"Safari", Lionesses Everywhere!

Chapter 39: The Incredible "I Can't Believe It" Sighting

Chronicler's Note:
Before we get to the next few lines, I would like to point out that Safari truly feels and sees herself as a lioness, with all her heart and soul. So please forgive her if she naturally takes the side of her lioness sisters and uses what I shall diplomatically call... rather drastic language.
The words and opinions expressed below do not reflect the views of the chronicler. Rather, Safari forced me to record the following events exactly as she ordered me to do.

Safari: "What did you just say? Did I hear that correctly? You're NOT on Livi's, Amy's and my side?! That's HIGH TREASON against the Crown!!!"

Where were we? Oh yes...

---

Safari and Private Photographer together:

"!!!!! I - CAN'T - BELIEVE - IT !!!!!!"

Private Photographer: "A LEOPARD!"

Safari: "A LEOPARDESS!"

Private Photographer: "How can you possibly know that quickly that the leopard is a she and your leopardess not a he?"

Safari: "You can tell by her figure! Now take photos! Nobody back home will believe us otherwise!"

I think it is more than understandable that neither I nor my Private Photographer had expected a leopardess, of all things.

And look at the way she strutted through the valley!
As if she were the Queen of the Kalahari!

What an outrage!!!

My fur is standing on end!

Oh, I know exactly what game you're playing here, kitty!
You think you're going to steal the show from my sisters, do you?!

Something along the lines of:
"Look at me, everyone! Here comes the main attraction!"

But not on our watch!

You are going to regret this sooooo much, you incredible, invisible and imperator-like impostor!!

Safari: "You'd better watch out, my dear, or you might lose a few of those points in a moment!"

Private Photographer: "They're rosettes. When are you finally going to learn that? And please stop whacking me with your tail all the time!"

Safari: 
"Are you completely missing the point?! I'm about to hunt this leopardess down with my two sisters!"

"So if you have a problem with my tail, take it up with my tail! And now SHUSH! And stop distracting me!"

"You'd better concentrate on what I brought you along for!"

Private Photographer's Camera: *Click*

Still completely unaware that she had just been targeted by three lionesses, the leopardess padded purposefully towards the waterhole. Straight towards the trap my sister "Livi" had laid for her...
And while pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty's pulse was probably still nice and relaxed, my heart was pounding so hard I could practically hear it in my head! Saying I was at 180 would be the understatement of the century.

Private Photographer's Camera: *Click*

Safari: "Come just a little closer, and you're about to get the golden surprise of your life!"

Private Photographer's Camera: *Click*

Safari: "Get ready! Livi is soon going to cause some demolishments!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Livi has launched the attack!!!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "She's picking up speed!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "WHAT?! YOU'RE COMING FOR ME, LITTLE KITTY?!!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "COME ON THEN! COME AND I'LL SHOW YOU THAT I'M ARMED AT ALL FIVE ENDS TOO!!!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Go, Livi! Go! One more leap and you catch her!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "TO THE LEFT! She's veering left!!!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Stay on her heels, Livi!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Amy! Jump in!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Cut her off!"

Private Photographer's Camera:  *Click*

Safari: "Blast! That stupid car! I can't see her any more! Where is she gone???"

Private Photographer's Camera: *Click*

Safari: "NO!!! That little speedster has copied the birds!"

Which meant that the leopardess had climbed right to the very top of a tree, all the way up to where normally only birds dared to perch on the thin branches. And although the hunt had unfortunately ended in failure, I couldn't blame my sisters. They had truly given it everything they had to catch the leopardess. But that pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty was a fast one too.

Even so, we had shown that pussycat who the true queens of the Kalahari were!

Namely the mighty "Amy"...

... the athletic "Livi"...

... and the very first Namib Desert Lion Queen of Sossusvlei and Sesriem!

Chapter 40: Reluctant Heroine

While everyone's pulse was slowly returning to normal, "Livi" had one brilliantly mean idea left. Although the leopardess had escaped her paws, she still had a secret weapon to show the tree-climbing kitty who was really the boss around here.

Private Photographer: "What is that lioness doing? Why is she sitting like that?"

Safari: "She's bullying."

Private Photographer: "She's WHAT?!"

Safari: "'Livi' is bullying the leopardess, who's trapped up in the tree above her."

Private Photographer: "Huh? I don't understand."

Safari: "That's probably for the best. You'd need a nose like 'Livi' or me to understand it anyway."

With my two lioness sisters now resting in the shade and the leopardess stranded high up in her tree, we had reached a bit of a stalemate. We couldn't get up to her and she couldn't come down without having to pass us again. So we had plenty of time to analyse the hunt using the photos my Private Photographer had taken.

Safari: "Let me see your photos. I sincerely hope they turned out well!"

Private Photographer: "Well... unfortunately, not all of them did. But there should be a few good ones among them."

*Private Photographer switches his camera back to the first picture*

Private Photographer: "Here's the first photo, before the hunt started."

Safari: "Yes, look how relaxed she still is. The wannabe Queen of the Kalahari had absolutely no idea yet that, at that very moment, not only a few park visitors but three lionesses already had her in their sights!"

Private Photographer: "Three lionesses? You're counting yourself, are you?!"

Safari: "Of course! I was part of it! Now show me the next picture!"

Safari: "Oh! Very nice! You can really see what a fright 'Livi' gave her with that attack! And look at the direction the leopardess sprinted off in when she first panicked. That was definitely 'Livi's strategy to drive her towards me!"

Safari: "Hmm... ears back, pupils narrowed... I'd say the adrenaline is starting to kick in now. Wouldn't surprise me if she messed herself too."

Private Photographer: "I think that would happen to anyone at that moment if a 150 kg battle-cat monster came charging straight at them..."

Safari: "See! I told you there'd soon be some demolishments! Grass demolishments, of course."

Safari: "Oh yes! That was exactly the moment she looked me in the eyes and realised she was running straight towards me!"

Private Photographer: "What was that you said? You were armed at five ends? Were you planning to cuddle her to death with your plush paws or something?"

Safari: "A confident appearance is all that matters! Just look at her face! Pure panic! That means she believed me! And that's all that counts!"

Private Photographer: "I think she was more frightened of the enormous lioness chasing her from behind. Have a look at the next picture!"

Safari: "Yes, 'Livi' nearly had that pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty!"

Safari: "What's that saying you humans have about running for your life? Taking your feet into your hands? So in her case, taking her paws into her paws... or something like that..."

Safari: "Wow! Look at these pictures!"

Safari: "Look at her and remember the determination and strength that every lioness carries within her!"

Safari: "Simply magnificent, the way 'Livi' launches herself and flies across the ground!"

"It's a shame we don't have a video of it."

*Private Photographer looks at Safari in disbelief*

Private Photographer: "Maybe we do! If the ignition was on... Yes, it was!"

Safari: "What? You mean we have the whole hunt on the dashcam?"

Private Photographer: "Yes! We do!"

*Private Photographer watches the dashcam video on the tiny screen*

(Link to dashcam video)

Private Photographer: "Safari? Are you absolutely sure that you were part of the hunting party and blocked the leopardess's path and made her turn left?"

Safari: "Yes. Why do you ask?"

Private Photographer: "Because I've just noticed something rather interesting..."

Safari: "And what would that be?"

*Private Photographer rewinds and watches the video once more*

Private Photographer: "Well... I know you'd never admit to something like this... ...but with your little intervention, you actually saved the leopardess's life!"

Safari: "WHAT?!"

Private Photographer: "You really did! Because if the leopardess had stayed on her course towards our car, she would have run straight into the other lioness's paws."

Safari: "She would have run into Amy's paws? And I prevented that? That can't be! SHOW ME!"

*Safari watches the dashcam video*

Safari: "You're right..."

"...I'd never admit to something like that!"

Chapter 41: As Ordered! One Leopard in a Tree, Please!

Now that we had officially established that I had indeed been part of the hunt, but had ultimately and unintentionally foiled Livi's brilliant plan, we could turn our attention to finding the leopardess. So we drove up to the other vehicle right in front of us, where a young German couple were. Just like us, they were barely able to believe their luck at this once-in-a-lifetime sighting. With a certain amount of pride, my Private Photographer showed them his sensational photo of "Livi" chasing the leopardess, before we politely asked where exactly the leopardess had disappeared to. I had already expected the answer "right at the top of the tree". The only problem was: which tree? That pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty was ridiculously well camouflaged against the foliage.

The view from up there must have been excellent, but comfortable it certainly wasn't. Every now and then she very carefully climbed a little further down, trying to find a better footing on the thicker branches.

After about fifteen minutes, she had finally worked her way down, branch by branch, to about halfway up the tree.

Safari: "There you are, Mr Animal Photographer. One leopard in a tree, exactly as requested."

Private Photographer: "I still can't believe it! Incredible! Absolutely incredible!"

Once she had reached halfway down, the pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty cautiously checked the ground around her first.

I think what she spotted down there was something I rather liked, but she most definitely didn't, because Sister "Livi" and Sister "Amy" were only a couple of lion's leaps away from her tree. This realisation even made the leopardess climb back up a little way for safety, into the cover of the leaves, where she was practically invisible from then on.

While my two soul-sisters had all the time in the world to wait, we were unfortunately running steadily out of time. After all, we still had 325 km and a border crossing ahead of us. So we took one final farewell photo before setting off.

We didn't get very far at first, though, because a sizeable queue of vehicles had formed around the big-cat sighting, and we had to squeeze our way past it. This gave us another opportunity to tell people about this truly extraordinary sighting and show them our sensational "Livi hunt photo". But the best part was that, without exception, everyone had seen my sisters but not the leopardess! This was another case where being a communicative park visitor really paid off. Only by exchanging information could we explain exactly which treetop they needed to search for the perfectly camouflaged pretty-rosetty-pussy-kitty.

Eventually, though, we had to clear the way for the impatient vehicle behind us and carry on.

Our next stop was the picnic site at "Kamqua", where we stopped for a quick bladder-pressure-relief break and pointed out to some of the park visitors having breakfast that, at the next waterhole, two lionesses were holding a leopardess captive in a tree. I don't think I've ever seen anyone pack up quite so quickly. =^.^=

But all the other park visitors we passed on the way to "Mata Mata" were equally grateful when we told them about our incredible sighting. And the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park simply wouldn't be the KTP if there wasn't one last bit of feathered wildlife before we left! Somewhere around "Dalkeith", another tourist pointed out these fellows to us.

(Spotted Eagle-Owl)

This time it was a... I'm giving up! An eagle, perhaps? Or a spotted owl? Whatever. A bird with feathers, anyway!

Just before noon, we reached Mata Mata Camp. There, at the final gate, I even got to demonstrate my climbing skills once more. =^.^=

After a quick look around the shop and a stop at the petrol station, we decided to make one final detour to the waterhole. There we had our next incredible encounter!

My hunt for the leopardess had already become the talk of the park! A woman at the campsite immediately recognised me and asked whether I could tell her friends about this once-in-a-lifetime experience first-paw. Well, would you believe it! I had actually become a little bit famous!

Yes, now you are looking! You feathered little... African Yellow-billed Egrets!

Even though we were actually in a hurry, we obviously had to make time for a little story and a few photos.

But then it was finally time to say goodbye.

Goodbye, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park! Your royal welcome has deeply honoured the first Namib Desert Lion Queen of Sossusvlei and Sesriem!

Re-entering Namibia was actually quite straightforward. Fill in the passport number here, enter the vehicle registration there, answer the questions about names and gender, and the paperwork was done. And, just like everyone else, our shoes and the tyres of our Toyota had to be disinfected. Luckily, my paws were spared the ordeal, because there was no way I was voluntarily dipping them into that vile stuff!

Chapter 42: Safari, the Queen

Back in the homeland of my heart, we now had a longer drive ahead of us to our next lodge. And still brimming with all the wonderful experiences we'd had, I was once again full of energy! Yes, I could quite happily have ROARED again, just for the sheer joy of it!

ROARING!
There was a solution to that!

Safari:
"Chauffeur!"

"Play my song!"

"Play 'The Roar of the Lionesses'!"

Private Chauffeur: "Oh no! Not again! You can't do this to me! We've got three and a half hours of driving ahead of us!"

Safari: "Oh yes I can! I am a queen, after all! And besides, you still owe me for the leopard I chased up that tree for you."

---

---

The drive along the perfectly prepared C15 felt as though we were floating on clouds. And although the previous drive past the "Kalahari Game Lodge" and "Farm Tranendal" with its "Red Dune Campsite" had made it quite clear to me that we were now well and truly on our way back, I was floating on clouds of happiness all the same. If someone had told me just four days ago that I would chase a leopardess up a tree together with two of my sisters, I would have thought they were completely mad. But since that was exactly what had happened that morning, I roared... I mean... sang my song with all the more gusto!

And so the afternoon hours passed without me really noticing, taking us past "Gochas" and along the C18 until just before "Witbooisvlei". There, I was allowed to add yet another animal road sign to my collection. :)

We continued along the M29 towards "Mariental", and after another half hour's drive, we reached our final accommodation of the trip at 16:45.

The "Lapa Lange" lodge had been recommended to us by our travel agent, "Steffi". One advantage was that the lodge had proper accommodation, just as my Private Tour Guide had requested for our final night, and on top of that it was also conveniently situated between "Windhoek" and the KTP. And another advantage was that you could book activities here, such as the "Bushman Walk".

Almost like at a guest farm, we were first greeted by the lovely lodge dog, wagging her tail enthusiastically, before "Luisa" gave us a warm welcome at reception. And as quickly became apparent, we were once again the only guests! It certainly made one feel like a queen with her very own court again!
So it was absolutely no problem for my half-starved Private Chauffeur to order a toasted sandwich and take a refreshing dip in the pool. And all of this sourrounded by greenery that, to my eyes, was far too green to belong here.

I, on the other paw, first cooled down a little by having a sleepy snooze in our room, before settling down on our private terrace to admire the lake and guard our laundry.

And while I was doing so, I even discovered another bird which, once again, I was unable to identify.

Right at sunset, my Private Tour Guide and I arrived for dinner. And "Luisa" actually gave us the choice of whether we'd like to try some game meat or have a classic chicken dish instead.
A very broad grin from me, with just the briefest flash of my sharp little fangs, made it abundantly clear that this question had actually been quite unnecessary. =^.^=

That little joke turned out to be the perfect icebreaker for getting "Luisa" interested in my photobook and lending it to her as some bedtime reading. We even briefly discussed leaving my 2024 photobook behind for the lodge's little souvenir shop at cost price. Unfortunately, though, unique books produced in Europe are simply far too expensive here in Namibia.

The dinner itself was just as delicious as everywhere else in Namibia. At least apart from the game-meat steak. Presumably, the chef had decided that a tough desert lioness would naturally appreciate an equally tough steak.

Absolutely stuffed, we practically rolled across the green lawn back to our room. And while I was already making myself comfortable and spreading out over my side of the bed, my Private Tour Guide used the other half to sort through our travel belongings. In other words, our travel bag was packed and prepared for tomorrow's flight home.

Somehow, this already gave me a little case of "homesickness"...

Tomorrow, the journey would come to an end. But at least tonight, my heart still belonged entirely to Namibia.

Chapter 43: When a Hunter Visits Hunters, the Hunter Gets Hunted!
(Tuesday, 24.03.2026)

I don't think there could have been a better sign of a restful night's sleep, as we actually stayed in bed until almost sunrise. And since my Private Tour Guide had already prepared everything for today the previous evening, there wasn't really much left for us to do. In other words, I didn't have to do anything at all, while my Private Photographer only had to freshen up, get dressed and get his camera ready.

As arranged with "Luisa" the evening before, we were at the reception of the Lapa Lange Lodge at 7:00 sharp, where our guide "Martin" was already waiting for us. My Private Tour Guide had booked a "Bushman Walk" for us that morning through Steffi from Namibia Click and Travel.

We set off on foot from the lodge into the bush, where, after a distance of roughly one or two cheetah sprints, three men from the San people were already waiting for us in front of their "bush television".

As former competitors for wild game and food, the three of them were probably a little puzzled at first to find not just a tourist, but a lioness visiting them as well. And the language barrier, which could only be overcome with the help of our guide "Martin", didn't exactly help us become best friends straight away either.

What you could immediately tell, though, was that these three San were professionals at what they did. Not only did they know all the things you could do with a termite mound, they also knew how to read the bush newspaper like experts. Unlike my Private Photographer, who, even after the animal matching the tracks had been acted out in mime, managed to get it completely wrong more than once. Although I must admit that, as a hunter equipped with sensible senses of sight, hearing and smell, even I wouldn't necessarily have recognised every animal track straight away.

After the animal-track reading, fire-making was next on the tour programme. Here, too, the three San were well prepared and had already collected all sorts of things that could be burned, such as small twigs and dried dung. Getting the fire going with the fire drill, however, was real men's work, and when asked, my Private Photographer was even allowed to have a go himself. Not only because of his clumsiness, I preferred to keep a slightly safer distance, as I didn't want to tempt fate and end up with a few singed patches in my fur.

At the end of the tour, we had the opportunity to give away the handmade bracelet belonging to my Private Tour Guide's daughter and buy one of the San's handmade bracelets for her in return. If you like, take a closer look at the following photo and have a guess which bracelet belongs to his daughter. It shouldn't be quite as difficult to spot as to find me it in the Quiver Tree Forest. =^.^=

After about an hour, we walked back to the lodge, where "Luisa" was already expecting us for breakfast. The previous evening and again that morning, she had happily looked through our photobook from our 2024 Namibia trip, while at the same time being a little sad that she hadn't had enough time to read my travel report in it as well. When my Private Photographer then offered her to give her a digital copy of the travel report, she gave him such a joyful hug that it would have done a lioness proud. =^.^=

After breakfast and a little rest in our room, we headed back to reception. Once again, "Martin" was waiting for us and took us to one of those typical tourist game-viewing Land Cruisers. We were actually supposed to take our seats on one of the open benches at the back. But my Private Photographer felt a little too alone and too high up there, so he asked whether we could sit in the passenger seat instead. That was no problem for "Martin", of course, and it was actually much better anyway, as we could now chat to him during the drive about what was about to happen.

The "Cheetah Encounter" offered by the Lapa Lange Lodge essentially consists of driving into the cheetahs' large enclosure and then watching and photographing them from the vehicle while they are being fed. And to be honest, that was pretty much all we had expected from this activity.

But our guide had very different ideas...

But first things first.

When we drove into the enclosure, the two cheetahs had already been given their food and were busy tucking into their meals.

As "Martin" explained, the two cheetahs were siblings. First there was "Malo", the female cheetah, nibbling away at her tasty morsel in the sunshine, right behind the fence.

And then there was "Chucky", who preferred to enjoy his meal in the shade of a bush.

After "Martin" had got out and checked the mood of his two charges, he and my Private Photographer agreed that "Martin" should take a few shots with the second camera as well.

Like this one of "Malo", for example.

She was so relaxed after her meal that she simply got up and went to lie down in the shade next to her brother "Chucky", who was still eating.

That was exactly the opportunity the Chanting Goshawk, which had been sitting on the fence all along, had been waiting for!

We really should have left it at that. But "Martin" hadn't forgotten about me in the vehicle and came up with the brilliant idea of introducing me to his two charges as well...

...and that was NOT A GOOD IDEA!

I am more than happy to certify that our guide knows how to handle cheetahs. But when it came to handling plush lionesses with the dignity they deserve, he hadn't got the faintest idea!

That is NOT how you carry a lion queen!

Safari:
"And you, Chucky! Stop staring at me like that immediately!"

"I am a lioness! Not a cat toy!"

And then came the moment when I wished I were a real, proper lioness. Because that wicked cheetah tom actually dared to BITE ME IN THE TAIL!

Safari:
"OW!"
"LET GO!"
"Or...
...I'll get my SISTERS!!!"

Luckily for me, "Martin" managed to free me from "Chucky's" grip and safely carry me back to the vehicle.

Even so, I had had the fright of my life!

And it was only thanks to my Private Photographer, who gently stroked and comforted me, that I was able to recover very slowly.

So my intuition had been absolutely right about those three cheetahs back in the KTP! Firstly, spots don't suit me. And secondly, I am simply not compatible with cheetah toms. But does anyone ever listen to me? Of course not!

Chapter 44: Namibia Is Crying!

Well, then it was time to say goodbye to our final accommodation. And with our flight home later that evening, we set off fairly early.

First, we took the M29 to Mariental, where I spotted another "Hungry Lion" burger restaurant.

But since it was only our Hilux that was hungry for some diesel, we simply drove around the corner to the next petrol station. And that was also the perfect place to increase the tyre pressure back to 2.0 bar for the tar road.

From Mariental, we then headed north, following the B1 and those funny-looking radio towers all the way.

And the further north we travelled, the more threatening that enormous storm cloud ahead of us became.

Until, just before Rehoboth, it was finally raining so many wild dogs and big cats that the rainwater even flooded the road in one place!

You could almost have thought that the whole of Namibia was mourning the fact that the first Namib Desert lion queen of Sossusvlei and Sesriem had to leave the country...

In Rehoboth, we stopped at a petrol station and bought an original "Schnitzelbrötchen" for lunch. That was rather amusing too, because my Private Chauffeur was the only person in the shop who could pronounce the word correctly. =^.^=

But with the next big downpour already approaching, we had to drive another 40 km or so before we finally had enough distance from the wandering rain clouds to stop for a break.

As we eventually approached Windhoek, everything suddenly went a little haywire. We had actually intended to go to the car wash at the Eros Centre, next to Joe's Bierhaus, just as we had done last time. But then my Private Chauffeur missed the motorway slip road and had to turn around before the police checkpoint. And then, assuming he was already on the A1, he took the wrong lane on the approach road, which sent him towards the airport instead. Slightly frustrated by this string of mishaps, he simply took the next exit and decided to take the longer route through the city. Yes, and then he spotted the Shell station next to the motorway by the Truckport and drove in there.

We needed to fill up the tank anyway. And a quick phone call to "Safari Car Rental" soon established that we didn't need to wash the car after all. The mighty rain on the way here had already done an excellent job of that.

With nothing else left on our pre-return to-do list, we could therefore completely avoid driving through Windhoek and headed straight to "Safari Car Rental" on the B6.

We arrived there shortly after 14:30, after covering 3661 km, and were immediately greeted by Rike. My Private Chauffeur promptly started telling her about the incredible sighting of the hunting lioness in the Dead Vlei, hoping to gain another Believer for my collection. But Top Lioness Rike immediately smelt a rat and realised that I had probably had my little paws involved in the whole affair. And "Pro", who had handed us the Hilux 15 days earlier, recognised me instantly on the camera screen as well. Only another colleague who had been called over simply accepted the photographic evidence of the hunting lioness in the Dead Vlei as a fact. Even though I was sitting right under his nose! =^.^=

With no damage or other problems, returning the car was merely a formality. And just as on our last trip, I wanted to put off the shuttle ride to the airport for as long as possible and enjoy the fresh air quietly under the awning instead. I was even so peaceful that I received one last feathered visitor. And it was...
...hang on..., what's your name in German?

"Königswitwe"?!! A king's widow?!! Seriously?!

I hope this isn't some ominous sign of my premature dethroning or anything.

(Shaft-tailed Whydah)

But eventually Rike's staff wanted to finish work for the day too, so, far too early for my liking, we had to be taken to the airport. At least I was allowed to sit in the front again.

At around 16:30, we arrived at "Hosea Kutako Airport" and spent some time on the more pleasant, air-conditioning-free forecourt, watching the people coming and going. Although I have a feeling that the people there were watching me just as closely in return...

Until my Private Tour Guide had the idea of checking in our main luggage a little early. In hindsight, that turned out to be a very good idea, as our main luggage weighed a proud 23.9 kg, making it 400 g too heavy, despite him having already left his old leather shoes behind at "Safari Car Rental" as a donation. Someone had clearly bought a few too many souvenirs...

But the scales were merciless, so another camera lens had to be moved from the suitcase into my backpack, which took some time with the already fully utilised storage space down to the very last cubic centimetre. Stressed out by all this, we completely forgot our original plan and went straight through security to the gate. =-.-=

There we stood at the almost overcrowded gate, wondering how we were going to spend the next two hours, when an elderly lady noticed me. Her name was "Christiane", and I liked her immediately! Even though I didn't understand a single word of her native language, because she was from France! We chatted about all sorts of things, and she clearly enjoyed leafing through my Namibia photobook and remembering her own travel experiences through the pictures. She would even have bought the book straight out of my paws for her granddaughter, if it hadn't been so expensive. And the kudu carcass shown in it might perhaps not have been quite the right thing for a particularly sensitive granddaughter.

So in the end, the two hours passed in a flash, which unfortunately couldn't be said about the actual flight that followed. With the same choice of seats as on the outbound flight, my Private Tour Guide was rather unlucky this time. Because sitting in his row of three were quite possibly the three biggest and strongest men in the entire Economy Class. In the end, even I had more room in the overhead locker with my hand luggage!

And then there was the evil air conditioning! It was set so cold that my Private Tour Guide eventually even put on his winter coat!

Having had no sleep at all, we arrived in Frankfurt at 5:40 the next day, relatively punctually, and were relieved to be able to stretch out and move around again. Routinely, we collected our travel bag, walked through customs without being checked, and then, one subway station later, found ourselves standing next to our car again, exactly where our journey had begun two weeks earlier.

I can tell you, I had never felt so completely out of place anywhere before!

But the very worst thing was...

... SNOW!