January 14, 2011

(Note: See January 13, 2011, for yesterday's letter before you read this one)

We woke for our second safari early this morning and for the first time since I can remember the sun shone bright in the sky and the world did not look as though it were enveloped  in a foggy haze. I went down to the pool early enough to get a coffee and watched the mist rise up over the valley. Warthogs wandered around the restaurant grounds and snorted with contentment. I saw Jen walking across the parking lot with some coconut biscuits in hand, when she was accosted by a band of baboon bandits who grabbed the cookies and tried to steal her shoulder bag. She fended them off, escaping with her bag and a few scratches. They kept the cookies.

Safari started with a long drive into the park in search of the elusive elephant. We drove and drove, stopping every once in a while when Andrew the safari man spotted an animal. Today, there were lots of baboons and more Bark Bok. We drove a bit and then walked for a while through the cracked earth savannah near the watering hole where we saw the elephant from the ridge yesterday. Nico and I were a little behind when I saw Marco and Andrew beconing. They'd spotted our elephant! What majesty and grace! What an incredible size and shape for a being! Our elepant had a tear in his ear and a briken tusk and Nico named him Bandit. We crossed the stream to get a little closer and were not more than 15 meters away at one point. He let us know that we had got a little too close by walking a few meters towards us, his loping gait and swinging tail was sufficient to compel us to jump back across the stream to the relative safety of the other side. It's colossal to see such a beast moving toward you and coming to the realization that this being is a real live wild animal. I kept wondering just what the elephant was thinking, and I guess this is a thing I will never know. I do know that I'll never forget him and I am certain he will never forget us since elephants never forget, do they? We walked back up to the lodge and after lunch started our drive to Wa, to the hippo sanctuary. We drove through more fire and listened to the hi life tape Nico had bought at a gas station. Did I tell you we have a driver? His name is Richard and he's a very good driver, though he's always smiling I have a feeling he'd rather be driving than talking, eating or sleeping. In Wa, we went to the market and bought some  food for the next few days. We will be cooking for ourselves at the hippo sanctuary. We got to the hippo sanctuary and after a little talk, we went to the camp and made dinner and sat around the table under the stars.