WEDNESDAY

I slept like the dead and woke with difficulty even though I’d been slept for 14 hours.  Brenda, a tour guide from Tours By Locals, met me at the hotel and we hopped into her brand new MG HS SUV.  We had met and discussed our itinerary and logistics for weeks, and it was nice to finally put a face to her name. She said it was very unusual for any of her clients to ask for an itinerary solely geared towards animals but she was open to the idea. She was a lovely guide for the entire day. I definitely recommend her if you’re ever in the Cape Town area!

STOP 1:

I realized really quick that I had definitely made the right decision in not renting a car in Cape Town and attempting to drive.  It is much like any other European city and the road signs all look familiar, but they drive on the opposite side of the road and have really weird traffic circles.  Also, carjackings are at an all-time high and I figured I didn’t need to invite trouble.

At the beginning of the day we decided to go into Exotic Animal World (which used to be known as Butterfly World). We didn’t see a single butterfly and thought it was because it was just too darn cold (in the 50s today and shade was especially chilly). However, I found out that they no longer carry butterflies since post COVID regulations don’t allow them to import pupae. There were a ton of other animals though, mostly ex-exotic pets that have been rescued, abandoned, or donated because the humans couldn’t handle them. There were  lots of parakeets and parrots and other exotic birds, turtles, marmosets, lemurs, guinea pigs… the pigeons were free flying minus one who was “arrested” for flying and landing on top of visitors’ heads…so he was enclosed with the exotic birds. 😂It was VERY NOISY and there was lots of talking (in English!) from the birds.

The rescue gives these pets a second chance to live a full life but it also serves as a great educational center. There were Lots of educational signs about NOT having pets that are exotic, even if they’re technically legal. I learned that iguanas are known as tree chickens, and fish bowls are actually TERRIBLE for pet goldfish. I gagged at the  Madagascar hissing cockroaches and I cracked up at several birds who just seemed to have sassy, mischievous attitudes. The owls at the end were really probably my favorite.

In addition to the Big 5 and the Marine 5 which people always want to see on their trips to Africa, Brenda told me about the Little 5 and the Ugly 5 as well. They are as follows:

Big 5:

1. Lion
2. Leopard
3. Elephant
4. Rhinoceros
5. Cape Buffalo

Marine 5:

1. Great white shark
2. Southern right whale
3. Cape fur seals
4. African penguin
5. Dolphin

Little 5:

1. Elephant shrew
2. Ant lion
3. Buffalo weaver
4. Leopard tortoise
5. Rhino beetle

Ugly 5:

1. Warthog
2. Vulture
3. Wildebeest
4. Maribou stork
5. Hyena

Exotic Animal World was absolutely lovely, and the animals seemed happy and the education provided was just outstanding.

Stop 2:

Next stop was at the Drakenstein Lion Park, a park dedicated to rescuing lions from terrible, abusive situations.  The lions came from all over - Romania and Lebanon seemed to be major players - and each lion had its own paddock and story posted outside its paddock.

The park provides personalized care for each lion and gives them the space and environment they need without intrusive human interaction. There were male and female lions, 3 white lions, and 1 tiger.

Here are a few of their stories:

• Stuart was rescued from a private zoo in Lebanon where he had been chained in a small concrete paddock 24/7
• Shumba had been saved from a hunting park in South Africa and required physical therapy to learn how to re-walk again.  I had never heard of a “hunting park” like this before, but apparently, wild and exotic animals are caught, penned to a pole or chained on a very short leash, and people pay money to come into the park and shoot them like sitting ducks. I was horrified.
• Pythagoras was rescued by a Lebanese social media influencer who kept him dragged on a short chain and taped his mouth shut so he could be poked and prodded.
• Little Leo was also rescued from Lebanon, this time by a guy who just wanted an exotic pet.  But he confined Little Leo to his 14th floor balcony and it’s a miracle he was saved.

Oh my god, this is so hard for me to write because I feel like my guts are being pulled out and stomped on just thinking about the awful things these poor lions suffered because people are just selfish and evil.  Every lion had incredible stories of survival and the fact that they were found, rescued, and now loved and taken care of are miracles.  There need to be so many more animal rights instituted around the world and more legislation surrounding the illegal pet trade, circuses, zoos, and hunting farms/parks.

Most of the lions were sleeping and we couldn’t see them. I was just happy that they felt safe enough to sleep.  One guy, old Simba, did walk around and give me a whole roaring show for like 30 seconds. At the end of my visit, I adopted him. I paid $55 for a year which goes towards his upkeep, vet bills and food, and the park will add my name to his story board and send me updates on how he’s doing. I wanted to adopt all of them to be honest. Some of the proceeds also go directly to rescuing other lions. If you are interested in adopting one of these magnificent animals, you can go here (remember the money is in South African Rand…when you pay with your card it will automatically adjust for dollars. I promise it isn’t $1000 you would be paying!)

Stop 3:

The Giraffe House was next, and even though it was fun to see their collection of giraffes and other animals, it wasn’t nearly as emotionally heart wrenching or educational as the previous two places.  It was definitely designed for kiddos and tourists in mind, and my mind was still back there with the lions.

Stop 4:

We stopped for a quick lunch at Klein Joostenberg Winery which came out to a whopping $16 for the both of us, and then headed out to our last stop for the day, which I had been anticipating the most.

Stop 5:

It was a bit of a drive out of Cape Town, but Ashia Cheetah Conservatory was incredible.

The Ashia Center serves Cheetah Reintegration, Reintroduction and Research Programs, and offers the best life possible to these animals in need of care. The center works alongside conservation breeding programs so that they can reintroduce cats into the wild while focusing on producing genetic diversity, which apparently is the worst thing working against cheetah survival at the moment.

These cats are amazing. I wasn’t able to see a cheetah run because the area has just had so much rain and the center did not want to risk injury to any of the cats, which I fully understood.  But of course, these animals are the fastest on the planet, reaching up to 70 mph for short bursts.  They have very unique retractable claws that give them the speed and agility they need to be excellent hunters.  Unlike other big cats, they don’t roar, but they communicate by chirping, purring, and growling.

At the Ashia Center, they purposely give them as little contact with humans as possible, and therefore they remain very wild. One cheetah, Ellie, comes right up to the fence to see humans though and I melted when she started purring loudly. 

She is one of the permanent residents because she has a degenerative spinal condition.  They feed her a supplement called Joint Pro, and she has been doing very well at the center.  I asked them if they could make Joint Pro for humans, hahaha!  Two other cats, brothers from the same litter, also live permanently at the center.  Originally they were given to the center as part of the breeding and trading program to be reintroduced into one of the nearby wild cheetah populations.  They were just cubs at the time, and as they grew older and the center tested and trained them, they realized very quickly that both brothers are cross-eyed.  They could not see objects close up, ran into trees, and were unable to catch food.  Obviously, they would not survive long in the wild being unable to hunt, so they have remained happily at the Center.

The tour was excellent and I’m pretty sure my new favorite animal is the cheetah!

END OF DAY

It took us about an hour and a half to return to Cape Town, and I had a nice glass of wine before I retired to bed.  My glass of local merlot cost an enormous $3.30. I could easily get used to this!

THURSDAY

I couldn’t believe how nervous I felt about meeting the group of people I would be with for the next 24 days on the African tour that started in Cape Town and ended in Johannesburg.  I felt all kinds of silly things like,

“What if I really stand out?”

“What if no one likes me?”

“What if everyone is really extroverted or what if there is someone really obnoxious?” 

Craziness—I felt like a grade schooler starting school at the beginning of the year again.

MEETING THE GROUP

Of course, I was worried about nothing.  The group consists of 2 African guides, 2 Portuguese couples, 1 Brazilian couple, 2 Swiss ladies, 1 Kiwi (the name for people from New Zealand) man, and 1 American (me).  We were introduced to the massive safari trekking/camping truck that was going to be our home for many many hours on this trip and we drove to Table Mountain. 

I really wanted to hike up the mountain with the group, but when the guide said it was very steep and rocky and it could take 4 hours, I felt very torn.  Fog had settled in as well, obscuring the top and any views I might have, and the drizzle and damp making the path slippery was the final deciding factor for me. Being high risk for falls, it just was the most responsible thing to do. I stayed behind with the older people and we took the cable car up, but never were able to see anything at the top.  I DID see a rock hyrax (he as soooooooo cute!) and beautiful red-winged starlings on the mountain though.

Most of us decided to eat dinner at the restaurant in the hotel and we spent 3.5 hours getting to know each other and discussing global warming, politics (I was asked about Trump several times!), housing costs, immigration, differences in currency and cost of living….it was just so refreshing to be back amongst international travelers.  I wanted to cry when I got back to my hotel room.  I have missed this so incredibly much over the past 13 years.

We never did see Table Mountain because of the fog and rainy weather. Guess that just means I have to go back to Cape Town some day! :)