Namibia -Etosha National Park-
Now, we go to Etosha from Windhoek, and big safari time!
According to the guide book, the word "Etosha" means large white area. The main Etosha Pan is a large, shallow lake which covers 4731km. In the dry season, all the animals come to the water holes, so there are good chances to find a lot of them. When we went, the rainy season had just started. Many people (including the safari guide person) told us we may not be able to see many animals.
However, we were so lucky to find so many creatures in the park!
The most exciting moment was when we found 2 lions who had just eaten, and were lying on the ground lazily.We could see these lions from our car about 2 meters away. As soon as we got closer to the lions, one of them got up and stared at me. He looked like he wanted to attack me, but he was too full and sleepy, so didn't want to move. That was really cool.
We found all kinds of animals during the four days of safari. Giraffes were everywhere. Zebras and wildebeests were eating grass at the same spots. Finding a rhino was exciting, too. The kids liked to see springboks juming around. Three cheetahs were taking a nap under a tree and, as soon as we got close, they stood up nobly and went back into the bush.
My favorite animals were the kudus. Espscially the male ones. They were really shy, so it was really difficult to find them. I've never seen such a majestic creatures before.
On the last day (when I didn't have my zoom lens with me, naturally...), we found a family of at 35 or so elephants drinking water and bathing at thewaterhole. I felt a great power from the appearance of the whole herd of huge elephants walking together toward to us.
Needless to say, seeing wild animals on safari and going to a zoo to see animals are totally different experiences. I think I can't go back to a zoo anymore!
In the night when you look up the sky, you can see milions of stars spread forever in the large, wide sky. It was amazingly beautiful and I can't explain it in words.
Next, we move to west side of Namibia, Sossusvlei.
