Three days tracking in a 4×4 through the National Park of Etosha in Namibia. Giraffes, zebras, rhinos, buffaloes, elephants…. no sign of the lions. And you wonder, do lions really exist in Africa or is it a marketing strategy to attract visitors? Some say they have just come across them, but when you arrive a minute later they are gone. Some Germans tell you about an encounter with a huge one with a mane, although they don’t show you any photo to prove it….. weird, weird.
When you are about to believe that they are a simple legend, like that of the Yeti or the Loch Ness Monster, you spot vultures circling in the distance and several parked cars. A small smile of hope appears, you speed up so as not to miss the spectacle but not too much, lest the noise scare away the beasts. As you get closer, you think of those documentaries on La 2 that you binged before the trip and you already fantasize about a pride of felines devouring a zebra. Last night you heard them roar near the tent, so they can’t be far away. Your hope laughs out loud at you before disappearing through the off-road vehicle window just as you see a jackal licking the blood from its snout while a flock of vultures wait their turn.
Alright, let’s admit it: lions do not exist.
