Safari, part I

One of the absolute best thing - apart from visiting the world heritage site of Robben Island - we did in Africa was the safari, at Schotia Safaris.

A private game reserve sharing fence with the vast Addo National Park, a bit east of Port Elizabeth. Schotia Safaris is the oldest private game viewing reserve in the Eastern Cape, owned, managed and run by the owners, the Bean family, since 1833 (now in its 6th generation).

This malaria free reserve has abundant over 15 antelope species, several smaller African animals, such as warthog, monkeys, genets, surricates and other larger African animals such as hippo, giraffe and rhino. Schotia was the first reserve in the Cape Province to have free roaming lions. At the moment there are five of them. It's not a reserve with the Big Five though, if that's all you want from a safari.

It was a fantastic experience, at first I thought it was a bit silly and touristic the whole thing - but after a while you actually was caught up in the ranger's enthusiasm over everything, great and small.

The best thing was being that close, five metres..., to wild lions. I'll never stop to marvel over the fact that they are just like our familycats in behaviour and gestures, just slightly bigger and lethal. Guess if I was a b i t annoyed about the fact that I really should have gotten a better camera for that particulary meeting... Mine, though as great as it might be in general and on closeups, just didn't give justice to the moment...