Here we sit, under a tree in our hosts' yard in Usa River, about 20km outside of Arusha. Arusha is the gateway to the northern mountain regions of Meru & Killimanjaro. It is also the launching point for hundreds of saffari companies sending their clients to Serengeti, Ngorogoro Crater and Manyara National Park to name a few. In Arusha we saw our first abundance of white tourists here to explore, safari and hike. Arusha itself is quite a large town, busy and noisy. We did some walking about but mostly to find an ATM that would work. We've had trouble getting our bank card to work but finally had success using Janet's old card which we fortunately had with us. Phew.
Our 5 day, 4 night saffari with SOK Adventure was incredible. We were a self sufficient group with a Land Rover, guide (Aninyn) and belive it or not, a cook named Henry. Our supplies included tents and sleeping bags, this was an outdoor adventure! Manyara National Park was our first stop which we travelled to on paved roads. The anticipation was mounting as we started the game drive, "Are we going to get skunked? Will we actually see animals?" While Aninyn paid our park entrance fee, Anna sat beside a baboon and we could spot sky monkies all through the neighbouring bush. It was a great start. And before long driving into the park, we had seen buffalo, elephants, wildebeest, giraffe, hippos, impalas, zebras and the horizon was framed at the bottom with a sea of pink, flamingos.
The drive to Serengeti was 3 hours to the park entrance and hilarious. We took a video to try and remember just how bumpy it was...and dusty. We were covered. We did a game drive once in the park and the fun really began. We saw a number of lions, one pride with about 15 cubs playing and nursing. Aninyn proved to be full of knowledge answering our rapid fire questions. He was also really aggressive getting as close as possible to the animals. Before the end of the evening, we came upon a leopard which aparently is very rare ,we are very lucky. I'm tempted to write about every detail but I fear your heads will bob before the end. The girls kept a list of every animal we saw and what they were doing including; two male lions, countless females and cubs, the leopard, two cheetahs, wildebeest, hippos, mating ostrich (giggles all around the vehicle), mating baboons, three female lions hunting gazelle (unsuccessfully but watching the hunt was incredible), lions eating their kill (zebra), hippos playing in the water...it just seemed to go on and on. We had amazing evenings eating Henry's food and talking to them both exchanging stories and questions about Canada & Tanzania.
Camping in the Serengeti is a whole new experience, even for those who consider themselves seasoned campers. Somehow Janet could not manage her fluid intake to make it through the night whithout a visit to the toilet. "Ron, will you walk with me?" She asked after debating to herself whether or not she could brave it alone. As we flashed our headlamps into the bush and fields beside the loooong route to the toilet, we saw the reflection of many eyes looking back at us. And finally a SNORT delivered by a buffalo, one of the African Big 5 named so because they are considered aggressive. GREAT. We made it though and yes,had to do it all over again the next night. Aninyn wasn't impressed. Our last night was camping on the edge of the Ngorongoro crater - very chilly. Our mornings were early trying to catch the sunrise and animals while they are more active.
We will never forget the hilarious baboons who jumped into a land rover to steal bananas (the lucky clients still in the car) and others who unzipped our tent to steel our shoes. We had zebras cruising though our campsite at Ngorogoro Crater and two elephants who sauntered up beside the dining hut to take a long drink from the water tank. We were sad to say good-bye to Aninyn & Henry who we will keep in touch with for sure. Aninyn hopes to start his own safari company so if you know of anyone coming here, check in with us first.
I can't tell you how fabulous it was to see the girls' reaction to seeing the African animals. Anna & Sadie have also been very busy reading and writing in their journals. Anna has been keeping a list of Swahili words and uses them as we cruise about in the village and markets. Sadie has been busy taking really creative photos. We have managed to to remember and teach the girls how to play Euchre, the competition is really ramping up. We've also been taught how to play an African marble game which is good for a couple of hours each game! Our nights are early and we rise early to the local chickens, dogs, mosques and roosters where ever we go. Oh, and it seems advertising from a roaming vehicle with a loud speaker at 5am is the new wave in marketing. Yikes. We have definitely learned the value of water and toilet paper. We now carry a roll where ever we go!
Our 5 day, 4 night saffari with SOK Adventure was incredible. We were a self sufficient group with a Land Rover, guide (Aninyn) and belive it or not, a cook named Henry. Our supplies included tents and sleeping bags, this was an outdoor adventure! Manyara National Park was our first stop which we travelled to on paved roads. The anticipation was mounting as we started the game drive, "Are we going to get skunked? Will we actually see animals?" While Aninyn paid our park entrance fee, Anna sat beside a baboon and we could spot sky monkies all through the neighbouring bush. It was a great start. And before long driving into the park, we had seen buffalo, elephants, wildebeest, giraffe, hippos, impalas, zebras and the horizon was framed at the bottom with a sea of pink, flamingos.The drive to Serengeti was 3 hours to the park entrance and hilarious. We took a video to try and remember just how bumpy it was...and dusty. We were covered. We did a game drive once in the park and the fun really began. We saw a number of lions, one pride with about 15 cubs playing and nursing. Aninyn proved to be full of knowledge answering our rapid fire questions. He was also really aggressive getting as close as possible to the animals. Before the end of the evening, we came upon a leopard which aparently is very rare ,we are very lucky. I'm tempted to write about every detail but I fear your heads will bob before the end. The girls kept a list of every animal we saw and what they were doing including; two male lions, countless females and cubs, the leopard, two cheetahs, wildebeest, hippos, mating ostrich (giggles all around the vehicle), mating baboons, three female lions hunting gazelle (unsuccessfully but watching the hunt was incredible), lions eating their kill (zebra), hippos playing in the water...it just seemed to go on and on. We had amazing evenings eating Henry's food and talking to them both exchanging stories and questions about Canada & Tanzania.
Camping in the Serengeti is a whole new experience, even for those who consider themselves seasoned campers. Somehow Janet could not manage her fluid intake to make it through the night whithout a visit to the toilet. "Ron, will you walk with me?" She asked after debating to herself whether or not she could brave it alone. As we flashed our headlamps into the bush and fields beside the loooong route to the toilet, we saw the reflection of many eyes looking back at us. And finally a SNORT delivered by a buffalo, one of the African Big 5 named so because they are considered aggressive. GREAT. We made it though and yes,had to do it all over again the next night. Aninyn wasn't impressed. Our last night was camping on the edge of the Ngorongoro crater - very chilly. Our mornings were early trying to catch the sunrise and animals while they are more active.
We will never forget the hilarious baboons who jumped into a land rover to steal bananas (the lucky clients still in the car) and others who unzipped our tent to steel our shoes. We had zebras cruising though our campsite at Ngorogoro Crater and two elephants who sauntered up beside the dining hut to take a long drink from the water tank. We were sad to say good-bye to Aninyn & Henry who we will keep in touch with for sure. Aninyn hopes to start his own safari company so if you know of anyone coming here, check in with us first.
I can't tell you how fabulous it was to see the girls' reaction to seeing the African animals. Anna & Sadie have also been very busy reading and writing in their journals. Anna has been keeping a list of Swahili words and uses them as we cruise about in the village and markets. Sadie has been busy taking really creative photos. We have managed to to remember and teach the girls how to play Euchre, the competition is really ramping up. We've also been taught how to play an African marble game which is good for a couple of hours each game! Our nights are early and we rise early to the local chickens, dogs, mosques and roosters where ever we go. Oh, and it seems advertising from a roaming vehicle with a loud speaker at 5am is the new wave in marketing. Yikes. We have definitely learned the value of water and toilet paper. We now carry a roll where ever we go!
No comments:
Post a Comment