We move away from Cyclone Garance and head back north to the repeat port of Antsiranana, Madagascar, on the continuation of the Cruise Around Africa. This time I have booked the NCL Tour “Tsingy Rouge Stone Formations”, which is a 60 km drive to the town of Sajoavato. Tsingy Rouge is a unique geological formation in northern Madagascar, specifically in the Diana region. It is characterized by striking red laterite stone formations sculpted by erosion from the Irodo River. The formations are a result of weathering and erosion, exposing iron-rich soil that gives them their distinctive reddish-orange hue. The walk from the rest center was a bit difficult, and this was a very hot day, so I was not able to get very close to them.
Now we get a few days of rest because we have 3 days at sea for the Cruise Around Africa as we approach South Africa. The first stop is at Richard’s Bay, South Africa, and I have booked my 2nd safari. The NCL Tour “Hluhluwe Game Preserve” takes us away from the port to this private reserve for my continued search for the Big 5. The Big 5 in safari lingo means you have seen and captured photos of a lion, a leopard, a rhinoceros, an African elephant, and an African buffalo. This name became synonymous with the most difficult animals to hunt on foot. Nowadays, the effort to stop hunting and poaching is seen everywhere, and these private reserves help with that preservation. The safari was much better as we were very close to the animals this time!
The next port of call on our Cruise Around Africa is a stop at Port Elizabeth, South Africa. I decided to change things up a bit and do a water excursion on the NCL Tour “Penguin Island Cruise”. We board a boat right near the ship pier at the Nelson Mandela Yacht Club, furnished by Raggy Charters. They specialize in boat excursions in the bay, like shark diving, regular diving, and boat tours. We had a great few hours of boating and visiting the several hundred African penguins, where there used to be 1000s. Unfortunately, development and chemical spills in the bay had drastically cut their numbers.
It is back to my last Safari in the port of Mossel Bay, where I booked the NCL Tour “Garden Route Game Lodge.” We travel to the private reserve and are picked up with the Safari vehicles at the main gate. Again, we head out and actually come into very close contact with the most animals that I had seen on a safari thus far, including several that made me a little bit nervous. The lions were kept in a separate area; however, they were fed carcasses and left to roam there at will. At bit frightening!
We are finally at the next embarkation port and the end of South Africa, in Cape Town. A long-time friend of mine lives here, so he was my tour guide for the next few hours. We were able to go to the top of the mountain, Table Mountain. Fantastic views! Then, around the southern edge to a penguin colony in Boulders Beach. An enjoyable day!
This concludes Cruise Around Africa Part 2, so you can click here for Cruise Around Africa Part 3. This is the final part, up the western coast of Africa to Portugal.
Or you can click here to see Cruise Around Africa Part 1 in case you missed it!
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