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Sun Jun 08 2003 (Sepupa to Seronga)

Hippos up early again. Rained in night. No water for shower, chat to Dervil while waiting about their plans. Eventually get water (and hot this time!). Breakfast again, say goodbye to girls, get tent packed with help from Tim. Then Tim takes me out to local shack stores (Sunday so Co-Op Closed). Get tinned beans and Guava, corned beef, soup, biscuits, nut/raisin snacks, soap and toilet roll. Ben takes me to Seronga. See more crocs (including 3 metre dead and same size alive) and pair of otters. No-one to meet us at water so walk 15 mins past huge police station under construction and great looking school to Seronga village. Phone shop people out to lunch for another hour so looks like we're stranded. Flag down people in safari truck, get lift to turn off for camp and walk another 15 mins (v hot) into camp seeing elephant tracks on way. No-one in camp, eventually find Alex, and go to fantastic bar for a drink. Ladysmith Black Mambazo playing. Talk to Tom, Geordie been in Africa since 1970, he is in charge of building police station. Telss me to get a Ronduval as they are notmuch more expensive than camping. Check in to ronduval, 15 foot diameter, 8 foot high wall then wood and reed coned roof about another 12 feet high. Big spiders in apex of roof. Laundry, too much detergent, hang out between window and tree. Walk down to water, cows on their way down there clanking bells. People collecting and washing what I think is sugar cane. Odd Mokoro moving about here and there. Talk to Tom's mechanic, very fluent English, wants to travel, has been to Zim, Nam, SA so far. Can hear elephants breaking trees a few hundred metres away, everyone jumps over fence. Head back to house, then back out to look for elephant. Tom's house near gate, workers took his bakkie as they were scared of elephant. Find elephant near Tom's house, about 30 metres other side of fence. Can see tusks, they're breaking down branches to eat fruit and leaves. Follow then for 45 minutes down to near water. Eventually one goes to drink, piss, shit. Cattle just a few tens of yards away and not concerned. I'm watching hidden behind fence next to reed generator housing. Then others appear (4 bulls in total), and I can't move as no cover. End up less than 10 metres away, knows I'm there, looking at me with ears out wide, he is huge. Crapping myself now, decide to leg it up fence line if they try to get through fence. After about 5 mins they back off a little and I get out of there. Off to get dinner, only four of us here and I'm the only tourist. Marius acting as makeshift barman. Food is mashed potato, beef and butternut, then fruit. Everyone surprised I got so close to elephant. Marius tells us story of hunting with San. Track for days until within a few metres, then use poison tipped arrow. News comes in that elephant near gate. Go for look with Marius and Raj. Fresh shit inside gate underneath tree that has fruit that elephants love. Wander down fence line to water in moonlight but no sign of them. Marius is wearing shoes because of scorpions. Then car arrives,people say elephant are a few hundred yards down road. Starts raining, bring washing in, early bed as early start. Big spiders gone, one similar is next to wash basin in toilets. Catching up with diary by oil lamp. Mozzie coil going but still being hassled. Have mozzie nets in here. Photos from today