Swaziland/Cape Town/misc...

First I'd like to thank so many of you that have replied to me on Facebook, LinkedIn, email, and in person about my "musings" here. I wasn't quite sure what I would do when I first thought to write about our Africa trip, but, it has been fun.

THANK YOU
I know I have gone on and on about the 1,000 toothbrushes and the 500 tubes of toothpaste we were able to bring, but I want to thank those who really made it possible, and who donated their time and supplies:

Melinda Earlywine, Burlingame, CA
Dr. Terrence Lau, DDS - San Mateo, CA
Nicole Cook - Creighton University Alumni Relations Office
Creighton University Dental School
Dr. Nigel Suarez, DDS - San Francisco, CA
Dr. Sean Moran, DDS - San Francisco, CA
Dr. Stephen Los, DDS - San Jose, CA
Los Medicos Voladores "The Flying Doctors"
Dr. Michael Bird, DDS - San Raphael, CA
Dr. Nhung Ding, DDS - Arlington, TX


KRUGER NATIONAL PARK
I never wrote about our time in Kruger National Park where we did a three day drive and saw all the amazing big, little, wild, tame, crazy animals, birds, and plants. WOW! If you have checked out my pictures on Facebook, you know that we saw some pretty crazy sights, up close and personal.

Did I mention that on a few of occasions I nearly lost all control of my bodily functions we were so close to the action because I was truly scared, thrilled, or really freaked out? : - )

1) The rhino in the road 40 feet in front of us turning to look at us - dead on
2) The baboon outside David's rolled DOWN window, about 5 feet away...until I slowly rolled up his window (YIKES)
3) The water buffalo with those big gorgeous horns, turning to look at us, about 10 feet away as (s)he was eating grass
4) Our friend Scott giving the nickname of 'college wrestlers' to warthogs, and seriously, if you see one up close and personal, they really do look like one (I couldn't stop giggling every time we saw one)
5) The three HUGE (there is big, and then there is BIG) elephants that walked on their path about 50 feet in front of us...passing from one side of the road to the other

I have long heard of people taking a safari. I have watched the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, National Geographic Channel, and myriad other television programs. But it isn't until I saw these amazing creatures in person did it really hit me that we are but a small part of this planet, and unless we take care of it, much will continue to be lost.

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Cape Town, South Africa, where we spent the last five days our trip galavanting, is by far the most beautiful of cities. The way Table Mountain, the world's oldest mountain(!) surrounds the entire city, the way the white sand beaches go on for miles, the way that its hills and peaks and bays and inlets provide views that stun, one after the next, had David and me saying, simply, "wow". We couldn't come up with any more superlatives because the beauty just continued the more we explored.

If you saw the Facebook pics you also saw that we drove, well, I drove (fun challenge, left hand side of the road, stick shift) to the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point. David only had two "YIKES" moments as the passenger that day. : - )

What we thought was the southern-most point on the African continent, well, it's darn close, was a wonderful half day trip down and back. The trip is only about 30 miles from Cape Town, and you can actually see it from the top of Table Mountain in Cape Town, but, it's about a two and a half hour drive - and worth EVERY minute of it. And the animal adventure of Africa didn't stop...we saw Ostrich (on the ocean...so counter intuitive), penguins, and more baboons.

Cape Town itself is major city of 3.1 million people, but it is the physicality of the environment that makes it a place not to be missed (if you're ever in the 'hood).

SWAZILAND - FINAL THOUGHTS
As I mentioned previously, when two Swazi's we had met asked us what we thought of their country after two weeks, all we could say was "complicated".

Is Africa with 53 countries on the continent the most complex group of countries on the planet? I honestly don't know, but it's clear to me that one cannot have a conversation about the continent before very quickly having to consider far too many aspects of life (eg. oil, desserts, HIV/AIDS, Islam, Christianity, China, Darfur, and on and on).

Our impressions of Swaziland, the last Monarchy on the continent, was made more difficult because to honestly make sense of something you need to leave judgment 'at the door'. Yes, Swazi women have almost no rights. Hunger is rampant. HIV infection rates are approaching 50%. Life expectancy is now down to 32. The population has decreased in just the last 10 years from 1.5 million to just 1.2 million. And I could go on and on...

But looking at the Swazi people isn't the only answer. As we heard from our friends Scott & David who saw much over one year in the country, and Peace Corp workers, and other volunteers we met during our trip, many "all hands on deck" initiatives are taking place in Swaziland with the Clinton Global Initiative, the World Bank, and multiple relief ("charity") organizations from various countries including Japan, Germany, Canada, and Ireland all putting tremendous resources into Swaziland.

As we all know too well, from work we all do in our own back yard at local PTAs, city shelters, food banks, community gardens, and on and on, when activities are not coordinated, we all know how frustrating that is. Each of us wants to do our part to better the world, and many of us are, but, often the lack of those leading individual efforts do not communicate with one another leading to those whose feet are 'on the ground' to want to yell, "it could be soooo much better".

I guess what I am really trying to say is...the world is a big (really big) place. David and I got to go away and see some spectacular things on a three week vacation, and learn so much more about the world that will help both of us to frame decisions we make for the rest of our lives...but don't know, it was my step mother back in Iowa who brought it all full circle for me. "Shouldn't every single day that you step out your front door be the same kind of exploring, awe inspiring, and fact finding experience."

: - )

I am grateful to all of you who have followed my thoughts here. I will continue to share "musings" as they come my way and as I have signed off each of my postings to date,

PEACE