Safari as Easy as 1-2-3
By J. Scott Simmons

Does an African safari sound like the adventure of a lifetime?  For me it was!  It was also safe and inexpensive.  Last fall I spent a week in Africa and the 3 days I spent on safari in Kruger National Park, South African’s largest game preserve, were the highlight of my trip.  For as little as $50 per person a day, you and a friend can go on your own safari in South Africa.  It’s as easy as 1-2-3.

Step one:  Shop online for an inexpensive flight into Johannesburg, South Africa.  This will be the most expensive part of your trip.  Step two:  Call Avis to reserve an inexpensive rental car to be pickup up and dropped off at Johannesburg International Airport.  A compact car, large enough for two people and luggage should be around $200 for a week. Step three:  Plan your route through Kruger National Park and call ahead (for South Africa’s National parks call 27+12 343 1991) to reserve accommodations.

And you’re on your way.  South African’s toll highways are well-marked, easy to follow, and the tolls reasonable.  At no time did I worry about getting lost or feel like I was in danger.  The trip from the airport to Kruger’s northern most entrance, the Pafuri Gate, is about 6 hours.  Depending on the time of the arrival of your flight, you may wish to spend the evening in the town of Louis Trichardt about half way to the Pafuri Gate.  I spent the night at the Lutombo Guesthouse owned by Schalk and Helena Grobbelaar.  They treated me like on of the family.  My bill for dinner, breakfast, and a room in a home as nice as the one I left behind was only $20.  Helena’s e-mail is: lutombo@lantic.net.

There are eight gates or entrances into Kruger and over a dozen rest camps, many of which are like small villages, with campsites and cottages for rent, plus restaurants, shops, swimming pools, gas stations, and laundromats.  With a little planning there is no reason to leave the park until you’ve finished your safari.  The park is 350 km from north to south and an average of 60 km wide.  With just a little luck you’ll see all of the game hunter’s Big Five:  Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhinoceros, and Cape Buffalo.

I spent my first night at the Shingwedzi Rest Camp in a cottage, with 5 beds, private bath, kitchen, and barbeque, for less than $35.  During my first day I covered less than a third of the park but had already seen Elephant, Giraffe, Zebra, Impala, Kudu, Tsessebe, Chacma baboon, Veret monkey, Warthog, and a variety of fowl.

On day two I came upon a traffic jam.  Cars were backed up to see two Cheetah resting in the tall grass under a tree.  Since you are not allowed to get out of your car except in designated areas, it took patience and careful maneuvering to first find out what everybody was looking at and then to see the Cheetah.  I found it helpful to crawl out the window and stand on the windowsill to get the best view, but I never did this if there was a park ranger around.  I also added to my list of sighting, Hippopotamus, Blue Wildebeest, Suni, and Samango Monkey.  I spent the second night in the Satara Rest Camp in a $10 campsite I shared with two guides an ten campers on an economy safari.  The guides were very helpful and told me the best place to see Lions, Leopard, and Rhinoceros, which was my goal for the day. 

I was out of the rest camp when the gates opened at 6 AM and saw two prides of female lions with cubs by 8 AM.  An hour later, I also encountered another traffic jam where people were looking for Leopard, but never saw them myself.  As I continued south to exit the park at the Crocodile Bridge Gate, I saw three groups of White Rhinoceros.  If you aren’t fortunate enough to meet helpful guides, there is a bulletin board in each rest camp where the day’s sightings with locations are posted.

In three days and two nights on safari by myself, I saw four of the Big Five.  With another day or two, or a partner with binoculars, or if I’d signed up in advance for a night drive, I’m sure I would have seen Leopard. You’ll be able to see the Big Five and much more!

Just go!

For more info on Kruger National Park please visit: www.krugerpark.co.za

Discover Chile
By Jerry Krebs

I recently traveled to Santiago, Chile for a visit this past May and was anxious to see what changes and improvements had been made since my last trip there.  I lived in Chile for 12 years up until 1992.  I am married to a Chilean and we have been back on several occasions, this time, for her parents’ 50^th wedding anniversary.  We had a great time at the celebration and I drank my share of Pisco Sours (somewhat similar to a Margarita but made with Pisco, a distilled wine).

Most of what you see and experience in Chile makes for a wonderful visit.  I have a very close American friend who lives and teaches in Santiago and while I was there I had the opportunity to speak to three of his University classes on the subject of immigration and ethnic diversity in the U.S.  One of the points I highlighted in that presentation was the reverse discrimination I had experienced during my time spent in Chile.  If you have any sense of being treated differently down there, it is because the Chilean people consider foreign visitors to be special, deserving of additional kindness and respect.  A famous song in Chilean folklore is: “Si vas para Chile” (“If you visit Chile”).  The song is about being away from your homeland and how much you miss it.  One verse in the song says, “if you go, you’ll see how they treat foreigners in Chile”.  It is very true: foreign travelers can expect gracious hospitality and open arms everywhere they go.

On my most recent visit to Santiago, two notable improvements that caught my eye immediately were to the airport and the Metro system.  When I made my first trip to the city in 1981, the airport was relatively tiny and buses were used to transport passengers from the planes to the terminal.  But today, the city has an international airport to be proud of.  It was recently named the best airport in Latin America by Latin Trade Magazine.  If you decide to go, keep in mind that you will have to pay $100 to enter Chile.  It’s called a reciprocity fee and was created to counteract what we charge Chileans to enter the U.S.

The subway system (Metro) keeps getting bigger and better.  The three lines now in service cover a large portion of Santiago.  In two years a fourth line will open with 22 new stations running out to the town of Puente Alto.  A one-way ride costs about 45 cents.  With many new trains, clean stations, and fascinating artwork and displays to look at, it’s well worth it.

The month of May in South America is late fall/early winter and the weather can be a bit unpredictable.  The temperature does not really get that cold in Santiago, but you seem to feel the chill more as most buildings in the city lack central heating.  It did rain off and on during our stay, but this can be a blessing as it helps to keep the smog to a minimum.  This picture of Santiago shows how it looks with much of the smog washed away.  In spite of the many attempts made to control pollution in the capital city, it continues to be a problem every winter.

Just before returning to the States, I spent an afternoon walking around the “barrio” where I first lived in Santiago.  My home was the “Casa del Estudiante Americano” about five blocks from downtown.  That facility closed years ago but Santiago’s youth hostel is now located in almost the same spot.  It has 120 beds and looks quite nice from the outside.  There are 13 HI hostels in Chile and you can learn all about them at their website – www.hostelling.cl

On this trip, I didn’t have much time to travel within the country.  I normally spend about a week in the Lake District, which is located about 500 miles south of Santiago.  The mountains there look similar to our Rocky Mountains but most have snow-capped volcanoes that make for some spectacular scenery.  That portion of the country gets plenty of rain so the vegetation is lush.  Fishing, river rafting, mountain climbing, and soaking in hot springs are just some of the activities available.  Our one trip out of the capital was down to the Pacific coast.  It’s about a 1½-hour bus ride to Valparaiso and ViÔa del Mar.  One-way fare is $5 and the bus service is excellent.  We owned a home for five years in this area and both worked in Valparaiso.  Here too, things have gotten better.  Highway construction is underway and improvements to the commuter train are being completed.  There is a new beach in ViÔa and we visited the mall for the first time.  We have friends (Gringo-Chilean) living there and we got to see the language institute they are opening.  It is located near the beach in ViÔa and will offer Spanish classes for Gringos and English for Chileans.  They will also have an option available for students to live with a local family, in order to get a more complete cultural experience.

The exchange rate during this visit was 704 pesos to the dollar.  That made prices very reasonable for American tourists.  You can buy an excellent bottle of wine for less than a dollar and a half or a full meal for a little over two dollars.

All in all, a trip to Chile is quite affordable.  The scenery from the Andes Mountains to the Pacific Ocean is simply spectacular and the natives are very hospitable to foreign travelers.  I love visiting this country and I think you will too.

Here are some website addresses for more information on Chile: