Via Flickr:
White Rhino
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
I am watching you
Via Flickr:
Leopards are the most common large cats in Africa - so it is ironic that it is also the cat that is the most difficult to spot when you are in the African bush.
This is due to the fact that they are rather shy, secretive and mainly nocturnal.
I got to see him (not sure about gender :)) when he was trying to take a Giraffe, but those guys where too big for him.But the look on his eyes told me that I would have been an easy snack for him :P
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Monday, November 19, 2012
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Thursday, November 15, 2012
I am safe here
Via Flickr:
www.facebook.com/sachinvijayanphotography
Interesting & Amazing Information On Baboons
Baboons are unique and complex social creatures, comprising of 8 to 200 members per troop.
They make use of ten different forms of vocalizations to communicate with one another. These mainly include grunts, barks and screams. The non-vocal forms include lip smacking, shoulder shrugging and so on.
Studies have indicated that a male baboon’s receptiveness toward females depends on the size of their swollen, colored genitalia during estrous.
Baboons do not have any type of prehensile or gripping tails and spend much of their time on the ground. Nevertheless, they can climb trees to sleep, eat or look out for trouble.
While changing locations or travelling as a group, the dominant male members of a baboon family lead the troop, followed by the females and the young ones. They are, in turn, followed by the less dominant males who bring up the rear.
For more: lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/facts-about-baboon-5984.html
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Ultimate charger
Via Flickr:
One unforgettable moment. He wasn't very happy about our 4x4 parked at the middle of the road, and the worst part was half of the herd was behind us as well no where to go.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Monday, November 12, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Friday, November 9, 2012
Cheetah
Via Flickr:
Behavior
Cheetah mothers spend a long time teaching their young how to hunt small live antelopes are brought back to the cubs and released so they can chase and catch them. Unlike most other cats, the cheetah usually hunts during daylight, preferring early morning or early evening, but is also active on moonlit nights.
Cheetahs do not roar like lions, but they purr, hiss, whine and growl. They also make a variety of contact calls, the most common is a birdlike chirping sound.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
White Rhino
Via Flickr:
The white rhinoceros or square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is one of the five species of rhinoceros that still exist.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Sunday, November 4, 2012
The next leg of the journey...
And I'm back again after a short break...
It has been a busy few days, due to which I didn't get the time to write. Where did I stop? Oh yes, at seeing a familiar face at the Abu Dhabi airport. That was Koushik C, a very talented percussionist whose talent I admire. We chatted for about 5 mins, after which he headed towards the lounge while I proceeded to do the mandatory window shopping at the airport. For me window shopping at the airport means going to wherever the cameras are :). After enjoying looking at some camera lenses, I too went to the lounge and sat in front of the famour fruit screen "Apple". It was a very slow connection, but someone just managed to open fb and write my previous blog post, which I then sent to my other half so that she could post it for me.
After a long wait there, it was time for me to start the second half of my journey. As I stood in the queue for immigration checking, an elderly lady came to me and asked if check-in had started. I said no, it's not. She was a lovely lady, very caring. By way of conversation, she started asking me where I am from. I replied, "India", and she told me that she is from South Africa. She then wanted to know why I would come to South Africa for work and leave my wife behind. She wasn't too convinced when I told her that I was there only for a week. She was asking me questions like, "What sort of work is that???" It took me a while to convince her that I was certainly going there only for a week!!! Towards the end of the conversation, the subject turned to technology and she was complaining about new technologies, "especially smartphones" and how complicated it is. Boy, am I glad that I didn't tell her that I work in IT!
The next flight was exactly the same, so much so that it was even the same seat number 9A, so I am not going to bore you with it here. However, there was one thing that I will write about. When the air hostess came to me and asked me if I wanted any newspapers, I began going through the pile of papers that she had. She suggested a paper which she said is the best and that I should try it, so then I thought why not, and got that one. I put my seat in relax mode and opened the newspaper (If anybody looked at me at that moment, they would surely have thought that I am some sort of business magnate!). The newspaper turned out NOT to be as good as she said it was. Well, no paper is good or useful if the language is one that you don't understand!!! It was a local African newspaper! I just went through the pictures, and then tried to get some sleep, but 2 hours was all that I could manage. I somehow managed to pass the hours till the plane started to descend.
I opened the window and got my first glimpse of Johannesburg, my destination. It was such a pretty view! It was lots of mountainous terraine, but with lots of green as well. It looked like the weather was pleasant as well. One thing that caught my eyes was that many farms were in circles, and that too exactly geometrically right circles! It looked like the work of aliens. I was quite curious about why they were in circles, and not square or rectangular. Even more interesting was that some of them were multicoloured. Even better from a photographer's point of view, except for the fact that I could not get up to get my camera as we had to be strapped in! Aaaarghhh! As we landed, I continued to yearn for my camera when I saw the runway art (which is what I call it. There was some patchwork done on the runway which looked like modern artwork).
Anyway, we landed, and there was a scramble for the bags. I grabbed my camera bag and started walking towards immigration. But then, it seemed like there was some race going, as everyone jostled and were walking extremely fast. So then what did I do - I too did the same (When in Rome do as the Romans do, right?). I had taken loads of documents with me, as I wasn't sure what kind of officials to expect at the immigration. But I got a very pleasant welcome from the officer. All she did was ask me the purpose of my visit. When I said official, she said ok, thank you, and I had officially immigrated! Happy days!
I then collected my luggage and outside the airport, started searching for my pick up. There he was, Stephen, standing there with a board with my name on it. As Stephen took me to my hotel, I was getting my first impression of the city. It looks great! Looks like a fast developing economy, great roads, nice highways, nice infrastructure and lots of BMWs and Mercedes' on the roads....Looking forward to seeing what the next few days are like...
So then, till next time...
It has been a busy few days, due to which I didn't get the time to write. Where did I stop? Oh yes, at seeing a familiar face at the Abu Dhabi airport. That was Koushik C, a very talented percussionist whose talent I admire. We chatted for about 5 mins, after which he headed towards the lounge while I proceeded to do the mandatory window shopping at the airport. For me window shopping at the airport means going to wherever the cameras are :). After enjoying looking at some camera lenses, I too went to the lounge and sat in front of the famour fruit screen "Apple". It was a very slow connection, but someone just managed to open fb and write my previous blog post, which I then sent to my other half so that she could post it for me.
After a long wait there, it was time for me to start the second half of my journey. As I stood in the queue for immigration checking, an elderly lady came to me and asked if check-in had started. I said no, it's not. She was a lovely lady, very caring. By way of conversation, she started asking me where I am from. I replied, "India", and she told me that she is from South Africa. She then wanted to know why I would come to South Africa for work and leave my wife behind. She wasn't too convinced when I told her that I was there only for a week. She was asking me questions like, "What sort of work is that???" It took me a while to convince her that I was certainly going there only for a week!!! Towards the end of the conversation, the subject turned to technology and she was complaining about new technologies, "especially smartphones" and how complicated it is. Boy, am I glad that I didn't tell her that I work in IT!
The next flight was exactly the same, so much so that it was even the same seat number 9A, so I am not going to bore you with it here. However, there was one thing that I will write about. When the air hostess came to me and asked me if I wanted any newspapers, I began going through the pile of papers that she had. She suggested a paper which she said is the best and that I should try it, so then I thought why not, and got that one. I put my seat in relax mode and opened the newspaper (If anybody looked at me at that moment, they would surely have thought that I am some sort of business magnate!). The newspaper turned out NOT to be as good as she said it was. Well, no paper is good or useful if the language is one that you don't understand!!! It was a local African newspaper! I just went through the pictures, and then tried to get some sleep, but 2 hours was all that I could manage. I somehow managed to pass the hours till the plane started to descend.
I opened the window and got my first glimpse of Johannesburg, my destination. It was such a pretty view! It was lots of mountainous terraine, but with lots of green as well. It looked like the weather was pleasant as well. One thing that caught my eyes was that many farms were in circles, and that too exactly geometrically right circles! It looked like the work of aliens. I was quite curious about why they were in circles, and not square or rectangular. Even more interesting was that some of them were multicoloured. Even better from a photographer's point of view, except for the fact that I could not get up to get my camera as we had to be strapped in! Aaaarghhh! As we landed, I continued to yearn for my camera when I saw the runway art (which is what I call it. There was some patchwork done on the runway which looked like modern artwork).
Anyway, we landed, and there was a scramble for the bags. I grabbed my camera bag and started walking towards immigration. But then, it seemed like there was some race going, as everyone jostled and were walking extremely fast. So then what did I do - I too did the same (When in Rome do as the Romans do, right?). I had taken loads of documents with me, as I wasn't sure what kind of officials to expect at the immigration. But I got a very pleasant welcome from the officer. All she did was ask me the purpose of my visit. When I said official, she said ok, thank you, and I had officially immigrated! Happy days!
I then collected my luggage and outside the airport, started searching for my pick up. There he was, Stephen, standing there with a board with my name on it. As Stephen took me to my hotel, I was getting my first impression of the city. It looks great! Looks like a fast developing economy, great roads, nice highways, nice infrastructure and lots of BMWs and Mercedes' on the roads....Looking forward to seeing what the next few days are like...
So then, till next time...
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