Tennis star Sharapova's Africa trip: beautiful Botswana, riveting Rwanda

Russian tennis star, Maria Sharapova, recently embarked on an African tour which took her to Botswana in southern Africa and Rwanda in East Africa.

The trip which started on November 8 and spanned till the 14th was largely one that had a strong and rich connection to nature and wildlife.

The Botswana mission was largely in one of the country’s famed natural parks which attracts thousands of tourists year in an out, it also had a fair share of savoring wildlife at close range – from the lions, rhinos, squirrels etc.

Silverback gorillas!! We have fallen in love with your country. Truly! Early morning treks to locate the gorillas, getting caught in a rainforest downpour, witnessing a silverback big daddy of all big daddies walk right past us without a care in the world ( thankfully!!) ..so special!!

She wrote about Botswana: “Love at first sight! The closest I’ve ever come to a safari was locking eyes with a squirrel. But not anymoooore! The Lion’s roaring in the video? That was within 30mins of our first game drive overlooking the sunset at Weare wilderness Vumbura Plains.

She also spent time at the Okavango Delta also in the plains before sharing her time at the Little Mombo Safari where she encountered leopards, buffaloes, elephants and zebras.

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Botswana, Africa ??? !! Love at first sight! The closest I’ve ever come to a safari was locking eyes with a squirrel ?. But not anymoooore! The ?’s roaring in the video? That was within 30mins of our first game drive overlooking the sunset at wearewilderness Vumbura Plains. Which animal should we look for next?? ??????

A post shared by Maria Sharapova (mariasharapova) on Nov 8, 2019 at 1:40am PST

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We made our way to #LittleMombo at Okavango Delta. Tracked a leopard ? within an hour of our first evening drive and followed him until it became too dark. ( incredible!!) Buffalos ?’s ✔️. An elephant ?that was clearly a little excited and ready to mate ?. Notice I turned off the video once he looked directly to us. ?. The zebras ? in the water, I couldn’t take my eyes off! The Rhino was a b.e.a.s.t!! Why didn’t someone tell me I had to do a safari sooner?! ??

A post shared by Maria Sharapova (@mariasharapova) on Nov 11, 2019 at 6:45am PST

Over in Rwanda, it was more of a gorilla mission but dotted at a point with a meeting with the First Family and taking time off to meet with children and enjoy sporty action – not tennis.

Her first instagram post on arrival in Rwanda had photos of her visit to the Volcanoes National Park on a gorilla hunt.

“Silverback gorillas!! We have fallen in love with your country. Truly! Early morning treks to locate the gorillas, getting caught in a rainforest downpour, witnessing a silverback big daddy of all big daddies walk right past us without a care in the world ( thankfully!!) ..so special!!” her post read.

She visited the Bisate hills from where she posted about her morning view from the volcanic mountain. “Nestled inside the #Rwanda , the view from our little teletubbie- like cabins made the long journey worth every minute,” she added.

Meeting with President Kagame was in mid-week (November 13) before she rounded up the trip with a visit to a local community school for a sporty interaction with the children.

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Rwanda??!! Silverback ?’s!! We have fallen in love with your country. Truly! ☺️ Early morning treks to locate the gorillas, getting caught in a rainforest downpour, witnessing a silverback big daddy of all big daddies walk right past us without a care in the world ( thankfully!!) ?..so special!!

A post shared by Maria Sharapova (@mariasharapova) on Nov 12, 2019 at 10:36pm PST

It’s was an honor meeting you, President Kagame and spending time with your family. #Rwanda, you are so special. ?? pic.twitter.com/RCXv4JLR7Z

— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) November 13, 2019

We finished off our trip in #Rwanda at a local community school with a few deflated balls ⚽️ ? and beautiful smiles which I will remember forever. ??? pic.twitter.com/23BEZ5AF03

— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) November 14, 2019