For the last two weeks, I have been in Kenya.  Kevin and I spent our summer vacation visiting four national parks/reserves on a safari in the "southern savannah" of the country. The final stop on our tour was Masai Mara, which is home to the annual wildebeest migration known as the 8th Wonder of the World.  Annually, over a million wildebeests (along with zebras and other hoofed herbivores) migrate from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Mara in Kenya.  They live there for about three months of the year and graze through about 1500 square km of grass.  They come to eat.  And, if they can avoid being eaten themselves, they have a seemingly endless, big grassy buffet in front of them.

Of course, there are endless predators there as well.  Among the most skilled hunters are the giant cats of Masai Mara, which is reportedly home to the densest population of lions in the world.  Lion sightings are virtually guaranteed in the Mara and, for our visit, it delivered.  We saw dozens of lions and they were as majestic and powerful as we had hoped.

Check out our photos.  And, yes!  We were as close to the lions as our photos make it seem.  On a couple of occasions, I literally could have reached out of the Jeep and touched them.

21 Heart-Stopping Photos of Beautiful Lions in Masai Mara Reserve in Kenya

I just returned from Kenya, which is home to the Masai Mara. The reserve has the densest population of lions in the world. Not only did I see a lot of lions, I saw them up close and personal in hair-raising proximity. They were majestic and amazing.

What's so fascinating about these cats is this.  They, specifically the cheetahs, have gotten very used to safari vehicles.  Not only do they seem unphased by the presence of the vehicles, they have actually started adapting to them.  Cheetahs have been known to use the safari vehicles as cover to help them in their pursuit of prey.

I mentioned to friends that when you see these animals in the wild- in their natural habitat- it makes you curse captivity.  THIS is how you should experience seeing lions and leopards and cheetahs.  It was breathtaking, beautiful and, yes, at times, savage.

It's truly the circle of life.

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