Our last day of the safari was in many ways the very best. We went on another Bush Walk but this time it was just the two of us and our guide Joe.  We headed to a watering hole and pulled the Land Rover into a grove of trees and headed out on foot. Within five minutes we stopped a giraffe, legs splayed as he drank from the river.  He spotted us right away, gave us a look-over and headed away at a gallop. We then came upon a huge bull elephant as he was drinking. He didn't seem to notice us for a while so we just stood there only twenty yards from this behemoth as he drank, sprayed himself and just seemed to be enjoying his morning bath. He finally acknowledged our presence and nonchalantly started to cross the river, dropping depth charges of dung as he walked. It was really a wonderful experience to be that close, and being on foot gave us a much better perspective as to his size.

For the next hour or so we wandered along the edge of the river and Joe talked to us about the birds, their nests, insects and their nests, and all the river animals that make their homes nearby. There were large animals including three hippos who were humping above the water line so we could finally see more than their ears, and three crocodiles basking in the sun. There were several fish eagles circling and dozens of birds of all sizes building nests, some communal nests weighing as much as two hundred pounds and housing fifty or sixty mating pairs. We spotted a dung beetle pushing his ball of dung across the sand looking for a spot to bury it and invite a mate to lay eggs in the ball. It was all just fascinating.

During out last hour of the walk we spotted a female warthog with her three kids across the river, and in the same field there were several impala, steinbok, kudu and water bucks. There was a very large water monitor, a lizard, lounging on a rock by the river totally undisturbed by our cameras clicks. On the ride back to the lodge we saw large white birds that we think were Snowy Ibis and smaller birds such as orioles and a European Roller, a multicolored bird about the size of a dove.  We were also treated to the repetitive chirping of a crested barbit - a yellow bird that resembles a woodpecker - punctuated by the beautiful call of an oriole over and over again.  Cindy even "videoed" it for the sound.  All in all, a perfect walk.

Lunch saw the arrival of a new lodge guest, a woman traveling by herself. All the tables are set for two and she looked rather lonely so we invited her to join us and she leaped at the opportunity. Her name is Peggy and she is originally from Liverpool but has been living in Geneva for fifty years (she just turned 75). She is a retired particle physicist and sharp as a tack and became our companion again for dinner and breakfast the next morning. I finally got to ask someone in the know what the 'god particle' is all about, and it turns out she worked at the Hadron Accelerator.  She did her level best and I think I understand half of it, but oh her enthusiasm for the topic was just lovely to observe.

And so it is over and it was a grand experience, one that I don't think I will do again, but one that I'm ever so happy to have had. I'm pleased that I didn't look like all the other men who had purchased cargo pants that could convert to shorts with matching khaki safari shirts that converted to short sleeves.  I'm happy that I didn't purchase bush shoes that matched the pants and a silly hat that flopped in the breeze when driving.  I'm sorry that I listened to the travel agent and my doctor and took malaria pills.  The incidence of malaria where we were is almost non-existent due to the drought. There is very little standing water for them to breed and I didn't get even a single mosquito bite.  I did get a spider bite but they don't carry malaria!

We are in Johannesburg for the next three nights before heading home via a transfer in Qatar. We'll have been on the road for thirty nine days and are growing weary of travel but looking forward to exploring this city.  Best to all, Cindy and Wm