The Terminal

A minor panic just ensued as both the lady at the Kenyan Airways checkin counter and the guy at Kenyan passport control asked me where my South African visa was, and then gave me a look that clearly said “you are so screwed” when I responded that I had been advised that Americans could visit South Africa for less than 90 days without a visa. After enduring some cold sweat while roaming the mostly-empty terminal 1-A here I finally managed to get online and re-verify on the South African government site that I can indeed enter South Africa without a visa. Visions of becoming Tom Hanks in The Terminal, living in limbo in the Johannesburg customs area, have been temporarily vanquished, although the true test will be when I hand my passport over to the South African customs agent and see if he also gives me the “bureaucracy is about to make your life very unpleasant” look.

Moving on from visa issues, the giant mountain pigs and leopards decided not to visit the Mountain Lodge’s waterhole last night, but we did have a visit from some insanely noisy hyenas at 4 AM. Our sole activity for the day was a walk through the forest, the highlight of which was a small group of colobus monkeys, which sort of look like giant skunks except for the fact that they live in trees and are monkeys. From there it was back to Nairobi, traffic, and civilization, and the realization that another phase of the trip has sadly come to its end. On a positive note, I got a quick shower in our day rooms before being whisked away to the airport, then got another shower while walking from terminal 1-C back to 1-A in a thunderstorm after a mix-up over my drop-off point; whatever dust was embedded on me from the savannah has finally been washed away.

Assuming I can get through customs I’ll be heading to a hotel after midnight tonight, then returning to the airport again tomorrow for an 11 AM departure to Kruger National Park – journal entries may be delayed for a few days, as I suspect the restcamps in Kruger won’t offer internet access. There is approximately zero chance that the short safari experience in South Africa will come close to matching the adventure of the past few weeks, but it will be nice to see the animals at my own pace for a few days before checking into a private lodge and again having the chance to do some game drives. After that I meet Audrey in Capetown for the last two legs of this massive odyssey.