Southern Africa -- May 1989

This essay chronicles my first trip to Africa in 1989. Of all of my journeys, this is the only one that has moved me to actually write a journal and see the editing of it to near-completion.

This trip was at the invitation of John and Pam Talbot, who were very generous in including me in their trip back to Africa. Our hosts there, Pat Coles and Vernon & Phyllis Alder did many things to make my trip memorable, and I truly appreciate it.

Originally posted as one long essay, I have broken it up into six parts, making it a little faster for you to download, and also allowing me to add pictures as I can find them.

• Getting There
  Includes trip planning and the actual flight to Africa. As one might expect, things didn't go according to plan, and I had to deal with cancelled flights, as well as bureaucracy and lost luggage.

• South Africa
  Our hosts in South Africa took us on tour of the Johannesburg area.

• Namibia
  The entry into Namibia includes our visit to the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park and Sossussvlei, the giant sand dunes near the Namib coast.

• Swakopmund
  Waiting for my luggage, we spent a couple of days in this retro-German Namib town.

• Etosha National Park
  The highlight of the trip, we spent several days in the park and saw every animal possible.

• Getting Back
  Getting back to the States wasn't all that much easier than getting to Africa. I have also included a bibliography in this section.