12th – 13th of March – Departure and arrival

A quick note; when touring Johannesburg I didn't bring my camera bag so I only had my phone camera. I apologize for the serious lack of quality/clarity in the photos.

My flight out of Copenhagen was at 1420 and as usual I arrive in good time. That turned out not being necessary, though, as there was barely any wait to turn in my bags (I had already checked in) and no wait at security. Bought some currency, had lunch and departed on time.

Boarding the top floor of an A380 in Copenhagen!

The A380 taking us to Dubai is special as half of the upper floor has been filled with economy seats (as opposed to probably any other A380 that fills the upper floor with business and first class). Though pre-booking one of the seats on the upper floor was more expensive than those below the cabin was smaller (2-4-2 as opposed to the below 3-4-3), not so long and barely half filled which made it a nice and quiet ride. I even had 2 seats by myself!

I had 4 hours in Dubai which I spent on walking around and having a very disappointing tapas dinner (though the dessert was great!) before boarding the next leg of the trip. What is it with people and their unwillingness to think? They announced first/business class to be first to board. They then called group D & E and 4/5ths of those queuing were turned away as they were group A/B/C. Listen to instructions. Read your boarding card. You are not a special snowflake. Rules also apply to you. Are you ignorant or just don’t care? I don’t know what would be worse. I lined up when group B & C was called and still people were turned away.

I boarded, found my seat and found that there was a free spot between me and my neighbour. Nice! We departed and arrived on time and despite watching a few movies I managed to get a bit of sleep. This plane was obviously much older than the A380 so I never felt as comfortable as on the first part of the trip.

I was picked up and checked in at the lodge at around 1130. Here I was given the offer to, together with an Irish couple that had arrived shortly before me, meet up with the rest of the arrive group and do a tour of Soweto. We all accepted and returned to the airport, met up with 5 others and our guide and spent the afternoon touring Soweto and various interesting spots in Johannesburg until returning to the lodge at around 1700.

I’ll be honest and admit that I always thought that Soweto (“South West [of Johannesburg] Township”) was primarily poor/slum area but what we saw indicated that it was just a suburb like any other with an estimated population of app. 3-4 million. While there are poor parts with squatters the middle class is by far the most represented there. Crossing through the centre of Johannesburg on the way to Soweto it at times looked more run down than what we saw in Soweto.

We saw the freedom charter with the 10 chapters, a memorial for Hector Peterson, the boy who was the first casualty during the unrest (and it wasn’t even intentional but a stray bullet) and “the world’s most famous street” where both Mandela and Desmond Tutu had lived at the same time (and the only street in the world with 2 recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize). All the time our guide was talking about anything we were passing by barely taking a break and I don’t think I remember but a fraction of it all. It was a bit heavy after 6 & 8 hours sitting on a plane.

Statues representing the 10 chapters (one behind me); The People Shall Govern!; All National Groups Shall Have Equal Rights!; The People Shall Share In The Country's Wealth!; The Land Shall Be Shared Among Those Who Work It!; All Shall Be Equal Before The Law!; All Shall Enjoy Equal Human Rights!; There Shall Be Work And Security!; The Doors Of Learning And Of Culture Shall Be Opened!; There Shall Be Houses, Security And Comfort!; There Shall Be Peace And Friendship!

Memorial for Hector Peterson (the year is 1992). The photo in the background is a photo of his mother carrying his body after being shot.

Nelson Mandela's house.

Plaque on Tutu's former house.

Apparently the most famous street in the world.

At 1800 we met for the usual introductory meeting where we all got to meet and introduce ourselves to the rest of the group and get info on the following days’ plans. The dinner was delicious South African BBQ and soon thereafter people left and went back to their rooms to be ready for tomorrow’s early departure at around 0630.

We are 15 in the group and I am lucky enough to have my own room. There is a daughter/teenager, an Irish couple a bit younger than me and the rest seem to be or be close to retiring. The average age of the group is much higher than I have expected. Also, 10 people are from the US which is surprisingly more people than I am used to, too. I guess that happens when you go on a National Geographic tour with a high level of comfort compared to the average tour. Also, 2 from Ireland, 2 from the Canada and me from Denmark.

A potentially glowing trip

While my main goal for my trips have been to either climb, trek or go on safaris I have had a few other things in mind that differed from the norm in one way or another. This upcoming trip is one of those out-of-the-ordinary trips which I have been considering for a few years and which I have now booked. Fortunately I have 5 days off in a row around Easter and as the goal of the trip is only days long the timing is perfect.

29^th of March

Flight from Copenhagen (via Riga) in the morning and arriving mid-afternoon in Kiev, Ukraine.

30^th – 31^st

Getting picked up early in the morning at the central railroad station, luckily close to the hotel. From there, we (the group) go on a 2-day tour in the Chernobyl exclusion zone. I’m really excited about getting to see the large area and how nature has taken over the towns and the weird feel there is in the desolate area. It is definitely going to be a unique experience.

1^st of April

I have a few hours in Kiev before I have to get myself back to the airport and fly home – again over Riga.

Anyways, not a normal trip for me but very interesting. And worst case, if the tour ends up being disappointing, I am crossing my fingers that I at least will return home glowing so I can have that as a souvenir. 

Surprise weekend trip

Towards the end of January I received a mail from SAS informing me that my bonus points would expire March the 31st if I didn't spend them before then. I didn't think much of it, mostly because I didn’t really have enough for me to worry about that. Until I remembered that I a few days earlier had received another mail from them informing me that they had lowered the prices on certain destinations and travel dates. 

So I had a look – because why not?

I ended up finding two destinations, and I hadn't visited any of them before, either. And while I hadn't really considered visiting with free flight tickets that could easily change. I first looked into going to Helsinki but realized that staying at a hotel remotely close to the center got really pricey. So I chose option two instead. Long live Danish holidays in the spring letting you go for three days without having to take extra time off...

27^th – 29^th of April

Visiting Tallinn, capital of Estonia. Nothing much else to say. I found a nice-looking hotel in the old part of town for very little so that’s a plus. And then I’ll just spend the extended weekend on walking around and enjoying the beautiful old city.

And as a bonus I even had enough bonus points with SAS that I was able to fly economy plus instead of just economy. I’m not complaining.

Pakistan update

So... things have happened with the upcoming Pakistan trip. Or rather; the not-anymore-upcoming trip. Yup - it has been cancelled.

To be honest it wasn't much of a surprise, though. We were informed by the travel agency that they were waiting for the embassy in Islamabad and the Foreign Ministry to update the travel information for Pakistan and more specifically the area where we would be trekking. I am assuming that if the travel information isn't positive enough insurance companies won't insure the travel agency/tip. The travel agency had been promised updates were coming, but reaching the deadline the agency had at the end of November nothing had been done yet. We were informed in the beginning of December that they had pushed the deadline and expected to be able to commit to the trip between Christmas and New Year's eve.

And nothing was heard - until a few days ago when receiving the mail cancelling the trip. It wasn't much of a surprise due to not hearing anything way past the deadline so I had more or less settled on the fact that I wouldn't be going this year - though it wasn't fun having my suspicions confirmed anyway. But I was promised that as soon as they would be able to put up the trip again (next year or later) they would start off informing those who had signed up now. 

So now I have to start looking for new destinations. So much work!

Back to watching animals

In Denmark when quitting/being laid off from a job, depending on contract and agreement with the (former) employer, you are able to get some of your leftover vacation paid out into a vacation fund which you can get paid out when you are going on vacation (as you in your new job won't have saved up any vacation yet at that point you'll be able to fall back on the previous-job-money). 

Between Christmas and New Year's I was reminded that I have vacation money to spend - and the way the system works they need to be spent before the 1st of May. 

Oh, dear.

So obviously I need to go travelling. I mean - the vacation money shouldn't go to waste, right? Planning on going to two different cold areas later in the year I was thinking about something warm, and adding the fact that it has been a while I have been on a safari the decision was fairly easy in the end.

12th-13th of March

Flight from Copenhagen to Johannesburg. I am flying via Dubai and while the overall trip would have been shorter if I went over Europe I get to go in A380s. And because Emirates prioritize economy class from Copenhagen there are economy seats on the top floor of the plane. Guess who was willing to pay for a seat reservation on the top floor? And the flight was dirt cheap. Like... really cheap.

Meeting with the group the 13th in the evening and getting barbecue.

14th - 16th of March

Driving to and spending time in Kruger NP. I am looking forward to this - especially expecting to have a better driver/guide than back in 2013 which ended up being a bit of a disappointment. Finishing the tour in the park by driving to different park, Karongwe Private Game Reserve. 

17th - 18th of March

Spending time in Karongwe Private Game Reserve, hopefully spotting plenty of other and more animals. Ending with returning to Johannesburg.

19th - 20th of March

Flight back to Copenhagen, finishing hopefully a very successful safari. 

It'll be great getting back into the heat and dust of safari'ing. When going it'll be 2 years since my last safari so it's about time getting out there again.

Just another small stroll in the mountains

An update to this trip can be found here.

Some people reading my blog might have noticed that I enjoy going on treks. Those I have been doing have been quite popular which means that there are a lot of other people and therefore an established infrastructure with huts, tea houses and eateries. Despite being far away from everything you could always rely on being close to something established if you needed a break or shelter. Everest Base Camp is a good example of this.

Then there are treks that are not very occupied by tourists, far away from everything so you have to camp and be self sufficient with regards to food. I haven't really done some like that ignoring the acclimatization treks of some summits (e.g. Aconcagua and Elbrus) so it must be time to do something along those lines.

This trip will take me on a 3-week trek in the Karakorum mountains, culminating with reaching K2 base camp - depending on conditions, obviously. There are barely any tourists in the area so it's going to feel very away from everything, combining with only being able to camp and bringing our own food. We will of course have porters, otherwise I might have skipped this...

Oh, yeah. Combining this with the trip to Iran I might be able to give the border security in the US a small heart attack.

10th - 11th of July

Flying out of Copenhagen and going to Islamabad, having some time to see the city after arrival.

12th of July

Plane to Skardu at 2500m, where we will be staying at a simple hotel. If the weather is bad the trip is done by bus. Afternoon is spent on sightseeing.

13th - 17th of July

The start of the trek will be relatively gentle, while the distances are 12-20km per day the ups and downs during the days are not that bad, usually less than 500m either way. Nights will be spent at Korofon (3075m), Jhola (3150m) and Paiju (3420m) where we will have an acclimatization day.

18th - 22nd of July

We'll start off heading towards Horbose (3795m) followed by Urdukas (3900m) which will be reached after a relatively short day. Then we're heading to Goro (4295m) and Concordia (4500m) which will be the furthest camp. Here we'll have an extra day where there are several paths we can take, among others a trek to K2 base camp, but also reaching Broad Peak base camp or walk towards Gasherbrum I ("Hidden Peak") so you get to see that, too.

23rd - 28th of July

From Concordia we will be making our way back down towards Skardu passing by Shachspong (4100m) before reaching known places Horbose (3795m), Paiju (3420m), Jhola (3150m), Askole (3000m) and in the end Skardu where we will have the first night since being here last time in a hotel.

29th - 31st of July

Again; depending on weather we will either fly back to Islamabad or take a jeep via Chilas. Having returned to Islamabad we will take a flight home on the last day.

Very excited about this trip - there are some great views of mountains you won't see other places (or at least with great difficulty) and it's in an area I have never been before. And the lack of people that can be seen on other treks will just make it more special.

One would think I missed being in the cold

When returning home from Svalbard I agreed with myself that I wouldn't return; not because it hadn't been a great experience but due to it being fairly pricey.

Despite the trip to Svalbard was cheaper than going to Antarctica I decided to see the latter less than half a year later. And when returning home from Antarctica I agreed with myself that I wouldn't return; not because it hadn't been a great experience but due to it being fairly pricey.

Some time after coming back home from Antarctica someone from the trip created a group on Facebook to arrange a reunion in 2018 - and having said reunion on a trip to Svalbard. There were quite a few people backing up around this idea, and so was I, but I pointed out that as I had already been there, and recently, I wasn't totally convinced. 

Having an excuse to go travelling I looked at the options and said that if I was to return to Svalbard I'd take the long option where you'd also pass by Greenland and Iceland.

So....

Yeah.

1st of September

Arrival in Longyearbyen where I'll spend a night before leaving.

2nd -  6th of September

We'll board the ship in the afternoon and spend the first couple of days sailing around Svalbard before starting the crossing of the Greenland Sea heading west.

7th - 8th of September

Crossing through Northeast Greenland National Park towards Greenland. Not much land to be spotted so I'm crossing my fingers for whales, orcas and the like.

9th - 13th of September

Reaching the coast of East Greenland and the Northeast Greenland National Park we'll be getting a close up of the Eastern fjords. We'll be visiting the village Ittoqqortoormiit and a look into Scoresby Sund.

14th - 15th of September

Crossing the Denmark Strait to Reykjavik.

16th - ? September

I haven't bought my flight tickets yet so I haven't quite made a final discision on how to end the trip. I might just go home after leaving the ship but there's a chance that I might spend a couple of days in town before leaving.

This trip is with the same company I traveled with last time I was on Svalbard and to Antarctica so I am very much looking forward to it, especially because I know the conditions we will be staying in for the two weeks and the crew and staff are absolutely amazing and worthy of any praise they can get. Too bad it's 10 months until departure. I'll have to find something before that to distract me.