September 29, 2014 (Ant's Nest, South Africa)

We went for a game drive today. After breakfast we went into the safari truck and our guide Fred us took us around the reserve. We were able to see: giraffe, blesbok, Cape Buffalo, Wildebeest, Gazelles, Impala, Zebra, Iland, Sable, Oryx, Wart Hogs,… We saw a journey/tower of giraffes. There were 12 in the journey of giraffes. We saw the giraffe that we saw yesterday, Golden Boy. He was the biggest male giraffe that we saw there. 

Shortly after the game drive I went swimming in the pool and then went to lunch after. Lunch was a braai (BBQ). There was corn on the cob, baked beans, chicken wings, lamb chops, salad, baked potatoes and some other items. My favorite part were the chicken wings. They were divine!

During our downtime I had school with April online via Webex. We worked mostly on math but also reading. I am reading the book Kaffir Boy about a young boy from a ghetto in South Africa living during Apartheid. In this book you get to see and feel and what he felt during the Apartheid era. 

Our afternoon activity was horseback riding. Today we rode out of the valley where we were picked up and then taken by truck to Ant’s Hill, another lodge owned by Ant. The horse I was on, like usual, was Leo. Our guides were Tsidi and Sam. We realized you can get much closer to the game by horse rather than by car. We found a lot of different game. My favorite animal we saw on the horseback ride was the Sable. The Sable had at least 2 foot horns that bended back behind his neck.

We decided to go to Ant’s Hill for sundown. It was so beautiful! We decided to do a time-lapse of the sunset, watching the sun turn from bright red to bright orange in a matter of seconds. 

September 28, 2014 (Ant's Nest, South Africa)

Today it was a very laid back day, It was a nice time to catch up on homework and relax for a little. We woke up at 7:30 and went to breakfast at 8:00. Breakfast was very good I had the continental breakfast, which is a cold breakfast instead of a hot breakfast. Shortly after we went on a game drive where we saw Wildebeest, Zebra, Eland, Kudu, Waterbuck, Euphorbia tree, Velvet monkey, Impala, Giraffe, Blesbok, Brown Neck eagle, and a Cargill cat which are very rare, we were very lucky. It was fun , our guide Sam taught us about the animals, and plants, he has been working here for 14 years.

After our game drive we had lunch with the three new guests from Australia. They were very nice. After lunch when I was doing my homework I saw rhinos right below our deck. I scurried down and went to see them. They were friendly. I was able to pet one of their horns. The horn is made out of a mixture between hair and nails. The difference between horns, what rhinos have, and antlers that deer have back in Park City is that horns are permanent and antlers are seasonal.

Later we had muffins for "afternoon tea" and finished my homework, and walked down to the pond to watch the sunset. The sunset was very peaceful. There are no other sunsets in the US like it.

September 27, 2014

Today we were able to do something very special. We were able to catch 4 male Kudu's, and relocate them to Ant's nest, It was very exiting! We had to wake up at the crack of dawn, but it was worth it! At 6:00 a.m. we took the cars over to this women’s ranch where we met a helicopter and some people from Ant’s Hill, the sister company. From the helicopter they would find and shoot the Kudu with a tranquilizer, and we would carry the Kudu into a trailer. As soon as the heli found and shot the Kudu we rushed over to go put him in the trailer, but first we put a hood on him to make sure he couldn't see. He was also very big! 

(Note from mom here: the reason for the catch and transfer was to add new kudu bulls to the herd of kudu at Ant's Nest. They say it is good to bring in some fresh genes to keep from too much inbreeding. The kudu are not hurt in the process and are woken up immediately after being placed in the trailers. You can't have them down for too long or it can be fatal. We had about 20 minutes once they had been hit with a tranquilizer dart to get to them and treat them for ticks and give them a shot of vitamins and get them into the trailer. Once they were in the trailer they were given an antidote which would wake them up almost immediately. We tore limbs off the trees and placed them in the trailer for their ride over to Ant's Nest where they are promptly let back out into this large game reserve, which will be their new home.) 

Right after the first catch we went to a little farm house and waited for the next one to be hit then as soon as he was hit we drove over, but he was still awake. When we were watching him we saw him sway from the tranquilizer. He wasn't knocked out yet so some guys came, pulled his tail, then dropped him to the ground. I was able to hold this Kudu’s horns, one of the Kudu we caught had horns 57 inches in length. After we were done catching them, the helicopter pilot asked if anyone would want to ride in his helicopter, so I went with one other person, Julia. Where I was sitting there was no door because that's where the sniper would sit. We had so much fun, he even did some tricks. He did some bank turns then he went up high and tuned us, with me facing the ground. It was so much fun.

After we headed back we went to lunch out in the bush It was “nice”. A little after we went for another horse back ride, It was “marvelous”. This time around we did more cantering it was nice to have a change rather than just walking. That day Mom and I both lost our phones in the sand but found them, Mom lost her’s riding and I lost mine in the Land Cruiser. 

Dinner was great, our main course was pork bellies with asparagus, mashed cauliflower, and some other thing that I didn't try. All in all it was a very exciting and good day.

September 26, 2014 (Ant's Nest, South Africa)

Today we woke up earlier than usual. We had to catch a flight to Ant's Nest, South Africa. Jack our driver that we had today and yesterday  took us to a small airport, where we took a little plane to Ant's Nest. The plane we were in held the pilot, copilot, my Mom, and I. It made me nervous when the copilot's door was partly open but later he said it was perfectly fine. We landed in this airport that had a grass runway, and not even anyone working there. We had a man from Ant's Nest pick us up. Ant's Nest is a game reserve and known for it's horseback riding, It was started by Anthony, whose nickname is Ant. We settled into our room, after we picked our afternoon activity. Our activity that we chose was horseback riding, we're not much of horseback riders, but when in Rome....

As soon as it was time to ride I was a little nervous, I hadn't been on a horse for a while. When it was my turn to get on the horse I was still nervous, but I just hopped on the horse, Leo. As I was on him they told me how to turn, stop, and go forward. It was more fun than I expected. Mom, the guides, the horses, and I stopped at a pond to get water for the horses, but Leo decided to make a different call. He was going for a swim! I was scared that I was going in, but Amanda one of our guides directed Leo out of the swimming hole. After that everything was pretty good. I learned how to trot and how to canter too. It was very exiting!

Next, we headed to Ant's home where we were able to see Rhino's! We were even able to see a baby, and a reverse horn Rhino. Anthony feeds the rhinos twice a day to keep people from poaching them. Also to protect the rhinos they poison the Rhinos' horns. It is harmless to rhinos but deadly to humans. People want the rhino horn in some parts of the world for medicine and as a drug, some think that rhino horn is even a cure for cancer. It was super cool to be so close to rhinos.

A little after we had a fantastic dinner. My favorite part was the dessert a chocolate eclair, it was so delicious.