I was very happy to be invited to visit the Beekse Bergen safari park with my Dutch family. Last time I was there was a couple of years ago, but I had forgotten almost everything about the park and the animals. What I could remember was that the first time I went there, five years ago, I saw that the elephants were not light blue but grey. That was really a disappointment. I remember being laughed at for thinking they were that colour.
From my home, it is pretty close, 13 minutes by car. The huge number of cars in the car park was an indication on how busy the park was. Well, it was a sunny Sunday afternoon. Could I expect otherwise? Fortunately, gaining entry to the park was quick, despite how busy it was.
Because we had visited the park before on foot, we decided this time to have a guided bus tour. 30 minutes later, our safari adventure began! And what an adventure that was! The driver was also the guide of the tour. He would stop from time to time and would explain the origin of the wild animals and would provide some interesting information about their anatomy. His humour was mainly meant to entertain the children but I was amused as well. The funniest moment was when he had to explain the origin of the Père David’s deer (Elaphurus davidianus). Because this type of deer originates from China, he mentioned the way the royal house called the animal, namely Xia-Xia. I could never be able to transcribe that phonetically, and I do not think this is the way Tongzy, the emperor of China named the animal, but it was funny the way he pronounced it, making the people on the bus burst into laughter. Even after we got out, I could still hear people say “Xia-Xia”.
I loved seeing all those animals and I was so impressed by the diversity and the creativity expressed in their beauty and gracefulness. The lions will always be my favourite. If they were domesticated, I would definitely have had one as a pet.
Dissected Life 