| Seabourn Sojourn December 2014 Walvis Bay to Maputo, Mozambique |
December 16th and 17th We were docked in Walvis Bay, Namibia for two days. On the 16th we
took a very enjoyable tour through the countryside to the quaint town of Swakomund which is very much
German in appearance and demeanor. On the way back we stopped at one of the huge sand dunes in the
area for the more adventuresome to climb to the top of the dune for a view of the surrounding area. A
delightful group of teachers from Botswana were also enjoying the area.
On the 17th we were on an all day tour to Sandwich Harbor in 4x4 vehicles over and around the sand
dunes along the shore line. Along the way we saw African fur seals, jackals and springbok deer.
December 18th On this day we were docked in the small port town of Luderwitz. I especially enjoyed
photographing the buildings and friendly inhabitants. While originally the port was developed to support
the diamond industry it is currently primarily a port for the fishing industry.
NAMIBIA PHOTOS
December 19th Sea Day
December 20th and 21st We were docked in Cape Town for two days. On the 20th we took a tour
to the Cape of Good Hope and Cape point which was enjoyable with a good tour guide, The 21st was a day
of disembarkation/embarkation. About 110 of us were continuing on for the next leg of the cruise which
includes Christmas and New Year celebrations. I arranged for a private guide by a professional
photographer who took us through the countryside to the city of Stellenbosch. James Gradwell also
enjoyed birding so we combined a day of birding and scenery! Photos of the birds we saw are included in
my Gallery of African Birds which has a link at latter in this section.
CAPE TOWN PHOTOS
December 22nd Sea Day
December 23rd Our port was Port Elizabeth for two days. Took the shuttle bus to a
shopping/entertainment center, but after quick look around returned to ship. This photo tells it all.
December 24th Christmas Eve. We departed Port Elizabeth and were treated to a really wonderful
Christmas Eve show by the entertainment staff and crew of the Sojourn.
PHOTOS
Christmas Day A pleasant day at sea on our way to Durban.
December 26th We rode the shuttle bus to an entertainment center/water park in the heart of Durban,
but did not bother to get off, and returned to the ship. Because it was boxing day the area was very
crowded and the traffic was at a standstill. Those passengers that took tours to game parks, etc, outside
the city centers of Port Elizabeth, Durban and Richards Bay reported favorable experiences, but the cities
and port areas are unattractive and quite frankly we did not feel safe in walking about and stayed on board
the ship.
PHOTOS
December 27th/28th Our port was Richards Bay, another industrial port with no tourist
infrastructure. We stayed on board the Sojourn. Photos were taken from aboard the ship
PHOTOS
December 29th We departed Richards Bay the afternoon of the 28th and we docked in Matupo,
Mozambique. It was raining very hard and we decided to hold off on visiting the city as we would be here
again on January 13th
December 30th Sea day on our way to East London
December 31st New Year's eve we were docked in East London, another unappealing industrial
port. Departed early afternoon and enjoyed celebrating end of 2014.
PHOTOS
January 1, 2015 Sea Day
January 2nd Our port was Mossel Bay which we found to be much nicer than our recent
ports. We participated in a very interesting tour to Knysna a resort town along the Garden Route. We were
very favorably impressed by the country side on the way to and from Knysna.
PHOTOS
January 3rd to 5th We were back in Cape Town at Noon on the 3rd. We took a tour which included
the cable car ride to the top of Table Mountain, but unfortunately clouds blanketed the "table" but it was
still an enjoyable trip.
The following day we rode the shuttle bus to a modern shopping mall, much larger and upscale than those
near our home. The 4th was also a turnover day for both crew and passengers.
We departed Cape Town on the 5th at noon for the next leg of the cruise which ends in Singapore on
February 3rd.
PHOTOS
January 6th Sea day on our way to Port Elizabeth
January 7th We were back in Port Elizabeth, but this time disembarked to begin a long
anticipated trip to the Makakantana Lodge for four nights to satisfy my obsession to photograph birds! On
our drive to the airport in Port Elizabeth we decided our first impression of the city had been unfair and it
was much cleaner and modern that we observed from the port. The airport was small but very modern and
had a first class lounge, Our flight to Durban went well and we were met by Julian Parsons who was to be
our driver/guide for our time at Makakantana.
January 7th to 11th Makakantana met our expectations. We stayed in the Honeymoon Suite which
looked out over a field where we saw many animals, even including a hippo! Julian turned out to be an
avid birder and photographer. Our time was well spend and I was able to add many species of birds to my
growing collection of bird photos.
PHOTOS OF BIRDS
PHOTOS OF ANIMALS
PHOTOS OF RESORT, Etc.
January 11th Julian drove us back to the Sojourn which was docked in Richards Bay.
January 12th We departed Richards Bay at noon for Maputo.
January 13th Our previous visit to Maputo, Mozambique was during heavy rains. This time
the weather was perfect and we participated in a tour of the highlights of Maputo. As with many ports we
have visited on cruises, we enjoyed seeing the sights, sounds and people of these various ports. Many of
the passengers complained about the lack of shopping, etc. We found the visit interesting and
enlightening.
PHOTOS
This marks the end of our travel from Barcelona around the coast of Africa, and the next segment of this
cruise travel blog will be throughout Asia.
CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE
took a very enjoyable tour through the countryside to the quaint town of Swakomund which is very much
German in appearance and demeanor. On the way back we stopped at one of the huge sand dunes in the
area for the more adventuresome to climb to the top of the dune for a view of the surrounding area. A
delightful group of teachers from Botswana were also enjoying the area.
On the 17th we were on an all day tour to Sandwich Harbor in 4x4 vehicles over and around the sand
dunes along the shore line. Along the way we saw African fur seals, jackals and springbok deer.
December 18th On this day we were docked in the small port town of Luderwitz. I especially enjoyed
photographing the buildings and friendly inhabitants. While originally the port was developed to support
the diamond industry it is currently primarily a port for the fishing industry.
NAMIBIA PHOTOS
December 19th Sea Day
December 20th and 21st We were docked in Cape Town for two days. On the 20th we took a tour
to the Cape of Good Hope and Cape point which was enjoyable with a good tour guide, The 21st was a day
of disembarkation/embarkation. About 110 of us were continuing on for the next leg of the cruise which
includes Christmas and New Year celebrations. I arranged for a private guide by a professional
photographer who took us through the countryside to the city of Stellenbosch. James Gradwell also
enjoyed birding so we combined a day of birding and scenery! Photos of the birds we saw are included in
my Gallery of African Birds which has a link at latter in this section.
CAPE TOWN PHOTOS
December 22nd Sea Day
December 23rd Our port was Port Elizabeth for two days. Took the shuttle bus to a
shopping/entertainment center, but after quick look around returned to ship. This photo tells it all.
December 24th Christmas Eve. We departed Port Elizabeth and were treated to a really wonderful
Christmas Eve show by the entertainment staff and crew of the Sojourn.
PHOTOS
Christmas Day A pleasant day at sea on our way to Durban.
December 26th We rode the shuttle bus to an entertainment center/water park in the heart of Durban,
but did not bother to get off, and returned to the ship. Because it was boxing day the area was very
crowded and the traffic was at a standstill. Those passengers that took tours to game parks, etc, outside
the city centers of Port Elizabeth, Durban and Richards Bay reported favorable experiences, but the cities
and port areas are unattractive and quite frankly we did not feel safe in walking about and stayed on board
the ship.
PHOTOS
December 27th/28th Our port was Richards Bay, another industrial port with no tourist
infrastructure. We stayed on board the Sojourn. Photos were taken from aboard the ship
PHOTOS
December 29th We departed Richards Bay the afternoon of the 28th and we docked in Matupo,
Mozambique. It was raining very hard and we decided to hold off on visiting the city as we would be here
again on January 13th
December 30th Sea day on our way to East London
December 31st New Year's eve we were docked in East London, another unappealing industrial
port. Departed early afternoon and enjoyed celebrating end of 2014.
PHOTOS
January 1, 2015 Sea Day
January 2nd Our port was Mossel Bay which we found to be much nicer than our recent
ports. We participated in a very interesting tour to Knysna a resort town along the Garden Route. We were
very favorably impressed by the country side on the way to and from Knysna.
PHOTOS
January 3rd to 5th We were back in Cape Town at Noon on the 3rd. We took a tour which included
the cable car ride to the top of Table Mountain, but unfortunately clouds blanketed the "table" but it was
still an enjoyable trip.
The following day we rode the shuttle bus to a modern shopping mall, much larger and upscale than those
near our home. The 4th was also a turnover day for both crew and passengers.
We departed Cape Town on the 5th at noon for the next leg of the cruise which ends in Singapore on
February 3rd.
PHOTOS
January 6th Sea day on our way to Port Elizabeth
January 7th We were back in Port Elizabeth, but this time disembarked to begin a long
anticipated trip to the Makakantana Lodge for four nights to satisfy my obsession to photograph birds! On
our drive to the airport in Port Elizabeth we decided our first impression of the city had been unfair and it
was much cleaner and modern that we observed from the port. The airport was small but very modern and
had a first class lounge, Our flight to Durban went well and we were met by Julian Parsons who was to be
our driver/guide for our time at Makakantana.
January 7th to 11th Makakantana met our expectations. We stayed in the Honeymoon Suite which
looked out over a field where we saw many animals, even including a hippo! Julian turned out to be an
avid birder and photographer. Our time was well spend and I was able to add many species of birds to my
growing collection of bird photos.
PHOTOS OF BIRDS
PHOTOS OF ANIMALS
PHOTOS OF RESORT, Etc.
January 11th Julian drove us back to the Sojourn which was docked in Richards Bay.
January 12th We departed Richards Bay at noon for Maputo.
January 13th Our previous visit to Maputo, Mozambique was during heavy rains. This time
the weather was perfect and we participated in a tour of the highlights of Maputo. As with many ports we
have visited on cruises, we enjoyed seeing the sights, sounds and people of these various ports. Many of
the passengers complained about the lack of shopping, etc. We found the visit interesting and
enlightening.
PHOTOS
This marks the end of our travel from Barcelona around the coast of Africa, and the next segment of this
cruise travel blog will be throughout Asia.
CLICK HERE FOR NEXT PAGE
