OH....OVERLANDING!

So I'm on day 3 of my first Overlanding adventure....I can't even imagine how dirty I'll be on day 11!!

Overlanding is a machine of a camping schedule. The biggest premium, by far, is time. Our group leader, Toni (a woman), is part tour guide, part drill sergeant! She wakes us with the sun, and we have 15 minutes to get up, get dressed, break down our tent, manage other assigned duties, and get on the truck for the day's adventures. My permanent job is to unpack the stools and tables from the truck for each meal, and then rinse and return them to the truck following meals. Rotating jobs include doing all the cooks dishes, helping the cook with food prep, etc. Needless to say, when at camp there always seems to be twenty or so duties calling my name, and then I'm back on the truck before I've had a chance to do the things I might prioritize, like using the great disposable wash cloths I brought to really scrub myself clean, or to put on the make up I actually did pack and bring with me :), scrape the dirt & grime from my fingernails, etc.

I suppose much more than the schedule, Overlanding is about the people. We're a group of 19 travelers, Toni, Gift (our cook), and Dumi (our driver), so 22 total. There are two Aussie couples in their sixties on the trip -- hanging right in there with the rest of us -- their only complaints to date have stemmed from our choice of music when on the truck. The rest of us are 20s & 30s, and we're a nice mix of Americans, Brits, Aussies, New Zeleanders and Europeans, oh -- and one Canadian. Overall, the group is fun. Some definite characters, and a few easy targets for all the jokes (thankfully, I don't appear to be one of them...yet!) The group is also decidedly female -- only 5 guys total. After our long days out & about, we enjoy libations around the campfire -- with lots of giggles! I'm happy to report I've found plenty of PLUs.

Oh -- and everyone's caught on to my completely irrational reaction to the bug world, and I've decided the bugs know about it too -- why else are they always coming my way??? :)

Mere