Botswana – Chobe 博茨瓦纳乔贝12/2018 Stop 19 站

Taxi stops for the monkeys that have taken over the street in Botswana 的士为占据公路的猴子让路

10-11/12/2018. From Livingstone, Zambia, I took a short taxi ride into Botswana, with the first stop being the campsite at Kazungula. Along the way, our taxi had to stop for a herd of elephants crossing the road. The next morning, our taxi on the way to Chobe National Park had to stop for a bunch of monkeys running amok on the road. This is like one big zoo where the zookeepers are long gone, and we were not even in the reserve yet.

It was a glorious morning, and the Chobe National Park was full of activities. The animals were out doing exercises, having fun, grooming, dining out, all sharing the same space, all looking vastly different from the other guys, some minute, others enormous, yet they all seem to cohabit so peacefully.

A few baby monkeys had fun rock climbing on a tree. two impalas locked horns over a girl, quite possibly costing them each an arm and a leg. Kind of ridiculous, really. Why don’t they let her decide? Hippos were heads down, chomping their greens, but, alas, still looking way overweight. It did not seem like their vegetarian diet was working for them.

A beautiful animal kingdom, this Chobe.

10-11/12/2018从赞比亚的利文斯敦 (Livingstone) 坐上一小程的士进入博茨瓦纳 (Botswana) , 先到营地入住。的士行驶途中突然急刹，原来几头大象在过马路。第二早到乔贝国家公园 (Chobe) 路上的士因一群猴子在马路中胡闹而止步不前。简直就是个大动物园，而我们还没进入国家自然保护区。

进入乔贝国家公园后，几只婴猴在攀树自娱；两只黒斑羚为了个女人勾心斗角，难道不知要得芳心，是靠性格和魅力的，至少也得让她自己决定吧。河马在拼命的啃绿菜，但还是严重超重，素食对他们好像不管用。

这乔贝公园是个美丽野兽王国。

11/12/2018. An afternoon Chobe river safari followed the morning Chobe land safari. A charming river, but guests here should not be deceived. Hippos reared their ugly heads just above water out of nowhere and everywhere in the river. Cute and clumsy, even with an innocent look, these big guys are temperamental killers, killing hundreds across Africa each year. They live a charmed life—if they are not eating, they are frolicking in the water.

Crocs are another killer prowling these waters, just uglier and meaner looking. I came face-to-face with a mature croc, while I was afloat in a boat, eyeballing me to within two meters. Even in the comfort of our boat, I still didn’t like the thought of a killer croc nibbling on my toes. The rain came down by the bucketful, then quickly vanished, leaving behind a beautiful rainbow as a peaceful gesture, over a herd of grazing hippos, rain or shine, still enjoying their salad, now looking fresh green. One of the cruise boats got stuck in the sand and another’s propeller fell off. Nobody dared venture into the seductive water. The sun gradually lowered itself, glared once more as it sat on the horizon, then scattered the sky with a burst of different orange; apricot, carrot, pumpkin, melon, orange. The day would come to end, but it must end beautifully, or it will be too abrupt.

11/12/2018早上乔贝（Chobe）陆路猎游后接着下午猎游乔贝河 (Chobe River)。乔贝河充满魅力但不得放纵。河马不时在河中河边冒出水面，看来呆萌笨拙，这些大家伙可是神经质杀手。特嫉妒他们生活，吃饱后就在水里玩，玩完后又大吃，吃喝玩乐萧杀一生。这里的另一类大鳄就是大鳄。这些家伙就是神出鬼没，只是更丑陋更不顺眼。我就是坐在小艇上跟一只这家伙在两米内对视一阵，使人不寒而栗。兴致勃勃时上天头上浇了盆冷水，倾盆大雨后两道彩虹刚好降在几头吃草的河马。夕阳西下，这河更诱人又充满杀机。

这是个真实的世界，我们的可未必。