Lions

The animal of today is the lion.

 This morning we went out on our morning safari drive at 6:15 am.  The sky was just begin to show the light and as we drove off, the sky turned a marvelous rose pink on the horizon, while the top of the sky was a beautiful powder blue.  Together they met in a golden glow and it all reminded me of watercolors flowing over the sky.   Eric, our guide, drove in apparent circles.  At one point he took the rifle and went with Aubrey, the spotter, down a track, looking for tracks of the lions.  I imagined, as I sat alone in the Land Rover that the lion would come and sit beside me (I was the only passenger during the morning safari).  Finally we looked down a road and there was a female lion walking down the road towards us.  We followed her, she ignored us, and soon the male lion came along on the walk too.  We followed them for quite a while.  They seem to be able to totally ignore the vehicle.  Eventually they plopped down together and just chilled.   We were no more than 4 or 5 feet away from them.  It was totally thrilling with an edge of scariness.  They truly are kings of the land, the most powerful ones and they know it.  We found another pair later and watched them as well.

Returning to camp, I took a two hour power nap and woke up feelng very happy.  Then I took a bubble bath in my outdoor giant bathtub.  No giraffes or impalas walked by to see me, but then my tent in on the edge of a steep embankment so it was unlikely for any to come by.  I felt totally spoiled but I managed to enjoy the luxurious accommodations.  Then at 2 it was lunch time and I enjoyed my delicious lunch.  At 3:30pm we met to go out on our afternoon safari, this time I wasn't alone, a lovely family of 4 and two of the wokers from Chapunga were in the vehicle.  We saw many more varied animals on the afternoon trip:  bushbucks, a hippopatamus family with a baby, a hyena family with 5 energetic pups, a huge herd of Cape buffalo, more lions,  zebras, African wildcats, a mongoose and many more.  The day was a great delight for me, enjoying the luxury and the amazing wildlife here.  I enjoyed a sparky conversation with the family on the Land Rover this afternoon--the mother teaches social justice at University of Capetown and the daughter volunteers in Khaleyisha---small world