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Photo: Hatching Penguins

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Yes, that’s right, that penguin chick is only hours old.  We encountered this happy mom when we were touring Punto Tumbo in Argentina.  With a few others from our hostel we shared a car rental and drove to here to see the penguins as they hatched before continuing onto Puerto Madryn and Peninsula Valdez.

Our timing at Punto Tumbo could not have been better.  We saw nest filled with eggs, nests filled with broken shells who had just hatched, a few nests like this one and even a few where the eggs were rocking but the chick had yet to break through.  One of the people we shared the car with was an avid birdwatcher and he told us it can take some species all day long to hatch from their eggs.  With this little guy only a few hours old we kept a safe distance and didn’t linger for long.

IF YOU GO:  Peninsula Valdez is incredible but so is Punto Tumbo, a few short hours to the south.  There are several car rental agencies in town and if in a small group this works out loads cheaper than a full scale tour.  Base yourself in Puerto Madryn for exploring and plan to spend a night on the Peninsula as well.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo: Sleeping Hippo?

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Hippos are among the most fearsome creatures in all of Africa, seriously.  The only animals more deadly than hippos in Africa are the human and the mosquito, hippos are responsible for more deaths annually than crocodiles.  Part of the reason for this is that they are nocturnal and when they emerge from the water at the end of the day…they’re hungry and will chomp on anything that comes across their path.

This guy here is actually asleep.  The skin of the hippo lacks any kind of natural sun protection and so they spend the day sleeping underwater.  Somehow they manage to float up to the surface every few minutes to take a breath before submerging again.  This guy was sleeping with this face pointed at a bridge and I simple parked the car and took a few pictures every time he came up for air.

IF YOU GO:  You can literally see wildlife/game all through Africa.  South Africa has a host of game parks and safaris you can go on just like Tanzania and Kenya.  The nice thing about South Africa is that you can drive your own safari through the parks, no guide necessary.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo: Warthog Butts

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Pumba finally found his family.

While on safari in South Africa we met a woman who told us she could put an album together of all the animals’ butts she’d managed to capture on film over the years.  In just a few weeks we managed to rack up quick an array of butt photos ourselves but none are quite so cool as this one here.

We often like to think of warthogs as dirty and ugly animals and, while there might be some truth to that, they also form incredibly strong family units.  One driver told us of a time where a baby warthog was attacked and killed by a predator (I don’t remember which one, sorry) and the father warthog became so enraged that he took out his aggression on the safari jeep…and caused some serious damage!  Compare that to a male hippo who is known for eating his own young and you can see how unique the warthog really is.

IF YOU GO:  South Africa is a great place to do a safari on a budget.  There are lots of flights to South Africa from all over the world and once there you can rent a car and drive your own safari.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo: Exoskeletons

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Scary looking bugs, aren’t they?

Actually, they aren’t bugs.  The bugs have left.  These are vacant exoskeletons from some kind of insect that outgrew its encasement.  The skeletons are so stiff and strong that they stay in place, inverted against gravity, without any power of any kind.  This is a testament to mother nature and the surprising strength that sometimes comes in small packages.

Of course if the bugs aren’t your thing the rest of the Takwa Ruins just outside of Lamu are rather incredible as well.  We enjoyed the grounds with virtually no one else around.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo: Grasshopper Sex

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Yes.  You read that right.  There really is nothing else to say about this photo except that we took it in Mexico when we were supposed to be touring some Aztec Pyramids.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

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