Iceland is Green, & Greenland is Ice (Part I)

JUNE 28 - Arrival in Iceland

I’m well aware of how fortunate I am to travel as much as I do. I've been given the opportunity to experience places not just once, but in depth and across different seasons. The last time I was in Iceland was a year and a half ago, when Anil and I spent Christmas and New Year’s exploring the North and West of the country. Seeing the land blanketed in snow felt like a quintessential Icelandic experience, giving me a glimpse of what life here is like in the dark depths of winter.

Now I’m getting to circumnavigate the entire island aboard a Lindblad expedition ship, this time during the height of summer - when we’ll have nearly 24 hours of daylight. Technically, the sun will set just after midnight and rise again around 3:00 am. Nesting seabirds are everywhere, and the landscape is carpeted in lush vegetation and vibrant wildflowers that create a patchwork of purple, white, and yellow across the countryside.

I landed in Keflavik about an hour and a half before Anil, so I got our rental car and picked him up before immediately heading out of town. Our first stop was - you guessed it - the obligatory snack of an Icelandic Gas Station Hot Dog at an abandoned-looking gas station (and I got a 50% discount since I had mine ‘plain’ - with no sauces or toppings!) Apparently this means I haven’t really had an authentic Icelandic Gas Station Hot Dog.

We drove north from Reykjavik to Hvalfjordur, but instead of taking the tunnel under the water, we skirted the edge of the fjord to enjoy the scenery. Outside the cities, Iceland feels pure and untamed. Here and there, small flocks of free-roaming sheep fatten themselves on summer grasses as they wander as they please. They’ll be rounded up in the autumn to be returned to their respective owners, but for now they fend for themselves as they graze. 

One thing the sheep won’t eat is the Nootka (or Alaskan) lupine.

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AN INTERRUPTION BY AN INVADER

Before the Vikings arrived more than a thousand years ago, around 40% of Iceland was covered in forests. Sheep farming and the need for timber caused heavy deforestation of the native birch and willow, and there have also been volcanic eruptions that have left a layer of lava on previously forested areas. Now, less than 2% of the island has forests - it means the land is particularly susceptible to desertification and soil degradation. 

Originally introduced in 1945 to combat soil erosion and fix nitrogen, Nootka lupine, native to Alaska, is remarkably suited to this environment.

Wide open fields and entire hillsides are now blanketed by this invasive plant, covering the landscape in a gorgeous emerald green and vibrant purple. Iceland in the summer is a mecca for Instagrammers, and the lush purple fields have been a boon for tourism. While undeniably beautiful, the tall-growing lupine outcompetes native species by shading them out, causing a vast monoculture of inedible plants. 

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We stopped for a lovely and relaxing soak at the Hvammsvik Hot Springs, which felt amazing after a long international flight. From now on I’ll definitely schedule a hot spring soak immediately after getting off the plane! Hvammsvik is particularly interesting because it sits right on the shoreline, so you can jump into the freezing fjord before warming up in the geothermal pools. I only made it up to my knees before deciding it was WAY too cold for me!

After our soak, we ended our visit by stopping in the cafe for a bowl of fish soup, then continued the long way around Hvalfjordur to soak in the scenery. It was fascinating to see the landscape covered in such lush vegetation, especially since the last time it was completely blanketed in snow. 

Every so often we’d spot different birds sitting on a fence post or nesting in the fields - mostly Eurasian oystercatchers ( black and white birds with striking orange bills and evil red eyes), common snipes (beautifully mottled brown birds with impossibly long straight bills) and whimbrels (similarly brown colored birds but with a curve at the end of their long bills).  At the end of the fjord near the base of a small waterfall, we saw a family of what we think were whooper swans - huge, snowy white birds with bodies so large that their legs can only support them for short periods of time!

Amazingly, it was nearly 9:00 PM when we arrived at Hotel Glymur, even though the sun was still fairly high in the sky. It was drizzling when we went to check in, but had stopped by the time we went out to get our luggage and we were immediately swarmed by mosquitoes - a newer introduction to Iceland, which was first established here in October 2025 (most likely from hitchhiking on freight shipment and aided by global warming). Until then, Iceland was one of the only places on earth with no mosquitoes - the other being Antarctica. What a sad end to an era!!

By 10:00 PM, despite the bright evening sky, exhaustion finally caught up with me, and I happily called it a night.

MONDAY, JUNE 29 - Birds, waterfalls, a good soak, and the world's best lamb chops

It was raining when I woke up this morning, but eased to a slight drizzle by the time we finished our delicious breakfast (including the amazing Icelandic skyr!!). We decided to try our hand at birdwatching and bird photography, so we headed to the Akranes peninsula where the Blautos estuary nature preserve sits along the northern coast. There aren’t any roads out there, but we found a field nearby and asked the farmer - or who we thought was a farmer - maybe he was actually a horse thief?? for permission to park. After getting the OK, we hiked out into the field.

Luckily, it stopped raining and the brisk weather was perfect for our birdwatching walk. A small bluff overlooked the water, with seabirds on one side and nesting birds on the other. Every so often, a marauding gull would wander a little too close for comfort and get chased off by an angry plover. We also said hello to some friendly Icelandic ponies, as well as a family of sheep that had made a cozy nest inside a bale of hay.

After our walk, we headed into Akranes in search of a bakery (one of the best in Iceland, according to the internet!), but it appeared to have closed down! So instead, we visited the old Akranes lighthouse.

This is considered one of the most picturesque lighthouses in the world - so weirdly looking through my camera reel, I took just one boring photo of the lighthouse itself. Hmmm...

There are actually two lighthouses: a smaller, older structure out on the rocks, and a newer, larger concrete construction. It was fun walking along the rocks to get out to the old lighthouse, although the quick tidepooling yielded no interesting creatures among the rocks.

As we headed out of town, we took one last stab at finding the bakery, and hurrah! We found it adjacent to the empty storefront that we originally thought was the bakery! So we stopped for a lovely sandwich lunch (and the biggest caramel-covered bun that Anil demolished). Then we headed up towards the lava fields of the Husafell hinterlands.

The last time we’d been in Iceland, we visited this area while it was completely covered in snow. We liked it then, so we wanted to see the waterfalls in a different season. Hraunfossar Waterfall is one of my personal favorites - a long series of cascades flowing from ledges in the Hallmundarhraun lava field into the Hvita river.

Instead of one instant elevation drop of the river (which is how most waterfalls are engineered), Hraunfossar looks as though a nearly kilometer-long length of the riverbank is feeding more water into the river, with seemingly no source to where the water is coming from (it’s being fed by underground springs flowing through the Hallmundarhraun lava field.)

I also like this area because just a short hike upstream is another interesting waterfall. Barnafoss is the waterfall of legend, said to be either cursed by a grieving mother. Her two children grew bored while waiting for their parents and tried to find them at church. They took a shortcut which led them to a natural stone bridge over the waterfall, but partway across they got dizzy, fell into the water, and drowned. The mother, in her grief, cursed the arch so that anyone trying to cross would also drown.

Needless to say, we didn't attempt the crossing!

After a quick stop for tea, we headed for our afternoon appointment at the Husafell Canyon Baths.

This was a delightful soak in the geothermal pools hidden at the bottom of a private canyon. Although it was billed as a “hike” through the landscape, it would have been just a short walk down what amounted to a driveway, so we skipped that part and drove to the entry gate at the top of the stairs instead. More soaking time!

There were only 6 of us there - Nicholas and Jen from Vancouver, and a funny retired couple from Iowa (the final couple who had signed up didn’t end up going down, since it was too difficult for the woman to navigate the stairs). At around 99°, the pools weren’t quite as hot as the other hot springs we’d visited, but after hopping into the cold stream (and yes, I actually dunked down to my shoulders - more than once!), the pool was wonderfully warm and tingly. 

Since it was already 5:30 when we finished, we decided to go straight to dinner. Bara Borgarnes is one of our favorite restaurants in the world - we’d eaten the best lamb chops EVER on our last visit, and we’ve been talking about it ever since. Since we had talked it up for months before this visit - I was certain it wasn’t going to be as good as we remembered - but I was wrong! Shockingly, it did not disappoint.  I highly recommend the grilled lamb chops. Yum!

Tomorrow, we board the ship!

 JUNE 31 - All Aboard!

The day was spent getting onto the ship. We had a lazy morning, starting with another delicious breakfast at the hotel followed by a drive back the long way around Hvalfjordur to get ourselves checked in. We met up with the group at the Parliament Hotel, and had a short time to wander around Reykjavik, so we had a coffee (Anil and his hipster coffee shops!) and visited a bookstore. We also stopped for a lunch of fish and chips (which, given how fresh all the fish is here in Iceland, was delicious!!)

At around 5, we settled into our stateroom on board the National Geographic Endurance. It’s much larger than any of the other ships I’ve been on - new and modern, with wide hallways and a bathroom that doesn’t feel like you’ll hit your elbows on the walls. There’s even a gym, library, and several lounging areas. We immediately had a muster drill to practice putting on our life vests, and we got to peek inside the tiny 60-person life rafts (that are more like life submarines - that look like they should hold a max 20 people!)

We met several really nice people - the average age must be around 70, but everyone is interesting, adventurous, and most have been on multiple other Lindblad expeditions. Unfortunately the seas got rougher and I started feeling queasy around dinnertime. I skipped eating (although we did sit with Kay and Chuck from (!) Palos Verdes) and went to bed early. It was a rough and rocky night, and I didn’t get to sleep until close to 4:00 am. :(

JULY 1 - Falling water and dive-bombing birds

The next morning, we woke early for our first excursion off the ship. At 6:45 AM, we departed into Arnafjordur in the northwestern part of Iceland. The Westfjords area is the oldest part of the island, (well, relatively speaking since it is only around 10 million years old). Glaciers carved out fjords through the multiple layers of volcanic basalt during the Ice Age.

We boarded Zodiacs for the ride to a desolate beach, then hiked about four miles to Dynjandi, a spectacular series of stepladder-like cascades that together form a 100-meter-tall waterfall. It’s an impressive view as we approached, with the wide waterfall resembling a bridal veil.

In the meadow near the lower falls, bright blooms of yellow meadow buttercups, sunny mountain avens, and the occasional Arctic poppy give color to the rocky coastal environment. I was surprised by how few birds—and bugs!—we encountered along the way, though we did spot a few oystercatchers, whimbrels, Arctic terns, and eider ducks.

We returned to the ship by 10:30, just in time for a shower before the day’s briefings. After lunch, I squeezed in a much-needed nap. I woke up in time for Ella’s presentation Cetaceans of the North Atlantic, which provided an interesting overview of the dolphins and whales that we might see on this voyage. We then had a very early dinner so that we could prepare for our evening excursion.

Vigur, the second largest island in Isafjardardjup, is home to thousands of seabirds, the only wooden windmill in Iceland... and just three humans. (A fun fact: one of them is Felicity Aston - the first person to ski alone across Antarctica purely by muscle power! The other inhabitants are her husband and 9-year old son.) 

The owners of Vigur sustainably harvest eider duck down. Female eiders naturally pluck their own soft down to line and insulate their nests while incubating their eggs. Each June, after the females have begun nesting, the farmers carefully replace the down with hay, which doesn't seem to bother the ducks at all. They simply return to the nest and produce more down, rebuilding their cozy nests while continuing to keep their eggs warm.

The island is also home to thousands of nesting Arctic terns who, as Naturalist Mike described, are just “really pissed off birds”. They nest on the ground and are fierce protectors of their eggs and chicks. As we walked through the colony, they continually dive-bombed us, targeting the highest point - our heads. Thankfully, we were armed with sticks held overhead, giving the terns something else to peck instead. I’ll be honest, I was a little disappointed not to leave with an Arctic tern battle scar…

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THE MIGHTY LITTLE ARCTIC TERN

Arctic terns are fun to watch since they are one of the few birds capable of hovering in place while searching for fish (or potential enemies!) before plunging down into the water. They are sleek little birds with long, thin wings, deeply forked tails, a black hood on their heads, and dark red beaks and feet. I found them to be quite elegant!

The Arctic tern is famous for making the longest migration of any animal on earth. Each year, these birds travel from where they breed in the Arctic to their feeding grounds in Antarctica before returning north again. Because of this, it experiences two summers every year and spends more time in the daylight than any other creature. The journey covers roughly 44,000 miles annually and takes about 90 days each way - it’s estimated that in their lifetime, a tern flies a distance equal to three round-trips to the Moon!

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We also spent time photographing the extraordinarily delightful Atlantic puffins that were nesting in burrows around the island. Puffins have backward-facing spines in their mouths that allow them to hold fish while they dive down for more, and some can hold 30 or more at one time. They are also extraordinarily photogenic birds with fun and quirky personalities, so it was fun to sit observing and photographing them.

After returning to the ship, we learned that we were pushing the itinerary ahead a day to try and beat some upcoming bad weather - we’d be heading to Greenland the next day! 

JULY 2 - Crossing the Denmark Strait

The entire day was spent crossing the Denmark Strait, sailing west toward Greenland. The sea was remarkably calm, with only gentle swells. It was surprising because we'd heard so many stories about the Vikings making this same crossing more than a thousand years ago, and how dangerous it could be. Of course, they weren't traveling aboard a comfortable, modern icebreaker. They made the journey in open wooden Viking ships called knarrs—sturdy merchant vessels powered primarily by sail, with no engines, no GPS, and little protection from the North Atlantic's notoriously unpredictable weather.

Around 982, Erik the Red became the first Norseman to establish permanent settlements on the island after being exiled from Iceland. According to the Icelandic sagas, he deliberately named it “Greenland” in order to trick others to come settle, knowing he needed support from many others to help grow crops to support their settlements. An early master of PR, that Erik!

In the early afternoon, we finally caught sight of the fabled Greenland. Tiny ice floes drifted past the ship, and the dark outline of Greenland slowly grew larger on the horizon. Then came an unexpected announcement from the captain requesting that everyone gather in the Ice Lounge.

Unfortunately, a passenger had suffered a medical emergency that required an evacuation. We immediately turned around and sailed three and a half hours back toward Iceland so the helicopter could reach us.

Talk about a Greenland tease…

So right after dinner, we saw a plane begin to circle the ship - it must have been some type of reconnaissance craft scouting conditions, because soon after, the Icelandic Coast Guard Search and Rescue helicopter appeared. We were banned from the top few outside decks since the rescue would be on the roof, but we gathered on the 6th floor aft deck to watch the rescue. 

First, a medic was lowered onto the ship. Once the patient was stabilized, they were carefully hoisted into the helicopter, followed by the medic. It was remarkable to watch the helicopter hover so steadily above the ship despite being hundreds of miles out in the North Atlantic. The precision and coordination of the entire operation were impressive, and witnessing such a complex rescue almost made up for missing out on more time in Greenland.

Adventures in Botswana: Wildlife of the Delta

Wildlife viewing in Botswana is an unparalleled experience in witnessing the majesty of our planet. With the Okavango Delta's location at the northern part of the Kalahari Desert, there are so many different habitats in a small area supporting a rich environment: from sandveld, savannah, and salt pans to marshes and mopane woodland. During our time in the country, we saw over a hundred different animal species, often from just a few feet away. We also got the full “circle of life” experience, seeing animals mating, admiring babies, and witnessing fresh (and not-so-fresh) kills. This is what we came for, and Botswana did not disappoint.

Side note, this happened on
the last day of our trip...

The goal of most safari-goers is to spot the Big Five, the five most difficult and dangerous animals traditionally hunted by foot in the 19th and early 20th centuries: lion, leopard, cape buffalo, elephant, and rhinoceros. 

Unfortunately, the Okavango Delta no longer has wild rhinos; their population of white rhinos became extinct in 1900 but were reintroduced in 1967; poaching reduced their initially thriving numbers to just 19 individuals by the early 1990s. As a response, all remaining wild rhinos were relocated to a secure sanctuary, so you can't see them in the wild. But we did get to see the other four members of the Big Five, and it was a thrill.

We later saw these brothers in our camp

Because Botswana hosts a healthy population of lions, we were lucky enough to see them on nearly all of our game drives. There were multigenerational families, solitary males, lionesses with young cubs, and a group of brothers. 

The abundance and diversity of prey in the Okavango means these lions are bigger and stronger than the average puny African lion. There are prides that specialize in hunting larger animals like cape buffalo, while others prefer smaller game like impala or warthogs. 

It's always exciting to see animal babies, so we spent some time watching a group of two adult females (a mother and daughter) with two young cubs, about three months old and still nursing. 

Those cubs were adorable! Although that gash on mom's arm looked appalling...

But it already looked better the next day!

Lions are a remarkably resilient animal. One of the lionesses had an angry gash on her front leg, sustained during a hunt for warthog, her pride's speciality. She licked her wound clean using her rough, sandpapery tongue, helping her own healing with her saliva's antibacterial properties. And it must have worked, since we saw her hunting the following day.

Lions, the world's second largest cat, have a roar that can be heard over 5 miles away. We heard several near our campsite, which was slightly disconcerting!

GET OUTTA MY FACE!

Someone needs a napkin...

In my opinion, the most gorgeous of the Big Five animals is the leopard, with its golden fur covered in black rosettes. These elusive animals move with sleek and elegant grace, but with obvious power.

On one occasion, a solitary male leopard crossed the road right in front of us – pure luck or we would never have spotted him. He was skittish and wary of us, but our guide Master maneuvered us so that we could get a good view. He was amazingly camouflaged in the tall grass, and several times I lost sight when I took my eyes off him, only finding him again when he moved. We followed him down to a drinking hole, then up a small hill into the brush. We waited for him to come out – which he soon did, giving us an excellent look at his beautifully patterned coat.

Don't mess with the Boss.

Cape buffalo are large and imposing beasts with wickedly curved horns and the unsettling habit of staring at you with an intense gaze. They are sometimes called the "Black Death" or "The Widowmaker" because of their aggression, and they actually have an exceptional memory and will hold a grudge for years! 

Did you know? That horn structure that forms a helmet on the male buffalo's forehead is called the "boss." Both male and female buffalo have horns, as they are used not just for display but for defense (and offense!)

We saw many herds of cape buffalo grazing in and near the delta waters, usually with accompanying cattle egrets who like the insects stirred up by the buffalo's movements, or oxpeckers who feed on the parasites on the buffalo's skin. 

Elephants are one of the most prolific animals in the Okavango, with the area home to one of the largest populations on the continent. 

Elephants are surprisingly good swimmers

Elephants don't just live here in the delta, they play an important role in shaping the environment, modifying the land by carving channels and tearing down trees to open up forests. They are also vital in seed distribution, since their digestion is notoriously inefficient (they poop out nearly 60% of the food they eat), and many other animals root through elephant dung for undigested food.

The nutrient-rich delta supports abundant vegetation, and elephants love the diverse grasses, shrubs, and trees that thrive throughout the year. Not only did we see them tearing up mopane trees and wading in lagoons looking for delicious waterlilies, but an angry matriarch trumpeted at us (and her baby mimicked her, giving us an adorable toot!)

African elephants can live up to 70 years, and a fully grown adult generally has no predators; older elephants generally die from tooth loss leading to starvation. When we saw a number of vultures in the trees, we didn't immediately associate it with a nearby carcass. 

But there was a funky smell in the air... and then we turned a corner and saw a dead elephant, with a solitary male lion guarding his prize. According to our guide, it had died about two days earlier, most likely from old age.

In the trees above lurked dozens of vultures, waiting for their chance at dinner. For some reason the lion soon ran off, giving a black-backed jackal his turn and allowing the many white backed vultures and cape vultures their chance to swoop in. It was so interesting watching them try to chew through the tough skin and vying for prime position near open flesh. Later, a pack of spotted hyenas chased off the jackal and also had their feast.

Cape vulture

Spotted hyenas are messy eaters...

As if there wasn't enough to share...!

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While most people have the Big 5 as their ultimate checklist on safari, we decided to add the most ridiculous animals to our list. From David's wildlife book, we looked for the most elusive species... pangolins and aardvarks and cheetah. We'd added the sable antelope and sitatunga to our dream list as a joke - mainly because our book said they were rare and hard to find, and also because they had such cool looking horns. 

I knew we probably wouldn't see our dream list, but I was more than excited that we were successful in spotting what is known as the Ugly Five - the not-quite-as photogenic but equally important animals of Africa: hyena, marabou stork, vulture, warthog, and wildebeest. They may have a less-than-appealing image, but I love them all the same!

Just look at those ears!!

Hyenas, often thought of as purely scavengers, are actually adept hunters with a high success rate on their hunts. Their bite is legendary - with powerful jaws that produce a massive force, enough to crack open 2.5 inch bones and get to the marrow inside! They are also highly intelligent, socially complex, and extremely vocal - including that famed,  distinct laugh of the 'laughing,' or spotted hyena.

🎵 Isn't he looovelyyyy...Isn't he wonnnnderful? 🎶

Also called the 'nightmare' or 'undertaker' bird, the marabou stork is a hideously scabby 4-ft tall bird with a pock-marked bald head and flabby pink pouch dangling from its neck. They'll eat just about everything - they're scavengers, but they also hunt or steal for food - and they'll even eat garbage like metal parts and shoes. 

Their top-heavy bodies stand on spindly legs - which are actually dark grey, but most often seen as white because of a buildup of excrement - marabou storks poop on themselves because the evaporative cooling helps with their thermoregulation. Hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it.

White backed vulture, lurking

I think human's innate dread of vultures comes from cartoons and comics. Their ominous presence is a sure sign of nearby death, since they feed primarily on carrion.  But vultures help clean up the ecosystem by preventing the diseases that would spread with all the dead bodies piling up. 

Their strong, sharp beaks are used to tear through tough animal hides. Most vultures have bald heads and necks, so that when they stick their heads inside a rotting carcass, they don't get guts stuck in their feathers. Why don't vultures get sick, if they're eating all that rotting flesh? They have digestive juices comparable to car battery acid, neutralizing pathogens like anthrax, botulism, and cholera. 

That sassy side-eye...!!

If there's one thing the Disney did right, it was to give warthogs a good name. 

Warthogs don't actually have warts - they have fleshy tubercles around their face. Their two pairs of distinctive tusks are actually canine teeth - one larger upper canine growing up into a semicircle, and one lower that is smaller but sharper used for digging and defense. Plus the also have the most luscious sideburns. My favorite thing about warthogs is their habit of sticking their tails straight up in the air when they run, the tufts at the end waving like flags. What's not to love?

Did you know? A group of wildebeest is a "confusion"!!

Wildebeest, aka gnu, are unique antelope with large heads, shaggy beards, and flowing manes. Like all wildebeest, those in the Okavango seasonally migrate, following the water from the Delta to the Makgadikgadi area. They're commonly found following zebra, and according to our guide Master, wildebeest aren't that smart and need the zebra to tell them where to go. In the clearing where we found a large herd, a group of wildebeest was randomly running in circles - according to Master, either for fun or maybe for practice, in case they are ever chased by predators. Oooo, fun!

For me, seeing the Ugly Five was just as fun and exciting as the Big Five. It highlights the diversity of wildlife, and the amazing adaptations that these organisms have developed in order to survive in this environment. And the sheer number of animals was mind-blowing! 

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Steenbok

During our drive home after sunset each evening, we had an opportunity to look for crepuscular and nocturnal animals with the use of a spotlight which would glint in a creature’s eyes. Predator eyes would generally flash orange or red, while prey animals shine green. We caught glimpses of a civet, genet, scrub hare, steenbok, and porcupines, (but sadly no aardvark or pangolin). My favorite was the delightfully hoppy spring hare, a tiny rodent that looks like a miniaturized kangaroo with a bushy, black-tipped tail. There were dozens spring-sprionging around in the fields as we drove by. 

Porcupine butt

Spring hare

Because the Okavango is so rich in wildlife, it became almost ordinary to see small herds of animals. Near the marshy ponds, there were waterbuck, hippos, and red lechwe; the savannah and woodland surprised us with impala, giraffe, kudu, cape buffalo, and elephants. As we drove through the scrubland we startled so many hornbills that eventually they became nothing special. And of course, when we ran across a dazzle (yes, dazzle!) of zebra, Anil was obligated to shout out "Zebra Crossing!!"

Kudu horns are my favorite!

Waterbuck are known for their 'toilet seat' rings and heart-shaped noses! 

Those wicked teeth are used exclusively for fighting, since hippo are vegetarians

Black-backed jackal

When the referees can't quite agree on a call...

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Traveling with people interested in biodiversity helped me appreciate the huge variety of birds that we’ve encountered. It’s always exciting to search for new (and particularly flamboyant) species, and David and I had fun pointing out fun sightings.

Lilac-breasted roller

Since I spent time with a knowledgeable and avid birder in Tanzania last year, I was familiar with many of the birds that we saw here in the Okavango. It also made me more observant - on the ride from the airport, we spotted the flash of vibrant blue and saw several colorful lilac breasted rollers sitting on the telephone lines.

Some of the highlights included an African hoopoe sharing food to what must have been its young (since it otherwise would never have given away such a tasty bug!), mating ostriches, and the African marsh harrier that caught and ate a frog. We saw a pair of my favorite birds, the secretary bird, who flew into a recently burned (actually, in some spots still burning) clearing – it must have been easy to find food in the exposed ground, since we also spotted a small group of Southern ground hornbills as well as a couple black backed jackals in the area. And it was also a thrill to hear (and see!!) the deep full-body grunt of Africa's largest owl, the Verreaux's eagle-owl - easily recognized by it's bright pink eyelids.

What a handsome secretary bird!

Verreaux's eagle-owl

Southern ground hornbill

Who better to teach us about the birds and the bees?

African hoopoe don't normally share... unless with their own babies

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My time in Botswana was nothing short of magical. There is something humbling about standing in a place where you are reminded just how small you are in the grand scheme of things. I’m deeply grateful to Anil, David, and Sam for sharing this journey with me—their curiosity, enthusiasm, and joy made each moment even more meaningful. 

Botswana left me in awe: the red-gold light of the sunset, the grunts and growls of hippos and lions at night, the quiet moments watching yellow-billed storks fishing for dinner. It’s a place that invites you to slow down, pay attention, and reconnect with nature. I'm already planning my return!