There aren’t many places in the world where you can get up close and personal with penguins. Boulders Beach, about an hours drive from Cape Town, looks like a convention of comical little men in tuxedos, waddling along the white sandy beach. No visit to Cape Town is complete without a cable-car ride to the top of Table Mountain, to see the majestic views from its 3,500-foot peak. In the distance, beneath a cloudless blue sky we could see Robben Island, which stands as a reminder of the darkest cloud hanging over South Africa’s unforgiving past—Apartheid. This is where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years along with hundreds of other political activists. “South Africa is a unique country,” notes Marco Van Embden. “You can come here and have an amazing urban holiday and within a two hour flight in the same country, you can see the Big 5: lion, buffalo, elephant, rhino and leopard, in multiple ways.” We had no idea of the adventure that awaited us as we boarded a South African Airways flight across the country to the first of three safari lodges that would be our gateway into the very soul of Africa. “& Beyond” is one of the top operators of lodges in the country. The luxurious Ngala Safari lodge, a resort consisting of 21 individual cottages, borders Kruger National Park... 37,000 acres of the richest wildlife land on the African continent. Our accommodations were air conditioned with all the modern-day comforts of home, plus our personal butler. The sound of the stirring bush and the chirp of our alarm clock awakened us at 5 a.m. for our first game drive. After a cup of coffee 34 | OUR CITY, YOUR LIFE | APRIL 2016
and a muffin, our ranger guide, Dan Fenton escorted us to the safari vehicle, a reconfigured open Land Cruiser that seated six passengers. The front left fender was specially fitted with a seat for Sam, a veteran tracker who was going to lead us into the mysterious wonders of the African bush. It’s not long before Sam spots a paw print of a lion and he points, as Dan races ahead, kicking up dirt along the drought scorched road. The warble of a cape turtledove gets our attention as we spot a herd of impala huddled together. They, as we later learn, are ever so cautious because they are the favorite prey of the leopard. Our pulse quickens as a lion comes into our line of sight. There he is, as large as life, all 500 pounds of him sitting beside the dirt road, and then slowly walking past our vehicle, undisturbed by our presence just feet away. Judging by his size and dark mane, Dan determines this is a male lion about 8-years-old and very thirsty, heading in the direction of a watering hole. A hyena emerges from the thick brush. The lion takes a leap forward, and the hyena was out of there. We marvel at the way this king of beasts moves, his gait so deliberate and slow. “He’s marking his territory,” Dan notes, explaining, “He’s spraying his scent, to leave a message that this is his turf.” It is so serene, this untamed wilderness. There’s a steady rhythm here. The music of the birds contrasts the crunching sound of our vehicle cutting through the underbrush. There are surprises at every turn. “Look, a giraffe,” my wife exclaims excitedly. It’s long neck and head protrude from atop a Murula tree. Beside her stands a calf and nearby a journey of giraffe. It was amazing watching how