Snip Snap, Bob’s Not Your Aunt

It's time to go! I'm checking out, going to swing by the Zimbabwe roadside bazaar, and then off to the airport. California here I come. C U soon Lori and Cookie!!!!

Botswana is Here, in Africa! And So Am I!

My brother, Hal, asks if I am really here. My niece is not ever sure where ‘here’ is. Well, I’m here, and here is…here! Check out the photo:

I figured that I couldn’t leave Africa without a cliché Botswana sunset, so here it is!

Tomorrow, I head for the barn. Oh boy, am I ever excited!

It's More Than Just a Game in Jwaneng

But there is game to be seen...

On the drive into the mine on Tuesday we saw a giraffe in the Jwaneng Game Park. It was very big. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me, so I didn't get a photo. That evening we had planned to do a short drive in the park, so it was promising to see a giraffe in the morning.

The Jwaneng Game Park has rhinoceros, giraffes, cheetahs, impalas, kudos (I think that is how you spell it), springbok, wildebeests, baboons, etc. No lions, jaguars, or elephants though. During our drive Tuesday evening, we saw all of the above (and a couple of animals I can't remember the name of) except the giraffes, cheetahs, and rhinos. The picture above is of the impalas. The second picture gives you a feel for what it is like to ride in the back of an ancient Land Rover as you fly through bush trying to get to the gate before 1900 - as required by the rules of the park. Notice that the horizon is level in this picture, but for some reason the Land Rover is not. I'll let you figure that one out. We made it with five minutes to spare, and all our limbs.

Also, you see pictures of my hosts, Iain driving the Land Rover, and Eugene with the ubiquitous Bush-to-Civilization communicator. Yes, I know it looks like Iain is sitting in the passenger seat, but that's where they put the steering wheel down here...

Today will be my last day working with my client, and then tomorrow I head home. I'm very excited about that. It has been an interesting trip for sure, but I miss Lori, Cookie, and running on the Mountain. While in Botswana I haven't run as much I would like, so I'm definitely ready for some fun on the trails.

Powering Botswana

This is a quick photo and post to tell you what it takes to get your
power connected in Botswana. You will need two possible adapters. One
is the South African standard 3-prong, round electrode adapter. The
other is a South African round plug to square plug adapter. Why do you
need both? Because, depending on where you are, you will need either a
round plug or a square plug. My combination is a U.S. to SA adapter,
and then a round to square adapter. It works, but it's a bit clunky if
you ask me. Now you know.

Oh yeah, and as far as internet connections go, it's pretty hit-or-miss.
I stayed at the golf resort, where I had a connection to their network,
but the password to give me full access didn't work. The second one
didn't either. Fortunately I had access to gmail so I could at least
keep up with email. In Jwaneng I had access through the company, but
their network was down the second night in the company lodging. Tonight
I returned to Gaborone and I am staying in one of the nicest hotels in
town (The Grand Palm). I can't even get a login request from the
system. I called for help, they said they would call back. Nope, no
call back.

Oh yeah, the golf resort at Phakalane charges a minimum of $30 (210
pula) for internet access for two days. Nothing less. The Grand Palm
charges by the hour or for longer increments. One hour is 49 pula which
is a bit more than $7. At least I had the choice.

I notice that RIM has a Blackberry system in town that offers 3G access.
As the popularity grows, the amount of internet they sell at these
hotels is going to plummet. In the States, I will never pay a hotel for
internet access again thanks to my friends at RIM. Here, I pay the fees
under protest - even when the client is willing to pay them, as they are
here.

Ah well, time for bed. I will post this from work tomorrow...

Jwaneng

Today we took flight from Gaborone and returned to Jwaneng. We toured the mine (it's big) and had more meetings. It was an early start (5:00 a.m.) and didn't end until 7:30 p.m. with a dinner of rice and goat. I think this was my first goat. The seasoning was good, but the meat was mostly bones. Oh well, I had to try it. I certainly wouldn't avoid it in the future, but I could sure do with a grilled tri-tip right about now.

This evening after our last meeting at the Jwaneng hospital (to talk with them about their nursing schedule), my host had a medical emergency in the hospital. Basically, for no good reason, he just passed out while a physical therapist was looking at a finger he injured playing touch rugby. His blood pressure dropped through the floor, and he couldn't really move, though he could talk some -- he said afterwards that he didn't know where he was or who we were though. He ended up spending some time in the emergency ward while they gave him an I.V. Pretty scary, but he seems to be okay now.

On a lighter note, the goose above is from yesterday's morning walk around the golf course. Plus, I saw some warthogs last night on the golf course. I was out running, so I didn't have my camera with me. These hogs had some tusks, let me tell you! They took off when I went running by and I didn't see them again on my second lap. So, my wild animal count is up to 2 monkeys, a bunch of baboons, some warthogs, and birds of course. Tomorrow I think we will tour the Jwaneng Game Park. I think they have some giraffes, but I'm not sure what else is out there. I'll let you know!

Botswana Travel Photos

Some more pictures from yesterday and this morning…

First, a picture of a typical cattle post. Botswana is cattle country. Goat country too, but that is a different story. Many people in Botswana see themselves as cattlemen, even though they may have other jobs too.

Next is a picture of the Tropic of Capricorn marker. The text says:

"This point is on the Tropic of Capricorn, which is the most southerly latitude reached by the sun. Here the sun will be at the zenith each year on Midsummer day at midday local apparent time, which is on 22 December at approximately 12 minutes past twelve o'clock noon. At the above time, the sun will shine directly down the tube above this notice."

Cool.

And finally a couple of birds from this morning's walk around the golf course.

Grandma Jean

My Grandmother died today.  She had not been doing too well for a while so it was not unexpected.  Still, it's a sad day for me and my family.  I have not been real close to my grandmother over the years, but I did try to visit her when I was in Oklahoma where most of my family lives. 

When my brother and I were kids, Grandma lived on what is now the Tall Grass Prairie near Pawhuska, OK.  One summer we visited her and my step-grandfather, Oliver, for a couple of weeks.  Oliver was a real, no-kidding, cowboy on a huge ranch there.  He rode horses every day to take of the cattle he was responsible for, and as a result, he and Grandma lived in the middle of the prairie.  That's code for "in the middle of nowhere". 

I can tell you, two boys on a ranch in the middle of nowhere with their Grandma, and her cowboy, are living life about as good as they can.  We rode around the ranch with Oliver in his truck (no horseback riding because we were a bit too young to ride real cowboy horses), learned to balance ourselves walking around on top of the barnyard's sucker-rod fence, tried to milk the cow, made butter with a hand-crank churn, played in the stream…  Somehow, Grandma was patient with us the whole time – no small feat I'm sure.  Oh it was awesome -- part of my highlight reel.  Now Grandma is gone, but that is the way I will remember her…