The Circle of Life
The dawn of day 28 brought with it melancholy joy and a very small sense of relief to be heading home by early evening. Not that we wanted to ever leave Africa, but home is home and we all must return at some point. But that didn’t mean we couldn’t milk the shit out of one last day on the dark continent so we bounded out of bed, bags pre-packed late last night, to enjoy coffee and rusks one last time before you guessed it, our last Kruger safari.
You know the drill by now faithful reader so will spare unnecessary words, but there were two highlights well worth mentioning along with some slightly marvellous photos taken of now familiar animals we would like to pad out this last blog page with.
The White-backed Vulture
Through the course of the morning we came across two fabulous white-backed vultures stationed on high surveying the savannah floor for any rotting carcasses they adore. Like quintessential cartoon villains, they seemed to be discussing tactics or making fun of less uglier animals than they. Kruger also gave us a penultimate present. After yesterdays dual sighting of the painted dog, we had a much better encounter with three of them walking down the road clearly focused on the prey they were stalking. With the cruiser rolling slowly to keep up, we had issue trying to grab a decent shot and got the below images, but more so a fantastic opportunity to see this endangered species up close and personal.
With an all out last ditched effort of spotting a lion in Kruger, we revisited the riverbed of yesterdays sighting on the off chance of success. Animals are by nature somewhat territorial and Janine did fancy our chances. Taking the vehicle completely off road and right down the middle of the river bed, we stumbled upon the most gorgeous female leopard waiting diligently by a track entrance for an unsuspecting impala. Trying not to disturb her plans, we stopped gobsmacked at not only her beauty but her proximity, and with the absolute perfect morning sunlight took, we are not kidding, 350 photos of this magnificent creature.
Perhaps a little repetitive, the following are our favourites and how we would like to end our animal photos and the Kruger NP blog.
We scammed a late breakfast and farewell gin & tonic before bidding Hoyo Hoyo and her magnificent staff a fond goodbye. We still had a little more travelling ahead of us and a private air-conditioned car for the first 2 hour leg seemed a pleasant start. We were flying out of Skukuza Airport which on arrival screamed Africa louder than perhaps anything else we’d seen. Literally on the edge of Kruger Park, airstrip etched into its very terrain with only a 6ft chain link fence separating jets from the animals, sat what Forbes magazine named in 2018 “the prettiest airport in the world”. A small airport as you’d suspect, it was the open sided buildings topped by thatched roofs and opened beamed ceilings making this place uniquely special. It was more like an island lodge than an airport with little to no security a gentle nod to the African way of life. The departure lounge was closer to a country club with the lone food outlet offering the best airport cuisine we have ever had. So, with our feet sadly touching South African soil for the last time, from across the tarmac we boarded flight 4Z866 bound for Joburg.
With 12 flights stitching together the various parts of our odyssey, our last transfer was by far the smoothest. Alighting the small regional aircraft we collected our bags to enter an elevator literally 3 metres away to only exit again within 3 metres of the Qantas check-in counter. Boom. Next. After clearing customs we did a last minute shop then topped up on some fabulously relevant Okavango Gin and Amarula. Bidding Nelson a profound thank you and hearty goodbye, we found a quaint, if not horrendously expensive bar to wash away the last few hours before boarding QF64 for Sydney.
And just like that our month long African adventure was over. A few more drinks in flight and a screening of the angry-monkey-man movie would see out its last few hours while a hard drive slowly loaded over 40,000 photos taken by 10 cameras. We were pretty diligent in capturing this trip from top to bottom but possessed the editing discipline of a cocained baboon. That would become a Wednesday problem and why these blogs take so long to produce.
If you’ve read every word leading to these last few you know we loved every minute of this trip. And if you opened every picture you know we saw some amazing things along the way. But would we do it again? Absolutely. Having now taken on the dark continent we would naturally do some thing differently but that can be said on the return from any holiday or road trip. Africa is gargantuan with many things to see and do hidden in just about every corner of its 54 countries. There was no way we would see them all but as stated on our opening page, we gave it a red hot go. Perhaps we tried to do too much at times and perhaps some deeper research into flight routes and overall distances might have made things a little easier….then again, what fun would that have been.
If straddled with bottomless wallets and endless leave hours we could have spent months on the continent and included all the things we had to reluctantly cut from this itinerary, even adding northern Africa into the equation, but of course that will be another trip of its own in the not too distant future.
Africa is expensive. We knew that before even booking but travel rarely represents value for money and we openly selected some pricey land content and optional extras en route. The helicopters over the Okavango Delta and Victoria Falls, together with the Balloon Flight on the Serengeti alone added AUD4,000 to the overall bill. But that was our choice and one we’ll never complain about given the experiences they returned. However it can be done on the cheaper side if sourced correctly and on that we will never hesitate in recommending Intrepid Travel as a good starting point.
Africa is also geographically massive with more to see than is humanly possible in a single trip unless you’re a digital nomad, backpacking teenager or wife of some tech-bro billionaire, and our itinerary was structured to maximise opportunities in the limited time our normal lives could allow. Great sights and greater exploits are scattered over great distances in Africa and that will always mean lengthy road trips or airport hopscotch. As you’ve read there were some pretty full on travel days and in hindsight we might have changed that. An extra day or two between regions would have helped but for us meant idle time better spent elsewhere.
Animal lovers encounter Africa with the goal of sighting the Big Five. We’ve made numerous references to the idiom that includes the lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros, and cape buffalo. We saw all of them throughout our journey, ticking them from the list even before leaving Botswana. And within each of the other parks we managed at least 4 sightings with the rhino difficult to find given their endangered levels. The Ugly Five though is a list Fatpap preferred comprising the hyena, wildebeest, vulture, warthog, and marabou stork which we spotted in great numbers through all the regions visited making for some pretty funky photographs.
So whats it like visiting Africa? Well it’s kinda like coming home in a sense, and in truth as humans, exactly what it is. As the cradle of mankind one can almost feel that evolution in every sight and sound. In every tree and prehistoric land formation. Within the animals and the pockets of humans still existing the way their ancestors had for millennia. Out on the plains life embraces new meaning and watches and phones become an irrelevant inconvenience. Mother Africa chaperones her visitors through their discovery becoming the only therapist they’ll ever need.
Fatpap’s father spend a few years during his early 20’s in South Africa and growing up can remember stories of 1950’s Joburg that at the time had little meaning. He never forgot the passion his father showed for Africa but didn’t fully understood its attraction. Until now. In a way this trip was paying small homage to his dad and he now understands what it meant to him. Look out children, you too will be burdened by stories of African travels and how life changing it can be.
After 28 unforgettable nights across some of Africa’s most breathtaking landscapes, our photographic journey has ended but the memories, moments, and images will last a lifetime. From the vibrant pulse of Johannesburg to the raw wilderness of Botswana. The awe-inspiring majesty of Victoria Falls spanning Zimbabwe and Zambia to the iconic plains of the Serengeti. From the spice-scented shores of Zanzibar, and finally, the wildlife-rich haven of Kruger National Park, each destination offered a unique canvas for storytelling through the lens.
We were asked countless times during our journey if we would ever return. We’ve been fortunate to explore some incredible corners of the globe with each place holding its own special magic, pushing us toward the next. And yes, the list of places calling our names is long: Japan, China, Iceland, the Arctic, Sri Lanka… the world is vast and endlessly fascinating. But then….there’s Africa.
Chasing the perfect light across deserts, deltas, beaches, and bush this was more than just a photographic expedition. It was a journey deep into the soul of Africa - its rhythms, contrasts, and extraordinary beauty. And we left her shores with a deep, unexpected ache. The kind of ache that only comes from falling in love with a place far deeper than ever anticipated. Africa wasn’t just beautiful. It was overwhelming, humbling, and soul-stirring. We still smell the ghostly hint of the potato bush drifting through memory and the sounds of night as we rest our heads.
So would we return? Undoubtedly. Some places don’t just become part of a journey…they become part of you.
Africa is one of them.
Wow, what a literary and photographic journey we have mustered. If you’re here kudos for following and we hope you’ve been inspired as much as us by the soulfulness of the African continent. This marks our 8th international Fatpaparazzi adventure and definitely one of our favourites. Thank you all for your continued support, we trust you’ve had a giggle, or a cry, along this monster journey with us.
Until next time…...and there will be a next time….we are just deciding where.
Peter & Lyndall
Africa, May - June 2025