Safari through the window, Part I
Last year when travel was still a thing, we spent four weeks riding through Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda, land of unbounded life and freedom.
The open land, dotted with the acacia trees, is home to tens of thousands of migrating wildebeests, snorting rhinos, sleepy prides of lions, and mischievous baboons. Humans the imposer are caged. Through the window of our vehicle, the "wild" life is just living their way of life, like what they have done for millions of years.
Hollywood movies and Instagram celebrities have conditioned the human brain to seek hyper active moments in foreign land. For many safari goers, the sighting of any big cats, lions and leopards, serves as such an adrenaline boost. A "chase" is when the predators pursue a fast fleeing gazelles, demonstrating their acceleration and athletic build. Even more pulse-grabbing, one in three chases results in a successful "kill". Eager safari vehicles approach the kill site for a closer look immediately after, scaring away the shy cats and presenting us a scene of bloody carcass. We ooh and ahh at this "Planet Earth moment", hands shaking like a group of 10 year-olds who just finished a roller-coaster ride in an amusement park.
But there is more to that. Facing life and death head-on is a part of the safari enlightenment. That the nature bares no cheer for a leopard or condolence over a dead gazelle reveals an emotionless state of being. It's the circle of life. It's THE way of life.
My favorite part of the safari is the slow rolling land where there is not a lot happening. Yet there IS a lot happening. Packs of zebras graze on the plane, then turn their behind to us at the sound of humming engines. A male ostrich extends its black and white wings, showing off its masculinity to court a female ostrich. Giraffes thread in and out of the tall bushes like fairies, hopping at times, with a sense of liveliness not seen in a zoo when they are caged. A lion and lioness nap in the open on their back, revealing their private parts with no shame. A young elephant, its pink skin giving out that it was born no more than a week or two ago, playfully bounces into its siblings who are a few years older, annoying the heck out of them. Baboons fight for everything: food, territory, mates, or simply, no reason.
99% of everyday life is plain on the surface. Yet when looking into the details, there is never a dull moment. The vast African land reminds me to live slow, and to live humble.
