Slept so great last night, wasn’t woken by any elephants or baboons or hippos. We slept in and I was able to relax while Sam slept and get caught up on the blog. We had hot chocolate brought to our tent around 8 a.m and then we updated folders of photos on my computer before heading for breakfast. ( We haven’t had any internet for almost a week now so we are keeping folders of pictures to upload to our blog and writing our journal entries in Pages so we can upload hopefully when we get to Joburg on Sat night.) A mellow breakfast with one of the managers Shaba and then we attacked homework.
We sat in the main lodge where there was more of a breeze and I taught Sam a math lesson, since we haven’t had internet and so haven’t been able to meet up with April for Math. We spent an hour doing math and then headed back to our tent to do handwriting and I had Sam write in his personal journal. I also had Sam do some more handwriting and had him write Nate a letter that we can mail back in Joburg. Sam read about 8 chapters in his book Kaffir Boy too. I also spent the afternoon reading and finished Kaffir Boy, a true story told by the author of his life as a black man living in South Africa during Apartheid. It is a heart wrenching story of survival and the brutality of life in the ghettoes around Johannesburg.It makes you wonder how anyone survived and a greater understanding that the legal separation really made it so that races couldn't get to know each other which just added to fear of the unknown and racial prejudices, not to mention destitute conditions with almost no opportunity to rise above them for anyone of color. Incredible to read a story of someone that rose from it and the determination it took to do so.
After lunch and homework time we played some cards and then I decided to go to the pool to cool down. It is a small pool just behind the tents and it felt so good to get into cold water and submerge myself. As I was laying and reading my book next to Bridgette and Peter, our German companions on many of our activities yesterday, a barking came from right behind where I was sitting that was so loud and ferocious we all jumped up and grabbed our stuff and made a run for the fence. It was so startling it was a quick reminder that I am not just in a normal resort, I am in the middle of the Delta surrounded by wild animals. It turned out to be one incredibly large baboon fighting with a smaller male baboon. At first I thought the ferocious sounding barking were wild dogs or something. It was quite scary tiptoeing back to my cabin where Sam was, not sure what might dart out. A little later we saw the two males chasing the female around the property and then into a tree and then the sounds of a small girl screaming at the top of her lungs like they boys had caught her, bit crazy really.
After tea and Sam trying to pet a bushbok that was right outside the lodge, we went fishing. We cruised through the marshes and ended up right near we went yesterday out by all the pelicans and marabous. Sam turned out to be a great fisherman and caught 4 fish using bait. I had been using a spinner with no luck and then switched to bait. My very last cast after over an hour and a half I caught a huge catfish. It felt like it was going to brake the pole. I reeled it in and then we cast it back. Sam was loving fishing and kept recasting where we could see fish jumping. It was very hot out fishing but worth it for the thrill of seeing Sam reel in fish. We flew down the “hippo highways” which was so fun trying to get the last light and toss a fish in the water by the fish eagle that sits perched on a tree back near our camp. The fish eagle took the bait after a few minutes and a fly by check. Fun to see him swoop down and catch it with his talons. Sam drove us partially the way back to our camp and we off loaded and headed back to cleanup for dinner.
We had a traditional dinner of cornmeal mush and what tasted like a beef brisket and some veggies. Immediately following dinner we loaded into the truck with Peter and Bridgett, Sam ,Owner our guide, and myself. He was scanning the landscape with a big spotlight looking for eyes which will glow when hit with the light. We didn’t see much and I was so tired and was falling asleep in the back of the jeep when all of a sudden he said “Leopard!” He backed up and shone his flood on the grasses. You could barely see his back and then he came out of the bushes like he was stalking the impala that surrounded us. We watched him and could see him very well. He came right in front of the car and then stood right next to me and looking at me. It actually freaked me out a bit, thinking what is keeping him from jumping up and having me for dinner. But, he wondered off spraying trees and marking his territory. He was so beautiful and with the bright spot and binoculars we watched him for quite a while. It was awesome! That completes our Big 5:) I would still like to complete the Ugly 5 and see a hyena but we did’t spot one last night. Sam on the ride back spotted a huge owl up in the tree who was hunting and then I spotted a smaller one a little later. It turned out to be a very successful evening. After coming home and doing our nightly ritual of killing all the spiders and bugs we climbed into bed and slept well, no big baboon crys at night or sleeping elephants outside our doors.
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