Lee Abbamonte
Try to become the youngest person to travel to every country in the world
Madagascar
By Lee | 
9 Comments » 
There are few, if any, countries in the world more exotic sounding than Madagascar. The truth is it may be the most exotic country on Earth. It is touted by the Malagasy people as the 8th continent as it separated from Africa 100 million years ago (give or take a few million years). Not much is known to most Westerners about Madagascar aside from the fact that it’s that big island off the coast of Africa with the funny name you see on the map and it was a recent animated movie. Madagascar is the last country actually in Africa I am visiting this trip and after a solid month on the continent, I am reminded of a quote from Ernest Hemingway, “I cannot remember a morning in Africa when I woke up and I was not happy”. Truer words have never been spoken.
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Chobe National Park
By Lee | 9 Comments » 
I had always wanted to get to the great game parks of Botswana which include the Kalahari, Okavango Delta and Chobe (pronounced Cho-Bee) but the only legitimately easy, albeit expensive way to get there was flying from Johannesburg. From Livingstone, Zambia however, it is only an hour drive or so and a day trip will run you $135 and that’s a steal for what you get! I jumped on the opportunity I didn’t think I would have this trip and Chobe National Park and its unreal stock of elephants and beautiful waterways didn’t disappoint.
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The Smoke That Thunders
By Lee | 6 Comments » 
Today I saw the most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever seen. I’ve been to Victoria Falls before, in fact it was 6 years ago today I was there, but today I got to the perfect spot at the exact right time, place, wind, mist, rainbow and everything. The picture above, while not possibly justified to how amazing it was to see in person was the best scene I’ve ever witnessed. It was a dream scenario with nobody around to ruin it. It was the reason you travel. It’s like a surfer searching for the perfect wave, today was my perfect vista.
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Burundi, Malawi and Zambia
By Lee | 7 Comments » 
The last several days have been wonderful, relaxing and hectic with little food and a lot of travel. I have come from Bujumbura, Burundi through Lilongwe, Malawi to Senga Bay on Lake Malawi all the way through Lusaka, Zambia to Livingstone, Zambia where I am now. I have ridden busses, dilapidated minibuses, flatbed pickups with 38 people plus luggage at once, motorbikes, airplanes, boats, bicycle taxis, regular taxis and the one thing that I realize once again after all of this nonsense is how much I love Africa. I haven’t had any access to Internet the last several days and have covered about 2000 kilometers or more in that time so I will give a short summary of each country I visited as time is short and I am excited to get to Victoria Falls as day is breaking in Livingstone.
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Gorillas in the Mist
By Lee | 17 Comments » 
As Charles Dickens once wrote, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” I think that aptly describes my experience tracking the Susa silverback gorillas in Parc National des Volcans in Northern Rwanda. It was great fun and it was miserable. It was memorable and there’s much I’d like to forget. It was gorgeous and it was ugly. There was OK weather and there was a lot of cold and rain. But the experience for better or worse was well worth it because most of all there were the amazing gorillas and babies in their natural habitat which is something I will certainly not forget.
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Kigali 15 Years Later
By Lee | 5 Comments » 
I’m not really sure how I want write about Kigali because it is a very beautiful city. It’s quite possibly the cleanest city in all of Africa and certainly the cleanest and safest capital city on the Continent. It is called “le ville des mille collines” or the city of 1000 hills and it is very hilly which adds to the aesthetic allure of the city. However, Kigali has a dark past that is inescapable. The city is haunted by memories of a cataclysmic genocide that took place just 15 short years ago. While the people seem to have tried to move on and put the pieces back together; as a visitor, there is nothing else you can think about as the city brings you face to face with the true evil of man.
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There Is No Joy In Juba
By Lee | 22 Comments » 
You’ve probably never heard of Juba, Southern Sudan. You were also probably unaware that Southern Sudan is separately governed than Sudan and that they will most likely become an independent country within the next year or so. Believe me, your life will continue unaffected for you not knowing this information. I can’t imagine that if and when Southern Sudan becomes an Internationally recognized country that many tourists will rush to get here. It is hot as hell, extortionately expensive and a dusty mess with not a damn thing to do. Sounds great right?! Well in truth, I wasn’t expecting much-well anything, and that’s why I was at least able to find the place interesting in some ways as my expectations were zero.
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In Search of Idi Amin
By Lee | 5 Comments » 
Like Rome, Kampala is said to be built on seven hills. Kampala is the intellectual and industrial heart of a country which has been recovering and rebuilding seemingly for decades. A center of political intrigue for much of its recent history, Kampala has been reborn and is forward looking to a very promising future. Modern buildings have done much to mask the battering it took in the late 70’s and early 80’s and the city has a confidence that things are better. It is infectious. Kampala has modern amenities missing in many African capitals such as ATM’s, banks and people that speak English. It is a glowing example of the new African city; modern of sorts but certainly in touch with its roots and from where it has come. Kampala is just a cool place.
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Christmas and Camel Racing in Kenya
By Lee | 8 Comments » 
I was never originally going to go to Kenya on this trip. I had already been there and it was just another long bus ride to get to Uganda. However, I had been moving faster than expected because of some days of flights, availability, etc. So I emailed my friend Joe who was traveling in East Africa to see where he was and if we could meet up on Christmas for a few days. We had originally talked about doing a portion of this trip together but couldn’t work out the timing or the details. But luck had it that I could meet him in Mombasa, Kenya on Christmas Day after a night in Nairobi. That decision turned out to be the best decision of the trip thus far. And the biggest lesson learned is that Christmas in Kenya is a lot different than Christmas in Connecticut!
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Brazzaville, Kinshasa and Muhammad Ali
By Lee | 4 Comments » 
First, I want to wish a Merry Christmas to everyone from Kenya as I am a little behind on blog duties so here we go. Before I talk about Brazzaville and Kinshasa I have to adequately describe the scene at the airport in Pointe-Noire before my Trans Air Congo flight to Brazzaville. I was lucky to get a seat on any of the flights as they were shockingly all oversold even though there were 4 or 5 per day. So I got to the airport 2.5 hours early as was advised by the wonderful lady who booked my ticket on the oversold flight as she said it was a little crazy at the airport. I was smugly thinking, “Do you know who you’re dealing with?” Well I was soon to see why she said that and that I clearly know nothing!
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