Pics from our

I took over 900 pictures, so I can't post them all... But here's a selection of some of the scenery.
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We spent about 16 days in South Africa. I've tried to group the photo's based on where we were. And since there were so many things going on, I've broken the trip into 3 different pages. This is a big site with lots of links and pictures, so please be patient.

Each "table" of images represents one day. If a day has fewer images, that means I was either driving, asleep or totally awestruck.

And driving is something I did a lot more of on this trip. It was unique being in actual traffic in a right hand drive vehicle.

Here's a few shots from the outbound Atlanta flight. After the ugly flight from Dallas to Atlanta the previous night, with a lack of sleep thrown in, I wasn't much for pictures till we got on the plane. And for most of the flight I tried to sleep. The jet lag heading east can be a powerful thing. The time difference between S.A. and Dallas is 8 hours. The aircraft was an Airbus 340-600. The flight was fine except for one really rough landing in Johannesburg. The pilot must have been asleep because there was no wind. The aircraft was a 2-4-2 configuration. Pretty comfortable if you get outside seats. South African Airways does pretty decent food, but the service didn't quite meet the standard they set in 2000.

	Feb 16, 2005 - morning (Atlanta time) The start of the flight out of Atlanta. The Airbus we were on had seat-back LCD displays and cameras in the tail. Here we are rolling the taxiway.		And a wing shot sometime after we crossed over the coast.
	Dad and Sheila were sitting behind us. Trust me when I say that I'll never let that happen again on a 21 hour flight.		This is Lynne's "I get the aisle seat, right?" look... Guess where I sat for the next 21 hours?

So after umpteen hours in the air with a fuel stop on some frigging island off the west coast of Africa, we finally arrive in Johannesburg. And it was without a doubt the roughest landing of a jumbo jet that I've ever experienced. I think the pilot tested each gear individually before putting all three of them on the ground together... Sheesh!!!!

Getting off the plane, getting the luggage and clearing customs was pretty easy. Airport security in South Africa isn't quite as anal as the USA. There aren't nearly as many hoops to jump through. Of course, no high-rise buildings in South Africa have been hit by airliners. And as I will soon learn, South Africa has figured out how important the tourist dollar is to their economy. Some bargains we experienced 4.5 years ago just aren't bargains anymore.

No, the real trick to arriving in South Africa is staying awake till their bed time when your body is telling you it's way past bed time where you're from.

But enough about sleeping disorders. Here's a bit of info on my in-laws cliff-side home (in North Clif). It's a really nice house. I could certainly retire into a home like this one. Lynne and I stayed with her parents, while my father and step-mother stayed at a guest house a couple of kilometers away.

	Feb 17, 2005 in the afternoon (Africa time) Here we are just after arriving, relaxing on the porch. The view is unbelievable...		Like I said.... Great View.
	Here's a shot of my in-laws home on the side of a "cliff" in the suburb of North Clif. Yes, that driveway is a seriously steep hill. Houses in S.A. are pretty much pure stone and concrete. No wood in those walls.		Of course Lynne was trying to figure out what her jet-lagged and heavily libated husband is up to standing across the street.
	After the frightful ride up the driveway, one of the first things you see is the stairway. Those are railroad ties, sunk into the wall. There is no support at the baluster. They do not shake. It should be unsurprising since the front door is also constructed of railroad ties.		And if you look to your right as you come in the house, you see their "play room." More importantly, the fridge in this room holds beer (I'm standing next to and reaching in for a beer as I take this picture). Life is good.

After a good night's sleep, we did some running around town. We started with a quick visit down to the guest house where my father and step-mother were staying. We had a quick swim, but the water was pretty cold despite it being summer.

Later that evening we went to a small game reserve just outside of Johannesburg for dinner. It was kind of a unique place. There are so many trees that it was tough to take pictures. Plus it got dark fairly early.

We had to drive down a fairly rough, gravel road. The place is designed as a conference center. Fortunately, the restaurant is open to people not staying there because the food was superb. I had an Ostrich filet that was wonderful.

	Feb 18, 2005 Lynne chillin' by one of the two pools at the Kings Lodge. And I do mean chilling... That water was cold.		Because Paul and Norah's house is only two bedrooms, Dad and Sheila stayed at a guest house down the hill. It was a really nice place and the people who run it were great. So here's a gratuitous plug for them. You'll be able to read the phone numbers and website on the big picture.
	Thatch roofs are pretty cool. The King Lodge has a big one right at the office.		Here's a look up from beneath.

	The Mercedes Vito - an upscale microbus with a diesel engine. This was our conveyance for the stay in the northern part of the country. We put something like 2600 kilometers on it before we were done. It was actually pretty comfortable. But I still hate right-hand drive.

	Looking down from the restaurant into the valley. At night, they light the area up. It's pretty and eerie at the same time.		The roof of the restaurant is an observation deck/seating area.
	Sitting around after dinner was served trying to recover from the pile of food we'd just eaten.

After getting a bit of laundry done, today was party day. We got together will all the family to celebrate Paul and Norah's 50th wedding anniversary. The event started with family coming over to the house in North Clif. As usual, the old scrap books came out. And Lynne's parents had recently had all the old movie film converted to video tape. So we watched several hours of old family vacations. It was kind of interesting.

This was to be some of my first experience driving on the highway system in South Africa.

Since we left relatively late in the day, we stopped part way up in a small town called Dullstroom - it's famous for trout fishing. Judging by some of the pictures I saw, the fishing is really good. We enjoyed a nice dinner and stayed at a small house in town.

	Feb 20, 2005 This is the house we rented for the night in Dullstroom. It was really quite nice. I could have easily spent several days lounging about here.		Inside the Dullstroom Inn where we had dinner. I wish I'd kept a menu. There was a story about the fire you can see burning in the back ground. The gist was that the fire had been burning continuously longer than many readers have been alive.
	Here's a shot from outside. It was a small place. I believe the Inn portion 11 rooms, and an amazing collection of fishing lures hanging in the lobby.		The pub/diner was quite dark. But they had proper beers on draft and the food was very, very good. Castle Lager is actually quite good on draft.