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I had not taken a road trip with my family in a long time, so I was excited to hear my Father's booming voice proclaim that we would be driving to Botswana to spend a few nights at The Grand Palm Hotel and Casino Resort. My sisters and I were ecstatic and when we arrived at the five-star hotel, the sight rendered us breathless. The place was gorgeous and stood tall against the African sky. The rooms were more than we expected, pristine and welcoming and you could hear the wildlife greet you from your window. The staff warned us that if any elephants, giraffes or monkeys approached our windows, we should not be frightened but most importantly, we were not allowed to feed the animals. There is something surreal about going to bed to the distant sounds of a lion roaring or an elephant taking a casual stroll past the hotel. The next day we prepared ourselves for the Safari trip, we had heard the animals all night and could not wait to go out and meet them. We piled into a Safari four-wheeler with other guests who were just as excited and our guide introduced himself as Simba, which brought about a few chuckles. "Yes, I share a name with the famous lion and today I'll introduce you to our pride". Simba did not miss a beat and off we went, kicking dust behind us as the four-wheeler made its trek into the bush. It was on this trip that I grew a little afraid of monkeys, apes and chimpanzee's, I had seen them grace my television screen growing up and had often commented about how human they look. The car had made its way into a little primate heaven and they were everywhere, they covered the low hanging trees looked down at us intently, hardly blinking. I had locked eyes with one in a tree and he stared right back at me, it was a weird sensation and I half expected it to greet me in English or Tswana, which is one of the languages in Botswana, but it only bared its teeth in what I hope to believe was a smile and not a warning for me to stop staring. The car drove through and we could see the tall proud necks of giraffes in the distance when a sound from the watering hole startled us. A female hippo was in its waters bathing and I marveled at the sheer size of her, Hippos are one of the largest living land mammals and the bite force of one is measured to be up to 8,100 newtons, that's a lot of force! The cow carried on her bath and we drove on. Simba then told us that once we were a safe distance away, we could get out and stretch our legs, I instantly used this opportunity to take some still life pictures with my camera, my family cameoed of course and gave me the much-needed ambiance I needed. I stood there marveling at how grand and expanse everything was, here in the wild you hear a lion roar as opposed to the sound of a plane or hooting car, the tranquility of it all brought me peace and serenity I had never known before. The sun was starting to set and Simba motioned for us to spot a pride of lions in the distance basking in the setting sun, "If we are lucky they may come a little closer, but don't worry, they know not to get any dangerously close. I watched them for a while and realized that they had no intention of moving, they just laid there, motionless enjoying their environment, enjoying being at the top of the food chain. After a while, Simba warned us that we should be getting back before the hyenae came out because unlike lions, their curiosity is unrivaled and they may attack. We made our way back to the Hotel, where we enjoyed a 5 star all you can eat buffet. I slept that night with a full stomach and heart, I knew I would never forget this trip for the rest of my life.