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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 112

    Still in Cape Town

    11. april, Sør-Afrika ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    We were due to sail on to Luderitz, Namibia, but the infamous Cape of Good Hope weather kept us docked in Cape Town. An extra day to explore Cape Town--not so bad you might think, but there was a problem. Immigration had processed us as departing and would not come back to the port to reprocess us as re-entering. So we stayed on the ship.

    One positive: harbor seals having fun right by the boat!

    The South African politics and economy are a mess. Unemployment is at 32%. They have vast natural resources (gold, diamonds,manganese, tin, lithium, etc) which seems to have created corruption and mismanagement rather than prosperity. Elections will be next month. Predictions are that there will be some murders. If your opponent looks like he might win you try to have him murdered.

    I'll be following the news.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 111

    Cape town

    10. april, Sør-Afrika ⋅ 🌬 19 °C

    Off on another Safari, this time to Aquila, a 2.5 hour ride from Cape Town. The countryside changed from urban to agricultural. There were acres of vineyards. Then into low mountains and valleys. The animal preserve looked like Big Bend-- high desert, scrub brush, rocks and low mountains.

    I saw plains zebras in both Aquila and Sibuya. There are 3 different subspecies of zebras: plains, Grevys and mountain. Coloration is black with white stripes, not vice versa. Also the plains zebras have faint orange- brown on hind quarters. Why do zebras have stripes? Current theory is that it is for temperature and insect control. The different colors create temperature differences between the stripes and generate air circulation. This cools the animal and also makes it more difficult for small insects to land.

    Our guide told us there were many Aloe Vera plants. Pictured is a big one.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 109

    Port Elisabeth (Gqeberba)

    8. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Well, we made it! In port at last and off on Safaris. I went to Sulanid Reserve and Bill went to Schotia Reserve. New animals and new birds. As we have numerous sea days after Namibia I will fill those days with posts of safari sights and limit today to just a few.

    The Cape Buffalo is one of the most unpredictable and ferocious animals. They have never been domesticated. The adult African buffalo's horns are its characteristic feature: they have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield across the top of the head, referred to as a "boss". There are 5 subspecies. Western cattle egrets mix with the Buffalo.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 107

    Durban, South Africa

    6. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    We were supposed to arrive in Ft Richards, South Africa this morning but weather conditions made entering the Port and docking hazardous. The Port sent the pilot out by helicopter--I guess it was too rough for a boat. He and the Viking Captain Richards decided that entering the port was "no go." So we headed to the next port, Durban, about 50 miles away. Unfortunately the same weather followed us. So no safari today and on to Port Elizabeth.

    The weather situation is quite interesting. You may have heard that the Cape of Good Hope (originally known as the Cape of Storms) is well known for bad weather. The reason is that it is where the Indian Ocean meets the Pacific Ocean and more specifically where the warm Agulhas Current meets the cold Benguela current. This creates eddys that have taken down many a ship. Our situation is compounded by 15 to 30 knot winds gusting up to 50 knots.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 106

    Pink Pigeon

    5. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Another day at sea as we head toward Port Richards so time for the Pink Pigeon, one more vulnerable species found exclusively in Mauritius. It nearly became extinct in the 1970s when only 10 birds remained but due to the efforts of the Durell Wildlife trust its numbers increased to 500 by 2011 and more by now. It has been downloaded from critically endangered to endangered and now to vulnerable.Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 105

    Telfair's Skink

    4. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌬 25 °C

    Off towards Africa with the first of 2 sea days so there is time to reflect on Mauritius. On my trip to Ile aux Aigrettes I saw several animals that are found only in Mauritius. One of them is Telfair's Skink (a type of lizard that can grow up to 36 inches long). It was once numerous on Mauritius and offshore islands. Due to habitat destruction  and introduced species like goats, black rats, and rabbits, it has been limited to Round Island in Mauritius since the middle of the 19th century. When Gerald Durrell visited Round Island in the 1970s he recorded only 5,000 specimens. He took some specimens to the Jersey Zoo ( in England)  to build up a captive breeding program. Since the eradication of the goats and rabbits on Round Island, the skink population has increased to the point that some could be relocated to other islands such as the predator free Île aux Aigrettes. However, in 2020 a major oil spill sent copious amounts of oil to the beaches of the islands. The oil is toxic to these reptiles as they go to the beaches and could have eradicated them. Once again the Durell Foundation stepped in. Volunteers collected the skinks and they were sent to the Jersey Zoo for a few years until they could be safely returned to Mauritius. They are still listed as threatened.

    References    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 104

    Lewis Chess Pieces part 2

    3. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌬 26 °C

    A sea day on our way to Africa. But on to the story. Did you notice that some of the Lewis Chess Pieces depicted the Warders biting the tops of their shields? What's with this? There was a group of Viking soldiers called the Berserkars who were fierce, fearless and some would say crazy. Before battle they would work themselves into a frenzy (some say drug induced) and would literally do anything--definitely the most feared soldiers. They were often depicted biting the tops of their shields. And guess what English word comes from their name?Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 103

    Mauritius

    2. april, Mauritius ⋅ 🌬 25 °C

    What? You have never heard of Mauritius? Well, neither had I until I saw it on our destination list. It is an island nation (4 islands) in the Indian Ocean about 2000 miles east of the east coast of Africa. It may be best known as the home of the now extinct dodo bird. It has the usual history of nations in this area. Colonized first by the Portuguese, then the Dutch, then the French, then a troubled path to independence. It has attained stability and is ranked as one of the most stable African nations. Infrastructure looks fairly good and it is the largest port on the Indian Ocean. Economy is based on textiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, tourism (rapidly expanding), sugar and financial services. Population is 1.2 million.

    While Bill took a tour of the island I chose to go to a tiny reef island that had been cleared of invasive species to prevent endemic species from going extinct (like the dodo). We saw giant tortoises, skinks and new birds. No dodo though!

    Onward towards Africa.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 102

    Lewis Chess Pieces Part I

    1. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    The last sea day before Mauritius.

    Viking is a Norwegian flagged ship and has Scandinavian design elements. One that I overlooked was some chess pieces on display in the atrium. Turns out they are replicas of historic Lewis Chess Pieces and today one of the speakers described their history.

    The real chess pieces (93 of them) were found buried in Uig on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland by Calum nan Sprot, a peasant, either in a box or a bag in 1831. They were sold to Roderick Ririe who sold them to TA Forest who later offered them to the Scottish museum who turned them down. The Assistant Manager of Manuscripts at the British Museum, Sir Frederick Madden, was a chess aficionado and recognized them as valuable historic chess pieces so he persuaded the museum to purchase them for $15,000 even though the museum was only collecting Greek and Roman pieces. But 11 were also sold to a private collector. Later these pieces were donated to the Scottish Museum who, realizing their previous mistake, gratefully accepted them. In total the British museum has 82, the Scottish museum has 11 so there are 5 missing. Recently one was discovered tucked away in a drawer and auctioned for
    $950,000.

    They were made from walrus tusk and sperm whale tooth ivory that was available in Scandinavia and Iceland. The designs date them from between 1150 and 1200.

    So how did they get to the coast of Scotland? It is speculated that they were being shipped to a rich merchant in Clonard, Ireland. Either through a shipwreck or deserting sailor they made it to Scotland where a local thief either found or stole them. But they were too distinctive to sell without being noticed (like gold or silver coins) so he buried them where they were dug up 200 years later.

    Where were they made? The best accepted theory is Norway where there were craftsman well known to have the necessary skills. However I like the theory that they were made by Margaret the Adroit in Iceland and sent to Scandanavia and later sent to Ireland.

    There are still 5 missing so check your drawers and attics.

    And look forward to Part II after Mauritius.    Les mer

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  • ReisendeWorld cruise
    Dag 102

    Easter

    1. april, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    A quiet day at sea. Still in the Indian Ocean headed to the island nation of Mauritius. No wildlife sightings. The sea is a bit more turbulent as we head into thunderstorms.

    The ship celebrated Easter by placing chocolate Easter Bunnies in our staterooms, having an Easter Egg hunt and having an Easter service. Definitely low key.

    Nautical term: Start Over With A Clean Slate. A slate tablet was kept near the helm to record speeds, distances, headings and tacks during the watch. If no problems occurred during the watch, the slate would be wiped clean so the new watch keeper could "start over with a clean slate."    Les mer

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