Day 14: Elephants and Departure
We are all sad to leave our South African home, but also looking forward to being back home. This morning was a 4:30 am departure so that we could visit the elephants at HERD before heading to the airport. HERD is an elephant orphanage where elephants are raised, rehabilitated, and roam free under the watchful care of their minders. They have the choice to come up to headquarters each morning for human interaction and hand feeding. And they eat early! Even the drive to Jabulani is gorgeous as the sun comes up. The colors and shadows in the sunrise are so recognizably African; I never feel as if I have seen enough. And this time, on our way, we encountered a lion stalking prey (probably impala) in the dawn light. We watched until she disappeared behind some brush, captivated by her size, stealth and grace. A bit further on, our way was blocked by a giraffe in the road. We arrived, had tea and learned about the project, then divided into 2 groups to interact with 3 different e...