By Sunandini Arora Lal

Above, animals such as rhinoceros venture close to Hongonyi lodge at all hours. An electric fence keeps them at a safe distace.

In typical last-minute fashion, my children and I recently found ourselves in Pretoria, South Africa, for an impromptu family reunion. Being wildlife buffs, we knew the trip would be incomplete without a safari to Kruger National Park, South Africa’s flagship game reserve.

Since South African schools have their winter vacation in July, we found accommodations within Kruger fully booked. After our initial disappointment, things worked out well as we ended up discovering a wonderful game lodge about 45 minutes from Kruger.

Hongonyi, near the town of Hoedspruit, is a 14-suite lodge within a 1,400-hectare game reserve, run by Johannesburg natives Marina and Gary Snyman. We arrived there somewhat tired in the late afternoon, after an early morning departure from Pretoria. But our spirits were quickly revived by the Snymans’ hospitality and the quiet vibrancy of the surroundings.

After we’d had a chance to freshen up, Gary and his tracker drove us into the bush in an open Land Rover, and we had our introduction to African wildlife in the form of wildebeest and several varieties of antelope. We watched the sun set from a landing strip on the reserve, where the tracker miraculously set up a table with a starched white linen tablecloth and ice-cold drinks. On the way back we caught the glare of animal eyes in the headlights, which Gary identified as nyala, wart hog, impala and wildebeest.

Back at the lodge, we braved the chill to sit out on the viewing deck and observe the silhouettes of kudu and waterbuck near the water hole. After a candlelight dinner in the thatch-roofed dining room, we fell asleep to the howling of hyenas outside our window.

Kruger, the next day, was where we got our only glimpse of a big cat - a lion wonderfully camouflaged sauntering through the tall dry grass.

Back at Hongonyi, we were treated to the magical sight of a pair of rhinoceros grazing a few feet away - separated from us only by the electric fence around the lodge.

Sunandini Arora Lal is a copy editor for the Town Crier.Sunandini Arora Lal/Town crier

Above, Lal’s children, Shiv and Maya, along with their cousin Aleya Gaba (center), wait outside the “lounge” of Hongonyi, ready to leave for their game drive in the morning.