Merry Christmas from Botswana!

Our adventure has certainly perked up, with a recent visit through Etosha National Park, in northern Namibia. We spent parts of 3 days in this huge national park, doing game drives during the day and watching a floodlit watering hole at night. We were fortunate to see a huge herd of wild elephants in their natural habitat, munching away at the thorny acacia tree branches. We saw huge herds of zebra, springbok, wildebeest, kudu, impala, red hartebeest, dik-diks, and many giraffes, as well. The giraffes look like dinosaurs with their slow, awkward movement across the savannahs. Three unforgettable wildlife moments:

• Shortly after dawn, during our game drive, we saw a sudden movement in the tangled reeds in the distance. Our eyes widened when we realized that we had discovered a full grown male lion with a massive mane, in the midst of his morning activity.


• We sat in the darkness near a floodlit watering hole. A few springbok wandered by, and a herd of 50 zebra drank from the murky water. The zebra were very skittish, frightened by their own shadows. Suddenly a stampede began, and all the zebras bolted toward the safety of the darkness. From among the chaos emerged a massive gray shape, a rare black rhinoceros. We watched in wonder as this creature fearlessly drank his fill, then wandered back into the shadows.
  
• After setting up camp, the two of us took an exploratory walk nearby. We followed an overgrown two-track, bordered by a "safety fence," which "protected" our camp from the wild animals. Movement caught our eye, and there, underneath an acacia tree, sat 5 cheetahs. You can imagine our surprise! Our pulse sky-rocketed as one of them stood up and began walking toward us. Would this flimsy fence protect us? Our thoughts raced, and we slowly backed away, willing our bodies to act calmly. The cheetah matched our retreating steps and maintained eye contact a mere 10 feet away. Finally, she lost interest and turned back toward her family, and we exhaled a mutual sigh of relief. (By the way, the photo above is in the "Cheetah Park," where there are two "tame" cheetahs).

After a night along the Okavango River, listening to and watching hippos, we've left Namibia and entered the country of Botswana. We're camped near the town of Maun at the edge of the Okavango Delta (the largest inland delta in the world). Tomorrow morning we'll begin a 3 day adventure in dugout canoes, into the wilderness. We hope to see big game and have a cultural experience with the local people, as well.

We're doing great and loving every minute of this grand adventure! Have a Merry Christmas (in a few days)! And Happy Birthday to Lena!!!