AFRICA - THE FIRST SAFARI - NOVEMBER 7th, 2009
When we finally got to Camp Sarova Mara we were all shocked. It was like a Garden of Eden in the middle of the desert. We were greeted with smiles, hot towels to wash our face and hands, and passion juice, like manna from heaven. The campsite was lovely. Our hard wood floor tent was very impressive, indeed. We had eclectic lights, shower, comfortable beds and screened windows on all sides of the tent. The windows could be completely zipped up at night to ward off any light or uninvited quests. The first night I woke up with something running by our tent. There were a lot of monkeys and Dik Dik’s about, so I didn't worry too much. From our tent porch we had a birds eye view of a hippo taking up the little bit of water the drought had to offer. Two Cape buffalo didn't stand a chance of sharing the water with him. They tried but the Hippo made it clear to stay away.
After being shown to our tents we ate a wonderful lunch in the open lodge. We had another great feast of those silver covered dishes with all kinds of food to choose from. At 4 p.m. we were scheduled to go on our first Safari. I was more than excited. My friend Betsy and I unpacked our duffle bag and got ready to go. I was very concerned about the mosquitoes because I elected not to take any malaria pills. I am allergic to just about everything I take so I just trusted that God would take care of me. I did bring 100% Deet along for some protection though. Unfortunately, as I was spraying the Deet on my arms I somehow turned the can around and not knowing which way the nozzle was pointed I somehow sprayed it into my eyes. It burned like the dickens. Blindly I found the bathroom and put my head under the running water and kept the water running over my eyes until it stopped burning. I felt my blood pressure go up immediately and feared to open my eyes. Being a nurse I knew how fast poison can be absorbed into eye tissue. My heart was pounding from the deet and I told Betsy that I needed to lay down and would not be able to go on the safari. When I didn't show up and Betsy told our guide what happened so he sent the camp medic to my tent. My blood pressure was still quite high when he finally came, but we decided it was best just to give me an antihistamine and rest. I couldn’t believe I missed the first safari and was feeling quite sorry for myself! I slept until dinnertime, but I praised God I could see. More to follow...
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