So many things to do when you are leaving in the Fall/Winter and arriving in the Spring\Summer.
So many clothing choices to make from savannah safari clothes to sophisticated Cape Town urban chinos and short sleeve shirts to dressy affairs that require coat and tie for upscale city restaurants, “look back” dining on the Rovos Rail vintage train and the ornate Livingston dining room in the Victoria Falls Hotel.
Added difficulty: suitcases must weigh less than 44 pounds.
Two weeks to go and here’s where our packing stands today, not including what’s hanging in the closet:
And then the issues of finding a rentable travel CPAP machine, ordering South Africa “Rand” currency from the bank, setting up international calling and texting plans for our phones, notifying the credit card company that charges from Africa should be accepted.
And what gifts for the children when we visit a school in Zimbabwe, and the elders of the village?
Eating will be another experience…dishes with strange names and perhaps strange ingredients. Like koesisters (spiced donuts), bobotie (curried mincemeat with beaten egg topping) with apricot chutney and sambal (Malaysian chili paste), ostrich fillet, springbok goulash, chakalaka (spicy vegetable casserole), and bunny chow (hollowed out bread loaf filled with curried meat, chickpeas and potatoes.
The word that reappears is “spicy”.
Back to packing. As they say: if you don’t absolutely need it, leave it out.
Our South African Adventure 