Top Experiences
Seeing a Lion
Lions. Are. Awesome. You probably already knew that. However, when it comes to seeing a lion on safari, forget all you know. We're not talking about awesome lion facts that you may know, such as: A lion's roar can be heard up to five miles away. Or, adult males can eat up to 88 pounds of meat in one sitting. We're talking about how awesome it is to see big cats in their natural habitat. It's an event every time. We've repeatedly seen veteran safari guides visibly humbled at the sight of lions. When you get close to a lion in the wild it's an irreducible moment. You are held in thrall, suspended in a world that consists of just you and one special animal, and this dimension simply does not exist in a zoo. The animal may be the same, but there's an incomparable gravitas to seeing it in the environment in which it must struggle to survive. View a lion on safari, and on an unconscious level you'll process not only its marvelous appearance, but also its dramatic relationship to its surroundings. You may happen on a pride sleeping under the shade of an acacia tree and be overcome by how endearing the scene is. But you also understand that you're witnessing more than a lazy afternoon nap. On an unspoken level you just know that the slumbering cats are storing their energy for an epic hunt. Or, as you watch a group of lionesses intently stalking through tall grass, you might even feel the urgency of their primal hunger. And don't even get us started on leopards.
Not Seeing a Lion
As breathtaking as it is to see a lion on safari, spotting them shouldn't be a single-minded pursuit. If you're preoccupied with seeing a big cat, or other Big 5 animals, every time you set out on a game drive, you may unintentionally miscalculate the success rate of your journey. When asked about their drives, people often say, "It was great! We saw four lions, and two cheetahs!" Or, "It was good, but we didn't see any rhino or leopards." This kind of scorekeeping fails to account for the numerous sightings that can be equally wondrous. Often when lions are found, your driver will cut the engine so that you can silently behold their splendor. We highly recommend that you direct this kind of undivided attention to other, more "common" sights throughout your drive as well. Ask your driver to cut the engine at random intervals. Then sit stock still and observe the open plain. Feel it teeming with life. Listen to it—you've never quite "heard" silence like the quiet of the savanna. The landscape is playful—the "Kenya Express," an affectionate term for the famously skittish warthogs throughout Kenya, who comically dash at the slightest disturbance with their tails up like antennas. The landscape can be poignant—witness the heart-wrenching vulnerability of a baby giraffe that has strayed too far from its mother. The landscape can be stoic; see shaggy waterbuck, relatively fearless because lions rarely prey on them, blithely lounging in the grass, staring at you with practiced indifference. But most of all, the landscape is a wonderland with the subtle interplay of wildlife happening everywhere. Receive all it has to offer and you'll be well rewarded.
Getting the Perfect Shot
Three improbably tall giraffes, dwarfed by towering Mt. Kilimanjaro, bathed by the orange glow of the setting sun, are surveying the plains. Suddenly, all three at once turn to look straight at you, practically mugging for the camera, and click. You got it. An image you'll cherish, a picture worth 1,000 words and 8,000 miles of travel. Sure there are tons of memory cards full of African wildlife images that put your "lucky" shot to shame. But this is your special moment; you own it, and there's a particular pride that comes with every image you capture. Your pictures document your trip through a highly personal lens, both photographically and existentially. Perhaps this is why the exact same scene captured with superior shutter speed and composition doesn't inspire nearly as strong a reaction. When you get your "perfect" shot, there's a personal poetry to it that can't be duplicated by anybody else's camera. Your pictures tell your story.
Not Getting the Perfect Shot
The problem with the perfect shot is the amount of time you can spend viewing your surroundings through a 2.7-inch LCD screen to get it. Although you may never have another chance to photograph the gaping maw of a giant hippo as he suddenly rises from the river, you may also never get another chance to experience that moment. Too often folks on safari witness spectacles unfold not before their very eyes (or even through binoculars), but through a tiny screen—waiting for fauna to fall into place, waiting to capture the best action shot. It's somewhat disorienting to consider that you can be in Africa (Africa!), alternating your gaze between the digital image you're trying to capture and the one that you just took. The splendid rise of a hot-air balloon over the sand dunes of Namibia or the impressive leaps of Masai warriors are singularly unique events that shouldn't be witnessed solely through a single-lens reflex. Before you know it, your firsthand experiences will seem nebulous and your memories prematurely dim, leaving you with a succession of moments that can only be recalled through photos and video. Set up your shots, take lots of pictures; they're precious. But more precious is the primary, full-sensory, romantic experience that can only be achieved by unencumbered, full engagement with your surroundings.
Going on a Sundowner
A lot of the recommendations above are variations on "be in the moment"—based on the notion that because safaris are such exhilarating adventures with a raft of stimulus, it sometimes takes a concentrated effort to drink in the here-and-now. Well, quite literally, there's nothing like a sundowner to help you drink it all in. The recipe is simple: Take one particularly scenic spot, often with vistas that cross country borders and stretch to distant mountains, add your choice of cocktails, and watch the sun drench what seems like half of Africa in various hues of orange and pink. An option at most quality lodgings, sundowners are just one example of why you shouldn't skimp on your travel budget in Africa. Raise a glass and toast your glorious day, "kwahafya njema" (in Swahili) as the African sun makes its graceful exit.
Not Going on a Sundowner
Just kidding. You should go.
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