Tom was up early, and we picked him up at 5:30 for our 7:05 flight, and after the garbage bag drop-off ritual at the airport, we checked right in and took off for Atlanta on time. There, we made our SAA connection with no trouble. Again we took off on time. Tom had arranged adjacent seats on the domestic flights and two consecutive window seats for the trans-Atlantic flights. The flight was very full, and Rich from Wyoming, sitting next to me, was very large. Rich was so substantial that when he turned in his seat his belly pushed the call button. He was on his way to Namibia to go big game hunting. Whilst the drinks were being served, the steward pointed out an empty aisle seat up a row and I grabbed it. I had much more room, and was sitting next to a school teacher from Texas and her mother. I watched "Tumbleweeds" and "Bicentennial Man." I wasn’t able to sleep on this flight, which lasted 16 hours, even though I drank several little bottles of Amarula, made from the Marula tree fruit. I thought the liqueur would make me sleep but it didn't.

In Johannesburg, we passed through customs, changed $200 into R1377.54 at the American Express window, and walked to the domestic terminal, where we boarded our twin engine flight on South African Express Airways to Skukuza. Tom gave me the window seat so I could see the view, but I kept falling asleep on the plane.