After an early shower and shave, we piled into the truck for our game drive. Almost
immediately we spotted something very exciting: a female
lion walking nearby! It kept a slow, steady pace while we drove slowly by.
As we continued on, we saw many other animals. Another herd
of zebra, some impala, kudu, the ever-present springbok, even a secretary bird (named after it's sound,
not how it looks) off in the distance. A couple of gemsbok
(also known as oryx) were grazing peacefully, until another tourist truck came up and
spooked them: bloody tourists!!
We made several stops at different waterholes to watch the wildlife. 
Some of the
waterholes at Etosha are natural, and some are manmade. Besides manmade waterholes, there
were only a few other signs of human habitation: the roads, and the lavatories.
We had a pitstop at one of the concrete lavatories, and found a surprise inside: about
five or six geckos had taken up residence in the cool
dampness inside! They weren't very active: one was found on its back lying on the floor
(after it had apparently fallen off the ceiling). Quite a few others were watching us cautiously from the corners and ceiling.
The day was getting hot: most animals were trying to find whatever shade was available.
We had a big break because of that, when we spotted lions
panting in the shade at the side of the road! This was the closest we'd been to lions
since Harnas. The mood was slightly spoiled when a carload
of tourists came up and started calling to the lions (something that was discouraged).
Fortunately for the tourists, the lions weren't that impressed.
We ended the morning at Halali campsite where we relaxed and had sandwiches. There were
several iridescent blue/black birds with bright orange
eyes (I would later find that they are called Cape Glossy Starlings) flying around and
picking at scraps. One of them apparently didn't like the quality of the food: it crapped
on my head!! Martina and Katja said it was good luck: personally I have my doubts.
After lunch the bunch of us relaxed at the pool (which was the cleanest one yet) and
took in a little sunbathing. I also took the opportunity to get a little book on Etosha
(and wiping out my remaining handy cash: I would have to wait until Swakopmund before I
could exchange some more).
After a while we piled back in the truck to do some more viewing and head back to
Okaukuejo. On the way we saw a large male ostrich running
towards us: we quickly found the reason on the other side of the road. It joined up
with a female ostrich to protect a flock of tiny ostrich
chicks!
We stopped at Etosha Point, which is a short road
up into the dried up lake bed that gives the reserve its name. The area sees almost no
rain: generally a small area gets some accumulation in the wet season, but it's never full
of water. A bare, desolate area: nothing moved for
miles around. Time for a photoshoot! Everyone took
pictures. Martina even got a sneaky picture of our driver in a compromising position.
:-)
Driving back to our camp, we got one more surprise: the lion we'd seen walking around
earlier in the day had stopped in the shade at the side of
the road. We grabbed a couple more shots before heading out.
That evening before dinner, we went up the the waterhole again to watch the animals.
Joanne and I grabbed some seats in the covered section at one side of the waterhole, and
so we had a great view as a group of elephants
wandered in. They splashed water on themselves and competed
for the clean water at the front of the waterhole before wandering off into the sunset.
After dinner that night, I took the opportunity to wash a few of my filthier clothes
before heading off to bed: we head south in the morning!
