A O.K. May We are going to keep this month’s weather update short and sweet by saying that there are no temperatures that cannot be overcome by a hot cup of tea or coffee at your doorstep, one of our guides’ ponchos (which have a surprising cuddly inner ☺) and a ‘bush baby’, (bush baby is ‘safari language’ for hot water bottle) which are even more cuddly. So, nothing to worry about! And if this does not sound like vacation in your ears, just remember that after every hour of game drive you will be peeling off one layer of clothes, guaranteed. Talking about bush babies, it turns out that it does not matter if you have lived at Zarafa for a year, two years or longer, one can always be delighted by a new ‘in-camp safari moment’! Recently, we have discovered that one of the large trees near the main deck houses countless bush babies who appear when the sun sets. How is that for having sun downers in camp? (Of course, pictures will follow!).
A little information for those who are not completely familiar with what kind of animal a bush babie is (next to the fact that they must look somewhat like a hot water bottle….)Bush babies or ‘Galagos’ are normally exclusively seen at night and are therefore in Afrikaans called ‘Nagapies’ (little monkeys of the night). We would describe them as a cute mix between a tiny monkey and a squirrel, with a large tail for balance, huge eyes and bat-like ears. The jump from branch to branch, easily reaching over 2 meters per jump!
Other ‘in-camp safari moments’ we had in May included;
1). The return of the herds of elephants! (Opposed to the lonely bachelors who visited us in April already). With the arrival of the herds, we are also offered the one and only excuse to come late to work, namely the old fashioned; “I am sorry, I had elephants on my way – excuse”. It is unfortunate when it is true though. For Bronia for example, our masseuse, who was held up with massage table, towels and lotions on the way to tent one for an aromatherapy treatment. Oh well, all good things come to those who wait…. 2). And secondly, one of the Francolins living around camp has three chicks (**cute**) and we saw her giving her juniors a brief flying lesson from the main deck. It is going to be treat to see these little birds grow up!
On a different note, we are happy to announce that after the grand opening of the Dhow Suite last month, our new ‘House’ (as chef Katherine calls it) is running as a well oiled machine. As one can see on the picture, the Dhow Suite is steered by our own little Francolin (a.k.a. Frank), who with his famous ‘dreads’ completes the perfect Dhow Suite picture. We are enjoying to see that families are making use of this ‘family unit’ and we have been welcoming extended family members in our Zarafa Camp as well.
News from the kitchen this month is that Katherine and her team are able to combine the best of both worlds, namely (and here it goes) a gluten free (yes!), lactose free (yes!), avocado chocolate mousse (ooh yes!). So we have been treating our bodies like a temple, while receiving a little extra Tender, Love and Care (TLC) … it does not get any better than that.
And finally, on the happy note of Tender, Love and Care, we would like to end this news post by thanking Mr. Harold & Mrs. Kate Kerr from Australia for “Packing with a Purpose”! Look at those beautiful pencils and at Harold’s awesome glasses.