Cheetah Park

One of the most fun days in a while. We arrived mid afternoon and were taken off to see a cheetah breeding park. We drove in the back of a pick up truck, crammed in like cattle, which added to the excitement. We got to pet a cheetah that had been bred in captivity.

Then came the great part - we left the fenced off enclosure and went off out into the bush again in the back of the truck. There was a slight cage around us, but we were essentially open to the elements.

One girl was particularly worried about lightning striking us, as we could see storm clouds developing around us. A friend of hers had been killed by a lightning strike and she was genuinely scared the same fate would await her.

"Don't worry", said another girl, "ÿou are far more likely to be killed by the cheetahs"

And then, the ominous grey clouds that were hovering above us suddenly broke open and rain hammered down on top of us.

The truck sped back to the camp so that we could get away from the torrential rain, and we got rain blasted into out face. A few of us started laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation.

We got back to camp, changed and then headed back into the bush. Cheetahs are of course the fastest mammals on earth, and far faster than our truck. So you cant race after them as they'll beat you. We had to wait out until they slowly approached us.

They are amazing animals, very graceful, and to see them in the wild was pretty special.