Chobe to Polokwane Dec 2015

A cape buffalo stares as us from the roadside.

A family of elephants crossed the road in front of us.  We gave way.  There were a few young ones in the group as they hurried away.

The family nibbles on the trees.  Elephants knock down big trees to get at the inner bark and the destruction in areas is almost total.  They can level a landscape in no time.

Another elephant strides across the road.  Gotta keep the speed down.  And a good reason not to drive at night!

Another baby in the bunch, munching the shrubbery.

A little one follows the other elephants across the road and into the trees.

This one is stuffing her mouth with clumps of tree leaves.

This guy flapped his ears at us, a sign of annoyance.  We took off before he could get angry and charge the car.  They can move pretty quick when they are upset and Jason stalled the car one time as we tried to hurry away, giving me heart palpitations.

  

This big guy keeps himself between us and the baby.

Perhaps she is only half annoyed??

A baobab tree that has been ravaged and still lives.  They are incredible trees!

The border to Namibia at the edge of the Chobe National Park in Botswana.

A white baobab at the border crossing.

Another fat baobab in leaf.

The butt shot we got a lot of.  These cape buffalo were feeding along the roadside.

The mass of keratin that makes up their impressive horns is kind of ugly up close.  But hard--you don't want a head butt from this guy.

What a nice set of horns.

Our last night in Kasane, Botswana was spent in this tent.  It is on a concrete slab and has electricity, so it wasn't 'roughing' it so badly.  We enjoyed a few cool beers on the front porch before sunset.

Jason found this snake skin nearby.  A local cat wasn't much interested in playing with it.

The road signs were great!  They had ones for hippos, impala, and cows, too.

The famous Limpopo River forms the border between Botswana and South Africa.  This truck rumbled across the one-lane bridge over it.  I think a sign warned of a 7-ton limit.  Must've been my imagination as this truck was well over that weight.

The trucks waiting to cross the border lined up for miles and miles!  Border crossings can be a real time chewer.

Our little apartment-style room in Polokwane, a gated accommodation, after a very long day's drive.  We treated ourselves to a triple-decker pizza and retreated to the safety of the room for the night.

Waiting for the pizza to get done, I wandered down the sidewalk to the art centre.  This giant slab was outside the doors.  It is a slab of melted guns that had been burned and buried at the end of the Boer wars.  It was unearthed during excavation for the art gallery and is now a monument to peace.

The big new roundabout in downtown Polokwane.  It makes a good landmark and our hotel was just off the road here.