I grew up in Africa. Snakes can climb everywhere, and slither through pretty narrow gaps. I even had one come up the drain pipe of a wash basin once. Sometimes they would curl up in a car's engine compartment, for the warmth.

@Petter Yeah, I think I will avoid going to Africa. I am definitely not fond of snakes. I don't even go to the snake house at the zoo.

@HippieChick58 HC...if you EVER want to visit Africa, PLEASE shoot me an email, ok? I've been there 9 times, to 8 countries and have never ONCE been anywhere near a snake. My friend Felix (who owns a safari company) would be happy to plan a trip for you.

@HippieChick58 The snake house in Nairobi's Coryndon museum used to give me free entry, after I contacted them about a very large python on a tree in my garden. They came to capture it and I was always allowed to visit "my" snake. (Python are pretty harmless to adult humans - we're too big to swallow.)

@HippieChick58 With encroaching "civilisation", the venomous snake population has gone down dramatically.
I had a slightly older friend, Johnathan, who actually collected and studied snakes. He died a couple of years ago. Here's a link about him.

[theeastafrican.co.ke]

@pamagain It's not the same, these days. Big game lodges and safari companies "bulk processing" tourists.
In the 50s/60s I used to wander, often barefooted, through the bush armed only with a stick and wearing a pair of pretty short shorts. But then, again, I was "bush savvy".

@pamagain My next trip out of the US will be to the Netherlands as my kid and grands moved there a few months ago. I have my passport and I'm learning Dutch. Africa will have to wait, the babies will always come first and I hope to work for the next 5 or so years.

@Petter Botswana's still a good place for small tent camps....and there are a few in Kenya, too. NO PLACE is the same as it once was, of course...but it's still a trip ''back home'' for me. For all of us, really.

@HippieChick58 GOOD FOR YOU! Plan on spending lots of time in small art museums and EATING. Be sure to go to Haarlem..it's lovely. And see the Van Gogh collection in the Kroller-Mueller museum. And you can even visit Rembrandt's house. Africa can wait 5 years.

@pamagain When my kid was tiny (2 ish) we lived in Germany (USForces) and we left her with a sitter for a few days and went to the Keukenhof and I know we saw the Anne Frank house. Her babies are now 2 and 5, so we will do kid friendly things, and mostly just hanging with the kidlets. I want to do a canal boat ride, and of course eating, but I want to make lasting memories with the little ones.

@pamagain I've read about it, the kids are in Utrecht, but Amsterdam is not that far away. I will let the parents guide us as to what the kids will like or tolerate.