Last weekend, a group of 12 of us visited Pendjari game park in the north part of Benin.  The park joins Arli National Park in Burkina Faso.  It took about 9 hours to get there by city bus. We had heard stories from crew who had gone before us about not reserving a bus far enough ahead of time and getting stuck with no air conditioning, people laying the aisles of the bus, live animals aboard, etc.... so we were quick to make sure we got reservations on the better bus.  We had a great ride up, especially getting to see the wide variety of countryside... Cotonou, where the ship is docked is flat, but the more north we traveled, the more diverse it became.  We actually saw several areas that might have some decent hiking or rock climbing.  They played loud african music the whole ride up, but the entire way back, the bus had a TV. They played these strange African TV shows, I guess they were sit-coms, all set in a village.  I paid little attention to it, but everytime I looked to the screen, there was  man beating another man with sticks or branches and a woman crying.  I found this strange because everyone, even the nuns aboard the bus, were laughing.  We were told the show was about an adultress who was sleeping not with just one man in the village, but all of them.  I'm still not sure what was so funny, but then again, I'm sure many many things are lost in translation here!  

We arrived at the bus station in the afternoon and I was shocked to see that the driver of the safari bus was actually there and waiting for us.  I had arranged all of this weeks before, had called to confirm earlier in the week, but had assumed that something would go wrong and that we would have to call him and wait hours for him to come and fetch us.  Not sure if you've heard the phrase "TIA- This is Africa" but this is what we say when things don't go the way we westerners expect them to- people  arrive for scheduled appointments 4 hours late, they never come at all and you never see them again, etc...  

So, we were especially shocked and amazed  that Joseph collected us, got us to the hotel, and went over the game plan for the safari all in a very organized fashion.  We had a two day safari, getting up by 6:30 am when the animals are often out and about, and taking a break from 12 to 4- the hottest part of the day.  Most of the time, I rode on top of the van, as the views were better, it was cooler, and it wasn't so bumpy that I felt fearful of falling off.  

We saw a variety of antelope, a huge heard of elephants, hippos, baboons, crocodiles, hardebeest, water buffalo, monkeys, and many kinds of birds.  Everyone who goes to Pendjari hopes to see a lion, but there are only 180 in the whole park, according to our guide, and they are difficult to find.  We never saw one unfortunately. 

The second day, we spent the morning looking for animals and then stopped at a gorgeous waterfall in the afternoon.  We were all so filthy and hot, that the falls were like an oasis.  The water was cold and refreshing and one of the only safe places to swim in the country (safe from 
schistosomiasis)   This was one of the only times I've had goosebumps since I've been in Africa!  

This was the Easter weekend and the ship had many activities planned, which we were all sorry to miss.  But, this was the only weekend where most of the crew was off for four days in a row and could actually make the drive that far north.  We read the crucifixion on Good Friday and read the resurrection story at dinner on Sunday. We  had dinner at the hotel on Easter night and had a small service with singing and communion, organized by Allison.  It was a great way to not let the safari over-shadow the Easter holiday and gave us a chance to still worship as a group.  I feel so blessed to have had a chance to not only spend time with this great group of people , but to have experienced the culture of another part of this little country. 

We stopped at a local village at the request of the man whoorganized our hotels for us.  

It is very far and expensive to travel to the ship, so we were happy to have a look at him.  

When the van pulled up, the entire village came to greet us.

Jeremy handed out Tootsie Rolls to the village children

Rachel showed the kids her digital pictures of them- its likely that some of them had never even seen a camera before... the kids always look a the pictures and laugh and laugh

This man has a goiter that has been getting larger over the past few years.  We would be able to perform surgery on him, but the schedule is full.  He would also have to find a way to take thyroid medication for the rest of his life if the surgery was performed.  When we arrived that day, he was very disappointed, as it was his understanding that we were coming to perform the surgery that day in the village! 

Sandi, Paul, Jeremy, and I rooftop viewing....

Water buffalo

Although the we had to view them through a ton of trees, it was pretty awesome to see almost 30 elephants at one time!  

This was the biggest blessing of the trip. We saw many hippos from a distance at one of the watering holes, but we saw him very randomly at the very end of the park- he was just standing there staring at us as we drove down the road.  

This croc sat with his mouth open like this for a good 10 minutes

Tired baboon

Mom and baby baboons

Although we had booked ahead for tents, there were none to be found, so we ended up laying a tarp down and sleeping under these mosquito nets.  We were much more comfortable and cool than the people with the non-air-conditioned rooms and we got to see the stars....

Disturbing sign that hung at our hotel's entrance against female genital mutilation... you see these kind of signs on billboards in town also

Believe it or not, this is a hat full of elephant poop that our driver picked up to take back to one of his friends.  I think he was planning to use it as fertilizer.  

Liv and I made peanut butter and banana sandwiches on the way home

Thanks for reading!