Safari: Saturday

           In a nutshell, today included two safaris, some time to relax, and hanging out with everyone.  We were up at 5:15 to be ready for breakfast at 5:30 and the first safari at 6.  That safari lasted until 10 and then we had brunch at 11:30 and then I took a nap before afternoon tea at 3:30.  Then we had our final safari at 4 until 8 and dinner after that.  When dinner was done, we all hung out by the bar before bed. 

            During the first safari of the day, we started the day off right with a group of 5 giraffes and countless zebras.  They were a decent distance away from us, but we were still able to see them really well and were even able to take some great pictures of them.  Then we saw a warthog family, which was pretty cool, because they were pretty shy last night when we saw one.  Then we boxed in a giraffe between two cars and it had a minor freak out and ran off into the woods as quick as it could.  The giraffe looked really awkward when we saw it up close, but it was still pretty cool.  Then we got the incredible opportunity to see a leopard.  They sleep during the day, so you have to get really lucky to find them.  They even sleep in trees, which makes them even harder to find.   This one was sleeping in a tree that was right off the path that we were driving on and it was about 20 feet in the air.  It shifted around as we were sitting there watching it, but it was not threatening at all. 

Baboon BandAnother grab shot. 

The vehicles that we rode around in.

The sausage fruit.

Chasing and pining the giraffe between two safari vehicles.

            After we got back, I was really tired, but I didn’t want to take a nap yet, because I didn’t want to miss out on brunch.  I sat down with some of the girls on the trip and we began chatting about a bunch of random things that ended up on what we believe in.  It was a really good opportunity to talk about Christianity and how it impacts my life.  They told me that they are believers as well and we continued to get to know each other through that. 

            After brunch was over, I was exhausted from getting up so early, so I went and took a nap.  It was nice to sleep for a little while, but I woke up in a sweat because of how hot it was outside.  I went over to afternoon tea and the owner of Croc Valley Camp was there to tell us a little bit about how it came to be.  It was cool to hear about the progression of the camp from a commercial crocodile business.  It was a classic case of adapting to the market that you are in.  Not to mention dealing with the government regulations for your industry as well.  It was very interesting to hear about the inter workings of the camp as well. 

            The night safari began and I went into it without any expectations.  I got to sit in the front of the bus this time which made it much more enjoyable.  I got to sit forward and hang one of my legs off the edge, which made it more relaxed and fun.  Also, it was much easier for me to take photos out of the front of the bus because there was nothing in front of me.  The lighting tonight was awesome, because the clouds parted and the sun shined through.  Then, when it got dark, we came up on another leopard, just like earlier.  The leopard was walking towards us and it came within about 20 feet of the bus.  I was on the side that it was walking towards, so it kind of freaked me out and made me begin to think about what I would do if the cat decided to charge at us.  We ended up moving out of its way and it went on its way.  Seeing the leopard was definitely the best part of the entire trip to Zambia.

Photo by Marie Freeman

Photo by Marie Freeman

Photo by Marie Freeman

Photo by Marie Freeman

Photo by Marie Freeman