I've never been to a zoo. Well, I should say that no where in my memory do I have the conscious recollection of going to a zoo. Aquariums? Seen 'em all. But in my short life, I can say with relative confidence that I have never been to a zoo.
The consequence of this ghastly oversight on my parents part is that I was hilariously unprepared for how much seeing 'zoo' animals in real life would affect me. Which means that May 15th, 2019 will go down as not only the first day I saw a zebra in person, but also the day I found out that I will cry when overwhelmed with pure joy and excitement (specifically, in this case, when seeing a zebra). So, thanks mom and dad... now my roommate thinks I'm a psycho for crying over zebras, when you could have just taken me to see one as a kid and saved me this embarrassment. Hope you're happy.
Bitter ramblings aside, May 15th really was one of the greatest days of my life. A day off from work meant we could have our first adventure day here in South Africa, and we decided to check out Bisley Valley Nature Reserve; a large reserve only about 20 minutes from where we live that had the MAJOR draw of being home to zebras and giraffes, as well as some other sweet safari animals.
Date: May 15th, 2019Place you have a design in mind for Place: Bisley Valley Nature Reserve kjlkjlkjlkjlkjlkjlkjlkjlkjlk Jetlag: still very much a thing look or you’re going for torial Animals seen: zebras, giraffes, impalas, wildebeests style Shaking: uncontrollable blog - there’s a stunning layout for
We set off with our roommate Sne in tow, who thought we were absolutely hilarious (or maybe just pathetic) for being so excited to see all our new safari friends. Being a couple of PNW gals, we knew how to prep for a hike... which is why we ended up out there with no water bottles in the 27 degree heat and wearing Birkenstocks to navigate the veldt. Perfect.
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Despite poorly thought out attire and fighting through minor dehydration, Bisley Valley itself did live up to expectations, and we got to see all we hoped and more! Our first sighting of the day was a zebra grazing up an embankment surrounded by some impala buds. This was our shortest sighting of the day as well, because Ariana and I both promptly broke out in squeaks and cries of delight when we saw them. Note to self: safaris work better when you aren't screaming every time you see an animal.
After that, we were lucky enough to see some giraffes, although we couldn't get too close because they had babies (!!!) with them and were feeling particularly protective. With me and Ariana squealing our way through the park, I can't say I blame them. We also spotted some more impalas and some wildebeests, who were all clustered together in a kind of mutually beneficial alert system (although again, Ariana and I could be heard coming miles off); Sne told us that the birds and monkeys get in on the security too, and so they are fine just chilling next to each other so that when one group sees something approaching, they can all dip. So yeah, my first encounter with safari animals in the wild was a success. Felt like the kind of day Sir David Attenborough would approve of.
Life lessons learned from Bisley Valley Nature Reserve:
1. Giraffes are good at hiding even though they are stupid tall
2. Birkenstocks may not be the shoe of choice for navigating the underbrush
3. Maybe don't yell at animals if you want them to stick around
4. Africa is hot. Bring water.
5. Jess gets overexcited easily... and is a happy crier🤷🏼♀️
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