Andreia's Chatter: First Safari Ride Ever

A week ago from today, I went on a Safari Adventure at Mokolodi Nature Reserve.

I am totally a tourist in Botswana.

I still can't believe I'm in Africa. :P

In the school bus on our way to Mokolodi Nature Reserve

The Gift Shop. I love the spiky plants on the left :)

The Reserve served Orange Juice in pretty glasses :)

Pretending to be a tree in the playground @ Mokolodi

Tire Swing

Our Safari-mobile


Inside our Safari-mobile.

Inside the Safari-mobile. I wanted to sit in the front with the old ladies so that I could hear our informative guide :)


Our Safari Guide

The Safari-Mobile we rode felt like, smelled like, and sounded like Indiana Jones at Disneyland except that IT WAS REAL!

A termite hill: it works as a compass and helps find water sources. It indicates that there is a shallow water source nearby and the hill leans toward the western horizon.

BUCKBEAK in real life. They really call it a Banana Beak.
At this point, I started singing the Intro to Circle of Life from Lion King.

"~From the we arrive on the planet~And blinking, step into the sun"
A WILD GIRAFF.
We saw a lot of her friends. The females have horns while males have horns with tufts of hair at the end.
Also, darker patches indicate that they are older. This one is middle aged.

~"It's the CIRRCCCLLLEEE OF LIIIIFFFE! AND IT MOOOVES US AAAALLL"
AFRICAN WATER HOLE

~"TILL WE FIND OUR PLAAAACCE, ON THE PATH UNWIIINDING"
"IN THE CIIIRCLE...IN THE CIRCCCLLLEE OF LIIFFE"

Empalas or Kudos (they look the same to me)

When these birds fly off in their flocks, it's BEAUTIFUL. My camera wasn't able to catch it, but here they are when they're still!

Empala/kudo butt


Male Kudo. Each curvature in their horns indicate 2.5 yrs of age. This one is about 3 yrs old.

An Empala: Their stripes are like our finger prints.

AFRICAN WARTHOGS
They have short necks and often need to kneel on their forelegs in order to reach the food on the ground.

NOT WILD, AFRICAN CHEETAH.

The cheetahs were cubs abandoned by their dead mother. The reserve decided to care for them and they decided that they would be kept in captivation forever because they never learned how survival skills from their mother.