vasco de Gama used to sail the Indian Ocean and ended up in Malindi to build a small settlement. The small settlement is now a big town that caters mostly wealthy Italian tourist. No shortage of Pizzerias around here. The beach is vast, but gets very hot during the day, so people stay on the main road that passes through town. Prostitution is once again big, even though Malindi is predominately Muslim. I guess it's the poison of the West

I didn't like Malindi to much, so I reflected on my journey and enjoyed the time for my self.

Kilifi

2010-09-30T11:29:00.000+02:00

Imagine a place on the white sand beach of coastal Kenya and a huge river that forms a bay which is in the middle of town. A decent hotel elevated on a hillside overlooking the fishing dhows and ex pads yachts parked in the bay and sipping beers away with a girl from Texas.

A picturesque place - at least at the surface - which contrasts to the buzz of Mombasa which I experienced for the last 40 days. The lack of restaurants forced us into the posh but no pricey local Yacht Club. We took some nice strolls along the beach and the backwaters and were met everywhere by polite, unemployed males trying to sell something or squatters who have given up a long time ago. But people are extremely friendly or at least act like it.

Anyway I had a beautiful time in Kilifi and recommend it for a two night stop over to enjoy the red setting on the green bay area.

Mombasa

2010-07-27T08:37:00.001+02:00

Mombasa has East Africas main port and a rich history of conqueres and culture melted into each other. It's predominitly Muslim and conservative on the surface. It is a nice and interesting place, but the reason I am staying here at the moment for the third time is my need for a break of travelling, Nakumat which is a supermarket for the "mzungus" with all international products imaginable and Mombasa Backpackers (mombasabackpackers.com). The backpackers just opened months ago and everything was unorganized in an enjoyable fashion. Basicly it is a mansion whitch back home would cost about 3 million $. There are 13 toilets, a bar, 2 kitchens, a huge living room with an impressive movie collection, a garden (in which I am sitting at the moment), Masai guards whom I know consider good friends and the owners Bob and David. Bob is Southafrican and likes beer. David is Peruvian and likes just one other thing next beer and girls. Their good fun and extremely chilled out. Because of their laziness they used to depend on guests offering rest ups to them because they were not able to feed themself even though Nakumat is just 500m away. Nowadays they have a nice cook that is taking care of their needs. In high season the place was packed even though it just newly opened. People were partying hard and a lot of hilarious stories emerged over the 50 days I stayed there in total.

I grilled a lot of very good beef filet (5$/kg -> Switzerland 40$/kg) in the garden and then chilled around the fire place. I got to know so many people here that I know consider good friends. Among others one stands out. Michael from Tours, France is travelling since 6 years around Africa. He started on the west coast all the way to South Africa and is now heading up to Egypt. He had many funny stories to share and was a party animal. A good man.

During the day I usually stayed at the place and didn't move a lot anymore. But after several weeks I had the desire to check out some sights. With some friends I usually sneaked into a five star hotel (easy to get past security if you have white skin) and hanged at the pool area with a view of the reef and change of tide. After 7 times I got caught and left to the beach when I guy was getting the manager. I also checked out Mombasas nightlife several times. It is scattered all over town. Usually there are a fair amount of prostitutes inside, some players, the Indian community (wealthy descendants of Indians who were brought to Africa to built railways for the East India Company) and mzungus. Timmy danced a lot even though he traditionally sucks at that, but then again: any car can drive if there is enough fuel inside.

Mombasa Backpackers became a new home for me and I found good friends here. I even got the offer to become a co owner by the people working. And I am actually considering it in the long run. What more can I say...

Safari Masai Mara NP and Nakuru NP

2010-07-27T08:36:00.000+02:00

It's difficult to write about the experience I had since it is one of the things you have to do by yourself one day. I try my best.
First we collected all the participants: one German, a girl from New Zealand, a Canadian who works for a development fund and a Canadian couple on their honeymoon. We fit together easily and enjoyed the ride out of Nairobi to the Rift valley. It starts in Syria and goes all the way down to Mozambique - 6000km. So you descend from Nairobi to the vast valley which is famous for it's volcanic activity and it's fertile grounds. There are still TDP (temporary displaced people) living in the valley who had to flee their village after clashing with one of the other 52 tribes after the post election violence of 2007. It seems like everybody who you talk with in Kenya has a sad story to tell about that time period.
Anyway, you can already see some free Zebras and Baboons on the way to the fenced Nakuru National Park. We checked into a very nice hotel even though I insisted on the cheapest accommodation possible. In the afternoon and the morning we went into the park which surrounds lake Nakuru. Pelicans, Zebras, Baboons, many kinds of Antelopes, Rhinos, Giraffes, Buffaloes and animals I don't remember anymore. Usually you can see cats as well, but we were not lucky enough. The park it self is beautiful and offers some nice views of the Africa shaped lake.
Then we went on to the Masai Mara and we got a tent with mattresses just outside the entrance gate.
We went into the park 3 times. Once for a evening, once a full day and on the last day just for a morning safari. The Masai Mara has loads of animals grassing in the valleys. The cats hide in the high grass and prey on the weak. The three most bloodthirsty days of my life. Sadly I never got to see a kill, but at least we were able to show up just afterwards. The wildebeests (aka Gnus) had their yearly migration just when I arrived so there was abundant meat around.
We obviously saw many many animals - there is rarely a moment when you don't see something moving - so I cant tell you everything, that's why I am going to stick to the most impressive.
Once we saw a whole lion family eating the corpse of a wildebeests.The sun was shining down into the long grass and the wind blew into the male lion mane. He was pulling the skin of the corpse to get to the juicy meat beneath and the rest of the family was waiting. The cups a bit less respectful unsuccessfully tried to get a junk while he was eating. Cool stuff
At the Mara river the wildebeest who show up in numbers hardly imaginable (1 million in total) try to get through the water without getting eaten by the crocs. But the thing is nobody wants to be the first one because he may gets killed right away. But as soon somebody starts the madness starts. Everybody wants to be next, and they scream and make deep sounds, the ground is trembling and dust is fanning out into the air. During the drive to the crossing section we saw thousands of zebras and wildebeests forming an unorganized line down to the river. They have the same migration pattern and seem to enjoy each others company.
Elephants - the true rulers of the animal kingdom - are represented in high numbers as well. At one point we saw a family of 20 elephants making there way through the high grass. Babies, mothers and bulls. There size and tranquility is incredible. But be respectful, they are the main reason for problems between animals and humans in this part of the world. They sometimes charge or can destroy a lot of land because of their size and strength.
I guess I could go on for while, but it's just something you have to see by yourself. I had a good time and recommend it to others.

Nairobi

2010-07-15T14:26:00.002+02:00

After the journey over Dubai IA I arrived at the less fancy Nairobi airport. After a welcoming bus ride to the city center I was stunned about the skyscrapers and the sophistication of people who are wearing suits and nice dresses. I checked into a average hostel, which was mostly frequented by locals from neighbouring countries trying to get a slice of Kenya's wealth. Don't assume Kenya is a first world country because the bustling center is surrounded by vast slums. I got to know the local food witch is similar to other kitchens in poor countries. Beans, rice, eggs, little chicken, beef stews and the main dish ugali. Ugali is made of maize flower and then fried. It doesn't have much taste and is mostly to fill up the stomach. It is usually eaten with something with taste.

Africans seem nice and eager to get to know mzungus (white people). They desperately try to sell you a safari at every street corner. Smoking laws are hard and allows you to only smoke in scattered smoking areas or in taxis - guess a service to the rich. There are a lot of rich guys around. Some hotels look like forts of luxury. Security is an issue, especially after dark. Nairobi has cleaned it self up in the past decade, but still cant get rid of the "Nairobbery" label. Central Park and Uhuru Park are the main parks downtown and offer freedom from the not so bad hassle in the streets. India was much worse considering poverty and dirt.

My hostel was really quite (Milimani is apparently much better) so I just had some discussions with locals and some international volunteers. Volunteers seem to love Kenya, since it is safer than other African countries, but still poor enough to be in desperate need of help - and you can do a safari at the end of your trip or hang out the beach.

I couldn't resist booking a safari even though it is very expensive - 100$ a day all incl. I booked a four day tour to Nakuru National Park and the famous Masai Mara where the Masai used to live exclusively. Nowadays they are either there or scattered over the country working as security guards, because of there reputation as warriors and honest people. But don't fall in love with them too fast. They are still tribesman and don't really know Western culture. They drink blood daily and they would slice the throught of anybody who cheats on them. They buy women with cows (usually 10 for the daughters family and five for the daughter). Men don't work at home and leave building houses and almost everything else to their wives.

Anyway, after three days of trying to get on top of things I left Nairobi to go on a Safari to the south.

Mamallapuram

2010-07-15T14:26:00.001+02:00

Because of "The Situation" I layed low for 6 days in this Tamil fisher village. Women as well as men are wearing skirts or towels. In

the morning every man seems to head out to the beach to take a crap. If you think about strolling along the beach in the morning, you'll see men behind stones squadding a later cleaning there ass in the traditional left hand way. Later in that week I went to the barber and I smel

led shit fro

m his hand when he

was cutting my facial hair with scissors because th

ere was a power outage. Nice!

This was a bad introduction for Mamallapuram, because it is truly a nice town with a lot of character. The tsunami devastated the area back in 2004. But the place has rebounded. Stone carving is huge and ranges from small items to whole hills.

I didn't have any small cash so I gave one of my big bills to a restaurant owner. I had to eat there for my whole stay. But he was a good man and above all a good cook.

There was also the World Cup Final during my stay w

hich I watched with other tourists and the stoned staff of the hotel, who knew nothing about football.

During my whole stay there were these three women on the picture who had to bring sand from the beach to a restaurant porch. It gets pretty hot during the day and they were carrying heavy duty. Heavy machinery would have gotten the job

done in no time, but then again - the Indian way is more honest.

Madras

2010-07-15T14:25:00.003+02:00

After the very long haul from Calcutta with semi interesting passengers I arrived in the great city of Madras, which proved to be the ugliest of all the biggest cities I have seen in India. But the whole stomach situation has gotten out of control and had to be taken care of. So I looked for a hospital - a sophisticated one. Since I am backpacking I instinctively asked for the public hospital. But it looked like an average Indian train station. Filthy, overcrowded and no people who work there in sight. So I took a tuk tuk to a private 24 hours hospital.The building was only 3 meters wide and a guy was sleeping in the back. Nope. So I asked around for a good, private one with a laboratory and so on. The doctor thought that I will be a cash cow and wanted to have me in a bed for several nights. I insisted that I am more or less fine and that we should just get the tests done to know what the hell is going on. So I gave samples of all my liquids. In the evening they already had analyzed everything. My shit showed the Corpus Delicti - a worm called gardia. Apparently pretty common because of low hygienic standards in the kitchen. So there I was in an ugly city with a bag of pills and precise instruction for the next 7 days. I then decided to go to the fishing and stone cutter town of Mamallapuram to gt rid of this menace in a nice environment.

Calcutta

2010-07-15T14:25:00.001+02:00

The place famous for poverty and Mother Theresa is the last economic center on the east side of India. It is part of the Bengal region which has been cut in half when Bangladesh has been founded. The Golf of Bengal reaches all the way to Thailand. People speak Bengali and the local Government is extreme left wing.

Many different world powers had a place on the river here to do business before India's Independence. The British had a especially big footprint, because from here they shipped opium to Hong Kong and China which fueled the two opium wars in Hong Kong.

Calcutta has some colonial architecture, but only one sight is truly impressive: Queen Victoria Memorial. Kind of looking like the Capitol building in Washington it is set in a huge park with small lakes around it. Indian architecture has been merged into it.

Calcutta has a really old British trolley system and a Russian built subway (North South).

Indian history museum which is the biggest in India doesn't match the size with quality.My stay here was rather short because I already booked the train to Chennai and the diarrhea kept me close to the hotel.

Calcutta is better than Delhi but worse than Mumbai. Chennai never made the competition.

Varanasi

2010-07-15T14:24:00.000+02:00

The most holy city yo Hindus is in the center of the country. Old people who feel that their about to die take on their last travel and get to Varanasi to die. They stop eating once their and hope to be burned next to the "holy mother" aka Ganges. The city it self is a average big Indian mess with narrow alleys along the Ganges. Because the height of the water changes very significantly according to the Monsoon there are very wide stairways along the whole river. People bath every morning in the "holy Mother" even though industrial waste is evident. The exotic thing about Varanasi is the fact that people get burned next to the river, the ashes are then put into the river. Dead babies, pregnant women, and other exceptions do not deserve to get burned and are thrown into the Ganges as they were. Dead cows also find there way into the holy river. We saw a dead cow actually swimming next to a dead baby. This unique culture is so used to this fact that they have no problem swimming close by.

Along the river are two burning sights. Daily about 250 bodies are getting burned. The rich people can afford a nice spot while others just burn their relative between the stones.

A group of priests daily perform in the evening at the ghat "Agni Pooja" (Worship to Fire) wherein a dedication is made to Lord Shiva, River Ganga, Surya (Sun), Agni (Fire), and the whole universe.

Juan and me had a nice time in the hostel which had a bit of the character of a backpacker place. Juan then went north to Kathmandu in a two day trip and I went to Calcutta. The train was 6 hours late and the journey took 18 hours instead of the promised 12.