Today we woke up at 5:00 AM because we were going to go to Kruger National Park. We had to leave early in the morning because it was such a long drive. I do not know precisely how long it was, but I am guessing 2 hours. The car we were riding in was like the car we used to go on safaris, except it had a roof and sides. You could take off the sides, but only the left side had a door. I chose the side of the door, so I could quickly get out and control the door (I later may regret this decision). We had to bring a lot of warm layers because though it may be scorching during the day; it is freezing at night. I got my stuffed elephant, Baby, because I was told there were many elephants where we were going. KB sat next to me, and we sat in the very back. A little later in the drive, I and KB made a makeshift car seat for Baby out of a backpack and some blankets. The first animal we saw was a rhino, but the park rangers had cut off the horn so poachers would not take it. We then saw some zebra, but we have seen many of those, so they were not as exciting. We then went to a river-like thing where some hippos were in the lake, and one crocodile lay on the bank. We looked through the binoculars but did not get any photos because they were too far away. We then came up to a spot where we stopped and had breakfast. There were birds always trying to steal our food. I got some coffee and put it into my mug. After that, we came up to a spot where people were saying there was a lion, but we were not seeing it. After scanning the grass, we finally spotted it lying under a tree, napping. We drove on for a bit and soon found a spot where lions were lying under a tree. After looking through the binoculars immensely, we saw that there were eight female lions, 4 lion cubs, and a big male.
Today we woke up at 5:00 AM because we went to an elephant orphanage and rehabilitation center. We had to wake up early because it was a long drive, and we had to be there by 6:00 AM. We all got ready in warm stuff and piled into the minibus. Lucky was taking us like he always does. My mom realized it was not as far away as she thought so we would have extra time. We decided to stop at a cute little town with some shops and look around. We went to a photography shop, but what was inside was not related to photos. My dad got some binoculars from that shop, and then we finished the drive there. When we got there, all the elephants were grazing, and my parents signed some papers. I went into the shop. There were so many cool things in there. I found a little stuffed elephant that I loved and got. I also got a baseball cap and a T-shirt that both had elephants on them. We all went outside and followed the guide, who took us to sing and told us the history of the place and the elephants. They would bring out three elephants, and we would trade out feeding them. The first elephant we visited was named Somapani, who was 35 years old. He was a boy. We provided him mainly with some pellet treats. He would put his trunk up like a cup, and we would put the treats in, and then he would blow them into his mouth. I got a lot of good photos of the elephant and with him. I got lots of elephant snot all over me. I had two apples in my bag, and Somapani could smell them. I eventually gave him one, then the other. We then moved to our left to the next elephant. We had oranges and hay to feed him. He had been in a movie, and he was the oldest one. I did not like this one as much as I had liked the last one, because there were a lot more rules with him. We moved on to the next elephant. This one was the youngest and my favorite. He was very entertaining and tried to unzip my backpack to get a marshmallow at the bottom. Once we were done with the elephants, we returned to the shop, and I got a bracelet. That was one of the best wildlife centers I have ever gone to. On the ride back, I edited all of my photos of the elephants to pass the time. We walked in and said hi to Charline. I showed her some of the photos I took.