Sitting here with the fog around and needing to light a fire, I am thinking of Zimbabwe and the warm sun and the friendly people there. I am remembering getting up early,………… yes very early, in the bright sunshine, to feed the lion cubs at Antelope Park. What a privilege that was. What a joy too. I have the photos here near my computer. I just loved the time there.

Walking with the adult lions was also just overwhelming. It was not just the amazing experience of being with these fully grown lions in the open, it was the absolute knowledge that this was the experience of a life time. The people there with me at the same time were very varied both by age and nationalities. One lady who was in her mid forties  had saved up and given up her job to be with the lions for a month. She was delighted by everything and felt that it had been well worth while.  I thought that I would be the oldest there but there was a man called Jim who was much older than me. He just loved sitting with the adolescent lions, just there, in their compound, very quietly.

Riding on horseback round the park was terrific. Getting up so close to a giraffe was not something I had thought of before. My horse was blind in one eye where a thorn had got in but she was really game and  easy to direct. Helping with them in the mornings was also something that gave me great satisfaction. Grooming them and making sure they were well and then watching them canter off in to the park, free and happy. A bit different to helping with the elephants which was quite a novel experience. Riding one of those, felt rather different than the last time I had done so as a very young child. It seemed a long way down this time but just as exciting.

Must save up and go back.

Jane Davies