Do you know what's different about walking through the fields in Africa vs. a field in Mesquite?
Hyena!
Whoever said they were laughing and sacred didn't see the hyena that we saw. They are mean and sneaky like Wolves.
One day Rand and I decided to go out with Dave and his PH TeAn. Let's just say it was quite an eventful day. First of all their personalities together were like a comedy routine and I don't know if there was ever any serious hunting going on. But, Dave did get all the animals he wanted plus more so the hunting was paying of.
Let me take you through a quick narrative of the day's events. We were hunting on some property that belonged to a man named ? and the land was watched over by a man named ? I think his name was a Biblical name but I can't seem to recall it no matter how hard I try. Let's call him David.
We drove to David's house so that he could take us around the property and show us any animals he had spotted as of late. We parked the Land Cruiser at his house (which was really not a house) and began our trek. With the PH, Dave, Rand, David and me I felt that there was a lot of noise so as we went under a fence I nudged Rand to tell him I would wait back at the truck. As I started back down the road BY MYSELF I started to think of all the animals that could come out and eat me. I then began to think that I had walked a lot further to get back then where we had come from. The realization hit me that I didn't have a gun and that I surely would die from a warthog eating me and probably would be finished by a Hyena. I started to run or sprint or fly I was going so fast. But to any passerby at this point I would like like an out of shape 30 something trying to jog through the African sand. It was then that I remembered my three children back in America that would never know how their mom was carried away by Baboons and trampled by Wildabeests only to be stolen by a tribesman and ending it all by being cooked alive by fire. Just as I was about to succumb to this frightening death I turned the corner and saw the truck and Samuel the tracker sitting in front of David's house. I immediately slowed my gate down to a mere trot and acted as if I owned Africa. I sat next to Samuel and proceeded to interview him as if I were Oprah. He loved it I am sure. (every time we taked to the trackers without the PH's we got a horrible story of how their money was taken at the end of the hunts and that we should tip them privately. It was hard to discern if what they were saying was true or if they were playing on the emotions of what they perceived to be "rich Americans".
(David's home)
A highlight of my time away from the hunters was when Samuel and I drove for a while in the Land Cruiser. I was perched high in the air on the outside "hunting" seat and Samuel was in the cab, I felt as if I were a plantation owner overseeing her land and this new feeling I was experiencing was one of the most uncomfortable I had ever felt. As we approached the gate I decided that I would jump down and open the fences as we were going through, that would be the least I could do. As Samuel pulled up and I jumped down I sensed his surprise that I would help open the gate. I liked seeing the surprise on his face and knew that I would prove to him that I was an independent woman who was not afraid of a little hard work. He entered in and I closed the gate behind him which now trapped me in a small pen that I hadn't noticed before. Being in a pen would have been fine but looking over and seeing a huge cow walking toward me left me a bit terrified. (I was scarred in my childhood by living down a lane where cows just stared at you while I sat patiently in the middle of the cattle guard until Ali and Brooke would get off the bus, or the scarring of being sent down through the quakies of Gentry Mountain as I was helping push out deer for my dad and brother. The cows were my worst enemy and always got me off course). Back to that big old cow, as I looked over and saw that it was walking toward me I knew that it was going to be a bit tricky to get the next gate open, the Land Cruiser through, and the gate closed before that cow would come through the gate. I got the gate opened and the Land Cruiser through when the cow came for me. I was taken back to Spain and a scene from Running of the Bulls because when that bull looked at me I ran. (Imagine my embarrassment when we milked that same "Bull" an hour later for our lunch beverage, sense the irony). I left that gate wide open and ran for the truck as fast as I could never looking back to see if that cow was following. The cow came through the gate and Samuel was left dealing with the now "stray cow"outside of his pen. No worries, the cow was returned and Samuel the tracker didn't let me open any other gates. To tell you the truth that was perfectly ok with me.
Samuel immediatley drove me back to the house -
After what seemed like hours of talking to Samuel the hunters returned and were ready to be fortified from the morning hike. It was then that I learned our lunch for the day would be cooked right there in the outdoor kitchen. The same outdoor kitchen where the momma dog was still fresh from delivering a new batch of pups. We kicked the ground to clear space and thats when Tian just threw my raw whole chicken on the ground smashed it in some wire and started a fire. I was over thrilled to eat this raw, whole, chicken just cooking there in the dirt. At home I usually did things a little different, at home I only handle raw chicken with bleach wipes ready for immediate use and a meat thermometer. I was thrilled that my chicken was probably being cooked in the after birth of puppies and I was especially excited when I learned that the "bull" that charged me would provide the milk for lunch.
Enter Dave and his story -
We all left the chicken frying and went to milk the cow. My favorite part of this was that the baby cow was nursing off the same teat that I would soon get my milk from, but I wasn't worried because just when I thought that might not be sanitary is when David took that momma cow's tail and brushed off the teat. I may mention that he did this with the same hand that also helped him pee behind the bush at his house just moments before. The tail was wiped, the flies were shewed away and the milk started coming. That's when Dave decided that he had never drank milk straight from a cow's teat and so when in Africa drink milk (is that how it goes)? I watched, I could not believe what I was seeing but it happened. Dave drank fresh cream from that cow in Africa. Still stunned from the experience I found myself on the ground by the dogs eating chicken cooked by Tian. I sat in amazement and took in all the beauty of the culture I was experiencing. Guess what? I didn't die and I came home with a new understanding of how amazing my life is!
Got back to the ranch that night and I was so excited when I learned we would be having a barbecue! You just can't get enough meat cooked on an open fire.
Tired from the days events we returned to our room that night to a beautiful and very sanitary display of chocolate dipped strawberries, flowers, dried fruit and chocolates. It was set out to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. Thank you Del Marie and Amy you girls know how to make a girl feel at home. They even had non alcoholic grape juice for us (which probably made them laugh just to buy).
The next few days brought more hunting and more sight seeing.
Do you know what it is like to see a giraffe in Africa not a zoo?
I don't either, everyone in camp saw herds of giraffes except for me. Without fail I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and crew every time.
My only disappointment in Africa.
The golden wildabeest!
As my mom, Charlene and I did different excursions the men were left to hunt without us. I know they were probably devestated. Rand loved to be with his dad when he killed his Blesbok and Dave when he killed his one horned Impala.
Lee's PH (Hans) was a perfect fit for Lee. He was known to be the best tracker among all of the other PH's he led Lee to many animals by following tracks, sign and smells in the air. Interesting story about Hans....He did not eat with us at the table at night and was treated somewhat different because of the color of his skin. Mom and I asked Munsu how Hans became a PH because I wanted to provide a scholarship for MunSu to go to PH school. Munsu told us that it would not matter if he went to school because he probably couldn't get a job afterward. I asked him about Hans and he stated that an Emperor from our country came hunting and was so impressed with Hans that he paid for him to go to PH school and then helped him find a job. I asked Munsu if he knew the name of the Emperor and he said that his name was, "George W. Bush". Such an interesting side story.
We loved you Africa!
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