After six hours of driving, we finally reached Etosha National Park- Namibia's main claim to fame, and a huge wildlife refuge. The lodge we had booked, Halali, was in the middle of the park, about 70 km from the entrance. Both the park gates and hotel gates closed at sunset, 5:30. At 4, when we reached the park, we felt like we had made it. We only later realized that we would have to rush on gravel roads to get to Halali before sunset. This was our first experience with African wildlife, and it was a crazy mix of stressful rush to get to the hotel and awe of wildlife. Below is just a sample of the day's pictures...in chronological order, because the sights got better and better. The pictures aren't cropped, so you get a better idea of how close things were.
This was our first giraffe- I spotted it as we were driving, even before we got to Etosha. It must have been on a game farm. We turned around to see it again!
Wildebeest in the road in Etosha.
Springbok crossing the road! They would soon become commonplace to us, "Oh, it's just Springbok." but that night they were super cool- and the light hits them beautifully.
Giraffe! Just a sample, super far away from the road.
Giraffe (giraffes?) rising out of the ether.
There was a giraffe literally just outside my window!
Our first elephant!
The view got better...
Not the best picture, but by the time that I realized what I saw seeing, this zebra was just a few feet away from me.
Better zebra picture
This is your African sunset.
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