PICS: Miss Universe Catriona Gray’s first safari experience in SA

Miss Universe Catriona Gray swapped her long, flowing dresses for something more safari chic when she visited the country last week. And, if you are an international traveller, you simply cannot visit South Africa without going on a safari. 

Gray was in town to judge this year’s Miss South Africa competition and attend the Feathers National LGBTI Campus Dialogue at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.

In between her duties, the pageant queen took some downtime to go on a safari at Legend Golf & Safari Resort. 

“Ready for my first ever safari experience!” she posted. 

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Ready for my first ever safari experience! 😍🦓🦛🦒🦁 Thank you @official_misssa and @legendgolfandsafariresort for this experience! @missuniverse #MissUniverse

A post shared by Catriona Gray(@catriona_gray) on Aug 10, 2019 at 5:58am PDT

She told her fans how she was “praying to see lions up close” and within 15 minutes of her game drive saw a family of lions walking in front of the vehicle. She also spotted a few giraffes. 

Gray visited the world's first dedicated Rhino Orphanage where she interacted with some of the rhino calves. 

She revealed on Instagram: “Unique personalities, the need to be loved and cuddled and a goofy sense of humor - up until today I didn't realise these descriptions could be used to describe baby rhinos. 🦏💕

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Scenes from today 😍 So I was praying to see lions up close and heard in my spirit just to wait. So I was sitting there, 15mins passed by and I was just thinking about how creative God is to create all these animals and scenery. And suddenly we turn a bend and there is a family of lions walking right in front of us. 😍😍😍 thank you God for an amazing experience in South Africa 🙏 @legendgolfandsafariresort @official_misssa

A post shared by Catriona Gray(@catriona_gray) on Aug 10, 2019 at 9:16am PDT

“Heartbreakingly, these babies come into the care of @therhinoorphanagebecause their mothers are killed in unethical poaching, still practiced widely today. 

“As a consequence, they come to this facility incredibly distressed, traumatized calling out for their mothers and sometimes eating sand out of stress. 

“The passionate volunteers of the @therhinoorphanage go above and beyond to care for these little giants, spending sometimes 24hours a day with them, feeding them, caring for them, rehabilitating them and preparing them to one day be realised back into freedom. 

“I never realised how baby rhinos feel 'human emotions' - they need love and companionship. 

"If you'd like to join me in supporting the efforts of the @therhinoorphanage you can donate through their website at www.therhinoorphanage.co.za 💕💕Thank you for reading,” she posted.  (sic). 

https://www.instagram.com/p/B1BOjkrALZp/