This morning I got up before the sunrise and was standing outside with security guard, Tyson, waiting for my pick up by 520. He was really nice and full of information about the area. Prior to going out side I found a probiotic bar that I had purchased along the way. I was starving despite having had one of the largest dinners possible the night before and this was a major score. I love breakfast. 
My driver arrived at 545 and we toured around the city pick up the other safari goers. The sun was now up and it was a nice overview of some of the parts of Johannesburg. In the wealthiest area, Hyde Park, I saw what looked like a run club. Running and run clubs just make me happy. The runners themselves confirmed his "this is a nice area statement" with their head to toe lululemon, Brooks and even a few pairs of Hokas. We continued on in the "fancy" part of town to Sandton and Nelson Mandela Square which had a very modern shopping mall with high end stores. Our driver told us this was also the "prostitute area." They apparently make the most money with traveling businessmen.
Onward we went to the suburbs where many are migrating for a quieter, cheaper, less traffic filled life. As we drove we listened to African Pop hits which I really like a lot. They are mostly cheery upbeat songs.
We entered the province where Pilanesburg is and were surrounded by farms. Their main crops are murula fruit, peanuts and oranges. This also the location of the platinum mines that are famous from the workers strikes in 2012 where 34 miners were shot by the police. These images became international news with dramatic photos and both sides presenting drastically different stories about the shootings. The strike was for a wage increase from 480 rand to 1200 a month ($37 USD - $93) because of the dangerous conditions of the job and in hopes that the workers would have a better quality of life for themselves and their families. We drove past the original housing which was a shanty town and then some of the new more modern post-strike housing. Our guide says since the strikes their conditions have greatly improved.
Halfway there we made a pit stop where I discovered that they sold biltong at the gas station! Different types! Delicious! My companions on this safari were a married couple from the UAE, a woman from Brazil and a man from Australia. They were all very nice and it was each of their first safaris. We arrived at Pilanesburg at Setswana one of the four gates. We waited for our safari guides to arrive and it was already quite hot (which I was bummed about because that would likely definitely equal less animals). I chatted with the man who was selling his crafts in the parking lot while doing handstands and he introduced me to two of the safari drivers when they arrived. As I was meeting them a large bus of Chinese tourists arrived. I was happy to see them. I hope that they took what they saw back to China and have some effect on the poaching of many of the animals for false perceptions of increased virility.
We loaded into our safari truck and our driver told us he was also worried about the heat. He hadn't seen many animals on his morning drive. It didn't matter. I was just excited to be outside and out of Johannesburg for the day. He asked us what we wanted to see. I said "Cats. All of them." My companions requests were more reasonable: giraffe, zebra, etc.
We immediately came along baboons and zebra. It was good to see everyone else's brand new excitement. Our guide told us zebras can't be ridden because their kidneys are too close to the skin. Since my return I have googled this multiple times to find some evidence corroborating this. Here is the best I can do: "Compared to horses, zebras are pretty unpredictable. They can be very aggressive and even vicious as they get older. Plus, their body shape doesn't take a saddle very well. Trying to train and ride a zebra is pretty dangerous." Thanks How Stuff Works! So in sum they are wild animals. It is the same reason I don't allow small children to attempt to ride my cat Stitch. It just wouldn't go well.
Next we found an elephant. Elephants are awesome every time you see them. Our guide says they flap their ears to cool their body temperature up to 4 degrees (I think Celsius). He also said 250 Liters of blood flows through their ears in 30-40 min. Elephants have around 2000 liters of gas (that's right farts per day. This fact is my attempt to up readership.). There are 300 elephants within Pilanesburg.
On to rhinos taking mud baths in the shade. Or I just took pictures of boulders that were being called rhinos. Either way I was happy. Maybe this is how the pet rock started? Both black and white rhino can be found in the park. Our guide told us that they had never lost a rhino to poaching until the world cup and when I was there they had lost 6 in 2016. In a secret part of the reserve they have a black rhino conservation area where they are successfully breeding them. Our guide says that you can pay to visit it but it is highly protected and that we would not be in that area today. He told us for the rhino's protection no one knows how many rhinos are in the reserve. We saw both types of rhinos today (6 in total). Black rhinos are more aggressive and solitary. Our guide jingled his keys and the black rhino we saw immediately got up and came towards us in a "leave if you know what is good for you way". We were then told how a lion pride recently got a taste for baby rhino and would attempt to hunt them. Those lions were moved to a different reserve but not before a driver almost ran them over to protect the baby rhino from being killed.
After the black rhino, we raced off towards a different part of the park because of a call on the radio. This call led us to a lion pride sleeping in the bushes and then 3 one-year-old cheetah brothers who our guide said snuck into the park. All of the parks in South Africa are fenced in so the animals can't leave or be lured out according to our driver. Occasionally big cats will find their way in like these three did when they were cubs.
We headed back to the area we had initially been picked up in to have lunch. I negotiated a salad with our original guide. Usually the only choices are fish and chips and a burger. He looked very confused that I didn't want either of these things.
At lunch there was a sad very thin cat who I fed all of our leftover food to. There were also monkeys everywhere. After lunch we again leisurely drove through park enjoying hanging out with the animals for some more time.
On the way home we passed a large casino named Sun City. Our driver said it was a popular weekend destination for Johannesburg. I was the last to be dropped off and I convinced him to drop me at the Leopard (the only leopard in my life today sadly) where I got the exact same thing I had gotten the night before. One of my favorite parts of their menu is the section: "For Children and Those seeking comfort: fried rice" I also got the halva dessert and a glass of wine from one of the vineyards I had visited in Cape Town. After dinner Tyson came and got me and off to bed I went.
We entered the province where Pilanesburg is and were surrounded by farms. Their main crops are murula fruit, peanuts and oranges. This also the location of the platinum mines that are famous from the workers strikes in 2012 where 34 miners were shot by the police. These images became international news with dramatic photos and both sides presenting drastically different stories about the shootings. The strike was for a wage increase from 480 rand to 1200 a month ($37 USD - $93) because of the dangerous conditions of the job and in hopes that the workers would have a better quality of life for themselves and their families. We drove past the original housing which was a shanty town and then some of the new more modern post-strike housing. Our guide says since the strikes their conditions have greatly improved.
Halfway there we made a pit stop where I discovered that they sold biltong at the gas station! Different types! Delicious! My companions on this safari were a married couple from the UAE, a woman from Brazil and a man from Australia. They were all very nice and it was each of their first safaris. We arrived at Pilanesburg at Setswana one of the four gates. We waited for our safari guides to arrive and it was already quite hot (which I was bummed about because that would likely definitely equal less animals). I chatted with the man who was selling his crafts in the parking lot while doing handstands and he introduced me to two of the safari drivers when they arrived. As I was meeting them a large bus of Chinese tourists arrived. I was happy to see them. I hope that they took what they saw back to China and have some effect on the poaching of many of the animals for false perceptions of increased virility.
We loaded into our safari truck and our driver told us he was also worried about the heat. He hadn't seen many animals on his morning drive. It didn't matter. I was just excited to be outside and out of Johannesburg for the day. He asked us what we wanted to see. I said "Cats. All of them." My companions requests were more reasonable: giraffe, zebra, etc.
We immediately came along baboons and zebra. It was good to see everyone else's brand new excitement. Our guide told us zebras can't be ridden because their kidneys are too close to the skin. Since my return I have googled this multiple times to find some evidence corroborating this. Here is the best I can do: "Compared to horses, zebras are pretty unpredictable. They can be very aggressive and even vicious as they get older. Plus, their body shape doesn't take a saddle very well. Trying to train and ride a zebra is pretty dangerous." Thanks How Stuff Works! So in sum they are wild animals. It is the same reason I don't allow small children to attempt to ride my cat Stitch. It just wouldn't go well.
Next we found an elephant. Elephants are awesome every time you see them. Our guide says they flap their ears to cool their body temperature up to 4 degrees (I think Celsius). He also said 250 Liters of blood flows through their ears in 30-40 min. Elephants have around 2000 liters of gas (that's right farts per day. This fact is my attempt to up readership.). There are 300 elephants within Pilanesburg.
On to rhinos taking mud baths in the shade. Or I just took pictures of boulders that were being called rhinos. Either way I was happy. Maybe this is how the pet rock started? Both black and white rhino can be found in the park. Our guide told us that they had never lost a rhino to poaching until the world cup and when I was there they had lost 6 in 2016. In a secret part of the reserve they have a black rhino conservation area where they are successfully breeding them. Our guide says that you can pay to visit it but it is highly protected and that we would not be in that area today. He told us for the rhino's protection no one knows how many rhinos are in the reserve. We saw both types of rhinos today (6 in total). Black rhinos are more aggressive and solitary. Our guide jingled his keys and the black rhino we saw immediately got up and came towards us in a "leave if you know what is good for you way". We were then told how a lion pride recently got a taste for baby rhino and would attempt to hunt them. Those lions were moved to a different reserve but not before a driver almost ran them over to protect the baby rhino from being killed.
After the black rhino, we raced off towards a different part of the park because of a call on the radio. This call led us to a lion pride sleeping in the bushes and then 3 one-year-old cheetah brothers who our guide said snuck into the park. All of the parks in South Africa are fenced in so the animals can't leave or be lured out according to our driver. Occasionally big cats will find their way in like these three did when they were cubs.
We headed back to the area we had initially been picked up in to have lunch. I negotiated a salad with our original guide. Usually the only choices are fish and chips and a burger. He looked very confused that I didn't want either of these things.
On the way home we passed a large casino named Sun City. Our driver said it was a popular weekend destination for Johannesburg. I was the last to be dropped off and I convinced him to drop me at the Leopard (the only leopard in my life today sadly) where I got the exact same thing I had gotten the night before. One of my favorite parts of their menu is the section: "For Children and Those seeking comfort: fried rice" I also got the halva dessert and a glass of wine from one of the vineyards I had visited in Cape Town. After dinner Tyson came and got me and off to bed I went.
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