Samois sur Seine, Sons, Yonne and Joigny

After a brief but pleasant stay in Paris we were off again.  We arrived in Samois sur Seine where we bumped into someone we had met 12 years ago when we had our previous barge.  It's always fun catching up.  Steve is an amazing cook and invited us aboard his beautiful barge for appetizers which turned into dinner.  It was a real treat.

A short walk from where we tied up in Samois sur Seine was a lovely restaurant.  It was warm so what better way to beat the heat than with a lovely Rose.

My first course of smoked salmon was delicious.

Tom showing off his new watch.  This is unusual in that he never buys himself things like this.

We tied up next to an Italian restaurant.  I could go up to the bow of Rabelo and check on the meals being served.

I'm still doing a lot of cooking on Rabelo.  This is my Langres Tart just out of the oven.

When we arrived in Muret sur Loing we bumped into our new friends Pete and Amanda on their boat Piglet.  The interesting thing about meeting and making new friends when cruising is that you develop a closeness much more quickly than when home.  They invited us to come over for dinner and we had a great evening with them, another cruising couple and our captain Kevin.  Good food, good friends and a great time was had by all.

Muret sur Loing is a charming town with water flowing everywhere.

It was dark when we left our friends on Piglet.  The Mayflies were out and they were everywhere!  They only live one day so the next morning there was a huge mess to clean up.  Dead bugs everywhere there had been light.

There are various ways to travel the canals of France

This was a new style of fishing for us.  We are accustomed to seeing the fishermen of France sitting along the sides of the canals.  

We cruised on to the town of Sens.  There we attended a violin concert in a church.  The violinists were great but they had to compete with a rock concert a few blocks away.  Unfortunately the rock concert won.

We discovered a new kind of lock while on the Yonne River.  The locks had sloping sides which made it difficult to stay in the center.  We can't understand why they didn't do straight sides like everywhere else we've been.

A new kind of lock with sloping sides.

There was no way to stay centered in these locks.

The charming town of Pont sur Yonne

In the town of Pont sur Yonne we tied to a Dig Dab.  Tying up was free.  Getting off the boat was challenging.

 Meeting local people always makes the visit more memorable.  While in Pont sur Yonne we saw a community garden with a gentleman working on his plot.  When we admired the vegetables he gifted us with two beautiful zucchini.

Sailing into the town of Joigny

It was warm enough that we went swimming in the river.

Narrow street!

Beautiful old timbered building with amazing wood carvings on the front.

 Tom decided to surprise me with a special treat.  We moved our boat across the river and tied up in front of the restaurant/hotel a la cote St Jacques.  After swimming in the river, we cleaned up and headed ashore for a two star michelin rated dinner.

Getting ready to go ashore for dinner

 Our meal was amazing and I will let the pictures do most of the talking.

Amuse-Bouche

Butter in France is delicious.  Here we had two different butters to try.

It was difficult trying to decide what cheeses to try.

My dessert

Tom's dessert

Cape Town, South Africa

African Penguin

After the time we spent on safari, returning to civilization was a cultural shock.  Besides not being prepared for the cars, people and buildings, we were unprepared for the economic situation in Cape Town.  To view the high density slums surrounded by portable toilets because two million people have no running water was shocking and terribly upsetting.  

On the other hand, Cape Town and the surrounding areas were filled with beauty.  We ended our African adventure in Cape Town by sharing a guide for two days with two couples from our safari group.  We crammed in as much as we could in that short amount of time.

The African Penguin is the only penguin that breeds in Africa.  We were fortunate enough to visit the Boulders Penguin Colony in Simon's Town.  It was great to see even if it is a huge tourist attraction with many people vying for a spot to view and photograph these endangered birds.  It is believed that the African Penguin may become extinct in the next 15 years.

Time for a little sunshine.

They are amazing at swimming and fishing but not so graceful on shore.

Why would I include this rodent looking animal with the penguins?

This is not a rodent but actually called a Hydrax which is the closest living relative to an elephant.  We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of him on the beach with the penguins.

Magnificent views.

 We visited the Cape of Good Hope where people were lined up waiting to have their picture taken with this sign.  This is a national park with busloads of tourists and some interesting animals.

An Eland

Ostrich and babies

Light House at Cape Point

 A must see on our list was the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden.  It was stunning with unusual flowers, bird life, and changing scenery.

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden

 

The Centenary Tree Canopy Walkway was beautiful.

Even though we live in France 6 months a year we never tire of wine tasting and viewing the magnificent scenery that goes along with the growing of grapes.  South Africa was no exception.

We did some cheese sampling along with the wine tasting at Fairview Winery.

 After an amazing trip to Africa it was time to return to our "home" in France.  People say Africa is "The Trip of a Lifetime."  We hope to be fortunate enough to have a return visit to Africa.  The animals are calling us.  The sights, sounds and smells have filled my soul.  The bush calls to me and I shall heed the call.

Zambia

Victoria Falls in Zambia

Victoria Falls.

Us at Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls

View of Victoria Falls with a swimming area on the left.

After having a wonderful time on safari, returning to civilization was a shock.  We left  Kruger and flew to Livingstone, Zambia.  Traffic, lots of people, run down dilapidated buildings, and scruffy landscape all assaulted and insulted our senses.  The main drag was designed to attract tourists with  honky tonk shops trying to sell variations of the same things.  

We were there to see Victoria Falls which is a World Heritage Site.  It was obvious that during the rainy season, or when there is no drought the Falls are magnificent.  Even without the normal flow of water we could see the beauty of the falls and how impressive they must be when they are at their peak.

There was plenty to do during our brief stay in Livingstone.  

We went for a boat ride on the Lady Livingstone where we enjoying drinks, appetizers and viewed the sunset on the Zambezi River.

Sunset on the Zambezi River

Crocodile relaxing along the Zambezi River

View from our room at the Royal Livingstone Hotel

At our hotel we were fortunate to see even more wildlife.  I love zebra.  They are such beautiful animals.  Tom wanted a picture of me with the zebras.

There were zebra grazing on the hotel grounds. We came across them just after leaving our room.

Tom kept telling me to get closer to the Zebra's

Nervously I cautiously approached the baby zebra.

Oops!  The baby didn't like my being so close.  I was lucky he missed me!  Another member of our group wasn't so lucky.

 While we were in Zambia we were invited to visit the Ebenezer Private School and Orphanage.  We did visit the school but didn't see the orphanage.

When we arrived at the Ebenezer Private School the children were there to greet us with singing and dancing.  We had the opportunity to meet with the founder Ranji Chara and visit some of the classrooms.  

Ever since I was young and my parents took me to developing countries I've had a difficult time dealing with poverty.  I was reminded again of the pain I feel in seeing poverty, hunger, and illness.

Royal Livingstone Express.  A beautifully restored train powered by coal.

The interior was very comfortable.

Next on our agenda was a chance to go back in time as we boarded the Royal Livingstone Express.  We saw some scenery, including viewing a small slice of local life, and enjoyed a delicious dinner.  Again, I found some of what we saw extremely disturbing.  There doesn't seem to be a method to properly dispose of trash.  It is simply strewn along the train tracks outside of the housing tracts.  This is where the children play, among the rubbish heaps.

Here you can see where the trash is piled up.  It seemed to go on for miles.  This is where the children play.

It is exciting for the children to have a train passing by.  Some kids try to catch the train.

 Halfway through our ride we stopped so the engine could be moved from the front to the back of the train. That's how we "turn around."  It takes a while.  A family came out to watch the show.  It looked like three sisters, each with a baby on her back.  Six other children came with them.  It appeared to be one family living outside of town.  It was very difficult getting even a smile out of the children.

A family came out to watch the train show.

One of the mothers.

A second mother.

Getting ready for dinner in the dining car.