All Safari, All the Time

Russ and I flew to Johannesburg, South Africa, on Oct 15/06. We arrived at 11:30 at night and got to our hostel at 1 am...only to get up at 5 am to leave for our safari trip in Kruger National Park. We went on a 4 day safari with Bundu Safari...Russ and I, a couple from London, an American girl and a Danish girl, and our guide, Alf. It's a long drive to Kruger from Joburg but we got to see some South African countryside! Or maybe I slept, whatever. When we arrived at the park, before we even entered the gates, we saw a some crocs and a herd of elephants cooling off in the river. We moved on through the gates and within 15 min we saw a white rhino and a leopard. Leopards are very very rarely seen on safari...and we got to watch him wandering around near our van for about 10 minutes. It was unbelievable. We were a lucky group...our entire safari was as lucky as our first venture into the park (must be the Canadian influence!) The first 2 nights we camped at sites inside Kruger, having supper and beers around the campfire, and listening to hyenas, owls, and go-away birds (I also swear I could hear snakes but everyone thinks I am crazy...or am I?). Our guide was a fantastic cook and we sampled some of South Africa's finest braai (barbeque).



Over the 4 days, we saw all the cats (lions, a family of cheetahs, leopard, and even an African wildcat which basically looks like a housecat). We saw giraffes, millions of elephants, the odd hippo, kudu, and impala, impala, impala. Our last day we spent on a private game reserve, where we saw a wild pangolin. Pangolins are like big armadillos...or anteaters with armour. Very rare...our guide said that he never expected to see one in his entire career. Anyway, the pictures are more exciting than reading this, so check em' out! Especially the ostrich series...