After 2 days in Mankwe lodge we drove to the Mboma Boat station in the Okavango Delta (through Moremi Game Reserve). In Moremi we saw our first lions and not just off there in the distance, super close up! When I say close up, I mean like 2/3 meters away form the car. I was really scared, but had to put my fear asside and shoot like a lunatic! Only after I looked at the photos I realized that I was actually close to a lion! A wild lion! Hectic!

From Mankwe, it was about a 7 hour drive to the boat station. At the boat station, we went on a 2 hour Makoro drive. A makoro is a wooden boat the local people use as transport on the delta. Today the Botswana government no longer allow the people to cut Makoros from trees. The new ones are made from fibreglass.The Makoro drive was a priceless experience! Iaan and I sat behind each other and then Benjamin (our driver) stood at the back and steered the Makoro with a very long stick. Steering one of these takes a lot of balance! I climbed in with my camera and I did have second thoughts, but luckily Benjamin was a very good Makoro driver!

Floating around on the delta between the birds, long grass and all the hippos was absolutely priceless! And definitely recommendable. The environment and the sound of water will relax you more than any spa ever could!

After the drive we were taken to the island where we stayed on for the next 2 days. The island is part of a reserve and therefore no permanent structures. But more about this in the next post. Here are some of the makoro photos as well as the amazing sunsets we saw on the first night. I cannot describe the beauty of this. It’s a MUST see!

Ronald also gave us a delicious lunch on the bonnet of the 4×4!