lion country

While at Mabuasehube, we got more than lucky and saw a total of 12 really big Kalahari lions.
We had heard that a bunch of lions was occupying a campsite not too far from where we were staying and so we drove there to have a look. Indeed, they were there, dozing in the shade and apparently well fed.

I would have probably freaked out completely, but the people staying at that particular campsite were surprisingly relaxed about being held hostage by the lions for a full day...

On our game drive on the next morning, we also came across a lioness. She was walking on the tracks and definitely not in a hunting mood, as the steenboks didn't run away. She was also very hesitant to leave the soft underground, but eventually we managed to pass her.
It definitely feels strange to sleep in a tiny little tent on the ground, knowing that this is lion country. On the other hand, it is so beautiful out there - I really wouldn't want to miss it!

in the wild west

Last weekend, I went for a trip to Mabuasehube, a national park in the wild west of Botswana. From the tarred road, it takes more than 100km on a sand piste to the entrance gate and from there, another 25km to the campsite at Mabuasehube pan, so it's really in the middle of nowhere.

We spent two nights there,
saw the sun rise,hid from the scorching sun and the hot desert wind during the day,
went searching for some lions,
and had a little party with the squirrels and birds at our campsite.
On the way back, we followed another endless, bumpy track through the bush and finally found some fuel before heading back to Gabs. Thanks to the guys for driving all the way and for a fantastic trip!

a little video of our trip to Mozambique

I finally managed to upload this little fim from our roadtrip through Mozambique.
We drove through Maputo, took the ferry to Catembe and then made our way through the sand and dunes to Punta do Ouro on the coast. The town of Punta do Ouro is really built on sand - no roads there! The long stretches of sand pistes were extremely bumpy and we saw quite a few cars who got stuck in the sand but we were lucky and the landscape was still beautiful to look at.
Thanks to David for the car and to Björn for being a great offroad driver!

Under the Sea

During our trip, we went swimming with dolphins off the coast of Punta do Ouro. We went out on a little boat, equipped with fins and masks, and found some bottlenose dolphins very close to the shore.

It was an incredible experience to swim with these beautiful, curious creatures and hear them communicating with each other in the sea. More (under water) pictures from our cruise are available here.

Farewell Munich

After about 4 weeks in my beloved Bavaria I am leaving again tonight. So I spent the last days saying goodbye to Munich, great friends and my family. Of course, I am also pretty excited to see my favorite person again and to get to know a new country. Therefore I once more packed my life in suitcases and will board a plane tonight to start a new adventure in Botswana!

time of my life

this 16-week trip has been a great adventure and I've had a wonderful time with lots of interesting experiences, awesome landscapes and amazing people. I am absolutely happy that I made this decision and just went for it!

but honestly, right now I am also very glad to be back home and enjoy some time in good old Bavaria for a couple of weeks, spending time with my family and friends in the gorgeous springtime!

because I know that this will be just a brief interlude as the next adventure (a joint one this time!) is already waiting....

Volcano Close-Up

Finally I got a volcano. A real one. And really close.

Walking over black lava rubble up the volcano to get close to the glowing red, super-hot lava was pretty exciting! Especially because we kept hearing some explosions behind the mountains of black lava stone.



And then we saw the lava stream, flowing fast downhill, making the air whir with heat.



The closer we got the more we could feel the heat and with the wind coming from the opposite direction we also caught a fair amount of sulfur vapor before we left the hot ground and made our way back to safer areas...



Thanks to Kaddi, Victor and Leah for taking me!

surviving Santiago

the earthquake hit in the early hours of the morning and shook everyone out of bed by its force

luckily, the building was very solid and so no big damage was done but of course everyone was shocked and scared and only slowly realised what had just happened

I am really thankful for getting out of this without a scratch, but my thoughts are with those who were not as lucky as we were...

I did it

I booked my flights. all of them.
it feels crazy and exciting and unreal all at once at the moment.

and I don't really feel prepared. yet. like I haven't really thought about what to take, how to get from one place to another (except for the flying parts of course), where to stay, what to see...but I guess I'll figure it out at some point along the way. after all, it's supposed to be a HOLIDAY!

so, it will be a couple of more weeks in Singapore, then Europe and then, finally, the last continent: Latin America!

...and then she painted her nails red and decided to change her life

Schon seit einiger Zeit sind die Hummeln zurueck.
Gepaart mit wilden Traeumen vom Aussteigen, der Sehnsucht nach Bergen und Jahreszeiten und dem irgendwie unerklaerlichen aber dabei doch staendig praesenten Heimweh ist die Entscheidung endgueltig getroffen und nun auch 'veroeffentlicht':

Ein Jahr in Singapur reicht erstmal.

Und so geht es Ende des Jahres ohne festen Job, dafuer mit ganz viel Vorfreude zunaechst zurueck in die Heimat um sich dann fuer ein paar Monate die andere Seite der Welt anzuschauen.
Ich freu mich so....