Berna's travelblog Marco Bernasocchi's adventures blog
Voyages
A longer way to Serengeti – Or the one where we cross the rift valley to Lake Natron
After organizing the permit for Ngorongoro (involves making a deposit in a bank, getting a receipt and going to an hidden office to charge a chip card with the amount you deposited at the bank) and buying the last needed stuff in Karatu We drive back Mto Wa Mbu, turn left and we are on […]
Tarangire NP, or the one with the Cheetahs
When I asked some friends about Tanzania everybody mentioned Serengeti and Ngorongoro, then while planing the rough itinerary, we listened the guys from fortes car hire, and put Tarangire national park into the plan without knowing much about it.
Welcome to Tanzania – or the one packing the Land cruiser
After the long bus ride back to Lusaka, some very hectic moments getting out of the bus terminal with tens of people pulling us to get into their “taxi” and finally a very relaxing flight we are back in Nairobi airport. Just in time to realize that we’ve not enough dollars with us to pay […]
The mighty zambesi and its victori(a)ous falls
Zim side view, many people, pumba and croc dinner Rafting zam (2 rip off), royal livingstone hotel rhino walk Livingstone island TODO TEXT
Chobe again
A sad goodbye, a quick flight over the whole route we drove (1h flight for 9 days driving) and here we are in Kasane again, direction Zimbabwe, but wait a second why don’t we go out again on the river? Asked, done, the Chobe riverfront is so rich in wildlife that we decide to stay […]
High over the Delta
Ok, it did cost us half a kidney, but boy it was worthed. After rushing from the sand issue at Nxai pan, we arrived just in time for the flight, a quick question to the pilot about which lens to mount on the camera and there we are walking on the tarmac near the horizon […]
The dry landscapes of Makgadikgadi and Nxai pans
That’s it Okawango is over, and we move to dryer landscapes again. Just to the east of Maun, the Makgadikgadi/Nxai pans national park acts as a transition zone between the Okawango swamps and the arid Kalahari desert. The park is separated in two by the East-West highway to the south the Makgadikgadi, to the north […]
The Okawango Delta
Our first full day in the okawango is dedicated to a return trip to 3rd bridge. The very curvy road goes through a wonderful mix of dry savanna and swampy landscapes giving us amazing sightings. Just before Xini lagoon, we spot a sausage tree with a dead impala on it, blood is still dripping, the […]
Khwai river to Moremi south gate or the delta outskirts
The Khwai river defines part of the north border of the Moremi game reserve with a a swamp like region, that is perfect for hippos and other water creatures. When we get to the Khwai river trust camp we go for a walk. Very calm and relaxing until we notice that we are being stalked… […]
Crossing Chobe national park
Still trying to recover from the “million animals shock” we pack our tent and start moving toward Savuti in the center of the Chobe national park, It’s a rather long drive but it is a very nice scenery and we get to see our first zebras, some ostriches and have a quick glimpse of a […]
Welcome to Botswana, or getting spoiled at Chobe riverfront
Short walk, river crossing and here we are… OK I skipped the 11-12 hours plane transfer to Lusaka (Zambia) and the 8 hours bus ride to Kazungula but it doesn’t matter, the whole trip was smooth and we are In Botswana! Bags dropped in the fantastic Chobe Bakwena eco lodge and we quickly leave for […]
Run sardine, run…
Planet earth at its best again in the next 5 days, once more I’m privileged and I managed to make my way to Port St Johns in Eastern Cape just in time for the sardine run and I’ll be diving/snorkeling every dy till Sunday with Rob and Debby of offshoreportstjohns.com. I’ll make only one post […]
Kalahari desert
Since 6 years ago, when Sarah and I discovered the BBC planet earth series of documentaries, our travels have been strongly influenced by Sir David Attenborough’s narrations. Whenever we were close to some amazing thing we had seen on the series, we would try go see it our-self. Some were easy targets like the Proteus […]
Augrabies National park
When I booked my Kalahari trip, the only company I found that was running something that could fit my dates had a days tour including on day at the Augrabies national park. I first tough, mmm I’d like more Kalahari but then I read about the park, mostly known for its waterfall, and I saw […]
Leaving Swellendam
Home for the last 3 weeks, Swellendam has been a great place to live. I enjoyed every single minute of it, foremost thee non working ones, the long chats with Saskia, my host sister, the runs up the nature reserve and the dinners with the Van Leeuwen. A very cool time, but unfortunately, when you […]
Mako and blue shark madness
02.50, Swellendam, again WTF… ah yes I’m going diving :) 6.00, Simons town ups we’re 45 min early… well lets sleep :) 6.45, kit up get the gear to the pier and launch, next stop somewhere 45km out of cape point or wherever we find the Mozambique current. We’re lucky, after only 25km we find […]
The great white
You probably all know Jaws, maybe even Dark tide and probably many other similarly stupid movies that depict the great white sharks as the perfect human assassin. Pity, really, because if we where as scared of car accidents as we are of great whites, nobody would drive anymore. And also pity because they are magnificent, […]
WWF… Wacky Wine Festival!
Rainy day today, it is actually pissing like crazy and I love it, no better excuse to sleep in after a long birthday party night. Yes, we rocked Swellendam till 3.30 afterd discovering what is better than a T-bone steak… 2 T-bone steaks :):) Yes two, thanks to my host sister and friend Saskia, a […]
last time 30…
mmm, got to enjoy your last day as young 30 young person… what better than going up that mountain that you have been looking at for the last two weeks? well, kind of like that, first I went with my coleagues Tim and Werner up to the waterfall via riverbed, then we came down and […]
Looking for whales at De Hoop nature Reserve
Whales, magnificent huge animals one could say, but one could also say ocean, magnificent immense pond… This is roughly how I felt last weekend. Friday after work, Werner and I left in Tim’s bakkie towards the De Hoop nature Reserve for a “welcome to the whales weekend”. The reserve has organised some leading whale researchert […]
Running around in Swellendam
Well, when it comes to my IT job I’m very dual in the way I feel about it. On one hand, I love what it gives me: intellectual challenge, opportunity to travel and discover new environments, freedom to work where/when I want, satisfaction when I can help somebody and well, it pays my bills :). […]
3 days in the wild
So here I am in a pretty cool restaurant in Swellendam called Drostdy enjoining my reward, a beer while waiting for my big rump steak. Soft super nice cuban son in the background and a rather astonishing collection of coca cola memorabilia surrounding me. But wait a second, you don’t even know why I’m rewarding […]
All cool in Swellendam
After a couple of hours journey I finally made it from Sagogn to my new home in Swellendam. I stay at Cypress Cottages, 3 Voortrek Stree in Swellendam. If you happen to be in the region, the place is super beautiful and the family that runs it great!
A gin and tonic please
I like British airways… you ask for a gin and tonic and this is what I got cant really complain can you!? add a mini bottle of red with dinner and I slept like a baby through the whole flight :)