Before I went to Africa, I had one lingering concern: “Will I actually see that many animals?” 

After we’d been in Etosha National Park for a few hours and we’d already seen giraffes, zebras, elephants and rhinos, I knew the answer: a resounding YES!

We spent a total of 14 days on safari in three different parks in three different countries. We saw all the iconic African animals in dramatic fashion. We saw lions make kills, elephants frolicking in waterholes, huge herds of zebras and a leopard with an impala in a tree. Animals are everywhere and visiting Africa is, in a word, mind-blowing. I guess that is two hyphenated words.

The week we spent in Etosha National Park in Namibia was the best travel experience of my life. Indeed, it was probably the very best week of my life.

Etosha Photo Gallery

Etosha National Park, Namibia

A cheetah in the spotlight during a night drive. They use a soft red light that doesn’t bother the animals. She had three adorable cubs with her.

A lion protecting a very stinky yet evidently still valuable carcass.

Yellow Hornbills on a stump. The diversity and abundance of the birds in Africa was a major surprise for me.

Wildebeest for breakfast.

For a flat landscape, it is still beautiful.

The eastern part of the park is home to numerous giraffes.

Elephants playing near the Halali waterhole.

We saw Rhinos at the Halali waterhole every night.

Can you see the lion in this photo?

A springbok posing for a photo.

Oryx on the Etosha Pan

Elephant herd at the Rietfontein waterhole

Zebras drinking at a waterhole

My favorite zebra photo from Africa.

The floodlit Halali waterhole at night was always busy with elephants.

Dust glowing in the setting sun.

A jackal giving a wide berth to a pride of lions.