Penjari...safari time!

I have to do some traveling before rainy season begins here shortly. This past weekend 10 of us went about 10 hrs. north to Penjari...game reserve. It started out with an 8 hr. bus ride in a coach type bus. I went armed with toilet paper...as the the bathroom stops consisted of the bus pulling over in between villages and everyone going into the bush to do their thing. Lunch was 15 minutes as ppl got off the bus and got fruit, bread, fufu on the side of the road by local vendors. On the way up there was a woman who had purchased one seat and had 2 babies and an 8 year old girl who stood next to the seat and helped with the little ones. I was amazed. Don't think I heard the babies cry once or the little girl complain.

We spent 2 days in the park on safari. All 10 of us were able to ride on top of the van. Our days consisted of going out with our guide from 6am-11...back to our 'hotel' on the reserve for sietsta then back out from 4-dark. Our room had no air and a fan that barely turned. Needless to say those were some HOT afternoons with no place to go for relief...except ordering a cold coke. Even the restaurant and reception were open air. Our room at night was 98 degrees F! Nothing like takin a sweat bath at night!
We were able to see elephants super up close as well as hippos, crocs, many species of deer and antelope, water buffalo, and wart hogs. It is quite a large park and at the northern tip there is a river that borders Burkina Faso...so one day we got to take little wooden canoes to the other side to a fishing...watched them smoke their fish and try some....so yummy!
I had to laugh when we were by the elephants...my friend Linda was freaking out when we stopped the van near them since we were so close. Then the next day the guide told us the male can attack if annoyed and shortly after saying this made this really loud sound to get their attention. She grabbed my arm and had some words to say about that...lol. But alas, no elephants charged us.

At one ponit we came across some stray goats that did not belong in the park so the guide and driver got the guys in our group to join them in capturing them. This was quite the amusing site...I suddenly felt like I was at the rodeo. And soon enough they brought the 2 goats back and put them through the window into the back of the van...I mean, naturally...lol. Then they wanted to bring them back with us 2 hours to Natatingu...2 goats with 10 of us..would have been hilarious...but then they had to leave them at the park.

On the way home to the village where we picked up the coach bus, we stopped at a waterfall. It had been raining this last day so we swam in the rain and stilled jumped off the cliffs. It was quite nice but the water was quite brown from all the run off from the rain...I really dont want to know what all was in that run off:) We also stopped by one of the old style huts where a 94 year old witch doctor lived. The amimals are on the bottom and the others live in the little domes on top. Each wife gets her own dome. It was quite facinating.