I have a 2007 Safari. Couple of things that I've noticed, which I haven't seen mentioned in discussions about this bike: The bulkiness of the aluminum frame, combined with the disc brakes, means that conventional rear racks won't really fit on the bike (unless you use the Old Man Mountain racks which attach via the quick release skewer). At least, when I tried putting a Tubus Logo on my bike, it quickly became apparent that the eyelet for the rack is much higher than usual, to clear the disc brake housing. So (unless I'm missing something) it seems that you're stuck with the Safari rack that came with the bike, and this might not be easy to replace quickly if you have problems on the road.
Another issue for me is that the bulky frame + disc brake housing means I cannot mount my favorite kickstand, which is the Greenfield (it usually attaches on the rear triangle next to the hub). There's just no space for it, so I have an ESGE two legged stand which mounts near the bottom bracket. This I don't like - it's very unstable and the bike has actually fallen over a few times. I know many people sneer at kickstands, but for me it's one of the more essential things I like to have on my touring bikes.
Other than those issues (which may not even be issues for some people), the Safari is a very nice bike. It rides a little harshly when unloaded; it feels much more comfortable fully loaded. I put an Old Man Mountain Cold Springs front rack on mine, and it works well.
One thing I was mildly surprised about was how much frame flex there was when the bike was fully loaded. It was mostly only apparent when I was starting off. Once under way, the bike seemed rock solid, but when starting from standstill I could feel quite a bit of flex. I don't know how heavy my panniers were (front & back) but they were quite heavy. There was never any hint of shimmy.
I like the trekking handlebars, personally, ditto the gripshift shifters. It's a matter of personal preference, but you will see these bars on quite a few "round the world" type bicycles. They do work in terms of giving you a good selection of hand positions, and I love all the additional real estate it gives you for things like computers. I can also mount my Ortlieb handlebar bag without any problem.
I was thinking about trying to sell the (almost new) bike once I realized the issues with the rear rack and kickstand. However I find I'm possibly becoming attached to it (easy with bikes, for me) and so I'll probably be keeping it around. I do like it, the Safari is a great value for money.
Neil