Twelve photos from each day of our Africa adventure.

And by “each day” we mean “each day we feel like including.” We’re skipping two right now. One was a day off to do laundry, catch up on the journal, use the Internet, clean up, and take a nap. The nap pictures are good, but the other ones are kind of boring. (Kidding. We didn’t take pics that day.) The other day we’re skipping was a trip to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. It was an interesting place, but Mike is disappointed in the pictures because of all the mist and rain, so he skipped sorting and editing them. I think they’re interesting, just like the falls. I hope to write a more detailed post about that day and will select photos then.

So . . . upon leaving Chobe Safari Lodge, we drove the 4WD track along the riverfront, then crossed the border into Namibia on the Caprivi strip. All of these pictures are from the riverfront drive. You’ll see Namibia next time.

One group of elephants follows another, then another, then another to the Chobe Riverfront to drink and bathe and play.

Elephants filed out of the trees and down the bank to the river for morning drinks and baths. Tons and tons of elephants.

Shhhhhh! An elephant group, different sizes, different wetnesses, different muddiness, walk close by the truck.

When we parked the car and turned off the engine, we seemed to become part of the landscape. The elephants noted us, but walked quite close anyway, as close as 15 feet away from the open windows of the car. We didn’t take pictures when they were that close; we didn’t talk; we didn’t move. I felt protected in the car, but I didn’t want to startle them, either. What might a startled elephant do? What might a dozen startled elephants do? I don’t want to know.

Four playful pairs of ellies.

The elephants enjoy the water. A lot of roughhousing takes place amongst the youngsters. Here, four different pairs tussle.

Mud-bathing elephants.

Another way to cool down is to spray mud all over one’s body. Water, mud, dry dust: It doesn’t matter; it’s all good.

Hippo eyes and ears.

Hippos were out, too. They don’t play. When they tussle, they seem to be making an angry point. Grumps.

A spoonbill. Best bills ever, I think.

A spoonbill. Is that a crazy bill or what?

A puku in Chobe National Park. The only place we saw puku.

A puku, I believe. It looks like the lechwe but doesn’t have black on the front legs. They aren’t widely distributed, so this is a rare find, I’m told . . .

Impala pals share the shade.

. . . unlike impalas, which seem to be everywhere in great numbers.

“Take my picture.”
“No, mine.”
“How ’bout mine?”

I think it can be hard to get attention when you’re an impala. Not a bad thing if the attention is coming from, say, a lion. Impalas are pretty, and I’m always happy to see them.

Chitchat giraffe. I find the white ears interesting.

“You know you want to take my picture. You think I’m strange and beautiful.”

Reaching giraffe.

Yes, I think giraffes are strange and beautiful. And they lend themselves to some interesting shots.

Giraffe back. “Will you unzip me, please? It’s hot, and I need to get out of this coat.”

Then there’s the lovely patterned hide that zips up the back.

Giraffe hide. Yes, on the giraffe.

I wonder how many yards of this a giraffe needs to make a coat.

Now we are out of Botswana and into Namibia.