The last day - arranging to go back home

The carwash in SA: everything done by hand... We gave them the mattress we had used in the back of the car, and our surplus ood. They were overjoyous.

I then went to deliver the car back at PACE rental cars. They were very happy to see it well and undamaged upon return. I was very happy they had allowed me to drive it to MAlawi and back. No other rental company apart from specialised (very expensive) overlander companies had been willing to do so.

And we spent the day in the park. The kids climbing at Acrobranch again, us sitting, relaxing and...

Being cold. They are standing in the sun to warm up a bit.

We drove a taxi back to the airport, and got a glimpse of the innercity of Johannesburg this way.

Airport waiting... Gytha went on a separate flight, she would depart three hours later and arrive some hours earlier too. 

Bye bye Africa!

Kruger Park - Johannesburg South Africa is beautiful in these parts!

Nice camp to wake up in, in http://www.krugerpark.com/tamboti.htm

The birds were near, very near.

They wanted to have some of the egg I made in our madeshift kitchen.

Yeah, we saw giraffe again. Eventually I did not stop to watch the game anymore. The only thing we did not see was lion.

Driving from the Kruger to Sabie, you'll pass some incredible landscape. 

A bit like the Massif Central in France, pinetree plantations all around, marvelous roads with winding bends and motorbikes passing us at unbelievable speeds ;-)

We arrived in Johannesburg after dark, in a guesthouse not worth naming, where we left very early in the morning.

Agua Pesqueira - Orpen Gate We did do Kruger Park too!

Good Morning Moçambique! The last morning in this beautiful and friendly country. We woke up to the sound of birds and the engine of the neighbours car. They left at six in the morning.







Our cabin. Lovingly designed with the use of almost exclusively local materials. Nicely decorated, well eqiupped, best shower we had had in Moz so far. Only 1500 Mtn a night. It's a bit of a shame there is no wildlife to be mentioned in its vicinity (yet), but other than that the Limpopo has excellent overnight facilities.

The park has signs telling you where you are heading. Although they must have been designed well, mainenance is lacking to the extent where you can get lost. We did, for a short while.

Which left us at this seldom used bushtrack. Navigating on some local's advice which I could hardly understand since he did not speak Portuguese nor English and my understanding of the position of the sun, we reached the main road. Rejoice!

It looks nice enough on the picture. Ifyou look again, and closer, ribs are to be seen, crossing the road from left to right. Not small ribs, mind you, more the kind that throw your car just a littlebit into the air. When a multitude of them are put together the result is a car that almost rattles of the road. The only thing I could do was to go over 60 kph. Bad for suspension, but the rest of the car remains relatively peaceful then.

And so we reached the borderpost, Giriyondo. this crossing can be done with a normal car. You need to stay in Kruger or Limpopo for a night to be allowed to use it though, since it is only open for touristic purposes.

I left our map of Mozambique with the customs officer. He was very happy with it. We then crossed over to the RSA side, located in the very same building. So much more convenient than Komatipoort/Lebombo! The third and last visit was to the Kruger Park office. Admission is 200 Rand per person, children 50% less. It far exceeds the entrance fee for Limpopo, but it therefore has animals, which Limpopo doesn't (We did not see any wildlife on our way through)

No alcohol permitted into the Kruger Park! No drinking, no littering, no protruding from windows, no feeding the animals, no ....

Elephant!

Impala!

Nice view!

Impala turned out to be very abundant throughout the park. This waliing food for lion and leopard even roamed the restaurant area. 

Olifanten is the camp in the park with the best view! High up on a mountain you look down upon the Olifanten River. No campsite, but chalets. To be remebered for the next visit. 

More elephant...

And zebra.

And more elephant, monkeys and impala. 

We reached camp just before dark. At his camp, Tamboti, there is no reception, no shop, no nothing. I phoned in to get the tent number, next day we would have to go to Orpen (2km) to get our exit permit. 

We had an open fire in the braai, made dinner using whatever we had left, and then went to bed. Tijl had had an excellent day!

Tofo - Massingir - From sea to Limpopo

Yes, We were up early again. Last time to witness this beautiful sunrise...

 Back on the road, toward South Africa this time. Not via Maputo, but into the wilderness of Gaza Province. But first I had to overcome some other obstacles.

 Not this one, we did not need it. This is firewood stacked alongside the road, trees are probably going to be as scarce as in Malawi if they go on like this...

Not this one either, this is old Portuguese architectonial thought on progression. Now part of the heritage of the country, a somewhat neglected heritage.

Mozambican Marketing in action. We should try this at home!

My real obstacle was behind this bus. It was a traffic cop. He took all my money. And why? I drove into a village and reduced speed. When I saw the sign that marked the end of the village I picked up speed again. Just as I hit one hundred I was waved to the side by this very unfogiving officer. He explained I had to pay 4000 Mtn (100 EUR) on the spot. I did not have more than 2500, so het took that after a while of hasseling about going to the bank and retaining my drivers license. As it turns out, yu have to wait until the sign says you can go faster again, which was after a school in this case. Funny thing is though that these signs are missing in half the cases. 

But hey, that's progression, and a radar gun (worth about 250 EUR is a good investment. I dodged a few other speed traps and then we were near XaiXai again. KFC is in town! 

Luckily there are alternatives that give a bit more charm to the place

And some restoration project possibilities left.

 Interesting places along the coast, apart from Xai-Xai? I think Chidinguele could be a touristic hotspot, and Zanzala looks nice too.

But we went inland at this point. Toward the unknown, in the direction of Giriyondo, where you can cross into the Kruger.

Before Chokue (Chokwe) this sight. Apparently these are flood plains, so permanent structures are not worth erecting. Instead these tent-like structures were standing alongside little agricultural plots. Are they to be abandoned altogether when the rain comes in january? 

Further up the river it seems more organised, canals, dams and this wonderful contraption. It's a footbridge, too.

The countryside became more and more deserted, goats and a railroad crossing being the only distractions from miles and miles of bush. A good road by the way, far better than expected, all the way up to Massingir

And onto the Massingir Dam. Five kilometres of nice road, where you can not stop.

But we had to, because our number plate fell off at one of the many bumps.

And then, at the other side of the dam, or destination, Limpopo Game Park!

Unfortunately, we could not stay at Albufeira Campsite, we had been rebooked in Agua Pesqueira, a campsite some 30 kms into the park.

Which meant some driving on sandy dirt roads. Not so bad, actually, far better than the rocky stretches in other parts of the park.

The view was worth it!

First time we hade to use the emergency food I had bought when leaving South Africa. Meatballs and lentils it was, spiced up with garlic salt and peri-peri sauce. It did the trick, the kids loved it!