When we awoke on Day 2 of our safari we were delighted to see the amazing views at our lodge. We had a big breakfast in the dining room and then loaded into the trucks for a day of wildlife viewing in Ngorogoro Crater.
We started at the top of the crater and drove down a long, steep dirt road. From the road we could see the lake, and we could already make out small dots that would prove to be zebras and wildebeests. Soon we stopped at the side of the road to let a large group of zebras past.
As we dipped into the flat area we saw warthogs, more zebras, more wildebeests, Thomson’s gazelles, ostriches, and Egyptian geese. No one in our truck had ever been on safari before, so the novelty of watching the animals in their natural habitat was still extremely thrilling. We would stop to watch one group and then move forward to watch another group.
Soon we came upon what would be our most interesting view of the day: a pair of mating lions. We watched them for quite some time. About every 15 minutes the male lion would stand up and try to mount the female lion. She was not interested at all and each time she showed her teeth until he moved away.
We had lunch near the lake and on the way back saw a lion in a culvert hunting some baby zebras and wildebeest. She did not make her move while we were there, but it was fun to watch her preparing to pounce.
On the way out of the crater we stopped to watch a huge group of baboons. They started climbing onto our jeep until Sylvester scared them away. I caught some video of them.
On the drive back to the lodge we saw a large bull elephant near the road. We parked to watch him, and he got so close to the truck that when he threw dirt in the air it hit us. That was quite a thrill. I have some video of it for you here.
When we got back to the hotel I was exhausted. There wasn’t a day on the Kilimanjaro climb that made me so tired. We ate dinner and went straight to sleep.
warthog
We watched these water buffalo for a while. They moved slowly and munched grass.
It was fun to see so many animals at once. Here’s an ostrich, zebras, wildebeests, and flamingos.
It was fun to watch the hippos flip over.
We watched a mating pair of lions for about two hours.
The male lion had no success at all with the lady lion.
We even went back to the mating pair where we saw about 3 more attempts. Still no luck!
Poor guy.
She was just enjoying her day in the sun.
We ate lunch near a lake.
Then saw another group of about 6 lions.
A mamma zebra with her baby.
A group of hyenas.
These baboons climbed all over our truck.
This elephant got very close to us.
This is the Ngorogoro Serena lodge, where we stayed for two nights.
Kapanya told us we would have a long day. After almost two weeks of hanging with Kapanya, I knew that if he said it would be a busy day, I would pretty much be wrecked by the end of it. I loved how I was learning to re-think my life. I am known to complain of “busy” days at home. They usually include a morning workout, 10 hours at the computer, 2 hours reading, a short nap, and ample snacks. I’m physically fit, sure, but this trip was showing me that I really have no idea what busy is.
We set our alarms for 6 am. We woke up, packed, ate breakfast, and got all our gear up front to load into the truck. I was sad to say goodbye to Welli, who had shown me such kindness. We had a big last hug before our trucks pulled out of the drive.
We stopped in the town of Arusha so that Larry could buy maps. It was congested and it took us forever to get through. We stopped just outside of town to do the only shopping we would manage on our whirlwind trip. We went to the Arusha Cultural Heritage Center and tried to grab one of everything to take home as gifts. There was a large group of young Americans crowding the gem table, though, and no matter how long we waited I couldn’t get access to the area to buy a Tanzanite. I asked Kapanya if there was somewhere else we could get it. I explained that I wanted to set it in a ring my mother gave me before she died.
So we stopped at one more shop and I found the perfect stone. Back in the truck I thanked Kapanya, and he said to me, “Thank you, Trish, for telling me what was in your heart.” And I didn’t let Kapanya see this. He was sitting behind me in the back seat. My eyes just welled up with tears. His statement made me think about how often I fail to communicate my feelings. Somehow Kapanya’s sentence made so much sense to me: that allowing him to fulfill my wish fulfilled a wish of his. I sat quietly for a while with that lesson, so grateful to know Kapanya, this wonderful teacher.
So we had a bit of a drive ahead of us. Soon after we got out of town we started to see young Maasai boys dressed in all black wearing white face paint. Before I knew not to do it, I took a few pictures out the window. In the last picture I managed to take (before I realized it was super rude to take them), one of the young men was both spitting at me and giving me the finger. I started asking some questions of our driver, Sylvester. He told me that the boys were in black because they had recently been circumcised in a coming of age ceremony. No wonder they were grumpy!
Soon our 2 trucks pulled over to the side of the road and Sylvester looked at me. Did I mention yet that Sylvester was, um, really, really attractive? He was 28 years old, wearing dress khakis and a black dress shirt rolled casually at the sleeves. His skin was so smooth it looked like polished mahogany. He had these delicately curled eyelashes and clear brown eyes. He had a sly smile that started just at the edges of his full lips.
“We’re checking the tire pressure,” he said to me, flashing that smile. I sat still for a while until I saw him taking a leak in front of a bush. Hooray! Yet another euphemism for peeing! So we all filed out of the truck and peed.
When we were safe inside again an old, bald Maasai woman came to Sylvester’s window. She was wrapped in gorgeous blankets and covered in beaded jewelry—a traditional necklace, huge ear gauges, and bracelets covering her entire forearms. She and Sylvester had a heated conversation in Swahili that culminated in him giving her some ginger cookies. As we pulled away we asked Sylvester what she said. He smiled and reported this:
Old woman: That man in the other car took my picture. Give me money. Sylvester: No. He was taking pictures of the landscape. Old woman: You don’t love me like I love you. Sylvester: Oh I love you. Old woman: I want some money! Sylvester: I’m not going to give you money. Take these ginger cookies. Old woman: Come on! I want some money to buy a Pepsi. Sylvester: Enjoy your cookies! See you later! Bye bye!
We all laughed as he translated their friendly argument.
Soon we arrived to Lake Manyara National Park. We enjoyed a picnic lunch of quiche, fruit and vegetables, cornbread, and chicken. Then we started our short drive into the park for wildlife viewing. We weren’t moving for 3 minutes when we saw a family of elephants. Since they were our first ones, we were pretty worked up! It was really exciting to see the whole family walking down the road, taking up dirt with their trunks and blowing it over their backs. We watched them for a good long while before we moved. I took some video of it for you.
We left and then we saw: olive baboons, monkeys, giraffes, zebras, dikdiks, impalas, wart hogs, and mongoose. But the most exciting spotting was a group of 3 lions in a tree. We took lots and lots of pictures. With wildlife, it takes about 50 bad pictures to get 1 good picture. So we shot our hearts out and laughed about how many hours it would take us to sort through the pics back at home.
After lots of viewing, we hit the road. We had a long way to drive to get to our next spot: the Hotel Serena in the Ngorogoro Crater. In fact, we got there quite late and didn’t eat dinner until 9 pm. We were in bed at 10 pm. Before I fell asleep I thought again about what a “busy day” represented back home. I smiled and thought, Not. Even. Close.
Larry and Kapanya got along so well. Here we are leaving the DikDik lodge.
Arusha was very busy.
We stopped for shopping at the Cultural Center.
Maasai Warrior along the side of the road.
Maasai Warrior spitting and flipping me the bird. I deserved it.
We enjoyed a lovely picnic lunch.
Look at the little one, less then a year old.
Look at the baby!
I loved watching them watching the elephants.
This baboon.
Some giraffes eating leaves.
We watched a mating pair of lions for about two hours.
The trip to Africa is getting so close. We feel nearly ready. Seven weeks from today we’ll be boarding a flight to Atlanta where we’ll then board a flight to Amsterdam. We will spend two nights in the NH Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky in Amsterdam recovering from jet lag (it’s a 10 hour time difference) and touring around the city. John has never been to Amsterdam and I have not been there since 1991.
From Amsterdam we have a direct flight to Kilamanjaro airport. Our guide will pick us up and take us to our home for another 2 nights, the Dikdik Hotel. We’ll have 3 nights total at the Dikdik, 2 before the hike and 1 after the hike. I wonder how we’ll feel before and after.
Our climb starts on Thursday June 14. I give specifics about that in another post. The short version is we will be walking for 8 days and sleeping for 7 nights on the mountain.
Kilimanjaro
After a recovery night in the DikDik, we’ll head for safari to the Ngorongoro Crater. We’ll be staying at the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge.
Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge
After 3 nights in the lodge and 2 days viewing wildlife in the crater, we’ll move on to the Serengeti. This will be a fun adventure for 2 nights, since we’re staying in the Mbuzi Mawe Tented Camp.
Mbuzi Mawe Tented Camp
Our guide will then take us to the Serengeti Airport, where we’ll catch a flight to Zanzibar. We’ll have 3 lovely days and nights of recovery at Diamonds Star of the East.
To get home we have to take 4 airplanes so I hope it goes well. Zanziabar to Dar Es Salaam to Amsterdam to Detroit to Phoenix. It will be a long day of travel and I think we’ll be plenty tired.
From Amsterdam we have a direct flight to Kilamanjaro airport. Our guide will pick us up and take us to our home for another 2 nights, the 
Our climb starts on Thursday June 14. I give specifics about that in another post. The short version is we will be walking for 8 days and sleeping for 7 nights on the mountain.
To get home we have to take 4 airplanes so I hope it goes well. Zanziabar to Dar Es Salaam to Amsterdam to Detroit to Phoenix. It will be a long day of travel and I think we’ll be plenty tired.
