I was in Tanzania earlier this year. It was a brief trip that no one knew about, until now. You see, I’m disclosing it on my photography blog for the first time. I was just gone. 17 days I was missing.

This is what I saw!

Early one morning I heard a rustling noise and some panting outside of my tent. This is what I saw—a fierce male lion. The king of the jungle. You can imagine how I felt. I’m glad to be alive.

Okay… not really. I didn’t really go to Africa. Only in my dreams.

But I did go to the San Diego Wild Animal Park!

The Real Story

Thanks to the knowledgeable guide at the San Diego Wild Animal Park, I found out that lions make this snarling face, not because they’re angry, but because they’re sniffing. That’s right, they’re sniffing. Have you ever made a funny, crinkly nose face when you’re smelling something in the air and you’re trying to identify the smell? That’s what the lions are supposedly doing. They’re opening up an even better pathway to their keen sense of smell.

I’ve also posted this photo on Flickr.