Elephant-back safari

On my last morning in Livingstone, I decided to take an elephant-back safari through the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park. I left my hostel early in the morning and met the guides who were waiting at the edge of the park with the elephants. My elephant (the middle one in the picture below) was named Leoa and was the mother of a one-year old calf (also in the picture).
I quickly learned that taking a picture of yourself on the back of an elephant (especially one that shows that you're on an elephant) is incredibly different.
The early morning ride was beautiful. We saw impala, waterbuck, bushbuck and several other antelope as we wandered through the park and along the Zambezi River.
At the edge of the river, we paued to take some posed pictures.
During and after the pictures, Leoa just wanted treats, so she kept sticking her trunk up above her head and searching around for one of us to give her a snack.
After the safari, I had a chance to get up close and personal with Leoa. I sat on her leg, fed her some snacks, pet her and just laughed at how close I really was to such a tremendous creature.
It was yet another of the many once-in-a-lifetime experiences I've had on this continent.