The others arrived before me on another flight this morning. I had arranged for lunch for them and a tour of Soweto, which they'd had and thoroughly enjoyed. Laura, however, was jetlagged and skipped the tour and was resting. After getting settled in my elegant room and making some phone calls, we grouped for a drive to The Carnivore restaurant for dinner. Bob hasn't been there, but got directions and said it's about 35 minutes away. I called Ian (Dr. Ian Espie, head vet at Pretoria Zoo) and told him to meet us there at 7:30pm. After about 45 minutes of driving us along in the dark in the kombi, Bob pulled to the side of the road and said, "I think we may be lost." He turned around to double back for awhile. There was a tremendous lightning storm going on and we were all enjoying the show as we drove along. Johannesburg is the "lightning capitol of the world." With constant flashing and bolts all around us, it was nothing like we have in the States. After driving for another 20 minutes or so, Bob pulled aside again and this time said, "Now I know we are lost." Hmmmm. Bad news, as we were in the middle of nowhere. He used his cell phone to call the restaurant and just as he was getting the directions, his battery went dead. So much for technology. We drove on to a gas station and nobody knew where it was, which wasn't a good sign, because I'd think they would if it was anywhere in that area. We found a bank of pay phones, of which three out of three were not working. We then drove on to another restaurant to ask for a phone. They were closing and refused to let Bob inside. A comedy of errors haunted us until we eventually got directions and found The Carnivore, albeit two full hours late. Poor dear Ian had been waiting and was waiting still. He apparently was on his sixth beer and sitting alone at our table for ten. He jumped up with a happy grin and said it was "no problem at all!" The beer, I assume, had kept him company. He's such a sweet guy and I always enjoy seeing him. We had driven right past the restaurant because the lightning had caused a power outage and their sign was darkened. The power was still out when we arrived. A security guard met us at the car and escorted us with a torch (flashlight) across the grounds and down the restaurant's staircase inside. It was like walking into the bowels of a cave. The smoke was so thick you could barely see because the electric fans were not working. There were candles everywhere glowing in the smoky haze. The Carnivore is a bushmeat restaurant. You pay one price, which in American dollars was only about $13, and they will bring around various meats until you tell them you want no more. You also get to select from some excellent desserts for that price. The menu of meat changes, depending on what is available. Most of the meats come from culled or ranched game and the money goes into the reserves, so a great idea from a conservation point of view. Tonight we had waterbuck, wildebeest, kudu, ostrich, and the more common beef, pork sausage, and chicken wings. No giraffe or crocodile, which I would have like to have tried. Of the game, we all liked the kudu and ostrich the best, being incredibly tender. The wildebeest was gamey and rather dry. Every hour or so the staff would leave the bar-b-que pit and gather in the center of the room and sing traditional African songs. The chanting in the smoky darkness, feasting on game meats, firelight glowing, this set off the perfect tone for our trip. Yes, we are indeed on the Dark Continent now and greatly anticipating our upcoming adventures.

Copyright 2001 Wild About Cats