August 10 - Jo'Burg, South Africa - Living Large

Leaving Tanzania was bitter sweet as I’m sure will be the norm as we move on from one place to the next. We flew from Stonetown to Dar Es Salaam and stayed for one night only which was a good thing. We did not have a reservation for accommodation so we were at the mercy of suggestions from our taxi driver we found at the airport. It is so much less desirable but inevitable to occasionally find a place to stay this way. Our internet access has been so limited we have not had the ability to plan ahead like we would have liked. So…our hotel was reasonable but good from afar, and far from good. Plus, it was in a pretty seedy area which prevented us from exploring. We just hunkered in until our 5am rise to catch our next flight, to Johannesburg.

Now our Jo’Burg experience was a different story. We had booked in an airport hotel as we had to fly out again the next day. We booked the same hotel as Ron’s friend Mike (from work) so we could have an evening with him. It was a splurge and it was AWESOME! Turned out Mike missed his flight connection and wasn’t able to be there. Although we were disappointed not to see Mike and his wife, we completely immersed ourselves into the task of enjoying the hotel luxury; unlimited amazing food, crisp white sheets, cloud like pillows, brand new fitness centre, high speed wireless, pool area and lounge chairs, incredible huge shower, complementary wine and refreshments with cheese (brie!) and crackers and cable TV. I think we looked like a pack of hungry hyenas in the corner of the dining room at meal time. I’ve NEVER seen the girls pack away so much food. We ate too much to really have a great sleep in the fresh sheets, but it was worth it. We left the Southern Sun Tambo Airport Hotel full, refreshed and happy. A little luxury goes a long way for the budget traveler! I’d like to say we took the time to check out Johannesburg…but time was short and we felt this was one city (safety) we could probably miss for now. Although they are in full swing getting ready for World Cup Soccer in 2010 so apparently the city has really cleaned up (the airport is phenomenal) and the crime is not as bad either.