Sonjaja Travel Blog

Arriving in Lima

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 10:00:00 -0600

It feels like the international move process should be slow and laborious, that you should have to get on a boat or train and have the time to reflect on the past and think of the future. It seems abrupt to go to the airport, take a 7-hour flight, and then all of a sudden you live in a new country. But this is an oversimplification, and in reality the process was long and it was laborious.

We learned we were going to go to Lima in December of 2024, over two years ago and not even halfway through our tour in South Africa. It was so far off that we put the thoughts of it aside and enjoyed our time in Johannesburg. We spent a year in the US, learning Spanish and sharing time with our extended families - still not really thinking of Lima. We packed all our belongings up in late January and movers came, but Peru was still a long way off we told ourselves! We still had to criss-cross the US, trying to make the most of Laura’s home leave. Laura spent time maximizing for the 50lbs limit on all our suitcases a few days before we left, but still no stress since “everything had to go.” Finally, Saturday rolls around, and we suddenly have to say our final goodbyes to Aunt Steph and kids, Grammy and Martha. It was hard! How could we have known this day was going to come!

Laura arranged for a 16-passenger van to come pick us up and take the gang to the airport. Laura, Phil, Sonja, Inka, Jim, Janet and then the cats (Koko and Lopsi). We had 11(!) checked bags, plus 6 backpacks, two larger overhead bags, a double pram, car seat, and two cat carriers. If you ever wonder what those people at the airport are doing with 3 carts full of luggage stacked high… now you know. Laura and I stood at the check-in counter with Sonja bouncing about, Jim and Janet a distance away manning the cats and Inka. The process took forever and at one point we had to present the cats to confirm they were, indeed, cats; I heard someone in the queue behind us say “oh my God, they have cats too!”

9 pieces of luggage, plus two cats!

Our booking went from BWI to ATL (1.5hrs) and then ATL to LIM (6.5hrs), departing at ~11am. To our delight, everything went smoothly and according to plan. Sonja made a new friend (Claire, headed to Machu Picchu) during our 2-hour layover + 2-hour delay in Atlanta. Getting Inka and Sonja out for plenty of walking and running around helped them sleep on the plane. We landed in Lima a little after 11pm, gathered our incredible amount of luggage, then walked through customs with all of our earthly possessions and two live animals without being flagged for audit. Immigration was easy and no fuss, the agent spoke English so Laura didn’t get to test her language skills just yet.

A 40-minute drive down the coastal highway, we got to our apartment around 1am. It’s warm and humid here, and the sigh of relief of finally making it was short-lived. Time to get two very tired babies into pajamas and off to bed, while cats meowed, wanting their freedom. It was past 3am by the time we got everything sorted.

The hustle didn’t end there, however! The next morning Laura was in an Uber at 8am, headed to the embassy to start some HR paperwork on diplomatic accreditation, which will get us IDs and longer visas. This process unblocks getting Phil’s work authorization in country as well through Peru + USA’s bilateral work agreement (BWA). Our new nanny, Sofia, came by in the afternoon for first introductions and started getting the girls familiarized. Sofia asked how to pronounce Sonja’s name (SOHN-yuh, /‘soʊn.jə/), and that it reminded her of the word sonqo (SON-koh, /ˈsuŋ.qu/) in her native Quechua, which means heart. The night of our first day in Lima, we attended the daycare’s open house/start of school year. We thought it was going to be a meet-and-greet with the teachers, but it was almost two hours of rules and process explanation, with plenty of homework! The next morning (Tuesday), we took the girls to their first day of school. We have one more day to get us all situated before I try to go into work on Thursday. Laura tells me we should be getting a break in approximately 10-15 years.

Outside of all the craziness, Lima is exciting, lively and very beautiful. Our apartment overlooks the malecón, a cliffside park that stretches about 3 miles end to end. Below the cliff is the highway (not visible from our apartment), and then the ocean (visible and filled with surfers). The park is very active with runners, bikers, dog walkers, paragliders and tourists all sharing the paths; Koko enjoys her new perch watching them day and night. As you head inland, the city’s enormity takes hold, with endless city blocks quickly mixing small retail shops, corner markets, residential and commercial. Infrastructure is relatively good, but not perfect. Sidewalks exist seemingly everywhere, but aren’t super smooth for the pram and often have closed sections due to construction. Traffic isn’t well regulated with lots of poorly marked intersections, crosswalks, etc, and traffic does not stop for anyone; you just have to dodge cars and go for it! In general, the city is a bit overwhelming so far, but we’re sure it will slow down as we become acclimated over the next two years.

Our apartment is one of two on the 7th floor. These two apartments are separated by the elevator, stairwell, and small elevator lobby, so we don’t have any shared-wall neighbors besides the above and below. The other apartment on our floor is also a US diplomat, one of Laura’s coworkers. We have four bedrooms, a small den area, a large dining room and common area, and then the kitchen plus nanny quarters. Every bedroom has its own bathroom, plus a common one and one in the nanny quarters, totalling 6, which seems excessive to me. The floorplan is such that the bedrooms are all separated from the main living area, making it very functional. All told, it is about 2200 sq ft, plus sizeable balcony and feels plenty big.

Many, many thanks to Laura for doing 95% of the work to get us here, and to Jim + Janet for assisting on the travel!!

We still await Inka’s first steps.

Photos

Johannesburg - 1st Tour 2023-2025

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 22:05:22 +0200

I don’t know, I wrote a lot and I don’t know if it all belongs here. First of all, how did we even end up in South Africa?

The journey to becoming a foreign service officer has been a long one, yet it was definitely worth the wait! Rewind back to 2018, I’m currently a Peace Corps Volunteer in Benin and decided to take the FSOT (foreign service officer test) just to see what it’s like so that I’ll know how to better study for it in the future. A difficult test that covers a wide range of topics, I obviously assumed I wouldn’t pass. To my surprise I did pass and spent the next year taking several more rounds of exams and interviews until finally I passed the last step and made the list of candidates deemed suitable for this career (woohoo!!). My time on the list eventually expired without ever being called on and I found myself back to square one. I tried 2 more times unsuccessfully and then on the 4th attempt I again made the list and this time received an invite to orientation to officially become a foreign service officer. The only problem, we had just bought our first home 2 months prior…what timing.

Fast forward to the end of orientation. Called Flag Day, this is where my colleagues and I will receive our first assignment. As you can imagine, the nerves and energy in the room is palpable. I didn’t have too much time to stress as my name was called 2nd…GSO in Johannesburg! I gladly went up to the stage to accept the South African flag.

South Africa holds a special place in our hearts. Phil previously lived in Cape Town, now we were heading back in my first diplomatic assignment. We were fortunate to have traveled throughout the region, which we talk about in our other posts. However, this post is more about our daily lives and the amazing people we got to know.

We lived in a townhome inside a compound in Hyde Park. Just down the street from us were homes of some of the wealthiest people in South Africa, including the current president’s personal residence and other politicians. I passed by these massive private residences on my way to work at the Consulate. Shielded by giant 20’ walls and guards carrying large rifles, I would try to catch a glimpse of what was inside anytime the front gate opened to let a car in.

Most days after work and on the weekends we would walk to the shopping mall down the street from us and go grocery shopping at Woolworths. On the way we’d say hi to Agnes who sold crochet animals at the intersection and another guy that we never knew his name. Before Sonja was born, we’d love going out to eat at Olives and Plates, George’s steakhouse or Red Chamber Chinese food. On Fridays Phil always made dinner in his pizza oven in the back yard.

We’d always start the weekend with a 5k Park Run, either at Delta Park or Woodlands. Rushing out the door and arriving usually seconds before the race started, it was a crazy yet rewarding start to the weekend. Afterwards, we would drive up to get bubble tea at Sprino and visit with the same 3 ladies who worked there everyday.

My favorite weekend activity by far was visiting the markets around Johannesburg. The Linden and Irene market were some of our favorites. I loved buying locally made baby clothes and toys and Phil never left without buying a hand poured candle.

Once Sonja was born we were fortunate to hire a nanny. First Sharon and then Judy. They would have daily playdates with the next door neighbors boy and his nanny, Nonhlanhla. The nannies would also chat with the compound guards and Sonja would spend the day listening to their conversations in Zulu. Both Sharon and Judy would do our laundry every day despite us telling them that once a week was sufficient. We would joke that we only wore the same 2 pairs of underwear during our tour.

Sonja’s first friend, Cal, was the boy nextdoor. They loved throwing rocks down the storm drains and playing in the garden fountain. When they turned 6 months, they took swim lessons at the condo across the street. As Sonja learned to walk, she would meander over to Cal’s house every time she was let outside.

What I will miss most about South Africa is the friendly demeanor of the people we encountered. The waitress that asked if she could take Sonja back to the kitchen because the rest of the staff wanted to meet her, the lady at KFC and the guy at Nandos that came out specifically to say hi to Sonja. The gas attendants that always reminded you to have a great day. Agnes who gifted Sonja a crochet springbok just because we’d walk by and say hi so often. The woman who ran our favorite Ethiopian restaurant and cried when we told her we were moving. And above all Sharon, Judy and Nonhlanhla.

Victoria Falls and Hwange

Sat, 21 Sep 2024 22:05:22 +0200

With only a few months left in our time here in South Africa, it was time to finally visit the one country that Phil had been itching to visit since we first arrived 1.5 years ago - Zimbabwe. Despite it being the dry season following an unusually long drought, we still wanted to see Victoria Falls. The falls were impressive, even with the low water level. I was surprised to read that the area surrounding the falls was considered a rainforest. It was lush with vegetation and there were views of rainbows from every viewpoint.

We also got to watch people swimming in Devils pool - an activity only offered in the low season. This is where people can swim at the very top of the falls. It was wild to see how close to the edge these people were.

We read that in the rainy season during peak flow, the falls can be 30x more powerful and that sometimes you can’t see anything because of the mist/spray- yet you can hear the thundering of the falls all across town. We hope to come back one day to experience this.

Victoria Falls at ~50 m^3/s. Peak flow is 100 times as powerful (5000 m3/s)

Following Victoria Falls we rented a car (a sedan which clearly had seen better days and had dents all around and the bumper falling off) and drove 2 hours South to Hwange National Park.

At the entrance to Hwange National Park, we were informed their credit card machine had not worked for 3 weeks and only accepted cash for the $110 entrance fee. We did not appreciate how much Zimbabwe relies on cash transactions and quickly realized we were underprepared for such transactions. We sat around the main entrance for about an hour while they attempted to reach out lodge to see if we could pay the entrance fee through them with our card. Thankfully they agreed.

As we finally entered the park, the true adventure began. The roads which started out nice and flat became increasingly more rocky. The 39 km to camp was estimated to take about an hour. The further in we drove, the bigger the rocks in the road. I held my breath as with every thump and thud I imagined the bottom of our car falling out. I now understood why our rental car was in such rough shape when we first received it.

As we passed the last sign, “5KM to Verney’s Camp,” I felt a sigh of relief. We were almost there! Sand started to replace the rocks and Phil did a great job of keeping our speed up until the sand got deeper and the road got steeper. Finally, the car stopped. We were stuck. Phil did everything he could to get us out, but alas our front right tire was too deep. It was 2:30 PM and neither of us had cell service. We even brought a satellite phone which we quickly found out that the account had been deactivated. Keeping optimistic, we assured ourselves that we were on the main road and that they would find us when they went out for their evening game drive, usually around 4:30. However, as 4:30 came and went we had a serious question to answer. Should Phil walk the 5 km to camp to get help and risk encountering lions or whatever wildlife was out there, or do we camp out in the car for the night after having just used the last of our water to make Sonja a bottle of milk.

Sonja tries her best to dig our car out of the sand

As the gravity of our situation started to sink in, we saw a safari car round the corner. We were saved! Two of the camp’s guides, Trust and Simon, rode in light knights in shining armor. The first thing they did was to bring out a cooler of cold drinks and hors d’oeuvres. What a change in circumstance! They loaded us and our luggage up and whisked us off to camp then later returned to tow our car the rest of the way.

The camp was incredible and wild. There were no fences separating us from the wild animals and at night you had to be escorted to your tent by an armed guard. There was a watering hole just 30 meters from the camp which attracted up to 100 elephants at one time. The camp also provided babysitting services so that Phil and I could go out and enjoy the game drives (thanks Chipo!)

left: The back porch of our family tent, with over 100 elephants at the watering hole ❖ right: The Verney’s Camp crew! Trust (Guide), Chipo (host) and two of the chefs

That night we slept (or tried to sleep) to the sound of elephants around the watering hole. Phil watched an elephant stop just a few feet from where Sonja was sleeping to feed on a nearby bush. This place truly was WILD.

On our first morning, the guides said there were 2 lions in camp and ushered us into the cars so that we could go find them. I couldn’t believe how close they were to our tents and how they casually wandered through the buildings.

Our stay at Verneys was perfect. As we prepared for our final day, one major question loomed over our heads - how will we ever get out of here? Vernie’s staff was amazing - on the morning of our departure they towed our car back out past the sandy section and back on the main (rocky) road. They also casually mentioned that they had repaired 2 tires that had been punctured.

As we retraced our steps on the rocky road, we couldn’t help but think about the 2 flat tires and prayed that the car would last us all the way back to Victoria Falls Airport. 3 hours later we finally arrived at the airport and car rental return. With Sonja’s vomit all over the backseat and my outfit, we were relieved to have survived!

To keep things interesting, as we were checking in (this took about 40 minutes as their ‘system was down’) we noticed that they had bumped our departure time up by 45 minutes and rather than getting there with a few minutes to spare, instead we had to run to the gate and were the last ones to board the plane. Finally I could breathe, we had made it.

Photos

Birds

Videos

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

South Luangwa National Park

Sun, 21 Jul 2024 22:39:22 +0200

South Luangwa is known for its walking safaris and off the grid boutique bush lodges. We were a bit nervous for this trip because we were staying in very remote lodges and it was the longest plane ride Sonja had done to date.

We flew from Johannesburg to Lusaka and then took a small 20-seater plane into the town of Mfuwe where we were met by the safari guide from our first camp. As we drive towards the park it suddenly transitions from town to wilderness. There are no fences surrounding South Luangwa, only natural borders such as rivers and hills demarcate the park’s boundaries. The driver, who is from the town, tells us about how the elephants ransack the gardens at night and about dangerous encounters with hippos as they venture into the streets at night.

The camp Nsolo was a 2 hour drive into the park. It is one of the most remote camps in the park, completely off the grid. It’s a temporary camp, broken down and removed at the end of each dry season. The walls, made of reeds from the bush, are built from scratch year after year.

A map of the Time & Tide properties inside South Luangwa NP. We flew into the town of Mfuwe

Like the park, the camp also didn’t have a fence. Elephants often wandered through, grazing on trees as they passed. We were instructed to always be vigilant and never walk to our room at night without a staff escort.

The camp was located next to a dry riverbed. Around camp we saw many Lilac Breasted Rollers and Little Bee Eater birds who nested in the dried riverbanks. I’m not sure how Phil did it, but at both camps we stayed at while in South Luangwa, we were the only guests at that time and had the whole place to ourselves.

We did not get to take advantage of all the camp had to offer it truly bask in it’s remoteness as we were worried about Sonja being so young. This just means we’ll have to come back for another trip when the girls after older to enjoy the walking safaris, late night safari drives and sleep outside.

The night drives were amazing at South Luangwa. We saw tons of hippo, leopard, porcupines(!), hyena, genet and a lot more

After 2 nights we transferred to the next camp, KuKaya. As we were checking in Phil recognized a running friend, Andreas, from several years ago! We couldn’t believe it given how off the beaten trail we were. He was leading a large group checking out that day so once again we had the camp all to ourselves. While normally we would have preferred the rustic and remoteness of the first camp, I was much more at ease here with Sonja. It was more established and had air conditioning so I worried less about her comfort. The camp was also larger with more staff, including the head chef that was in charge of the menu for all their sister camps throughout the park. KuKaya is 6 permanent tented chalets, sleeping 22 guests, but for the two nights we were there we had it all to ourselves.

Sonja enjoyed the pool at our tent in KuKaya camp, which overlooked the (mostly) dry riverbed. We saw giraffe, warthog, zebra, wildebeest from our deck. At night, armed guards walked us back to the tent from the dining area and on one such trip we saw a hippo grazing right in from of our tent!

Staying in two different parts of the park also allowed us to fully experience the varied terrain. From dry riverbeds and thicket to open plains and corridors of tall trees, each area of the park was unique.

Photos

Mbabane and Wildfires

Mon, 01 Jul 2024 22:43:18 +0200

We decided to take a long weekend to tick another country off our list. The drive to the Eswatini border took about 5 hours and we managed to get to our AirB&B on the outskirts of the capital city, Mbabane, by late afternoon.

The areas of Eswatini that we saw felt similar to the surrounding rural areas of South Africa. Unlike Lesotho, there were no mountains or commuters on horseback, but rather rolling hills and clustered neighborhoods. Sadly, we never got to see the actual city of Mbabane or the majority of the country for that matter, but instead chose to spend our time exploring the beautiful landscape around our AirBnB.

The cottage we rented was located in a valley at the base of Sibebe Rock, world’s largest granite dome and the world’s second largest monolith. It was a rondavel with a thatched roof and a leaning staircase that made you question the structural integrity of the loft where we would sleep.

When we arrived, the host who had a daughter about the same age as Sonja greeted us. She commented how exciting it was to have us as guests as there are not many other babies around for her daughter to play with. They graciously took us on a tour of the land behind their house and pointed out different hiking routes up to the ridgeline.

After a chilly night’s sleep, we awoke the next morning and headed out to climb up the hillside for a better view of Sibebe rock. We were all excited to try out Sonja’s hiking pack and we were pleased that she enjoyed being carried around in it. The air was a little smokey as it was dry season and there were a number of small, contained bushfires around. Following a successful summit, we met up for lunch with a colleague who was currently working at the Embassy in Mbabane and toured his house.

Sonja hiking up the mountain in her new backpack carrier, with our airbnb far below. Sibebe is in the background, on the opposite side of the valley.

That night, as we got ready for bed, our hosts warned us there was a strong wind advisory and suggested it could cause power outages throughout the night. We also noticed that the ridgeline we summited just a few hours ago was on fire. Tiny bits of ash were coming in through the loose window sills. Slightly concerned about the combination of wind and fire we checked in with the host who commented that these types of small bush fires happen often and assured us that the wind would be changing directions soon to take it away from us, and just in case there was a large fire break and river between the property and the hillside.

A little relieved, yet still a bit cautious we decided to load some of our bags in the car before heading to sleep. We were checking out tomorrow anyways and it would make heading out in the morning a little quicker. We set an alarm for 3 hours later to check on the status of the fire to make sure it wasn’t coming any closer. 2.5 hours later, at about 1 AM we were woken up by a phone call. It was the hosts, “you need to leave now.” Still half asleep, I didn’t want to risk misunderstanding her and unnecessarily wake a sleeping baby in the middle of the night, “What? You mean leave the property? And go where?” At this point, the smell of smoke had gotten much stronger and there appeared to be an orange hue behind the window blinds.

Peering behind the curtain, the flames were right on the edge of the property. How the heck did it move so quickly!?!? Sitting on the side of the road next to the property we debated driving back the 5 hours to Johannesburg. We decided to drop by my colleagues house to see if we could wake him and ask to sleep there. We also worried about Sonja’s new baby friend and, before leaving, decided to go back onto the property and offer to take their baby with us, away from the danger for the night. As we drove back on the property we were stopped by a huge tree that had just fallen across the driveway. Had we not left when we did, we would have been stuck there, surrounded by fire and under a thatched roof.

We returned the next morning to check on the hosts. Thankfully everyone was okay and none of their buildings were damaged.

What we expected to be a fairly low-key weekend away ended up being a trip that we will never forget.

Videos

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Photos

Scuba in Tofo

Mon, 17 Jun 2024 22:39:22 +0200

We can’t not go to Mozambique, I mean, it’s right there. This was our wild card vacation. Phil and I never thought we were beach people. And when we thought of Mozambique we just thought of one massively long beach that looked the same for it’s entire 1,600 mile coastline. Where all there was to do was sit in the sand and take long walks.

A vacation we weren’t enthusiastic about ended up being Phil’s favorite trip of the year.

What convinced us to go was a super short direct flight into Tofo (a place I ignorantly kept calling Tofu) and a gorgeous beachfront house Phil found on AirBnB. Excited that there were some popular dive sites where we could test our our newly acquired scuba certifications, we decided to bring our nanny to help watch Sonja.

The evening before our trip, we were notified that our 9am direct flight had been changed. It was now leaving at 6am with a layover, more than doubling our travel time.

For those of you who don’t know, some members of our family are NOT morning people. Therefore, it was no surprise that we ran late waking up and getting to the airport that next morning. To add to the chaos, the parking garage where we had pre-booked a spot days ago was completely full. After circling the lot frantically we tried to leave to find parking elsewhere only to be trapped inside and had to call for help to get someone to lift the boom.

We finally arrived at the ticketing counter with about 45 minutes until our flight was scheduled to depart. Sadly, we had forgotten we needed to purchase a lap ticket for Sonja and were told to go to another counter to buy one. At the other counter, we were informed the system was currently “offline”. It was now 6 am, surely there is no way we’ll make the flight. The system is back online, we pay for Sonja’s lap ticket which costs about how much our seat bookings cost, and run back to the other counter to check our baggage. After taking our luggage, the airline crew at the counter personally escort us through the front of security, immigration and finally to the bus which was waiting to take us to the plane…we made it!!!

As we approach Inhambane (regional airport for Tofo), the views are spectacular. Beautiful stretches of white sandy beaches, palm trees and clear blue water. However we only get glimpses of this paradise between the dark storm clouds. At one point the airplane does a ‘fly by’ of the beach. While it provides for a great view, it was certainly not part of it’s normal route, we’re circling and turbulence is rough. It’s clear the pilot is struggling with this storm and were told that if the next landing attempt is unsuccessful then we’ll have to turn around and go back to Maputo.

Fortunately the second attempt worked. We didn’t die and successfully landed in Inhambane in the pouring rain. The airport is small, only one ‘terminal’. A few guys approached us and asked if we needed a taxi. We picked the one with the biggest car … an old beatup hatchback. In the downpour the driver struggled to load all of our suitcases. They didn’t fit. Determined, he used whatever he could find in his car to somehow tie the trunk closed with our suitcases hanging out. With bags and strollers on our laps we set off on our 30 minute drive to Tofo - everything soaking wet.

left: The approach to Inhambane aiport ❖ right: The tiny one-room airport. Pick your luggage up on the tarmac!

On the road we made our best attempt to ask the driver, who only spoke Portuguese, if he had a card reader. He didn’t, so he took us on a detour to find an ATM. The ATM was “offline”. We had no way of paying him. We foolishly thought about how we had just spent 2.5 hours killing time during our layover in the capital Maputo and never thought to get cash. He kindly took us to our AirBnB and we assured him that we would call him at the end of our trip to go to the airport and hopefully then the ATM would be working. An IOU.

The house was stunning. Beachfront views, lounge chairs and a pool. Also, no neighbors yet still within walking distance to the town.

Relaxing at the airbnb in Tofo

Each morning we would wake up to see people down on the beach looking into our windows holding up fresh caught shrimp for sale. Sadly, we didn’t have cash to buy any…although that might have been a good thing as I’m not sure we would have known how to cook them - they didn’t look like the debodied versions sold in the supermarket :)

Tofo is unique from many scuba destinations as it requires beach launches. Each dive begins with a tractor pulling the boat out onto the beach. All divers and some extra employees grab hold on either side of the boat and walk it out into the surf - the tractor pushing from behind. The captain then yells ‘ladies in’ and any ladies have to pull themselves up and in. Then as the boat gets deeper and surf rougher he yells ‘all in’, the remaining divers jump in while the skipper cranks the motor and the employees still continue to push the boat. At this point waves are pummeling us and crashing over the boat. There are loops on the floor and on the sides for you to secure your feet and hands in so that you don’t fall overboard. Finally, the boat is past the surf and you cruise out to the dive side selected for the day.

The dive sites we did were anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes by boat. Since Tofo has many deeper dive sites, Phil and I decided to do our deep dive certification, extending our allowed depth from 60 feet to 130 feet. Going down 130’ below sea level was wild to say the least. Seeing the giant expanse of blue nothingness as you drift back up to the surface was a unique and chilling experience. You can’t help but be in awe of how massive our oceans are.

Similar to how we launched the boat going out to sea, coming back was similar. The captain would alert us to ‘hold on tight’ and floor it full speed directly onto the beach trying to get the boat as far up on the sand as possible. If you weren’t holding on you surely would have gotten thrown from the boat!

We ended up doing 6 dives in total with Tofo Scuba: Office, Salon, Manta Reef, Giants Castle, Rob’s Bottom, and Fingers. Sadly we did not see any of the Mantas or Whalesharks that frequent these sites, but we still saw and experienced so much underwater life!

Laura looking up from Manta Reef towards ~100 rays swimming above us

Besides diving we also took surf lessons and did some shopping in town. Yet again, we struggled as the street vendors only took cash. We finally found one guy with a card machine that agreed to serve as our unofficial ‘ATM’.

I realize that the majority of this blog is about our comical struggles to get to Tofo and that I didn’t spend much time talking about the town itself. However, it truly was paradise for us. The town is very small, yet has a number of nice shops and restaurants to enjoy. It was the perfect rustic adventure beach town with just the right amenities and no crowds. Furthermore, this trip really built up our confidence and ignited our interest in scuba diving.

Having experienced Tofo, we now have a deeper yearning to see more of what Mozambique has to offer.

Photos

Videos

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Mountain Kingdom

Fri, 01 Mar 2024 22:43:18 +0200

Lesotho is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 meters in elevation. Its lowest point of 1,400 meters is the highest lowest point of any country in the world.

On this road trip, we barely scratched the surface of Lesotho but we were left in awe and longing to go back and explore deeper into this rural country. This was SJs first international trip.

We spent our first night in Fouriesburg, SA just a few kilometers from the Caledonspoort border crossing. Already it felt so refreshing to get out of the city and into the countryside. As we crossed into Lesotho the next morning, we were immediately impressed with the countryside and beautiful landscapes. With very few people around we shared the road with very few cars and a commuter on horseback. As we crept more into the country, we followed the winding road up higher and higher into the mountains where rondavels sprinkled the hillside and the roads became a shared space with the roaming sheep herds. About an hour into Lesotho we no longer saw villages, but instead just wide open landscapes. If you looked closely enough, you could see the occasional sheep herder on distant hills.

Our first stop in Lesotho was Afriski Resort. As we were there in the fall there was no snow, but the lodge restaurant, which claims to be the highest restaurant in Africa, was open so we stayed for lunch. I was impressed with how much the lodge resembled those in Utah or Colorado. There was even a ski school building with magic carpets for the youngest skiers. However, the primary ski slope itself was no more than a singular J bar lift up a small hill. Overall, Afriski certainly succeeded in giving off that ski town vibe.

As we continued on towards Sani Pass, our final destination for the day, we couldnt help but notice how great the roads were. We were initially concerned about our itinerary as people, maps and travel blogs advised us that it would take an entire day of driving to get from Afriski to Sani Pass, but instead the kilometers quickly fell away on the nicely paved road. It seems like Lesotho must have invested in this stretch of road over the past few years.

We arrived at Sani Mountain Lodge only a few hours later where we checked in and got drinks at the tallest bar in Africa. The top of Sani Pass was windy and frigid cold, but the staff built a fire in our rondavel room and put hot water bags in our bed which kept us toasty warm.

The next morning we started our descent down the scenic Sani Pass. On our way down we saw hikers who opted to walk up rather than drive. The Sani Pass drive requires all vehicles to have 4x4 but we didn’t actually need it for the drive down, however a vehicle with high clearance is a must.

At the bottom of Sani Pass we crossed back over the border into South Africa and looped around the Drakensburg mountains to head back towards Johannesburg. We spent the last night at an AirB&B called Dashy Cottage in Kwazulu-Natal. The farm where the cottage was located was home to about 10 dachshunds who ran freely around the property. During our evening walk we were pleasantly surprised to have spotted 2 crowned cranes resting on nearby powerlines. The birds were impressively large.

Photos

Addo Elephant Park

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 22:43:18 +0200

Just before Phil’s parental leave ended, we decided to take our first trip with Sonja down to Addo Elephant Park. Sonja was just about 1-month old when we packed up our car and embarked on her first adventure.

Careful to limit the amount of time in her car seat, we broke the trip up to allow for plenty of rest stops (aka me nursing at gas stations or on the side of the road in a camp chair). We spent our first night at a farm style cottage in Bloemfontein. The AirB&B was elegant and relaxing. We wished we could have stayed a second night and vowed to stay there again if we ever found ourselves back in the Free State.

Our relaxing Airbnb in Bloemfontein

On the second day we made our way to Mountain Zebra National Park where we stayed in one of the Park’s cottages. We arrived just in time for a quick sunset drive up to one of the lookout points. On our way up we saw buffalo and of course Mountain Zebra - which are a unique breed and different from the more common Plains or Burchell’s Zebra. After the sunset we experienced the most challenging night since Sonja had been born. Sonja was losing it and there was nothing we could do to console her. For hours she screamed and cried until finally, somehow, she wore down and fell asleep. Drained and defeated, we had to decide - do we push on and continue to drive even further from home, or do we just give up and head back? As I lay down to sleep, I decided to abandon the trip and make our way back home the next day. However, by morning Sonja was back to her usual self and we all felt like the figurative storm clouds had passed. Let’s do this! Our confidence returned and we decided to continue South. It’s amazing how much sleep can help you reset.

As we entered the Eastern Cape, the landscape turned green and more tropical. Just a few miles from the park entrance we got our first glance of the coast and felt a sense of relaxation and accomplishment. We spent two nights in the Southern, less developed, part of the park. Despite sharing a bathroom with the biggest spider I’ve ever seen and having vervet monkeys sneak in through the window and eat all of our snacks while we were napping, we had a very comfortable stay. I loved sitting out on the balcony with Sonja in my lap soaking in the beautiful scenery and listening to the birds fly by.

Sitting on the balcony of our cabin in Addo Elephant National Park

On the return trip, we spent the fifth night at a lovely AirB&B in Cradock. This was probably our second worse night with Sonja where again, nothing we could do would calm her. However, we now knew that she would eventually fall asleep and that we would survive the night. In the final stretch we spent one last night in Bloemfontein before making it home.

So was it worth it? We think so. While SJ wont remember any of it, this trip gave us the confidence to travel with her and to continue making the most of our time in South Africa. Plus, how cool to have a picture of you next to a herd of elephants at 1-month of age!

Animals Spotted:

Buffalo
Mountain Zebra
Elephant
Bokmakierie

Videos

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Photos

Search

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000