1. Africa Trip Intro

There is little that I can think of that would top the trip that I took with many of our family to Africa this year. The trip started out as a gift to our daughter, Caitlyn, for graduating with her Master’s degree and our grandson, Joshua, for earning his Bachelor’s degree. It grew somewhat, as two of the family were married during the Covid delay. We could not take all of the family, but ended up with 8 adults and 2 children going on the trip. Sadly, Mariah, James and his family and Caleb and his family did not make the trip. We would have had 21 people! Maybe someday…

I plan on writing numerous postings about the trip as there was so much that we experienced. It was the trip of a lifetime and I do want to document some of it from my perspective. You will have to talk to the others about their view of the journey and their experiences.

The original intention besides the gift to the graduates, was to give our grandson Joshua, his wife Sierra and our sons-in-law Scott and Micah, a deeper understanding of my heritage and culture that is now in some way a part of their lives. I am not sure about the success of this goal, but it was a great time anyway.

Here is a list of the people who went to South Africa in May 2023:

James and Dawnella Stewart (Parents/Grandparents)

Whitney (Daughter), Micah and Abigail Rodgers

Caitlyn (Daughter), Scott and James Maverick Whitted

Joshua (Grandson) and Sierra Stewart

We made all of the bookings with airlines, hotels, Air BnBs, and venues almost a year in advance. We chose SwissAir and ended up with deep regrets. We have had nothing but trouble with the airline since they changed the airplane type about 6 months ahead of the flights. It has been a nightmare battle that we never anticipated and that we continue to battle to this day. The trip ended up a great success but it was not due to this airline. I will tell you a little more about it in the next postings. I would like to say this: Whatever airline choice you make for international travel, perhaps SwissAir should not be a consideration. I think the specific challenges we experienced will underscore this in no uncertain terms.

The postings will at times follow the chronology of the trip. At others it will be subject oriented and will of necessity digress from the timeline. I am sure that all of it will make sense as the writing unfolds. I hope you will vicariously enjoy the trip as much as I did!