“OMG, Oh My actual God – it’s a real, live elephant, and I am really here, seeing it with my own eyes!!” Her face flushed with pleasure, camera at the ready, this was my sister-in-law’s response to her first sighting of a wild elephant.
We were on safari en famille in South Africa’s Kruger National Park, and while Kay has travelled extensively, she had never been on safari to Africa. She and her family live in England, we live in South Africa.
Our lives could not be more different; when we go on holiday we head to the coast to scuba dive or to the bush to go on safari. They go to the European mountains to ski or to Cornwall to sail.
Her enthusiastic reaction to everything we saw was wonderfully refreshing. I was reminded how easy it is for those of us fortunate enough to live out here to become blasé about the bush and to forget how lucky we are to have it close to hand.
She was as excited to see the plains game (such as impala, zebra, wildebeest) as she was to learn about the myriad of bird species. She was fascinated by the symbiotic relationships we showed her, entranced by the rythms, colours and sounds of the bush. She even grew to love the smell of the rain, which doesn’t come easily to someone living in England!
Another soul falls victim to this fascinating and bewitching continent. Can you resist? Give it a try …..
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Sandy Wood, Pulse Africa March 2016