A Close Encounter with Great Whites

The day started off very early with morning call at 4:30am. I got ready and made my way outside. At the entrance to the port, we grouped up and met some of the others joining us on the trip, and waited for the shark-dive company to pick us up. By the time they got there, we got into the van, and left it was 5:45. There were 12 of us on a 2 hour drive, most of which we slept. For the short time towards the end that I was awake for, it was beautiful as we passed over roads adjacent to the ocean and green cliffs to our left, and through beach towns of newly painted buildings. We arrived at Gansbaai, the great white capital of the world, around 8. At the main building I enjoyed a breakfast of delicious granola while we waited for the Barracuda, the ship we would be traveling in, to return to the dock. We were told that it apparently had 6 great whites circling it at the time… AWESOME. We waited outside for a short while, enjoying the beautiful weather and beach, and as soon as the boat returned, we made our way to the dock. The Barracuda was a small vessel, two-floored, and seemingly new. It was definitely weird to be on such a small sea vessel, especially after our month on the MV Explorer. This was the first time since the 9th grade that I was on a small boat. Leaving the dock, we sailed out about 10 minutes, braving waves and water swells. This boat definitely would be destroyed by some of the swells the Explorer experiences on the open ocean. Reaching our “spot” we laid anchor, noticing another boat already there. Our leader, who was the brother of the founder of the shark diving company who was one of the leading shark experts in the world, began talking and instructing us about safety, what we were going to do, and other instructions. “Blah blah blah... oh look a shark.” He said it so casually, but the moment he said it all of our heads just snapped in the direction and peered over the side of the boat. There swimming only 5 feet from the Barracuda was a Great White Shark..... SWEET!!! We all got changed into our wet suits, and the first group (Ben, Nick, Kathleen, Megan, Howard, and another guy) made their way into the cage. The workers threw a lure into the water with bait at the end of it, and then we waited. Within a minute or two, we had a shark sighting. Let the fun begin!!! After that we saw a number of normal sized sharks. Normal meaning 2-3 m. This was exciting enough until we spotted a big guy. This one was around 4-5 m in length (around 15 feet). It was so awesome to watch this, and I hadn’t enough gotten into the water yet. We were actually getting lucky, the other two boats (one more had anchored shortly after us) were not getting much attention from the sharks. After 30 minutes, we switched group and I got my turn to experience the awesomeness. The water was actually not too cold (I’m sure the wet suit was helping a lot). And there comes our first shark... DIVE!!! Getting into the water and seeing the sharks in their natural habitat was an experience that cannot be put into words. In the water it was completely silent, providing this eerie feeling that was just not the same as being on the boat. I saw the shark, a beautiful monster, as it lurched for the bait, missed, turned and dove out of sight. It was like being in one of those animal documentaries (like Planet Earth or Blue Planet). I could hear David Attenborough’s voice in the back of my head, and imagined him describing the situation to me in his awesome voice. I got out of the water out of breath, and astounded by what had just experienced. This was by far one of the coolest things I have ever done (tied with ATVing at Aquila). But no time to think, the next shark was on its way... DIVE!!! My group was luckier than the first one, and we got much more sightings. Being in the cage was weird because we were constantly looking forward, and not looking at our back... we were constantly worried about a backside attack or from beneath. But thankfully we had the cage of course to protect us (although there were scratch marks on parts of the cage from shark bites). Our time was up, and we switched with the first group again. It felt nice to be out of the water, but after a while I started feeling really cold. There were seagulls trying to get their share on scraps from the bait, and we were joking about a shark possibly taking one of them out. When the group’s turn was up, my group got back in, for the second and last time. This time it was more calm than our first time. Not that many sightings at first, but we were in for a treat. The big guy paid us a visit, and stayed with us for the first 15 minutes of our dive, and would give us some of the coolest sightings we had seen yet. Towards the end of his period of visiting, we saw the coolest thing ever. The shark came right at us (since the bait was right in front of me, a few feet away). When he missed the bait, he came straight at me. At the last second, before hitting the cage itself, he turns to my right. The was a brief moment, in slow motion, when his eyes met mine. In that 1.5 second period of time at point blank range, I felt a connection to him, as if he was staring into my soul. A truly creepy yet deep feeling welled up inside of me. As the shark turned and left, he left us a go away gift: he slammed the side of the cage, a foot away from my face, with his tail twice and then disappeared into the murkiness of the water. As we came out of the water, we were greeted by the screams of the first group, and then we began screaming ourselves. Did that really just happen? That was unbelievable! That was my third experience in South Africa where I was close to danger and something that could have easily killed me (the other two being the rock on Table Mountain, and the water buffalo at Aquila). At that moment when our eyes met, I was so tempted to touch the shark, I mean he was RIGHT THERE only 5 inches away from my face. But self-preservation got the better of me... thankfully; who knows what may have happened if I had touched him. After that we saw no more of the big guy; his slap to the cage really was like a go-away gift. However, we were soon joined by another shark. This guy was smaller, but he was also more curious as he was staying in relatively closeness to the cage for longer, and forcing us to stay underwater for longer. This was difficult because we could of course only hold our breath for so long, but yet we felt compelled to stay underwater and watch the shark for as long as we could. Towards the end of our diving time, we saw the shark swallow a small piece of the bait and for a moment he seemed to be choking on it as he started shaking his front body a lot. Then he suddenly stopped shaking, dived, and disappeared beneath us. After a few more passes from a third shark, our time was up. We got out of the water, changed, and had a snack from the food reserves on the boat. At this point I became really cold and so put on the jacket the company provided, and my own jacket. The Barracuda then raised its anchor, and we made our way for Seal Island. On the way, we ran into two right whales: a mother and her calf. These whales were huge, even the calf, and were easily the size of the Barracuda. When they got within 20 feet of the boat, they surfaced for a long time, giving us the opportunity to view their entire top for a good amount of time: such serene and powerful creatures. They then dove under the boat, and we did not see them after that. Soon after that we arrived to the island. And oh boy, there were A LOT of seals. No joke, there were probably around 4,000 on them on and in the water near the island, which was no more than a ½ square mile. One of the largest concentrations of seals in the world. It was quite a sight. And of course, since there were so many of them, the experience was accompanied by other seal characteristics. For one, the island stank: it was one of the strongest and most poop-like smells I have ever inhaled through my nostrils. Another was the din. The seals were barking like dogs, but the sound they were making sounded a lot like sheep. The ones in the water, were playing, would surface, look around (especially at us, then flip over and dive back in, only to surface again shortly after. We marveled at this island for about 10 minutes, sailing slowly from one end of the island to the other, and then took our leave and started back to the docks. We got back to land around 1, and made our way back to the main building. There were enjoyed some delicious and warm vegetable soup for lunch, which was much needed after our chilling experience in the water. While eating, we watched our dive video and then a documentary about the plight of the sharks. Apparently there are only 1,000 or so great whites left in the wild, and from the looks of it our leader said that it was likely that our children  will never be able to see them (Great Whites cannot be kept in aquariums because for some reason not that have been in captivity have survived for long). This is really sad because many sharks are killed a year only for their fatty fins (the rest of the carcass being thrown back into the water) or just because of people afraid of them (thanks “Jaws”). The funny part about that is that more people are killed a year by coconuts than sharks, and more people are killed by shark soup than sharks. After that eye-opening video, we got thanked the leaders, got into the van and started back to the ship. I stayed awake in the front and kept our cool driver company while everyone else passed out. The scenery was so beautiful, and our driver was offering to drive us to hermanus (the land-based whale watching capital of the world) for no extra charge. However since everyone else was sleeping, I could not make a decision for them (especially since I didn’t know half of them). So instead he stopped at the top of the hill 30 minutes away from Cape Town. There we enjoyed a stunning view of the low-lying land in front of us, the mountains and cliffs to our right, the ocean to our left, and Cape Town in the distance. When we got back to the ship, the others went to their rooms to do their own thing (shower, sleep, etc), and so I decided to go back out and get some more internet time to skype. At Timytz I ran into Amy, who joined me, and so we both headed into the V&A mall. There I skyped my mom for the first time since the middle of Spain; it was great to see her again. After talking for some time, and a number of disconnections due to bad free-internet connection, my battery was dying, so I had to make my departure. Back on the ship, I got dinner with Alyssa Rizzo (my extended family sister) and talked to her about her experience in a local Human Rights program. There she had a conversation with the killer of Amy Bell (the girl whose death started the program), who was working at the place out of sorrow for what he had unknowingly done. I decided to wander the mall for a little while, before running into Teisha, Alyssa, and one of their friends Emily. I joined them as they went into the mall to get internet. After leaving them some time after, I met Nick and joined him to find Ben. We found him with Megan, Nathalie, and Howard, and we then chilled the mall for some time. I left and for the ship an hour or two later, and began working on my blog. Apparently people are actually reading it, which makes me feel good. So I have to keep the quality up.
-Nimish
October 6, 2010

An Awesome Safari Experience

Eyes open. Alarm going off. Get out of bed. Wake the others up. It was around 5 am, but after sleeping in that marvelous bed, I felt out of this world. Outside, the rise had began its creeping into the sky. We made our way for the back of our room where there was a playground. Climbing on top of it, we watched the sky change in colors from a greyish blue into a reds, oranges, yellows, and brighter blues. The color change was great, however the actual sunrise was not necessarily that amazing because the sun was blocked by a hill during its initial rise. Nevertheless the situation was not one I would want to miss, as there also were bird chirping their morning song in the distance. We went back into our room and fell back asleep until it was time to ATV. I was so excited for this. Before going though, I quickly got a glass of orange juice to fuel my body. An Apple a day may keep the doctor away, but there’s nothing like freshly squeezed OJ in the morning. Outside we were introduced to our ATVs, taught how to run it properly, mounted them, and began our journey. This was so cool. The first time I’ve ever ATV’d and I was doing it in a safari; like killing two birds with one stone. When I reved that engine for the first time, I felt a shiver run through my hands (partly due to excitement and partly because the ATV was shaking so much) as I was now in control of such a powerful machine (I know I may be overreacting, but it was really cool). This time when we entered the safari, it just felt different, in a great way. The air blowing past us, the shaking of the ATV, and the tension in my body just created a different aura and was very exhilarating. The ATV had great acceleration, breaking, and durability. The shock system was outstanding, which was absolutely necessary since the road had a bunch of pits and bumps. Every time I hit one, I had to counter it by leaning in the opposite direction (inertia for all you physics geeks). There were so many things I had to pay attention to at once, but it was so much fun. We pretty much took the same route we took yesterday in the jeep, so our first stop was the waterhole again. It was the same as yesterday except for one thing... the hippos were out of the water. Or at least some of them. One of the mothers and two kids were strolling along the sides, while big papa stayed in the water. Even from a distance I could tell how large these animals are, especially their jaws. Oh my, they were large. I’m pretty sure their mouths could open wide enough to swallow a young child whole. As we continued on, we passed by the spot where the water buffalo were the day before, but they were not there today, which is a good thing because I’m pretty sure our ranger would not have allowed us to drive past that spot if it insinuated driving on an ATV past water buffalo 5 feet away. We next came upon the first dirt round about, where we ran into the rhinos again. Except this time we were on ATVs, and only 30 feet away from them. We were really putting ourselves out there, being that close to such a powerful animal with no protection. Of course we could always book it on our ATVs, but these animals were not slow (especially the hippo, which can actually hit 30-40kmh). Nevertheless, the fact of us doing such a thing made it that much more fun and cooler. We were only looking at the rhinos for a short while before they started walking in our direction. At first I thought this was so cool, until our guide told us to move (and he was very serious when saying this); that’s when I realized how close I really was to a wild rhinoceros. We only drove for a short while before we came upon a tree patch. And standing within this patch were more rhinos walking towards us. Ok... time to turn around, and head back in the same direction as the other rhinos that were walking towards us. Fortunately the first group had moved on so we were able to cross the roundabout safely and peacefully. Along the road the ranger suddenly stopped to point something out to us. In the distance on a far hill were two silhouettes.... Big 5 animal #4: Elephants. Oh even from so far away they looked so cool, I want a closer look but we have to stick to our route. But our guide told us that we would be going there later. I turn, and right behind us was a group of zebras and wildebeest on a close hill slope. They were just chilling there, all staring at us, as if prepared to run. We left them in peace and continued on our way. Soon enough, we came upon a treacherous hill. Not only was it relatively steep, but the road was also completely rocky and coarse with lots of ditches and holes. Making my way up quite slowly, my hands were shaking, my shoulders were tense, and my whole body was just bouncing a lot. Once we got to the top, my hands continued shaking for quite some time after wards. I look behind me to see Mary struggling with her ATV upwards, and Lorlei stuck behind her. I turn back around, look up and see them: two fully grown African Elephants within 20-30 feet of us. Seeing this so many things popped into my head: “Oh my God... ELEPHANTS,” “I Love this Safari,” “ATVing and going on a safari is so much fun,” “Nick will be so jealous.” SO we just stayed and marveled at these elephants for like 10 minutes. The elephants thankfully looked quite relaxed and at ease and continued in their activities (eating, throwing dirt on their backs with their trunks, etc) not paying attention to us. Seeing these elephants is when the magnitude of my situation really hit me: on an ATV in a South African safari, about 30 feet away from African Elephants, during a time when I should be in college studying.... SO COOL!!! Finally it was time to leave the elephants, and we made our way back to the park entrance. On the way we passed by a group of springbok naturally running away from us. These are really timid creatures, but they have to be since they are so small (relatively). One our way out, I saw the dirt roundabout again and saw all 6 rhinos there, along with a tree full to the branch with cranes and other birds. Now we hit a straightway with minimal obstacles, so I decided to punch it. I accelerated the ATV to its limit (I had been taking my time before on purpose, because now I had a big gap between me and the next person). As the speed on the speedometer climbed, the ATV began shaking powerfully until it hit 41 km/h, at which point it stopped accelerating, and so I slowed it down. As we exited the park for the last time, I thought about what I had just done. This ATV experience was much more real and exhilarating that the experience yesterday in the Jeep. I mean I didn’t see as many animals as yesterday, but it was more than worth it and provided me with a different experience in the park you just couldn’t get in the 4x4. Back at the main building, we went to the dining hall and feasted on breakfast and reflected on our experiences, while the other half of our group took their turn to ATV. Our number one reflection was: “Did we really just do that.... did that really just happen?” We could get over the fact of what we had just done and experienced. When we got outside we made our way back to our room and pack up. Me and Lander stayed out and saw a very large group of ostriches. There were only 3 or 4 males, and the rest (around 10-15) were female. The females are so much uglier than the males ;). As they moved on, I peered into the vast open space of the safari in front of us, until I my eyes reached the pond right next to the buildings. There among the reeds were 3 water buffalo, probably the same 3 from yesterday. As Lander and I observed them from the fence, they began walking in our direction. I should have remembered all the times in the safari: whenever an animal began walking our direction, we got out of the way. But for some reason Lander and I did not remember this. We moved to a brick enclave to get a better view and Lander even stood up on the wall of it. The buffalo just kept coming closer, and when they were within 15 feet of us and the fence, I thought, “Ok, probably time to get out of here.” As I began moving away, one of the waiters from the dining hall, began yelling at me and Lander to get away from the fence. Immediately the safari guides came pelting from the back of the park, and towards the fence. As soon as everyone was a good distance away from the fence, one of the guides crossed over the fence some distance away from the buffalo and began drawing them away from the fence. Almost like pet, the buffalo responded and began walking towards him. As soon as they were gone, a guide and few other people came to us and talked to us about what just happened. Apparently these three buffalo were very dangerous as just a few months before they had broken through the fence and killed 3 visitors. They were talking to us as if we were children, which is understandable given what just happened, but they also did not see that we were just watching the buffalo (the 3 visitors who were killed were apparently mocking the buffalo). Nevertheless, we probably should have moved away earlier. Soon after that chaotic experience, the second group returned from their ATVing, not knowing what they missed. We then got into the jeeps again and headed across the road where we came to some cages that the park owned. In these cages were a number of animals that were recently obtained from the park and came from traumatic backgrounds, so they were separated to allow them time to recover. The animals here included three lions, crocodiles, warthogs, baboons, and two of my favorite animals: two cheetahs that had a large cage and were hiding under a tree in the grass (so we only could see their heads), and Big 5 animal #5 (the last one): the Leopard (which was by itself in a smaller cage since it was brand new and still beginning to recover). We were not there for long, before we had to return to the main building. There we threw our bags into the vans, and left. We left around 12:30, 2.5 hours later than we should have left (I’m perfectly fine with that). That was the end to one of the greatest experiences of my life, as it has significantly affected me. The landscape on the way back was awe-striking. There were mountains everywhere, with light bouncing off of them beautifully. We then hit a tunnel, and when we got back out, the scenery was completely different with more open space instead of mountains (still gorgeous though). We reached the ship around 2:30, and relaxed while unpacking. As I could not really find anyone to do stuff with, I decided to get on the internet at the V&A. Once outside, I ran into Mezrim, who had just gotten back from a trip to the Archbishop’s house. He looked so different in a Hawaiian shirt and jeans, and just looked that much more carefree and happy. After walking with him for a little while, we parted as he continued on his own and I went to surf the internet for the first time since Spain. I had over 200 unread messages, so I had a lot to catch up on. After wards, I headed back to the ship, with the intent to go out for Thai food (I saw a flier in the ship at the Field Office). I found Kathleen and Chris, who were interested in joining me and so we headed out to Wang Thai. After getting the food (which took a while to order, since the waiters seem to have a laid back personality here) and diving, I was quite full after wards. The food was really good, but I had a feeling that my being fed up with the ship food contributed to the tastiness of the meal. After a thorough conversation with the two, and enjoying a pleasant sunset, we met up with Crystal and Nick and went to the Jazz Restaurant “The Green Dolphin.” It was a lot of fun to just chill there and enjoy the music. While the others conversed, I let it soak in what I had done today. Around 12, I decided to call it a night. I have to wake up early tomorrow (5:45am) to go shark diving. I am so stocked for that, and the post in the garden lounge bulletin board about a poacher who was killed by a great white near cape town just a few days before made me that much more excited. Tomorrow will be sick!!!
-Nimish
October 5, 2010

Go On South African Safari ... Check!!!

I awoke early again, so that I could catch breakfast. Who knows when I'll get food again. We are planning on leaving for the safari at 10, and its a 2-3 hour drive. After splurging on more cereal, I checked my packing, to make sure I had everything I needed for this trip. I'm really excited for this trip, because for all I know, it might change my career interests. I've always had a love for animals and nature, and maybe this safari will cause that interest to bloom. I made sure that I understood that Aquila (the Game Reserve we were going to) was no Kruger (one of the largest and most famous of safaris in all of Africa), so that I would not be disappointed. I got off the ship around 9:50 to meet the group. There were about 12 of us, including the entire Davidson family (Mary, the mother, and Jim, the father, are the secret service agents), which is a good size for a trip. Not too few, not too many. Before leaving, we seperated into two vans, loaded our luggage, strapped in and headed off. For the first half of the trip I passed out, as did almost everyone else in the van... except Lorelei and Lander (they were literally talking the entire drive). When I did wake up, I looked outside to witness some gorgeous scenery. It was this interesting combination of mountains and farms (most likely wineries), and made this interesting assortment of colors. At one point, the driver stopped suddenly on the side of the road. We looked outside to see a clan of baboons crossing the road and off the side, back into the wilderness. That was definitely interesting. Our first encounter with animals in South Africa was in a car, not even to the safari yet, and they were monkeys (random thought: is it possible to say the word monkey seriously?). After that event, we continued on, passing by more farms and houses, an ostrich farm, and more hills/mountains. After about 2 hours, we reached Aquila Private Game Reserve (it was about 12:30). The entrance was nothing that great, regular wooden archway that you see at almost every national park, camp grounds, etc. However once we got inside, it was a different matter. The park's facilities were suprisingly fancy, and very well kept. Its not like I was expecting a dump, you know; I mean I knew that they would probably be nice since its a safari park, but I had no idea they would be this nice. After a welcoming of a glass of champagne (I respectively declined), we entered, signed in, and awaited lunch to be served. The park's buildings were in excellent condition, with a miniature "tropical" pool in the side of the main building, and a larger "fancy" pool in front of the building with seating areas surrounding it. To the left side were a number of cabins where we would be staying for the night, and off to the right were some more cabins (isolated because they were probably bigger and fancier than ours). And surrounding all of this was a wooden fence seperating the residence area from the park... the border betwen our world and the animals' world. It was very interesting looking into that vast expanse, knowing that somewhere in there are a number of different species living the closest thing they can get to a normal life in this human-dominated planet. Also, funny thing, there was a pet ostrich roaming around the facilities. Lunch was served, and I must say I was very happy. There were a large number of choices of foods, even for a vegetarian like me. There were pastas, very fresh salads, cheeses, fresh vegetables (different from the ones on the ship), stews, soups, freshly baked breads, and more. I ate to my hearts content and felt  great afterwards. We were also given the choices to either go ATVing or horeseback riding the next morning. Coming into the trip, I definitely wanted to go on ATV, but there I heard that on horseback you can get much closer to the animals. So I was having a difficult time deciding, but the park rangers told me that ATV would be much more fun and even though you can get closer on horseback, by ATV you can still get within a 100 meters of the animals, which is not far at all. So decision made... ATV it is. At 2, we were shown to our rooms. I was staying with Dan, Lander, and Lorelei. Our rooms were cottage like and very homely, and they had two floors. The bathroom was exquisite and had an outside shower. The roof (as was all the roofs of all the buildings) was made of nothing but reeds. I called one of the upstairs beds which was right under the roof, which was pretty cool. After setting our stuff up, and taking in how amazing this place was, we went back out to chill by the pool. I went up to the fence to take some pictures of the safari area, which was really serene. I noticed a hump in proximity of the fence, and looked long and hard at it. It was a Giraffe! We hadn't even gone into the actual park yet, and we had already seen an animal. And not any old animal.... a freaking GIRAFFE!!! It was so tall and such a beauty to watch. We observed it eating and strolling around the edge of the park for some time, marveling at its elegance. After a bit, it started wandering farther from the edge, towards the inner part of the reserve, so we stopped watching and sat around and talked for a while longer. Come 3:30, and we began getting ready for our safari ride. I got my camera, jacket, and excitment from the room and headed off to the entrance. We were so excited for this. The group was seperated among two 4x4 safari trucks which were a bit taller than normal cars, and completely open. Some other guys, who were from Cape Town, joined my group in our car. At 4, we headed off. The entrance was a short distance from the residence area in the back, and once we went through those doors, I got this very surreal feeling. I was finally in a safari park (one of my lifetime dreams). This is what South Africa is all about. Our first stop was next to a water hole. At first it looked like any other water hole: small and big birds walking along the sides, some floating in the middle, water as still as still as glass, and the sun reflecting off the top. Then, I noticed a few humped shadows in the water, which turned out to be the first big animals we saw in the park: hippos. Of course they did not look like much while in the water, but I know that they can be really big, and really dangerous. Our ranger told us that hippos are probably the most dangerous animals in the park, which is only expected given the sheer size of their jaws. There were at least 4 hippos in the water, all about the same size, except for one that had a noticeably larger head: the alpha male. There was a baby or two in the pack, otherwise the others were mothers. After a sharp turn on the road (these jeeps have monstrous power), we headed along the left side of the “pond” and ran into the first sighting of one of the Big 5 animals: the Water buffalo. From a distance, they did not look that intimidating. However once we got within 10 feet of them, I saw why they were one of the “BIG” 5. These animals were huge. Their heads alone were the size of my upper body (from waist to neck) and their horns were as long as my leg and nothing but pure bone. We were able to get really close to them because the three of them were laying down and chewing on some food, but our ranger remained vigilant, ready to drive off if they made any sudden moves. Basically, the water buffalo was like a normal cow times two. After marveling at them for a little while longer, we continued on. Ahead we passed by a group of springbuck (while are like a small deer like animal with twisted horns and a tan & white coat. They were fairly timid and kept a slight distance away from us, probably because they are so small they have to be very careful: survival of the fittest. We next hit up a group of zebra, also known as a dazzle of zebra. Our ranger told us how you could tell how old the zebra is based on how distinct its stripes are. One with more greyish colors in the white stripes were younger. A short while from this dazzle, we ran into another dazzle. Here, we learned about the difference between a male and female.... males apparently only turn clockwise and females only turn counterclockwise (or something about turning). The safari turned for the even better after we stopped at dirt roundabout. Here we saw Big 5 animal #2: the rhino. These animals looked truly epic: body was shaped as if they had a body of armor on them, a pike of a horn on their head, and their head always down as if ready to charge (like a jousting knight). Along with these three rhinos (we later saw another group of 4) there was also a group of ostrich, and soon joined by another dazzle of zebra, and a herd of wildebeest. The wildebeests were cool, but they looked so awkward: had hair on their back like a horse, had a hump like a camel, horns like a cow, and thin. Of course seeing one of the great wildebeest herds would be awesome, but in Aquila there were only maybe 30-50 of them. After these herds made their way on (the ostrich remained there, standing looking confused), we did too and continued till we hit another dirt space, which was next to a mini waterhole. Here we all disembarked our jeeps an enjoyed a snack of fruit, juice, and some dried fruit snacks. This is when I was really able to take in the atmosphere, the beautiful scenery, and the serene yet unreal feeling of being on a safari in the middle of South Africa. This was so cool. After finishing up the snacks, we loaded back into the jeeps and made our way to see the one and only Big 5 animal #3: the African Lion. The lions were being kept in a preserve, separate from the rest of the park because Aquila does not have enough animals to sustain a natural environment. This definitely takes a little away from the authenticity of the experience, but I can’t ask for much from such a small safari park. Upon arriving to the preserve gates, the ranger got out, turned off the electrical gate fence, opened it, drove us in, closed the gate, and turned it back on again. We were now in lion territory. We were told to keep quiet as to not excite or invigorate the lions. It was not long before we came across the lion pride. There were 4 females feasting on a carcass, just tearing it apart in turns. A little bit away, I noticed another female or two, and then two males, one old the other young (mufasa and simba :). We drove upto 5 feet away from the resting and eating lions, and marveled in silence of the situation. One of the females, then got up and started moving towards us. She got really close, probably within a foot or two at one point. The Ranger kept backing us up in bursts, to make sure she did not get close enough to be able to jump into the jeep. She stopped following us and plopped back down to rest. As we were taking pictures, one of the Cape Town visitors was so happy that he accidently clapped. The second his hands touched and made that noise, every single lion stopped what it was doing and snapped its head in our direction. This was a very tense moment, but the lions eventually resumed their activities. After that fiasco, we drove down a little to look at the males. They were so much hairier than the females (of course because of the mane) and also looked more lazy. It was interesting to see the two males, old and young, sitting next to each other: one the boss, the other the future boss. It was then time to leave. After leaving the preserve in the same process that we entered, we made our way back to the main building. Once back outside, we went to dinner which was spectacular. For once, I found a dinner dessert that I could actually eat. It was like a peanut butter cream crumble, and after the meal I was full for the first time since leaving home. As the group dispersed, most went to the safari’s bar to have some drinks. Lorlei, Lander, Dan, and I on the other hand went to the fire pit and made a bonfire. This was a much better way to enjoy the safari, and we talked for an hour or two about the trip, interests back, home, etc. I went back in to get more dessert. Around 11, we decided to call it a night. We wanted to get up early tomorrow to watch the sunrise. The beds were amazingly comfortable, like I was floating on a cloud. Eventually, my eyes closed, and I dozed off. Today was a stunning experience.
-Nimish
October 4, 2010