day 30, Botswana, Africa

Wow, it's our 30th day together..and we have arrived in Botswana where we are going to take a makoro safari in the Okavango Delta

The Okavango Delta is the largest freshwater wetland in Africa; in Botswana's arid and unforgiving bush it's an oasis where you'll find one of the greatest concentrations of wildlife in Africa - and the beauty is that it is basically a year-round destination for safaris

Marti looks at me ?? Makoro??
Well, it is a type of canoe traditionally made by digging out the trunk of a large straight tree, such as an ebony tree or Kigelia tree. Modern makoros, however, are increasingly made of fibre-glass. Our guide warns us that the boats are very vulnerable to attack by hippopotamus, which can overturn them with ease.

Hippopotamus are reputed to have developed this behaviour after the use of makoros and other boats for hunting. Oh, no I don't want to fall into the swamp and be eaten by a crocodile:-((

A blend of tranquillity and activity, the Okavango Delta is perhaps a last glimpse of an older Africa, an unsullied, wild place of land and water...

Next stop :Chobe National Park, in northwest Botswana, which has one of the largest game concentration in Africa continent.

The Chobe River, which flows along the North eastern border of the park, is a drinking spot for elephants and buffaloes at dry season.

Sita, did you know that this park is probably best known for its spectacular elephant population: 50,000 elephants today, it is actually the highest elephant concentration of Africa. Moreover, most of them are probably part of the largest continuous surviving elephant population on Earth.

Elephants living here are Kalahari elephants, the largest in size of all known elephant populations. Yet they are characterized by rather brittle ivory and short tusks, perhaps due to calcium deficiency in the soils.

Damage caused by the high numbers of elephants is rife in some areas. In fact, concentration is so high throughout Chobe that culls have been considered, but are too controversial and have thus far been rejected. At dry season, these elephants sojourn in Chobe River and the Linyanti River areas. At rain season, they make a 200-km migration to the southeast stretch of the park. Their distribution zone however outreaches the park and spreads to north western Zimbabwe.
I wonder what else we will see today.....

Nopi spots a pair of meerkats

and then a warthog

No guesses for what song we ended our Botswana tour on!!

After yet another awesome, unique safari experience, we are heading to our luxury lodge.

Every single one of us is a HUGE MJ fan, so hopefully we will find a television or computer and join millions around the world to bid an emotional farewell to the greatest showman of our times.....the King of POP

Goodbye Michael Jackson, may your tortured soul finally rest in peace...

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