Rhino Post Safari Lodge, Kruger National Park

The perfect safari experience

I stay at Rhino Post Safari Lodge with a friend who is a serious meditator. Half way through our stay I inquire how her meditation sessions are going and am surprised when she replies “Terribly!” I ask why and she explains “It’s just too beautiful here. I can’t bear to close my eyes.”

This sums up my experience too. I practice my own form of mindfulness bathing in the luxurious bath overlooking the dry river bed and reflect that this is one of the most beautiful accommodation spaces which the Kruger National Park has to offer. Each thatched suite faces onto the river bed, with wooden walkways all behind the rooms for maximal privacy. The front of the full length of the suite is completely open, and this open design allows the cool breeze to flow in from every side. A deck with two comfortable Morris chairs and footrest futons creates your own private outdoor lounge from which you can view game all day long.

The spacious bed has an African-style cover and patterned cushions. The cool white linen and mosquito net mean you can sleep with all the sides of your suite open, with a feeling of being in a treehouse. The sound of wildlife can be heard all night and you are fully aware of being in the wilds of Africa.

Glamorous double basins, a freestanding bath and outdoor shower means you view high definition screens onto your own private wildlife reality show from every direction.

Accommodation Experience

We gather at the Rhino Post Safari Lodge bar for pre-dinner drinks and snacks, full of enthusiastic stories about our earlier game drive and sightings. The amuse bouche are delicious, carpaccio of crocodile, avocado and asparagus, nuts, dried Mango, and a South African Kruger National Park favourite – biltong, which is dried, salted game meat. A high powered lawyer from Chile is secretly collecting the biltong to leave a trail of leopard bait to the door of her suite for an extra late-night sighting. We notice that she orders her Ostrich fillet rare.

A German guest asks Joey, our guide, “How is the traffic looking behind us?” meaning the flow of animals to the water hole just beyond the deck of the lodge bar. Joey is ever watchful (listenful and smellful) and quickly alerts us to any action. We see a mother warthog with her two tiny babies coming nervously down to the waterhole to drink on bended knees. Suddenly a herd of elephant parade right past the lodge to drink at the water hole and we all hold our breath as a baby elephant falls into the water and it takes the mother elephant a few seconds to pull the baby out.

We watch the elephants move past, I count 24 in all. Finally we decide to move through to the dining room and there is a buzz of excitement as we chase out a hyena which has been sniffing around for scraps. As we settle in the foreign guests remark how despite the excitement of the African bushveld, how peaceful they have found traveling in South Africa. Our conversation turns to our late father, Nelson Mandela, and with misty eyes we discuss the miracle of peaceful transformation which we owe to this great leader. Our other local heroes, Mahatma Ghandi and Archbishop Demond Tutu also receive honourable mention. I am bursting with pride to be a South African tonight, reinforced when the international guests are blown away by the quality of Chef Brian’s food.

Open dining room with deck

Towards the end of the meal we have some intense discussions about what time we should set out for our morning drive. Joey asks us what type of animals we would like to see. The Chilean lawyer says philosophically “Whatever God provides for us to see.” We nod meaningfully and see that Joey appreciates this answer. But I can’t sustain the pretence and blurt out my very specific African fantasy of seeing a large male lion doing his morning marking rounds. Joey plays hardball and says in that case we need to wake at 5.30am, ready to leave at 6am. As South African “Kruger nerds” we are thrilled at this suggestion, but notice the Germans blanche. The brave Chilean lawyer, travelling alone on business, needs some convincing and we sense that she could go either way as first she says “Yes – we can sleep for the rest of our lives – this is a once in a lifetime opportunity!” but then she backtracks, saying “Then again if we are still fast asleep we won’t even remember what we saw.” We try to “play it cool” and let the Germans decide. They are, after all, on holiday, and may appreciate a chance to sleep in when they are not fighting morning subway traffic. Our committed guide Joey gives them a little nudge off the cliff, nonchalantly saying “Of course the game drive is completely voluntary and you should feel free to take the morning off.” That settles it and we all agree on the following compromise: If it is raining, poor (now awake) Joey will not give us a wake-up call and will let us sleep in. But if the weather is clear, he should call us at 5.30am. The ever shrewd Chilean lawyer spots a technical loophole. “You can’t actually call us all at once can you? Can you call my room last?” She has outsmarted us again.

At exactly 5.30am the next morning we get our wake-up call from Joey, our dedicated guide. The suite is so beautiful with the dawn light just coming in over the trees on the other side of the river bed, that it is difficult to break the mesmerising spell. But we feel responsible for everyone’s early wake-up and force ourselves moving. It is a warm and clear morning.

We head to the open bar and deck, meeting place and the “happening spot” at the lodge. The Chilean lawyer is already there, quieter than usual and clearly still waking up. Soon everyone has arrived and we gulp down the last of our coffee and head out to the high, open game vehicle. There is the usual mental calculation from the foreigners about where to sit to maximise both safety and viewing and information from the guide. The shrewd Chilean lawyer, who is also the most nervous amongst us, seats herself squarely in the middle of the vehicle. Exactly on schedule at 6am we are off, faces full into the dawn breeze, the smell of dew and animal activity in our noses and our cheeks flushed with the excitement of what we may see.

I simply love going on safari with international guests who have never before been in Africa, let alone on safari. Every critter is a wonder and I find myself rediscovering their unlikely beauty through the eyes of the spellbound foreigners. We pass a giraffe, zebra and waterbuck, back-lit by the rising sun. You can sense that the foreigners would be happy to spend an hour at each of these sightings, but Joey is a man with a plan, and knows we can come back to these sightings later in the day. We head straight out towards Jones’ Dam North of Skukuza.

We do not have long to wait until we are even more rewarded. As we drive into Jones’ Dam we are distracted by a yawning hippo in the water. But we quickly realise that he is not alone and to our right we see a band of four lion brothers who are already asleep next to the dam. We drive right up to them and they reward us with grumpy yawns and morning hair. Their dark manes are just growing out and they look like awkward students trying to impress by growing out their hair and a beard. One blesses us with a spectacularly stinky scat right next to the car, payback for having been woken. Seeing these boys in their natural state is an amazing privilege and we are elated about the experience.

However the morning drive does not end there and we have an unbelievably lucky outing. We come across a huge gathering of vultures, including the pink faced Lappet Vulture, eating on a carcass. We drive right through a herd of buffalo and come up close to a parade of elephants with tiny babies. We feel fully satisfied with our morning, but even as we head back towards the lodge we come across three slim cheetah walking in parallel through the grass, and finally the cherry on the top – we see a large male leopard who is behaving strangely and is unafraid of the vehicle and heading towards us. Joey figures out that he is smelling the trail of a female leopard in heat.

We arrive back at the lodge on a high, too excited to speak. Sophia, from reception, asks us whether it was worth getting up so early. The German banker nods thoughtfully and says “I think so, ja.” We realise this is German-speak for “Oh wow yes absolutely – it was awesome!” Sophia asks “Why, what did you see?” “Well,” replies the German still soberly, “…everything.”

To book for a stay at Rhino Post Safari Lodge, visit www.isibindi.co.za 

Midlife and the Great Unknown

A midlife crisis is a badly wrapped gift which brings great opportunity for immense freedom and untapped wells of joy. It starts painfully - slowly the scales fall off your eyes and the well-trodden path makes you weary with despair. You may become depressed and anxious, but fear not – this is temporary and is happening simply because you are not heeding the call of your deeper self. You grow in intolerance and courage and become ready to eschew the heavy expectations and break free from the dull drudgery and oppressive stress which somehow became your life. There is youth and life and adventure within you, calling to be set free, making you restless and disgruntled. You see those adverts where a business person breaks free from their tie and shoes and walks away barefoot on green grass and something within you leaps unexpectedly, then hisses a firm and gentle “yesss.” This is the call of your true self, which will not be silenced. It will only be satisfied when you shed the layers of false self which you have accumulated over the years. And perhaps surprisingly, it is a gentle and kindly soul - not nearly as reckless and vicious as it sounds when caged. It simply seeks wide open spaces, wind in your hair, and the opportunity to be completely yourself in the wilds of nature.

You may find yourself going into “all-or-none” thinking – imagining quitting your job, leaving your spouse and kids, moving to a tropical island, selling the house and buying a shiny red sports-car, Harley or Jeep with which to trek through Africa. This causes cheek-chewing pendulum swings of “but”s and “what if”s.

However there is another way… which is neither destructive nor unhealthy and really quite possible when you get over your own importance. Instead of giving up everything, give your soul the escape it needs, and test your new-found freedom in different ways. Book off a month or three from work (oh come on, it’s not that impossible – it’s your ego that starts writhing in discomfort). Yes there might be some wailing and gnashing of little teeth, but try to look on this with compassionate resolve - they will all be better for it when your fresh new you returns with oceans of spaciousness and kindness and wisdom to spare.

Rent the red convertible, Harley or Jeep. Take along a good camera with which to release your creative passion. Do not rush when making the tricky decision of whether to go alone or with your favourite person – the soul loves solitude but grows in the context of honest and vulnerable relationship. Next find yourself the perfect route by listening carefully for that quiet “yes.” Be selfish and real.

You could start on safari at Kruger National Park, game viewing from the luxury of Rhino Post Safari Lodge and rhino walking from Plains Tented Camp. Don’t be alarmed if looking into the eye of the gentle, giant rhino breaks open your heart. From there you could drive through Swaziland to Kosi Forest Lodge, where the silence of the forest will claim you and set you free. Take the 4X4 coastal trail to Thonga Beach Lodge and live out your tropical beach resort fantasies in the Robinson-Crusoe style huts. Walk off the past on miles of unspoilt beach and let swimming with dolphins heal and delight you. Marvel at the immense diversity of ocean life while snorkeling in a parallel blue universe.

Come back to the animal kingdom at Hluhluwe’s Rhino Ridge Lodge, and this time your encounter with great beasts may bring you strength and direction for the future. End your stay at Isibindi’s Zulu Lodge, where the wild drumbeat under open African skies will reignite your libidinal passion for life. Let the stories of the battlefields fill you with courage and hope as you return to your new life wholly changed, with clarity and purpose to reinvent it with creativity and beauty.

Photographs by Sharon Grussendorff

Plains Tented Camp, Kruger National Park, Mpumalanga

Privilege within a Privilege

As one born of wanderlust, I have been fortunate to travel to many different parts of the world. I have travelled from Scandanavia to Singapore and San Francisco, have bowed my head in cathedrals and temples in Europe, have been up close to calving glaciers in Alaska, caught my breath at the edge of the Grand Canyon, paid homage to the source of the Nile at the border between Uganda and Rwanda, driven through indigenous forest of Sierra Leone during war and walked in peace on the white shores of Zanzibar. But I count this as one of the greatest privileges of a charmed life – sitting here writing these words from the deck of a canvas tent facing onto the Timbitene Plains in the Kruger National Park.

Larger than many countries, the Kruger National Park has been preserved for decades as a wildlife sanctuary, protected by strict conservation laws from incessant human development. From this very deck where I sit I can witness nature interact uninterrupted, often unaware of my presence from this low environmental impact tent. Plains Tented Camp is set within the Timbetene concession, a privilege within a privilege, as the general public do not have access to this quieter area of the park. There are no tarred roads here, no shops, no cell phone towers or wifi. This is as authentic a safari experience as it gets.

The tents are erected on wooden platforms, nestled into the forest at the edge of an open plain which looks out onto a waterhole. They are full canvas, though glamping this is none-the-less, with proper beds and full bathrooms. The towels are thick, white and the size of blankets. A beautiful copper basin is set against a gnarled trunk, and the shower has open netted canvas all around onto bush views. Earlier I watched a Paradise Flycatcher munch his breakfast right next to the tent while I showered.

Now from my nature-hide deck I look up again from my pontificating because of a loud trumpeting. A memory of elephants has just paraded in from the left to the waterhole in front of my tent for their midday drink. There is a small baby elephant, too short to reach the water though he tries to be big. His kindly mother gives him a gentle shower. The teenagers think this is great fun and spray themselves and each other.

I take a mental image of the row of fat elephant bums lined up at the water and store this gifted moment in my travel journal, with a sigh of silent gratitude for all that has been and that has led me here.

Accommodation Experience

In the words of MacBeth, “ ‘Twere a rough night”. At first I fell immediately to sleep after the exhilaration of the game drive and satisfying dinner. The bed here at Plains Tented Camp is so comfortable – the perfect softness, with white cotton linen and the cozy sense of being under canvas under African skies. 

But no sooner had I fallen asleep when I woke with a “What the ….?” to the unmistakable sounds of lions mating right near the tent. Now lion stamina is legendary, so this continued every 20 minutes well into the night. At one point I swear another lion couple started up in tandem further across the plains! 

Just as the lion couples finally finished their show, a particularly musical hyena takes over and enthralls me with his whooping howls. I take inventory of the other sounds, and heard a Night Jar, an owl and a suicidal antelope munching the grass along the side of my tent. Sleep is for the birds, I decide, this is all too exciting.

This is no bland hotel with time-limited experiences of canned game – here you really are on safari in the most authentic way, closely connected to the immediate wilds of Africa 24 hours of the day. I know from here on I will be well disappointed with a good night’s sleep in a concrete box-shaped room.

Towards morning though, sleep finally claims me. I wake again at 5am to the sound of endangered Ground Hornbills’ haunting dawn lament as they move slowly across the plains, foraging for their breakfast. “Doo doo doo-doo” calls one. “Dow dow dow dow-dow,” the other replies. I smile and snooze lightly, appreciating this gentle wake-up call. ‘ “Doo doo doo-doo,”…”Dow dow dow dow-dow” I whisper.

To listen to the recorded sound of Ground Hornbills, click on this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDdfIUR0o_M&feature=youtu.be

Royal Malewane Luxury Game Reserve, Limpopo

Soulful Luxury

One of the open lounges at the main lodge

What is your definition of luxury? For me, it is close contact with nature from a bed of fine white linen or a deep bubble bath – where the contrast between the natural and the finessed somehow enhances each experience. It is about a balancing act of creative décor and an earthy respect for the environment, a celebration of all that is quintessentially local. However you choose to experience luxury, you will find it here at Royal Malewane Safari Lodge in Limpopo, South Africa (www.royalmalewane.com).

Literally host to royalty and A-list celebrities, it doesn’t get better than this. Individual thatched open-plan suites, more like private villas, overlook the African bushveld. With infinity edge swimming pools, indoor and outdoor showers and Victorian baths it is easy to stay cool even in the summer heat. Usually a prude, even I walk freely between these aquatic pleasures in my natural state, so discretely designed and well placed are these villas. There are three outdoor seating areas on my deck – sun loungers, an al fresco dining area where private dinners may be served, as well as a thatched shaded lapa.

Private heaven

Colonial Afro-Zen fusion is expertly achieved with antique furniture, Persian carpets and the finest fabrics. My suite has a cream couch and a fern-print armchair facing a bank of glass doors outwards and an indoor fireplace. A grand four-poster bed is draped in a white mosquito net and said silky white linen.

The main lodge overlooks a water hole, with beautiful indigenous reeds back-lit by the setting sun. The safari-style lodge is a vast open-plan structure with four different lounge areas, each decorated with Liz Biden’s dramatic flair. She manages to make creamy white couches, oversized regal arm chairs, ornate vases and rich carpets somehow work seamlessly in this open-air bushveld setting.

Waterhole overlooked by the main lodge

I say it again – the Royal Collection deserves its own 6-star rating from the South African Tourism Board. The enthusiasm to please goes well beyond tick-box duty. Around every corner there are thoughtful touches, and every day reveals a surprise of some unique African bushveld experience in which the staff take genuine delight in their guests’ reaction.

All luxury aside, one also wants to have close encounters with diverse game when on an African safari. Set in a Big 5 game reserve bordering Timbavati and Kruger National Park, your chances of seeing interesting game are greatly increased here by the private game reserve setting and the guides who are as passionate about their Royal Malewane animal family as they are about pleasing their guests. Genuine naturalists, each one is plotting their own personal wildlife expeditions, including gorilla trekking in Rwanda and tiger safaris to India. They have become international consultants on how to coordinate game viewing experiences in a way that fulfills their guests’ hopes while respecting the animals’ safety and comfort.

Morning munch at Royal Malewane

Accommodation Experience:

I find myself a little above my usual station in life at Royal Malewane, and so I decide to drink everything, even this humble juice, from the beautiful crystal champagne glass I find in my suite. I do this as I lie in a deep bubble bath overlooking my private infinity edge plunge pool, onto African bushveld. A family of monkeys is using my day spa bed in the thatched lapa, the babies cuddling up to mom for a nap, while the teenagers fight. Clearly they are used to this level of luxury.

I feel a little silly about my indulgence and have a twinge of guilt at my lazy appreciation of the afternoon, but I am learning to recognize this as a defence against sinking into a realness of presence. Remember how impressed and intimidated we were with that New York style frenzied busyness and assertiveness? Already, that aggressive lifestyle has become “so 90’s” and we have seen through the emperor’s clothing of bluster and bragging to the insecure vulnerability it masked. A new brand of post postmodern soulfulness is emerging, where we recognize real luxury to be about the gift of free time, connectedness with self, family and friends and the privilege of being able to contribute to the protection of our natural heritage. A restlessness of spirit, combined with a deep love for the environment draws us increasingly to stillness and mindful appreciation of the natural world. Kindness to self, others and our environment is replacing the currency of domination and competition.

Good hair day at Royal Malewane

And this is what I find at Royal Malewane – a soulful rootedness in their pristine game reserve setting, dedication to preserving their unique, unspoilt corner of the earth, a warmth and humility in their service, an openness in the architecture and a softness in their décor. While lavishly generous, there is no ostentation here, only a shared enthusiasm for the outdoors, rare game sightings and all that Africa has to offer its privileged guests.

Another tough day in Africa

Hluhluwe River Lodge

Life worth living

A game ranger I once met in a different part of the world once confessed how much he misses the bushveld of Northern KwaZulu-Natal. The sights, sounds and smells are uniquely rural African and you are instantly transported into a different world. We are travelling North and as we turn into Hluhluwe River Lodge’s game park we instantly feel what he is talking about. This is wild country, with a soulful depth to it that is difficult to describe.

The perfect African safari style thatched huts of Hluhluwe River Lodge amplify the bushveld effect. There are two decks facing indigenous forest and birds call from every height of the bush. No effort has been spared in connecting one to nature, with full glass walls reaching right into the apex of the roof on two sides. Exposed beams and high ceilings make the hut feel cool and light.

The suite is enormous, with glossy floors and natural furniture. A wooden headboard, chunky railings and fittings complement the theme. Even the lamps are made of buck horn. A white mosquito net over the bed completes the look.

However the real reason I chose this lodge is obvious – the inviting wide bath set against glass doors overlooking a private area of the natural forest. Lying back in the bath, all doors folded right back, I look up and out into the trees. Lying quietly in this state of bliss, more and more shy birds and buck come closer and reveal themselves, unaware of my presence.

The main lodge is a lapa style thatched open structure over a wide wooden deck. There is a cool bar area and indoor and outdoor seating areas with comfortable couches with cushions covered in golden African fabrics. The dining area is vibrant with a bright red wooden wall. Its deck has far-reaching views down to False Bay where hippos graze.

Accommodation Experience:

It is our first night on our holiday travelling North and this space is so different from our usual lives – the bushveld thatch, the romantic suite and open-air bath – that we relax instantly. It is like a burden is shed and the life energy comes flowing out of us. We find ourselves joking and laughing uncontrollably about the silliest things. The contrast shows how tense we are in everyday life – tight packages held together with stress and duty. And when unwound, even in the space of a day, our life energy and a sense of fun bursts forth unbidden, unstifled. This is the great gift of even a weekend away in a characterful place and once again we vow to do this more often.