Sunrise Symphony: Soul Stirring Africa
London houses my writing room, but my true sanctuary sprawls thousands of kilometres away under the African sun.
Here, at Return Africa Pafuri Tented Camp, the bush awakens with a birdsong symphony, each note pierces dawn’s canvas. I watch mug in hand, muffin melting on my tongue, from the deck overlooking the clay-stained river, its rippled surface catching the first fiery kisses of light. A bloated crocodile stalks from the riverbank, its predatory gaze waiting for the sun to bathe its scales.
The safari vehicle chugs forward, sunlight igniting the tiny yellow blooms sprung from last night’s rain. The light breeze pulsates with rejuvenation. Even the zebras glow, their stripes shimmer after the shower. Over thirty calves, their tawny coats gilded by the sun, huddled close to their mothers in a herd of impala. We give them a wide berth, a silent apology, leaving them to their sunlit sanctuary.
Ten minutes from camp, my mind fills with hyena calls; the city’s smog and sirens are long gone — the African bush: a refuge of untamed wilderness forever pulsating through my veins.