I feel the crisp air on my cheeks as I leave my tent. I want to turn around and let the warm blankets engulf me, but I also want to see what is out there waiting for me today. I get in my seat in the cruiser, grab my bush baby and blanket, and we begin our day traveling through the Okavango Delta in Botswana, Africa. My family and I cruise through the bush on the hunt for an animal stalking its breakfast or still deep in sleep.

We get a radio call that the other cruiser has come across a lion. We rush over to witness it doing its morning routine. The mother lion is sitting amongst her sleeping cubs. We watch in adoration for a few minutes before leaving them to complete their slumber.

Soon, we spot a herd of elephants already taking on the day. There’s a baby elephant trotting along in an attempt to keep up with the rest!

We watch them as the sun begins to break the horizon, creating an ombre of reds and pinks. As our stomachs grumble we unanimously decide to go find a spot where we would like to enjoy breakfast in the bush that morning.

We choose the marsh so we can watch the hippos swim majestically and bathe in the sun as its rays shine down on their backs. They dive underwater gracefully and are soon resurfacing, appearing like their large bodies are full of buoyancy and the ascent is effortless. I drink my hot chocolate and eat my muffin, watching in awe of the beauty in front of me.

Off to the left, some warthogs appear stretching their legs and playing in the morning sun. It’s much warmer now as the frost lifts and we decide to move on once more.

We drive for what feels like seconds before we pass another group of lions that appear to be stalking something. Suddenly, we spot them. Two koodo up ahead slowly walking along, unsuspecting of what is coming. We watch for what seems like hours... BOOM!

We race through the trees and bushes in an attempt to keep up with the lions that are hoping to catch themselves a meal. We see the mama lion take down the smaller of the koodo. My heart is racing. I feel like it might explode out of my chest; full of excitement, having just seen the most amazing sight, but also sad because a cute animal has lost its life.

After seeing so many things in such little time, we decided to head back to the tents to rest before going out again later that night. Following that exhilarating morning, I am excited to see what is in store for later.