The post Walking with lions in South Africa appeared first on Vi Travel Tips.
]]>Note from editor: please visit this page https://www.facebook.com/BloodLionsOfficial, before considering any walking with lions tour and learn more about lions breading industry in South Africa.
Guest post by Emma Spires
[link removed by editor] lies half an hour outside of Pretoria in South Africa. It is a beautiful, secluded and enchanting animal sanctuary.
In March 2012, I had the pleasure of meeting the owners, the MacRae family, who specialize in wildlife conservation and run a lion breeding and rehabilitation program.
Whilst visiting this sanctuary, I had the experience of a lifetime: I walked with the lions. There was a group of four lions who were six months old – it sounds young, but trust me, they had already grown pretty big…
Part of the rehabilitation program is to ensure that the lions are walked before they are fed, thus teaching them the connection between movement and food.
Colin, the owner, had advised us not to approach the lions, and to let them approach you; he explained that this is how you gain respect. One by one, the lions bounded over to us, smelt us and rubbed their nose across our skin. They were boisterous, playful cubs, and, amazingly, the owner’s dog came with us on this walk and joined in with the playing lions.
Colin had also advised us that if the lions gave us what he called “The McDonald’s stare” then to stamp your feet, clap your hands and shout “No;” one man in our group had the unfortunate misadventure to receive such a look, the cub even jumped up and rested it’s paws on the man’s shoulders, the man advanced back shouting “No” and the lion, who was just being playful bounded off. Suddenly the realisation of what we were doing – walking with lions, hit home…
We enjoyed a half hour walk with the cubs to their favorite watering hole; when they got there, they swam, played and drank, and then, tired from the midday African sun, they fell back upon the long, emerald green grass and dozed off.
When our walk was over, we were also given the opportunity to meet some of the younger lions. There was a three month old cub who we were given the opportunity to feed. I was given a milk bottle and the cub bounded over to me, sat happily at my feet and suckled the milk down within seconds!
We also met two beautiful new born cubs, who were so small they could fit in the palm of your hand. It was certainly hard to believe that such small creatures could grow so large!
We finished the day by visiting the fully grown adults who were kept in spacious grounds at the back of the complex. There were two beautiful males – one with an incredibly spectacular black mane. One of the men in our group dared to get close to the fence and take a picture. The lion emitted a low growl, and the man, in surprise, literally toppled backwards and dropped his SLR camera….! It was a quiet reminder that whilst these beautiful animals were spectacular to observe, you should always give them the respect they deserved.
About the Author: Emma Spires is a backpacker with a serious case of itchy feet! Her first trip was a solo adventure at aged 17 to Ghana, West Africa, to participate in a Volunteering project. Nine years later, she has covered every continent in the world, but still has not cured those itchy feet!
Check out her website Backpacking Spirit for some awesome travel tips, advice and inspiration; you can also follow Emma’s travel adventures Backpacking Spirit Blog!
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Park was founded 80 years ago to safe remaining elephants in the area. Currently there are over 500 elephants in the Addo elephant park and you definitely will see a lot of them by driving around the park. In the park there are almost 50 black rhino, but it is more difficult to spot them .
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]]>The post My 7 travel shots appeared first on Vi Travel Tips.
]]>I wasn’t surprised how difficult it can be to pick only 7 photos from 1000s I have in the archive. It probably would be easier to pick Top100, but here we go.
A photo that…takes my breath away
I was siting on the cliffs where Nullarbor Plain meets Great Australian Bight with whales swimming under my feet and was watching to endless horizon of the Great Australian Bight in South Australia. The view which takes your breath away.
A photo that…makes me laugh or smile
What a polite squirrel I met in the market 
A photo that…makes me dream
Who wouldn’t want to spent time on pure white sand beach with crystal water? Champagne beach is called best beach in Vanuatu and is one of best beaches in the South Pacific and I can’t argue with that.
A photo that…makes me think
Everybody heard about global warming, but not so many people saw what is happening. Glaciers are one of best examples to see effects of climate change. I saw it in Southern Alps in New Zealand, in Rocky Mountains in Canada and US. This is current photo of Mikkajekna glacier in Sarek National Park in Sweden. The mark on the rock shows where tip of glacier was 22 years ago. Will be any glacier here in 50 years?
A photo that…makes my mouth water
Have you ever tried to taste Beaver tail? You should try one in Canada. BeaverTails is chain of pastry stands which sells pastry shaped like beaver’s tail. It was one of my favorite desserts in Canada. I would love to have one now
A photo that…tells a story
There is a statue in Sydney near State Library of New South Wales. It was erected in honor of Matthew Flinders who was first to sail around Australia. Can you tell what is so special about this statue?
Need a hint? Check behind the statue. Can you see another small statue in the lower left corner? It is Trim. The cat. The statue was erected by Trim’s admirers and I just want to quote Matthew Flinders:
“The best and most illustrious of his race the most affectionate of friends, faithful of servants and best of creatures. He made the tour of the globe and a voyage to Australia, which he circumnavigated, and was ever the delight and pleasure of his fellow voyagers”
A photo that…I am most proud of (aka my worthy of National Geographic shot)
This is hard one, because I have tons of aka worthy of National Geographic shots But because I can show only one, so it will be this one. It was taken during my volunteering in game reserve in South Africa. It wasn’t most friendly lion, but I loved to make shots of it.
Uff, I done it!
Now I would like to nominate 5 other bloggers I love to read and I could see they have lots of pictures to show
Lis @ listraveltips.com/travel-blog
Sophie @ www.sophiesworld.net
Marlys and Michael @ easyhiker.co.uk
Lili @ muza-chan.net
Jade @ vagabond3.com
The rules of 7 Super Shots are here. I will be waiting to see your shorts.
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]]>The post Learning surfing in Australia appeared first on Vi Travel Tips.
]]>Surfing was part of culture in Polynesia for ages but only in the last century the surfing was gaining popularity in other parts of the world.
My first touch with surfing was in very unusual place. During my trip to Germany I was walking around Munich and suddenly in the center of the city I saw surfers. Can you image somebody surfing in the middle of the city? So it was my first time I learned about such kind of activity.
It took five years till I actually tried to learn surfing. It happened at Jeffreys Bay in South Africa. I took some lessons there. Unfortunately it was very bad season and even for learners waves were too small.
So it passed another couple years and I arrived to Sydney. I said myself I need to learn surfing now or never. It was early and not warmest spring, but I went to Surf Camp near Sydney (which I definitely recommend). It was two intense days at Seven Mile Beach, but at the end I could stand up without problems and ride waves! It is unbelievable feeling.
Of course it wasn’t wave like this one:
But now I knew I can do it and it just a question of time when I will be able to ride something bigger
You must try it too if you are visiting Australia and I encourage to hire trainer. Of course spending time in surfing camp it is the best option to learn it, but take at least couple hours lesson if you can’t go to camp. You can rent surf board and try it yourself, but it is good to have somebody on side who can show your mistakes.
Be prepared for lot of paddling at the beginning
then relax and stretch a little bit
watch whales passing by
and paddle paddle again
The most famous surfing beach in Australia is Bells Beach near Melbourne, but I wasn’t much excited about it as water is quite cold there and my preference were beaches around Sydney as I lived there or in Byron Bay during holidays (last three photos are from the trip to Byron Bay). I love that shallow beach in Byron Bay and you can just walk if you are tired of paddling.
You will also find some outstanding surfing in the city of Gold Coast and the surrounding area. Surfers Paradise is probably the best known beach in the region, but South Stradbroke Island, Broadbeach, Main Beach, and The Spit are extremely popular in their own right. Duranbah Beach is another world famous surfing beach that is close to Gold Coast, but it is actually just across the state line and is located in New South Wales.
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