There is a first time for everything…Africa

There is a first time for everything, like my safari with Tanja. We went to Samburu National Reserve in Kenya to work on our new book. On my first night in the bush, being brought to my tent by a Samburu warrior, I had my first encounter with an elephant. On my porch, only 10 meters from my bed, stood a big bull elephant. Pretty special if you take into account that we are researching elephants and their behavior. This is how I became friends with an elephant named Edison. Every morning at sunrise we hopped into our jeep and welcomed the first rays of sunlight. After a few hours of driving, observing, writing and taking pictures, we had breakfast on the hood of the jeep. At lunchtime we downloaded our pictures in the camp. After tea we would leave for the second part of the day being another game drive, yet in a different setting, the evening light. At sundown we drove back to the Elephant Watch Camp to wash of the african dust under a bucket shower, with water warmed by the sun during the day. We enjoyed delicious meals under the clear sky at the Ewaso riverside. Sitting at the campfire we talked about possible plots, names and which “catch of the day” should be taken into the new adventure of Tata&Squack: the beauty of the leopard, the colorful bee-eater, the acacia trees with their hanging weaver nests. I was especially taken by the beautiful light of Africa, surprised that a dry savannah could have such a range of extraordinary colors, radiating silver, summer gold, purple-brown and lush green. I enjoyed the elegance of the animals in movement and color. No animal is coarse even the elephant you do not hear approach, they walk silently. Safari means journey and a journey it was. Africa touches the soul, it brings you back to your inner being, back to nature itself.