Burial in Africa

[Boyd Brooks]

As an avid outdoorsman and hunter I can definitely see the appeal of being laid to rest in the field. At the hunt camp that I belong to one of the founders ashes are laid to rest under the huge white pine tree on the hill overlooking camp. His brother ashes were there for 11 years and relocated to a plot in town after his wife passed. I have come across ashes in the desert in Arizona with hand painted rocks from family members with wishes for the afterlife.
It is definitely something I am considering as some of my best memories are from being in camp or in the bush enjoying all that nature reveals to me.

 

[mrpoindexter]

I had my sister pass in Mexico early this year. It was a bit of work to get her back. Had to pay for embalming in Mexico and then bought a casket there because as you can imagine they won't let you transport a corpse in a duffel bag. Then we found that our local airport couldn't receive a casket and I could not go and pick up the casket at LAX. We had to hire a casket transport company to go and get her at LAX and bring her back to the Fresno area. All this while I was between trips, so I had to cut one trip short, come home and take care of this before I left for India and Dubai.

Long and short of it, there are a lot of steps to deal with when a family member dies abroad. As for where you want to be buried, I don't really think it matters where you want to be buried. It matters where those who survive you want you to be buried. You are gone, but they may want your grave close to help them grieve/cope. If you want to be buried over there, let your family know and hopefully they agree with it.

My sister left no such instructions and I didn't want to burden my parents with this. Nobody wants to discuss their own mortality, but I think these things should be thought of in advance. I never really thought much about the dangers of hunting DG when I did my buffaloes, lions and my first elephant. I did give a serious amount of thought before my Zambia trip for the hippo and tuskless elephant. Even if I wanted to be buried over there, I think my wife and kids would have a very hard time with that.

If I asked to be used as leopard bait, could I get a the pre baiting fees from the next hunter to be forwarded to my family? It would still eventually end up being spread across the bush veld...

 

[BeeMaa]

The best thing that you can do is to put it in your will, and make your wishes known to family and the executor of your will.

I have done just that.I let them know that I am to be cremated and where to distribute my ashes.

Granted your family can do pretty much as they want, but at least you let them know what you want done.

I'll be done. I may have a little comfort in THINKING that I know what I'd like done will actually happen, but in the end...it won't matter.

I'd be more concerned with knowing my rifles will be sold for what they are worth and not what I told my wife I paid for them. LOL.

 

[Flbt]

I'll be done. I may have a little comfort in THINKING that I know what I'd like done will actually happen, but in the end...it won't matter.

I'd be more concerned with knowing my rifles will be sold for what they are worth and not what I told my wife I paid for them. LOL.

Leave a book on the safe or with the lawyer telling the actual value.

 

[Wheels]

I used to spend quite a bit of time in Tanzania. I told my wife if I die to leave me out for the hyenas and jackals. Unfortunately that is not what would typically happen. You could probably be buried most anywhere in Tanzania but I don’t know the rules. The government will be involved with paperwork if a foreigner dies. In the area I lived there was a rural hospital with cemetery that buried the indigents without families for free. That is where it would have been easiest to bury me. This is probably typical in most of Tanzania.

An Africaner friend died at the hospital ten years ago. His wife wanted him cremated. It took a lot of paper work from the local, district and regional government and the only ones that cremate are the Indian community so there also had to be arrangements made with the local Indian community. It happened but it probably took her three or four full days of work driving between two towns and a city.

There used to be a Parsi community in Tanzania. They are Zoarastors that fled Persia to India when Islam took over Persia. ( ie: Freddy Mercury and his family were Parsi living in Zanzibar)The Parsi put their dead on tall platforms for the vultures. When I was younger there was a place near Dar where this would take place. Doubt this would be an option now.

I can’t really speak for any country except Tanzania but most rural hospitals would have a Potters Field. Leave them $100 and all should be good after the government forms are all signed.

PS: A rural Christian Mission would probably do the same as the hospital. Some will care if you are a member of their form of Christianity and some will not.

 

[Andrew NOLA]

Total thread hijack: Reminds me of my first wife. I told her I would bury her ashes at sea by flushing them down the toilet. She then reminded me that her family considerably outlives my family....

 

[Mekaniks]

Total thread hijack: Reminds me of my first wife. I told her I would bury her ashes at sea by flushing them down the toilet. She then reminded me that her family considerably outlives my family....

I told my wife that I want to be cremated. She scheduled next Tuesday….

 

[Beck]

I've always planned to donate my body to science, as a cadaver.

 

[Foxi]

I told my wife that if she wanted to collect me, she should let me be cremated in Africa and take the ashes with her in her hand luggage. That's no problem.
Indians in the UK do that all the time.
I once flew home with a lady whose brother had died in South Africa.
The coffin transport cost € 7.000.- at the time.

No, I don't need that.

 

[BeeMaa]

Leave a book on the safe or with the lawyer telling the actual value.

Funny enough, my wife knows more about firearms than most men. It's funny when we are in a gun store and she plays dumb a little bit with a salesman before dropping some real knowledge.

Still a good idea with the note, but he's not gonna beat her to the vault. LOL. I hope she grieves on a beach in the Caribbean with a tall drink.

 

[Flbt]

Sounds like mine when I start looking at a gun
She pulls out the Ruger or beretta catalogs

 

[Hogpatrol]

After two or three generations, most of us are long forgotten anyway. Would prefer to be left in Africa Had a good run,, just leave me where I fall or take me out in bush, buzzards gotta eat, same as worms.

 

[steve white]

I've always planned to donate my body to science, as a cadaver.

I'm donating my body to science fiction....

 

[Sika98k]

What if you op for just dip and pack?

That’s the best one I’ve heard in a long while ! Brilliant

 

[Moe324]

I loved hunting for night animals. Use me for bait.

 

[Betterinthebush]

I’ve always considered it my duty to test the full volume of this physical vessel. When the limit is reached, I truly don’t want to burden anyone with special attention to it. When it’s done, it’ll just be getting started for me. No point in making life difficult with those I love that I leave behind for a spell.

 

[RLP]

Like warriors of old, buried were they dropped.

 

[CBH Australia]

Interesting question as to the requirements to f you did want to be buried in Africa. I get many have a deep connection but home is home.

Something I read once suggested that you don’t have to use a cemetery in Australia. Potentially you can be buried on rural property. I think it advised you wouldn’t get an approval from a local council to be buried in a residential yard.

The article also said that you don’t actually need to have an approved person to run a funeral. I know of a small town where the publican performed a few funerals using his panel van as the hearse. He performed various voluntary roles for the community and was just someone who worked long hours.

As for the requirements to release a body for burial it didn’t seem to outline that or mention an official person ti receive it.

I’m not high country fit and I won’t climb a mountain that I’m likely to die on. I won’t get past the camp that requires me to stay dead on the mountain,

I don’t have regular international travel planned so I’m likely to die in Australia.

I don’t require anything elaborate in death and I don’t need a headstone or a monument. Don’t need it in life I don’t need it in death. My kids are in the city now so they won’t come home when we are dead and I don’t expect them to maintain a cemetery plot for me.

As for what to do with me I have told my wife to have me cremated and spread my ashes in the bush so I can go wherever I like.

 

[Pablo]

My wife’s stepdad passed away 2 years ago while scuba diving in the Solomon Islands. Luckily, his brother was with him and helped navigate getting him home to Houston. He had travel insurance which paid for the trip home, but it was a logistical nightmare. When we buried him, the funeral director highly recommended a closed casket because the embalming job was terrible.
This reminds me that I need to change my will. We have talked about our final locations, and we probably will be cremated. I’m thinking my ashes will be spread between my home place, the Big Bend, Baffin Bay and Limpopo.

 

[Newboomer]

My wife’s stepdad passed away 2 years ago while scuba diving in the Solomon Islands. Luckily, his brother was with him and helped navigate getting him home to Houston. He had travel insurance which paid for the trip home, but it was a logistical nightmare. When we buried him, the funeral director highly recommended a closed casket because the embalming job was terrible.
This reminds me that I need to change my will. We have talked about our final locations, and we probably will be cremated. I’m thinking my ashes will be spread between my home place, the Big Bend, Baffin Bay and Limpopo.

I'm an organ donor so when the docs get done with me the kids can do whatever they want with the remains.