Kindergarden Parade

Etosha National Park, Namibia

You are sitting and watching the stage with amazement and yet in expectation. You are always in the front row and you know there's always a new actor showing up, others leaving the stage, there's another variation and improvisation on the same theme. And yet it's always new and funny and entertaining.
If you're alert enough you will see them coming in the distance. At first it's just a pair of ears that slowly becomes an individual. And then another, and another and soon it's like a pipe. It's an amazing parade. Apart from the first and last individuals which are usually big and constitute the security guard, the line is a random mixture of kindergarden ages and sizes accompanied by their parents. The elephant kindergarden is on its way to the waterhole - their playground and socializing scene. Over thirty elephants in this case.

As the line approaches the scene it makes a turn and the individuals become more and more distinct. You notice the youngest ones walking almost between the legs of the adults. And they're all coming at a slow pace slightly swinging their bodies.
When they reach the scene all other actors retreat respectfully and the guards post themselves around it. It's a precious moment for the actors as well as for the audience. Here, around the waterhole the elephants socialize and teach their young ones classes.

How to lift a hind leg and stand on the trunk? How to powder with sand and dust? How to roll in the dust? The adults sometimes make a demonstration. The young ones then mimic it, but imperfectly, and earn just a benevolent approval. The audience is exhilarated and sometimes unable to control their laughter.

The elephants are the biggest actors on stage, with even the smallest baby elephant larger than a rhino.The kindergarden comes separately from the bulls which seem to have serious business to discuss when they meet there. Their eye-contact, their sounds and their trunk gymnastics clearly indicate that there is a protocol they follow. An isolated bull's presence may not be approved by the others despite its humble attempts to please. It's not a simple world, the world of elephants...

The show around the Okaukuejo waterhole in Etosha National Park, Namibia, is absolutely incredible. The waterhole is permanent and very popular with the park inhabitants. On top of that it is lit at night. Sitting on the benches in the semicircular audience you only have to watch and be quiet. Talking in whispertone is fine. You see, there is no curtain falling down: it's a perennial show.
During the day it can get hot so you may relax with a cold drink. In the evening or during the night you can enjoy the show while sipping a glass of wine with friends. In the chilly winter nights you can still sit there cuddled in a warm sleeping bag.
There are many waterholes in the park and the ones next to the campgrounds are lit at night. But Okaukuejo seemed more frequented by wildlife.

After the initial excitement at viewing from such proximity dozens and dozens of springbok and zebras you end up taking them for granted. There are thousands of zebras in the park and the springboks are in the tens of thousands. During the day there seems to be a pipe of zebras streaming towards the water. Hundreds and thousands of them are coming. With them it looks like a pilgrimage. Therefore, you get more excited to spot the giraffes and especially watch a giraffe bending its front knees hesitantly almost kneeling down in order to drink. They drink in long sips. In between they need to stand up to avoid dizziness.

The wildebeests, kudus, impalas and oryxes are clearly outnumbered by the zebras, but still present at almost all times during the day around the waterhole.

As for the rhinos, there are slim chances to see them during the day. Their slow and silent entry on stage at dawn or dusk is thus more mysterious. Also at nighttime you can see them socializing around the pool. Occasionally there's a "falling in love" scene when the rhino couple seems to meet for the first time and approach each other shyly. They make eye contact, they very slowly walk toward each other and when they finally delicately touch their noses - and the audience is watching with tension and delight! - they quickly step back as if struck by fear and emotion. It takes another few minutes of slow motion steps before they make contact again :-)

We didn't see any big cats during our 2 nights' stay in the park but we couldn't ignore the lion's presence next to camp. For a whole night every now and then we heard its deep roar. It was cutting through the silent night and making the air vibrate, filling us with fear but also expectation. But it never came onto the stage. Maybe because we were still too many in the audience late after midnight. He is the king and therefore can afford to act with more concern for his privacy.

The experience around the waterhole could be viewed as a form of safari, too, but after being on safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro I think that watching the show around the waterhole complements rather than substitutes a safari.

And the kindergarden parade, believe me, that's something you don't want to miss!