Following 5 days at sea, we were anticipating an early morning landing in Cape Town, South Africa, but the weather had other plans. The ships foghorn had been sounding most of the night and, as we approached Cape Town our singular horn was joined by a chorus of other ships also making their presence known in the dense soup that was preventing us from docking this morning. We would have to wait in a holding pattern until the sun had sufficient time to thin the fog and allow us to safely dock. The fog eventually lifted, our pilot joined the ship, and we were soon made fast to the quay. We were in South Africa, check another country off the list.
For today we had booked a day safari at the 25,000-acre conservatory of Aquila Game Reserve to see the “Big 5” animals of Africa (Lion, Elephant, Rhino, Cape Buffalo, and Leopard). We boarded the bus and began our 2-hour journey from Cape Town, though the Cape Winelands, the savannahs, grassland, and eventually arriving at Aquilla. After a quick lunch at the resort, we boarded our “jeep” and began our adventure. It was an awesome experience as we got up close and personal with the local wildlife. All animals (except lions) free roam in the 25,000 acres so sightings are not guaranteed. Lions have their own large fenced off area spanning hundreds of acres. Rhinos have their horns humanly removed to prevent poaching. They will slowly grow back. During our 2-hour expedition, we were encountered 4 of the big 5 (the leopards were hiding today) as well as many other mainstays of African wildlife.
Random photos from may be truncated so you will need to click on them to see the full view.
