"You weren't supposed to go out that gate."

This morning I got up to run after being assured it was completely safe. When I run on back roads any where not just in 3rd world countries I am always reminded how much comfort and perceived safety a cell signal provides. I ran about 6 miles which was to town and back.

As I ran I got faster and faster because I started thinking too much about my surroundings and that no one knew where I was. If I had known what I would soon find out it might have ended up being the fastest run of my life. 

When I returned the guy in the gift shop asked where I had gone and I told him. Then he asked me what gate I exited through. His response was "No." No? Well that was the way I went. He again said, "No."  I explained that was the way the women had told me. He responded emphatically that I was not supposed to run that way because of the animals.  I explained that I had I specifically asked the women if there was a way I could run that I would be safe from the animals while exiting the national park. He again said, "No." Out of curiosity I asked him what animals: angry lone males, particularly a Cape Buffalo bachelor who was very territorial and discontent in his solitude, leopards and the occasional lion. Whoops.  At least I got a run in. 

After breakfast I went to the pool and then decided to get an African massage. It was nice and unlike in Ethiopia did not include an intestinal massage (to this day it still makes me shudder).

After that I had lunch which left me wondering, at what point does it stop being gazpacho and start being a smoothie? I have resolved that it is a fine line especially if you are California green juicer. This was a ginger melon thing. It was good and I still would have ordered it, but I definitely would have called it a smoothie. 

It was then time for the Vulture Restaurant. Many of the vulture species in Zimbabwe are endangered or threatened because they are being poisoned by poachers and farmers and killed by local people for medicinal uses.

They are a vital part of the ecosystem cleaning up the dead. The poachers kill them because they alert the park rangers to where they are and they can kill 30 to even 100 at once because they travel in such large groups. The farmers are accidentally killing them via the pesticides they are using. The local people see that vultures eat the flesh of animals that have died of illness and don't themselves get sick so they believe that the vulture is the antidote to most ailments. They are attempting education for the villages and farmers. For the poachers they have started feeding the vultures a "snack" in the national parks each day so they hang around in safer places.

The guide walked us to a hut in the park and asked us to be very quiet and not make a lot of movements. The vultures had already started gathering.

He then went out to the clearing fussing the warthogs had messed up the water pool he created and spread the various scraps around. 

More and more vultures flew in. They were joined by kites and Maribou stork.

There were around 100 birds when he finally stepped away. What happened next was a "rush the stage" moment. All of the birds hustling towards the individual scraps, some pushed others around after the initial dive in then waited patiently. 

After the frenzy had cleared some of the birds started to leave, while others began regulating their body temperatures by laying on the ground or spreading their wings. They were fascinating to watch. 

To end my day, I decided to do yoga followed by a swim because it was over 100 degrees.

I ended my day with  a very peaceful sunset and dinner at the Lodge.