This morning was once again an early start. However, since we were staying in the Delta another night we didn’t have to take down our tents! It was cold so I put on black pants and a gray long-sleeved shirt. We again had to wear toned down colors and blacks and browns so as not to scare the animals. It was early and not quite time for breakfast, so Elroy just put out tea, coffee, and rusks. It was everyone’s first introduction to rusks. They are a mix between biscotti and dried up bread. Officially called ‘buttermilk biscuits’, they are delicious in coffee. I helped myself to two and became full.
(Rusk and coffee)
After applying bug spray and sunscreen, though it was only 7 am, Team Elephant set out on our early morning game walk in the Delta. Again we split up into groups, this time even smaller, and were assigned two guides. My group consisted of Vanessa, Colleen, Franzie, SarahCatherine, Allie D, Mike, and myself, along with our two guides Kaizer and Cisco. Kaizer was our main leader, leading us along through the bush, while Cisco, a much older man, tagged along at the end, really only talking in Setswana to Kaizer, most likely giving advice and such, as Kaizer was fairly new. On our walk, which lasted over three hours, we encountered many animals: buffalo, two elephants, baboons, a pack of impala, a wildebeest, and three zebras. The buffalo we saw were far away from us, running back into the woods, as we got nearer. The first elephant we saw, we barley glimpsed. It was hidden between palm leaves, and was a younger elephant so it wasn’t big enough to be seen above the leaves. The second elephant, however, was about 25 years old. Kaizer brought us closer to it, drinking water from a pond, slowly and quietly.
(Elephant #2)
We all stared in wonder, snapping pictures, as it drank. Then it stopped drinking water and walked a bit towards us, causing Kaizer and Cisco to signal for us to retreat. But again, we were able to stand just a bit farther back and watch the male. As it got even closer to us, Kaizer and Cisco whirled around, pushing us away from the elephant, forcing us to run out of the trees and into the fields. Wild elephants are obviously extremely dangerous, but at the time it was hard to realize that the elephant could easily have killed us. I was still in the mindset that I was somehow protected by a bar or fence. We saw the baboons while we were in the midst of Lalapalm trees, sitting on the termite hills and running past us. We saw the pack of impalas in the plains of the bush, one male amidst a pack of females, all staring at us.
(Impalas)
And lastly, and most exciting for me, we saw the wildebeest and three zebras across the plains.
(Wildebeest and Zebras)
They never got scared of us as we got closer, not that we really got that close, and they never moved away. Even from afar, the zebras were the most beautiful animals I have seen. Also on our walk, Kaizer pointed out an Amarillo tree and its nuts, Lalapalm nuts, which Cisco helped us crack open, and a great big Baobab tree.
(Lalapalm tree and nuts)
(Inside of a Lalapalm nut)
(Baobab tree-note the loss of bark on the lower part of the trunk)
The tree bark was torn away in spots where elephants had used their tusks to scrap the bark off in order to get to the softer wood on the inside. (Fun Fact: a Baobab tree is the kind of tree Rafiki lives in in The Lion King)
The sun was just getting hot as we rode in the mokoros back to camp. Elroy had prepared us a proper breakfast while we were out of beans, ham, corn bread, and tomatoes. We lounged around camp for a while and talked. The women had made baskets, bowls, and bracelets out of reeds while we were at the camp and sold them to us for Pula, the currency in Botswana. A little after noon a small group of us headed back to the ‘swimming pool’ and beach. I brought my journal along, and others brought books or nothing and we all lay out. When I got hot, I jumped in the water. Peter, my polar, showed us reeds in the water that we could pull up and eat the ends of. He and a few of the others also brought some Lalapalm nuts to the beach and let me try one.
(one of the locals and a mokoro full of Lalapalm nuts)
The outside was a red shell, and on the inside was a mealy sort of dried out fruit. Again we gave ourselves a mud bath, this time covering our faces, and rode around in the mokoros.
(Team Elephant takes a mud bath)
By 4 pm we were all back at camp and eating lunch. I was exhausted from being in the sun all day, and gladly accepted the sunset mokoro ride. Everyone packed into the mokoros and we rode out to an open water area to watch the sun set. On our way we got extremely close to an elephant, around 25 years old, and watched him eat and shake a Lalapalm tree.
(Elephant #3)
Behind him was another elephant; this male was 45 years old. When the elephants walked away we continued our ride to the open water. There we sat, mostly in silence, to watch the sun. It was the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen.
(Pictures of the sunset over the Delta)
No words or pictures can do the great orange ball of flame justice as it slowly descended beneath the water we sat in. The sunset took only 11 minutes, from 6:05-6:16 pm. By the time we reached camp once more, we had lost almost all natural light and were forced to light candles around the site.
The fire had been built up while we were gone, and dinner was cooking. Everyone gathered around the fire and talked. Team Elephant sat on one side of the fire and the locals sat on the other. Once we had finished eating our dinner, Elroy gave the locals the rest of our food. They had their own food as well, this sort of oatmeal dish called ‘mealie meal’, but I was glad to see they got some nutritious food also. Around now Trevor told us we had to prepare a singing and dancing routine to perform for the locals. Apparently, they were going to be singing and dancing for us, and we were to return the favor. Elory made us all popcorn on the fire while we sat around and planned what we were going to do.
After the locals had finished eating, they got up and sang and danced and performed for us. I videoed as much of the show as I could, but again, it just doesn’t do the performance justice (Once I’m home you can request to see the video from me).
(The locals singing and dancing)
First they just sang in Setswana, swaying back and forth and clapping their hands. This was for the first few songs. Then they began to dance around the fire while singing, taking up a few of us and swinging us around. At the end of one of the dances we were all pulled up and danced around the fire. Then the songs became more animated and they began to act out what they were singing. My polar, Peter, was some kind of old man with a cane and potbelly in the play; he was usually so quiet, so it was exciting to see him participating.
(Peter dancing)
The show lasted for the better half of thirty minutes, all in Setswana. Their last song, however, was a listen and repeat song, in English, and we were all able to join in. Then it was our turn. We had all decided on ‘Lean on Me’ and ‘In the Jungle’. Being as clever as we could be, we changed the ‘Jungle’ to ‘In the Delta’. As we sang both songs, the locals interspersed themselves with us, standing around the fire, and dancing to the songs. Team Elephant continued to sing the better verses of American songs we could remember until the group grew tired, and we sat down. Some of the locals showed us some mind games in the sand and we all gathered to solve them. Let’s see how you all do…
1. 10 10 10 Make the top and bottom the same with one straight line.
9 5 0
2. X 8 I X 8 Make a car with one straight line.
3. IIIIIIIII There are nine lines. Make ten with the lines.
You all can email me if you want to know the answers.
After the puzzlers, we played a few more games and then headed off to bed. This time the tent mates and I were much too exhausted from the day to even think about talking into the night.
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