LIONS + GIRAFFES + ELEPHANTS, OH MY !! | SAFARI 2020
S A F A R I !!!!! this post has been in the works since, well, safari ended two months ago, but it’s finally here! i don’t think i’ve ever posted a bigger photo dump, but everything was just too good not to share! this safari was truly one of the coolest things i’ve ever done in my 21 years of existence, + i feel so fortunate to have gotten the chance — if you one day find yourself in africa, try to add a safari to your bucket list! until then, satisfy those quarantine travel itches by scrolling through this post + watching the film below :) i hope you enjoy safari just as much as i did!
we drove about two hours or so to the Nambiti Game Reserve — there are multiple lodges within the reserve and we stayed at the Ndaka Safari Lodge, aka one of the nicest places i’ve ever stayed [+ apparently this is the most “family friendly”, which is a nice way of saying “cheapest”?? lodge on the reserve!]. jaws were on the ground when we saw our rooms, which were giant, yurt-like tents with three beds, a giant bath, an indoor + OUTDOOR shower [heart eyes], lots of storage space, + a living room area.
after eating lunch on our first afternoon at the lodge, we headed out on our first drive + made our first stop at a waterfall for a quick swim! i was shocked at how many waterfalls south africa actually has — i think we saw one almost every weekend! it was such a surreal, beautiful sight when we drove to the top of the cliff in our safari car + saw it! the light reflecting off the water was truly magical. it was the perfect way to kick off our safari adventures!
the food at Ndaka was incredible — every single meal was five stars! [after many dinners of curry, these unique dishes were a welcome change!!] at breakfast each day, we recieved a menu + ordered our dinner for that night, which they served on silver platters, literally.
such !! good !! food !!
while on the safari drives, we saw over 20 different animals! the game reserve’s claim to fame is that they have all of the Big Five — leopards, elephants, lions, buffalo, + rhinos. the term was originally coined by hunters, because these were the five hardest animals to hunt while on foot!
we saw lots of kudu !! they would even hang around our lodge on occasion!
the cutest baby buffalo!
we saw so many zebra, always hangin’ with their buds.
midway through each drive, we would stop for snacks, which was my favorite part!! [kidding!! kinda…] in the mornings, we’d have hot chocolate, coffee, + Amarula, a native south african cream drink made from the fruit of the marula tree. we also got to enjoy some incredible chocolate chip biscotti/scone/cookie things which i will never forget! for lunch, we got an array of different snacks, including kudu jerky, which wasn’t too bad. it definitely took some courage to try, though — haha!
watching the lions lay around as the sun rose felt like a true lion king moment !!
i can safely say that elephants are my favorite animal thanks to this safari! they are the most beautiful, intricate, + majestic animals! did you know they stay within their family units for their whole life?
on our second day, we sat + watched them for almost two hours straight, they were putting on a show! if you watch the video, you’ll see the mama of the bunch exert her dominance over us — it was a life-flashing-before-eyes type of moment, but worth it when the little babies came out from behind her!
cheetahs !! ohhh baby these guys were on my safari bucket list + i’m so glad they decided to show themselves on our last day!
the lone lion on a hunt!
another member of the antelope family we saw lots of — the red-hearted beast
on our second nighttime safari drive, we were on our way to see some lions, driving through tall grass, when our driver stopped + told us to look for a “lime leaf”. it was pitch black out, so none of us knew what he was talking about until he lept out of his seat, walked up to the leaf of the grass, + came back with a chameleon! he was the cutest little green guy ever + he really did change color! they stay a shade of green, but we were able to see him go from dark to light before our eyes!
since each day consisted of a morning + evening safari drive, we got to spend the afternoons in the infinity pool! nothing was more surreal than cooling off from the sun while giraffes, kudu, + more wildlife passed by. truly a moment i will never forget!
post-pool + pre-drive, i decided to make the most of our room + warm up in our bath that overlooked the reserve while reading a little bit of my book that i got [errr, stole, oops] from our hike a few weeks prior. i was ready to get my vacation relaxation on when a hornet flew in, causing me to grab a shoe to kill it [sorry not sorry], which accidentally knocked my book into the already-filling tub. i left the dang hornet for a second to find a hair dryer to dry off my book, when the shower head flipped over + sprayed water all over my clothes + my phone. foul number two. THEN, when my book was finally dry [enough], the tub was relatively filled, + my phone was safely tucked away from any future rogue water spray, i was finally able to kill the hornet. after all was said + done, i had about 30 minutes until our evening drive started, ha! safe to say, it was not the restful time i had in mind, but was a memorable one, that’s for sure!
our final safari drive was a sweet one, but a sad one [as you can probably tell from the above photo]. there’s something about watching the nature of the lord’s creation just do its thing, without paying any mind to you! “majestic” is the best word i can think of to describe the whole experience. who thought a safari car would turn into a sanctuary of peace + awe !! i will forever miss those moments spend with the sweetest friends + the best driver! [we love u, ncgebo !!] since our time in south africa got cut short, it’s one of my new life goals to make it back — to contu=inue to explore the beautifully broken country, go on another safari [of course!!], + relive some of the memories that meant so much to me. :,,)