We are back at home after few weeks on the road. I know, this sentence may look very special in 2021! What a world we are living today! Hopefully by the end of this year all this will be a far gone nightmare for the world. I just had a look at few other travel bloggers posting...Im impressed by the resources, able to blog about times long gone, just to celebrate the fact that one day not too far from now, the world will be once again a small place.
There is today an ethical point about traveling or not. If you are sitting in Europe, its pretty simple....either you moved away months ago...or you sit nicely at home. Everything else doesnt make much sense. Europe today is a no go....Asia is closed to outsiders....if you are in Vietnam, China, HK, Thailand or any other place...you do enjoy a pretty normal life...to the simple rule of nobody else in...and if you go out, its a one way...and lets not start with Australia or NZ!
For the nomad that I have been the many past years...well, the 90 days rule still did kick in...and Im not
the one thinking that stay put will easy life later on. So it was time to move away for 2 weeks....well, those turn into 6 weeks....or shall I say we came back home four weeks late, for various reasons! Africa is so far part of the free moving world....for more than few countries....as well more these days as the Americas are...basic rule...if you do apply social distancing at home...as long as you apply the same rules anywhere else...what is really the difference!
So I had to leave SA...and not a simple border run. The initial plan was 6 nights in Dubai and 6 nights in Kenya...and a milestone birthday for my love Tanya. Everything went the other way around....but flexible we are...and with patience, everything went pretty well...at the end of the day! So here is the first blog...of a serie of four blogs, Dubai being the last one!
I still remember the 2009 crisis....it was a financial one...but the end game was the same...we had to change what we plan for....to stay afloat! So this time...here is the free world from our perspective....you can leave South Africa...you dont know if you can come
back...once we left, Dubai was still open to people arriving from SA...not anymore...Africa is pretty much open with a negative test, I mean by those Namibia, Tanzania, Egypt or Kenya.
Amboseli has been on my list to do forever...200km South of Nairobi and just North of the border with Tanzania. Amboseli is super well known for the elephants pictures with the Kilimanjaro in the background. The highest point of Africa is in Tanzania...so those pictures are actually a experience! Some 10 years ago, I did Serengeti as well as NgoroNgoro....but today, we had the chance to explore this superb place...without the crowds!
We first landed in Nairobi from Dubai. More about this on the last episode of this trip. Nairobi is a huge city...lots of traffic jams, some more than decent hotels, wouldnt mind to live her one day for few years...but not the topic today! We stay in the capital one night to recover from the short, middle of the night, way too much Champagne flight! From Nairobi, you can fly to Amboseli or drive...well, no for foreigners here....cheaper to rent a Land from Nairobi with driver than to fly in....and
We are staying for two nights at the Serena Amboseli. Stay with them in Tanzania and was pretty impressed. This time too, perfect experience! This is not the five star experience of AndBeyond, but a solid four stars experience with The Serena Amboseli has 93 rooms, one of the two only lodges into the National Park. Simple, 6 rooms were occupied, we were the only internationals...and yes, the discount was solid!
Our driver, Mohamed is simply He met us at our hotel in Nairobi at 7am. We are on for the four hours drive to Amboseli. On the program, 2 nights in the park...a total of 48 hours in it...and a grand total of 17 hours game drives. Yes...
