The Mauning after

The next morning it was a one and a half hour mokoro ride back out of the delta to the riverside village many of our polers were from. We were invited to have a walk through their village and it was nice to see where they'd lived their whole lives.

When we were there I found the most beautiful little puppy. He had gentle eyes and softest demeanor and was the biggest snuggle pot ever. I absolutely adored him and walked through the village cuddling the little guy. I was upset when a villager offered to sell it to me for 10 Pula... An elephant hair bangle I bought cost me 20. Goes to show once again the value they place on man's best friend.

We were walking back to our boat and I was still reeling about the puppy, when a woman tried to get the girl I was with to take her baby home with her. She replied with a quick "it's too cold in Canada" but there was much discussion about it later. Selfish or selfless?

We took our motorboat back to a riverside campsite called Island Safari Lodge in Maun. That stretch of the river is a conservation area so the wildlife was thriving. At night the cry of the insects on the river was so loud it was like a high pitched opera.

On my way back to my tent I was attacked by a group of monkeys. They were trying to get into our tents so I tried to shoo them away. Suddenly I found myself surrounded by monkeys all lungeing at me. I pretended to run at them and they stood their ground, till a big alpha male in the group came forward. He climbed up the tree beside me and bared his teeth. So I threw the bottle of water I had all over him. He flinched for a moment but then crouched down, ready to jump on me. At that moment some men who worked there came running with rocks which they pelted at them, and that finally scared them away. It was a scary confrontation and I was happy I'd spent $300 on rabies shots back home.

To truly appreciate the scale of the Okavango Delta we took a 40 minute scenic flight from Maun. Even in that time we only scratched the surface of it's size and it was awestriking to see just how much water there is. The density of the reeds makes it almost seem like you are looking over vast fields of grass, except that you can see perfectly white clouds and blue sky reflected in them.

The eagles eye view also let us see the huge amount of animals living on the delta. We went in the late afternoon when they wouldn't be seeking shelter from the heat of the day under the trees, which would make them much harder to spot. When it starts to cool down they start to head to the water, and that's when the action happens. We saw herds of elephant 50 strong frolicking in the water, huge pods of hippos rolling in the pools and caravans of giraffe casually strolling tree to tree.

The Okavango Delta truly is heaven on earth. The polers sang a poignant and perfect song as we left "I will never forget... Beautiful Botswana", and nothing could be more true. For the rest of my days I'll remember Beautiful Botswana as my happy place.

That and cuddling my Harvey Bear. Give the little guy a scratch under the chin for me!

Xxx