Millenium Bobo And Initial Days...

On Saturday, August 26^th, we picked up our new 2017 rental camper and met our tour companions and leaders.

The camper is on an Iveco 3500 truck chassis, the motorhome built by Worldwide Motorhomes of SA and rented to us by Bobo Campers of Joburg. We are still pondering possible names for it, including perhaps "Le Bobo," consistent with our current campers in North America and Europe, or "Millennium Bobo," consistent with our previous camper rental, in New Zealand, the Millennium Bongo, way back in 2008. We are open to suggestions until something sticks.

Anyhow, the vehicle is about 7 meters long, 3 meters high, 2.5l diesel, 8-speed automatic transmission, with a big overhead. It is overall the largest camper with which we have had experience. There are two dinettes, both making into beds, and altogether it can sleep six. We use the overhead for storing suitcases, etc., the middle dinette as the dinette, and the rear dinette made up as a permanent bed. There is a two-burner stove, microwave, an all-electric fridge, air conditioning, wet bath, running hot-and-cold, a small Thetford cassette toilet, table and chairs for outside, pretty much the usual amenities, except...there is no gray tank. In South Africa, the gray water (sinks and shower) just dribbles out onto the ground underneath the camper. This would be unthinkable in Europe or the US or New Zealand (especially!), and so we try not to think about it. So far it is arid, sandy country, mostly, so the water goes away pretty quickly. Interestingly, the bathroom light switch is more than 7 feet above the floor. The vent higher than that.

We have been in the camper 12 nights as I write and have found it adequate. A bigger fridge and more counter space would be nice, as well as a dry bath. On each of the first three nights' encampments there have been group meetings, and, ominously, the first was mostly about how to change tires. Call AAA? I asked. Unusually for us, all the nightly encampments have been at campgrounds, mostly with electricity and other amenities. Some have been very nice indeed. The 38 nights we will be on this tour are the longest stretch in recent years in which we have known where we are going and where we are laying our heads.

Our companions are six other couples, all from the UK except Don and Kay, from Perth, bloody Australia. Our tour leaders, "escorts" they are called, are Chris and Hilary, from near Birmingham. The most popular member of the group is Donnie, from Jobuurg, the Bobo mechanic who travels with us in a camper laden with spares.

A good group, admirably led and assisted.

These first 12 days have been an extended learning experience, about the camper, about driving, the traffic, the roads, the countries we are visiting, the flora and fauna. (Alas, we are driving on the left ("proper") side of the road, but this is no longer much of an issue with so much recent/previous experience.) The distances between sites on our itinerary are considerable. One day was 300 miles, others less than 200, still others quite short. (OK, 300 miles may not seem like much, but consider these are two lane roads, mostly well-paved, sometimes not so much).We were three nights in Kruger National Park but otherwise have been on the move to get through northeastern South Africa and now into Botswana. We are now 4 nights near the Chobi national park in Botswana, with an over night to Victoria Falls coming up.

Demands of travel, lack of strong, or any, wifi, and also electricity now and then, mean that I am more than a full week behind on the blog. I'll catch up as I can—there are already more than 2 thousand pix to view, select, edit, down-size, etc.--and our first scheduled "day at leisure" isn't until September 19^th. At least we now have our circadian rhythms at the proper beat, being 12 full days and time zones out of San Francisco. And the tour, despite some minor hardships and mishaps, has been everything that we hoped for and much more. We are happy campers.

Our fleet; moving in day

Le Bobo; Millennium Bobo...

At our first night's encampment, at Monateng Safari Lodge, near
Praetoria ("we're driving to Praetoria, Praetoria, Praetoria"); note
electrified fence to keep bad critters out

At a group dinner some days later; a fun group

Some teasers of pix to come...