That’s one of the best things about travel. Almost every day is an adventure. Even going to the store to buy a loaf of bread…if you don’t know the language or the customs or the currency…can be an adventure. I’d have to say one memorable adventure was camping out and then going on a walking safari in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. All safaris can be exciting as you wait to catch a glimpse of the Big 5 (Lion, Rhino, Water Buffalo, Leopard and Elephant) but there’s a difference between going on safari while you’re tucked safely inside a Landover vs. having to rely only on your own two feet to get you the hell away from danger.

I was on a three week camping excursion in Southern Africa with about 20 other backpackers from all over the world back in 2002. For one night of the trip, we took hollowed out canoes into the delta, found a small patch of sand to put up our tents and set up a camp fire for dinner…right in the middle of nowhere.

By this point I was used to sleeping in a tent, but this experience felt different. Instead of being inside a sanctioned campground, we were just right out there with all of Gods little (and big) creatures. Sure made getting to sleep a little tougher than usual. The next morning our group split in two, each with a local guide for our safari walk. Before we started off on our walk, the guide gave us a list of “escape rules” depending on what animal you might come in contact with. From one animal, you’d have to run for the nearest tree and start climbing. For another, run in a zigzag pattern and for another drop to the ground and cover your head. I’m sure the escape plan for the lion must have been, select your deity of choice and PRAY! Even as the guide was explaining these rules I was thinking, there’s no WAY I’m going to be able to keep this straight if I do end up accidentally bumping into one of these creatures. So my strategy was just to stay as close as possible to the guide and do whatever he did in case of emergency.

It ended up being a (thankfully) uneventful walk; we just saw some tracks of some large animals and some actual giraffes a little off in the distance. But I believe the rule is something like: In the wild, you only see 20% of what’s actually out there seeing you. Now THAT’s Adventure!