Saturday Snapshots: Hardy ships of the desert | GulfNews.com

Saturday Snapshots: Hardy ships of the desert | GulfNews.com

Masai Mara: Close encounters at the great migration

The greatest animal show on earth, the eighth wonder of the world, greatest wildlife spectacle on earth, largest mammal migration … yes, all cliches, but these are the only words I can think of to describe the phenomenon that it is — the migration of about 1.5 million wildebeest (gnu), and hundreds of thousands of zebra and gazelle. This epic never-ending 2,897km journey for fresh food and water spreads over the savannah in the Serengeti, Tanzania and Masai Mara, Kenya.
The most exciting part of this migration is the crossing of the two rivers, Grumeti in Tanzania and Mara in Kenya. From July to September or October, Masai Mara is the place to see the action.We saw their journey in Tanzania last year so I organised with Ahmad Khan of Wildness Safari to witness it in Masai Mara this August.

Our wonderful journey began just a few feet from the private balcony of our tent at the Ashnil Mara Camp, where we could see hippos fighting for territory and giant Nile crocodiles sunbathing on the banks.The migration begins with the wildebeest entering Kenya in July or August. Hence this camp on the edge of Mara — and bang in the middle of the action — is packed at this time of year. Early in the morning we began the game drive, with the hope of seeing the famous wildebeest river crossing. Until we reached the famous Mara Bridge, our guide-driver Simon had his ears glued to the wireless radio transmitter for any news of crossings. Unfortunately for us, the wildebeest do not follow our calendar. And this year, as luck would have it, they started crossing the Mara river very early — in June. The movement depends on rainfall, which, again, is highly unpredictable.

Obviously, the river crossing is the icing on the cake, but the cake itself — thousands of wildebeest and zebra grazing the savannah and the predators following them — is no less a feast for the eyes. Though difficult to describe the feeling when one is seated inside a vehicle surrounded by wildebeest, the sound, the force and the magnitude will remind you of being in the centre of a Formula One race track.
However, Masai Mara is a year-round destination because of its rich resident wildlife population. You can see the Big 5 — lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino — any time of the year. And we were witness to some fantastic sightings. Other than the massive herds of wildebeest and zebra, we spotted two black-maned lion brothers gracefully patrolling and marking their territory because a cheetah had trespassed.

We saw the beautiful courtship dance of a male ostrich, ducking and waving his neck back and forth, his wings flapping, to attract a faraway female, and the female responding by flapping her wings backwards and bending her neck forward. Some intense giraffe-necking, vultures devouring a zebra carcass, hyena, black-backed jackal, a baboon family, were some unforgettable sights.
And that was not all. The bonus was an African thunderstorm and the accompanying dark evening clouds — simply surrealistic.
Any country in Africa is special to me, not only for its wildlife but for the beauty of its magical, wild landscape. And, as always, African hospitality is simply mesmerising. 

-Sankha Kar.

http://gulfnews.com/life-style/travel/destinations/masai-mara-close-encounters-at-the-great-migration-1.1226807?utm_content=1.1226807&utm_medium=RSS&utm_source=Feeds&utm_campaign=Masai_Mara%3A_Close_encounters_at_the_great_migration&localLinksEnabled=false&utm_term=Life_RSS_feed

Henri Cartier-Bresson had once said: “Photography has not changed since its origin, except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important.”

People still believe they fail to take quality pictures because they do not have high-end cameras or lenses. However, in photography, the aesthetic aspect is more important than the technicalities. The “wow” factor for any picture starts from your approach towards the subject, and then comes composition or use of elements and finally utilisation of technology.

Most people will invariably ask you about the technique behind a particular shot, the camera or lens used and so on and so forth if they like your picture at first glance. But proper usage of your hi-tech camera or lens primarily depends on two things – your approach and composition of the subject. If a subject requires a wide-angle lens and you are using a telephoto lens or vice versa, then you are misusing the props on hand. Even a perfectly exposed, sharp, big mega pixel picture will fail to attract or impress people if it is not aesthetically appealing.

So always remember to choose your subject properly and pre-visualise the shot. Pre-visualisation is very important. It will help you determine the point of view, the lens, shutter speed, background etc and will give you the chance to rectify your shoot before you actually click it.

Finally, use the basic elements like line, shape, texture and colour, which will help you give your picture a dynamic look and feel. 

- Sankha

 

Ha Long Bay

Al Bustan Zoological Centre: A private zoo for endangered species | GulfNews.com

Al Bustan Zoological Centre: A private zoo for endangered species | GulfNews.com

Into the wild Botswana 2012

Into the wild

Hi, this is your captain Toni from the flight deck. Let me welcome you aboard Safari Air. Before reaching our final destination, we will stop at a place to deliver some medicines and at another point to pick up a passenger. The total duration of our flight is about 50 minutes, but the landing sometimes requires two or three attempts because quite often, the runway is occupied by elephants, lions or even members of the ostrich family — waiting for you, right in the middle of the runway.”

Our captain made it sound quite jovial, though I was certain that ensuring a safe and smooth landing under such circumstances was indeed an unenviable task.

Flying in these four or five-seater, single-engine “bush” aircraft itself required strong nerves and to top it all, we had this announcement from the captain.

What a start to our trip, I told myself. Welcome to Botswana.

Botswana: a land that prides itself for being home to the largest elephant population in the world; a land that possesses the largest salt flats; the richest diamond mine; the world’s largest inland delta and the second largest game reserve on the planet. It is home to some of the best, virgin wilderness and wildlife expanse in the African continent. Given this rich repertoire of natural beauty and wild splendour, it was extremely difficult for me to decide where to go and where not to while planning this week-long trip. And I must admit here that travel consultant Suzaan Nel of Uyaphi.com did a very good job at helping me plan my itinerary.

I started my trip from Kasane, the town at the north end of Botswana, situated on the banks of the famous Chobe River and very close to the four-country border-crossing of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Apart from the unparalleled Chobe river safari, you can also visit the world famous “Mosi-oa-Tunya” — the Smoke that thunders — the Victoria Falls at the Zambia-Zimbabwe border. Even during landing and takeoff from Kasane airport, you can see the towering columns of water-spray rising from the spectacular falls.

Coming back to our flight, after about 50 minutes of breathtaking views of the heart of the Okavango Delta, we landed — and luckily, at the very first attempt — at the Xugana (pronounced as “Kugana”) airstrip, privately owned by Desert & Delta Safaris.

Xugana Island Lodge

We were transferred by a motorboat to Xugana Island Lodge, built on the edge of a permanent water body of the delta, called Xugana Lagoon. Due to the remoteness and topography of the delta, most camps and lodges are only accessible by air or boat. The eight chalets of the lodge are all built on the edge of the lagoon, on a raised wooden platform, and the front of the rooms is almost open, covered with insect nets, reed and thatch, facing the lagoon. This helps ensure tourists do not miss any of the action in the wild.

At night, we heard some strange noises right under the platform — more precisely, under our bed. Having visited Africa a few times earlier, I told my wife that it must be a hippopotamus. Next morning, our lodge manager, John Jr, confirmed that apart from the 16 guests and the support staff at the lodge, there was one other resident — a hippo called Fred, who visited the lagoon each night and ventured around the lodge.

You can explore the delta by motorboat or take a walking safari. However, the most interesting one is the mokoro (canoe) ride on the shallow waters of the lagoon. The delta is also a good place for bird watching. Apart from the wildlife, the landscape of the world’s largest inland delta — created by the Okavango River and Kalahari Desert — offers some superlative scenic beauty. Sunset behind the papyrus and its reflection on the crystal clear water are just awesome.

From serene Xugana to mysterious Savuti, the setting changed dramatically. Deep into the evening hours, it was like watching a movie that changed in tone and verve “post-interval”, as rightly describe by Michelle and M.C. Odumetse, our hosts at the lodge. It was pure IMAX stuff. We were at the dinner table and keeping us company at the other end was a 35-member elephant family — barely 10 metres away. It probably can’t get any better and closer than this.

Savute Safari Lodge

That is the uniqueness of Savute Safari Lodge, located on the edge of the mysterious Savuti Channel (some call it the river that flows in both directions). In 1851, when David Livingstone first visited the area, it was in full flow. In 1879, it had receded. Again, from the 1950s to 1980, it was back to normal. Since January 2010, the channel has been following its usual course, though no one is certain for how long it will continue.

The lodge accommodates only 24 guests in 12 chalets. All the chalets are overlooking the channel and are equipped with a viewing deck. To ensure an uninterrupted view of wildlife, the facades of the chalets comprise expansive glass sliding doors. Even the ensuite facilities are similarly equipped. The room deck or the dining area is just a stone’s throw away from the channel. Round the clock, elephants and other animals come to the channel and if you are really interested in getting up-close with one of them, look no further.

There are very good game drives available around this lodge with some fine guides such as Metal, Gee or Baba.

Botswana is one of the best places for leopard-sighting too. Our guide, Metal, was a super spotter and he used to compete with Baba in spotting leopards. We were lucky to spot as many as four leopards in a single day. The concentration of wildlife is very good around Savuti Marsh.

Botswana is one of the more expensive safari destinations due to its low-impact tourism policy. And it is precisely because of this reason that the safari experience Botswana offers is topnotch.

If you want to know the real meaning of the words tranquility and serenity, put that dictionary away. Simply pack your bags and head to Botswana and its famous Okavango Delta.--
By Sankha Kar
Published in
http://gulfnews.com/about-gulf-news/al-nisr-portfolio/tabloid-on-saturday/into-the-wild-1.1130895

Rainy Day.Dubai