Today is connor's birthday and our last day in Zanzibar and our last night sleeping in a bed till we return to Morganton Saturday night! the weather is cloudy and a bit rainy today, but maybe it will clear later. hopefully. all in all we have had great weather, so no complaints. we leave here tomorrow morning for a 12 noon flight to Dar es Salaam where we have an ungodly layover of about 10 hours! only if we can precheck our luggage will we be able to do anything.
our flight is overnight to Amsterdam and there we have a 5 hr layover again. then to Detroit and CLT. we should be back sometime around 9 or 930 i would guess.
well today will be spent playing pool and ping-pong and hopefully swimming. Mark & i did get a short workout in yesterday for the first time in about 10 days (since we left on safarari). we have been eating like we are in serious training for something though! will have a lot of work to do when we get back!
oh Connor will get a cake at dinner time and we got him a little gift, though he knows the diving instruction was his ultimate gift.
we will touch base when we hit US soil. we are looking forward to seeing everyone. we had an awesome experience and feel quite blessed!
Love to all!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
so now Blue Bay resort
well we weren't in Moshi anymore. this place is pretty nice but it is definitely a westerner's resort. not so much African culture anymore. the rooms are spacious and beautiful, there is a large pool and the ocean is beautiful!
During high tide the water is all the way up to the wall. During low tide, it goes to a sand bar about 1 mile out! the boys walked a good way out and saw a couple large red starfish, but ella's and my flip-flops didn't do well when the water was a little deeper and there are a lot of sea nettles all over the floor. the water is clear and the blue colors are brilliant! when the water came up again in the afternoon, the kids had some fun in the waves, though they were reported to be NOT anywhere near the Jersey shore waves. i liked the warmer water though!
During high tide the water is all the way up to the wall. During low tide, it goes to a sand bar about 1 mile out! the boys walked a good way out and saw a couple large red starfish, but ella's and my flip-flops didn't do well when the water was a little deeper and there are a lot of sea nettles all over the floor. the water is clear and the blue colors are brilliant! when the water came up again in the afternoon, the kids had some fun in the waves, though they were reported to be NOT anywhere near the Jersey shore waves. i liked the warmer water though!
Diving and Snorkeling
We got to the dive shop about 845 a.m. and got our equipment. it turned out we would all be on the same boat and would go out to the Zanzibar channel as we were on that side of the island. this side is much calmer than the Indian Ocean side as you would guess. there was one other diver on our boat. We all got "shorty" wetsuits to wear as the water was a little cooler out there. It was about a 20 min ride to the coral area around a small island and the Brazinskis premedicated just in case, cause you know how we all are. I was feeling mostly better but took my zofran too to make my stomach all better.
We got to our spot and the divers suited up ( i got pictures!) and then the snorkelers and we went in. It was amazing for all! you started seeing really cool fish immediately and there were large schools of tiny fish. Just brilliant! After an hour the divers came up and we had a warm-up in the sun and the most amazing fresh fruit you could ever eat! Pineapple, mango, papaya, oranges and the new favorite of the kids, passion fruit! also all these fried somosas and potatoe things and sweet breads. the divers would have no problem sinking after that.
we went out for one more session after that and the divers practices more of their techniques and the snorkelers floated around and tried to stay warm while looking at really cool fish. we did see a very large clam w/ a wavy mouth too. no large predators though :)
after our dive we went back to the hotel to gather our luggage to go to the resort, but couldn't leave till the boys got their diving cards! i'm sure you can see that even though Connor had his dream come true, this has just fueled his fire!!!!!
We got to our spot and the divers suited up ( i got pictures!) and then the snorkelers and we went in. It was amazing for all! you started seeing really cool fish immediately and there were large schools of tiny fish. Just brilliant! After an hour the divers came up and we had a warm-up in the sun and the most amazing fresh fruit you could ever eat! Pineapple, mango, papaya, oranges and the new favorite of the kids, passion fruit! also all these fried somosas and potatoe things and sweet breads. the divers would have no problem sinking after that.
we went out for one more session after that and the divers practices more of their techniques and the snorkelers floated around and tried to stay warm while looking at really cool fish. we did see a very large clam w/ a wavy mouth too. no large predators though :)
after our dive we went back to the hotel to gather our luggage to go to the resort, but couldn't leave till the boys got their diving cards! i'm sure you can see that even though Connor had his dream come true, this has just fueled his fire!!!!!
Blue Bay resort
well as i was saying before, we went to check out the One Ocean dive shop and Mark, Connor & Michael decided to sign up for the 2 day course which allows you to go to 12 meters. as i was not feeling great that day, i stayed w/ Luke & ella who were too young and we signed up to go snorkeling the next day. the boys stayed there to start their video and we left to find something to do. Turns out we ended up going on a Spice tour at a local village (set up for tourists of course) and Luke & ella really ended up enjoying it. the guide was very interactive and another man was constantly making things out of banana and coconut leaves and we ended up w/ hats, a tie, necklaces, rings and watches! also got to smell, feel and see all our favorite spices. cardomon, vanilla, cloves, tumeric, ginger and a cinnamon tree to name a few. then tasted fruits at the end and then of course went to the table where they were selling spices. i did my part to support the village! after that our taxi driver took us to a small hotel where we had lunch ( i mostly had sparkling water) and the L & G swam in the ocean for about 45 min until the driver had to get back.
i went straight to the bed when we got home and they watched TV till the others came home from thier class. needless to say Connor was more hooked than ever and they were looking forward to the next day!
i went straight to the bed when we got home and they watched TV till the others came home from thier class. needless to say Connor was more hooked than ever and they were looking forward to the next day!
Monday, July 12, 2010
Connor's dream come true & "maybe the tuna wasn't a good idea"
well first, last night we went down to the gardens, which is a plaza w/ tons of people and food vendors grilling all kinds of seafood and other foods (not where the tuna was). lots of good people watching and there was a large group of men and boys jumping off the sea wall doing flips and belly floppers and just being goofy. the boys wanted so bad to jump off too but it was all locals and probably not the safest thing besides. the water didn't look all that deep! mark had the boys try the local sugar cane juice and it actually tasted pretty decent. after the fact it hit us that they were mixing it w/ water that who knows where it came from. mark hit them w/ a dose of antibiotic just in case they started having symptoms but lucky for them, all is well on the "southern front".
We came back to the hotel where we have 1/2 board, for dinner and then watched the world cup. i ordered the tuna for my dinner and i think lost my mind when i thought nothing of eating it slightly seared. morning came and the southern front was not happy. i must say that i am not sure it was the cause as my main issue has just been nausea, but mark started me on Cirpro anyway. zofran is helping too.
.
On a more fun note: we set out in the morning to investigate the local dive shop. oops to be continued.
We came back to the hotel where we have 1/2 board, for dinner and then watched the world cup. i ordered the tuna for my dinner and i think lost my mind when i thought nothing of eating it slightly seared. morning came and the southern front was not happy. i must say that i am not sure it was the cause as my main issue has just been nausea, but mark started me on Cirpro anyway. zofran is helping too.
.
On a more fun note: we set out in the morning to investigate the local dive shop. oops to be continued.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
moshi to Zanzibar
hi all
we made it through the safari feeling like shaken paint cans in a dust bowl but it was awesome! saw just about everything but a black rhino, which is pretty rare. we are at the airport right now waiting to fly to zanzibar. hopefully will have some internet access there. didn't have any at our lodges on safari and certainly not at our public campsite the first night. the truck only broke down 2 times on safari but lucky for us our driver/guide was also a top notch mechanic. the first time was after we made it to our campsite, so we were just delayed getting into the park. the second time a couple days later was in the Serengeti on our way back to the lodge after we had seen lots of lions! but no worries we are all here.
let's see, animals we saw: lots of zebras and gazelles; impalas, dik diks, a leopard lounging in a tree w/ her dinner, a gazelle hanging on another branch; water buffalos, heart beasts, many birds, hippos, giraffes, wildebeasts, hyenas, jackells, and 2 cheetas hunting and stalking a herd of wildebeasts. we got to see the chase but they were unsuccessful and eventually all moved too far away to see.
more details when we have more time.
off to the coast.
love to all!
we made it through the safari feeling like shaken paint cans in a dust bowl but it was awesome! saw just about everything but a black rhino, which is pretty rare. we are at the airport right now waiting to fly to zanzibar. hopefully will have some internet access there. didn't have any at our lodges on safari and certainly not at our public campsite the first night. the truck only broke down 2 times on safari but lucky for us our driver/guide was also a top notch mechanic. the first time was after we made it to our campsite, so we were just delayed getting into the park. the second time a couple days later was in the Serengeti on our way back to the lodge after we had seen lots of lions! but no worries we are all here.
let's see, animals we saw: lots of zebras and gazelles; impalas, dik diks, a leopard lounging in a tree w/ her dinner, a gazelle hanging on another branch; water buffalos, heart beasts, many birds, hippos, giraffes, wildebeasts, hyenas, jackells, and 2 cheetas hunting and stalking a herd of wildebeasts. we got to see the chase but they were unsuccessful and eventually all moved too far away to see.
more details when we have more time.
off to the coast.
love to all!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
