And that’s when I saw them coming right for me!

Maybe I shouldn’t have brought beef jerky on the safari. It made me thirsty anyway. And being thirsty in the dry savannah heat is not a good thing.

I’m sure the lion could smell it. Even though the guides assured me that he wasn’t looking at me and couldn’t possibly know I was eating meat in front of a hungry carnivore.

They quickly took posts to scare him if he charged. I tried to hide, logic escaping me, and gut reactions taking over as the van lurched to action, speeding away across the bumpy terrain.

The lion’s quick movements in our direction startled a herd of wildebeasts and zebras at the watering hole. They splashed out of the oasis as if swarmed by bees. A nearby herd of elephants then took up a call as the lion was spotted by the matriarch herself, and while most huddled around the little ones, a few detached and charged after the lion. He was hoping to outrun the giants and headed for an expanse.

The same expanse we were trying to drive across.