Autor: Gael Whelan

Gael was born in Scotland and went on her first journey, as an infant, from the United Kingdom to Canada on the Queen Mary liner. This was to be the first of many journeys to come. When she was three years old, she moved to Africa with her family. It was here that she learned that Africans referred to a journey as a “safari.” Somehow, the family adopted “safari” for every trip, as it built anticipation for an exciting adventure! The earliest safaris took the family along the strip roads of northern and southern Rhodesia (now Zambia and Zimbabwe) where there were many close encounters with wild elephants, buck, birds, crocodiles, rhinos, and people! To this day, every member of Gael’s family continue to call their trips “safaris.” It was on one of these safaris to Mana Pools that Gael introduced her young children and their cousins to the characters of the Masawani Game Park, to entertain them on their safari. The children enjoyed the stories immensely, especially when their ideas were woven into the tale and time seemed to stand still. Gael’s sister, Lexie, thankful for both the peace and quiet of the distracted children and the memories the stories evoked, insisted that they be recorded! Well, here they are. It is the author’s hope that everyone who reads her stories will develop a curiosity and a respect for life and nature in other countries.