Jambo! Karibu Tanzania!
(Hello!  Welcome to Tanzania)

We're off on the adventure of a lifetime - a visit to the east African country of Tanzania, formed in 1964 by the merger of Tanganyika and Zanzibar.  Tanzania is just south of the equator, on the east coast of Africa. This land is one of the oldest known inhabited areas on earth; fossil remains of humans and pre-human hominoids date back three million years.  It also is home to some of the world’s most amazing wildlife, much of it protected in the large wildlife parks that we are here to see.

Our travels will take us from Arusha to the foothills of Kilimanjaro (on the Kenya border), to Tarangire National Park, to Ngorongoro Conservation Area, to Oldupai Gorge and to Serengti National Park.  We’ll see a small part of the country, but hopefully a big selection of wildlife.

We left home midday on Friday, August 19th and traveled from Columbia to Atlanta to Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro to Arusha - 8,000 miles in a mere 27 hours.  We arrived on Saturday in the dark of night and checked in to the East African Hotel - a nice place on the outskirts of a dusty, dirty, crowded city.  We're here just to spend the night and to meet our guide and traveling companions.

  

Our guide is David Mollel; he is Maasai by birth and has been working with Overseas Adventure Travel for five years.  He’s married (to a Maasai woman) and has three children.  There are 15 travelers in our group:  in addition to our friends Vicky and Dennis Shepard, there are folks from California, Montana, Ohio, Florida, and two more from South Carolina. 

Click on the links below to see what we did each day.  Our first sighting of a specific animal is underlined.  And remember - you can double-click on any picture to make it larger, and then return to the narrative using the back-arrow.

Sunday, August 21 - Travel Arusha to West Kilimanjaro; nature walk
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/sunday-august-21_21.html

Monday, August 22 - Game viewing in Sinya Game Management Area
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/monday-august-22.html

Tuesday, August 23 - Game viewing; travel West Kilimanjaro to Arusha
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/tuesday-august-23.html

Wednesday, August 24 - Coffee plantation and Shanga House in Arusha
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/wednesday-august-24.html

Thursday, August 25 - Travel Arusha to Tarangire Nat. Park; game viewing
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/thursday-august-25.html

Friday, August 26 - Game viewing in Tarangire National Park
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/friday-august-26.html

Saturday, August 27 - Visit Maasai boma; travel to Ngorongoro Highlands
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/saturday-august-27.html

Sunday, August 28 - Visit Oldupai Gorge; travel to Serengeti Nat. Park; game viewing
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/sunday-august-28.html

Monday, August 29 - Game viewing in Serengeti National Park
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/monday-august-29.html

Tuesday, August 30 - Game viewing in Serengeti National Park
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/tuesday-august-30.html

Wednesday, August 31 - Game viewing in Serengeti National Park
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/wednesday-august-31st.html

Thursday, September 1- Game viewing in Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/thursday-september-1.html

Friday, September 2 -Visit Bashay Primary School; visit brickmaker & family in Karatu
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/friday-september-2.html

Saturday, September 3/Sunday, September 4 - Travel Karatu to Arusha to U.S.
http://safariserengeti2011.blogspot.com/2011/09/saturday-september-3.html

Sunday, August 21

After some needed rest, we're off to the western slope of Mount Kilimanjaro - Tembo Camp in the Sinya Wildlife Management Area.  First we had to get there – that meant getting acquainted with the dust.  This little town is about ten miles from the camp – everything is covered with rest dust – even the trees look red – this should be as interesting time.

Sinya protects the wildlife migratory corridor between the Amboseli National Park in Kenya and the Tarangire National Park in southern Tanzania.  Its only inhabitants are nomadic members of the Maasai tribe, some of whom were on hand to welcome us.  Note they are wearing sandals made of old motorcycle tires.

There’s plenty of space here for wildlife and the Maasai to co-exist, but there have been some instances of disease spreading from livestock to wildlife populations.  This creates friction between those who protect the wildlife and those who want to protect the Maasai and their traditional way of life in their ancestral homelands.

Tembo Camp is a semi-permanent tented camp located on a 75,00-acre private Maasai preserve.  The camp is on a bluff overlooking a dry river bed.  The largest structure on site is the group dining tent, which sits under a large tree and overlooks the surrounding countryside. 

The camp has a solar powered electrical system - enough to power two light bulbs in each tent.  A well provides sanitary water, but drinking water comes in bottles.  Warm water for showers comes from solar-powered hot water heaters – we’re hoping for sunny days.

Our tent has all the comforts of home – comfy beds and lots of “windows” to catch the breeze.  Behind the curtain is the fully equipped bathroom.

 There’s even a go-away bird perched in the tree full of the hanging nests of the weaver bird - he (or she) had lots to say about us being there.  More colorful, and equally vocal, were the superb starlings who hoped for a handout.  

From the campsite, we caught early morning and late afternoon glimpses of Mount Kilimanjaro, a dormant volcano just south of the equator on the border of Kenya and Tanzania.  It is the highest peak in Africa and the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, at 19,336 feet.  There's snow on the summit, though it's shrinking rapidly due to global warming - it's expected to be ice-free in another 10 to12 years. 

After lunch, we set off on an educational walk with two Maasai guides – Lucas and William.  From them we began to learn about the Maasai people and their traditions. 

Here’s Lucas perched on a termite hill and William describing the medicinal uses of a certain plant.  One could spend a day just learning about medicinal herbs and termite mounds.  These little critters have a very complex society; they provide food to many birds and animals, and their empty mounds provide homes for others.

The Maasai also have a complex society – they are a semi-nomadic people living in small villages in Kenya and northern Tanzania.  They are known for their signature garb – red plaid blankets draped over the shoulder, intricate beaded jewelry, sandals crafted from old tires, and tribal markings such as circles branded in each cheek and gaping holes in earlobes.    

Cattle are the primary basis of a Maasai's health, wealth, and social status.  The more cattle a man has, the richer he is, the better fed his family, and the more respect he commands.  The other key measure of wealth is children, and Maasai men traditionally were encouraged to take several wives - a very practical adaptation to high infant and warrior mortality rates.  Both Lucas and William assured us that they had only one wife each … so far.

After our walk, we headed back to camp in time for campfire, a glimpse of zebras at the waterhole near the dining tent, some star-gazing, and a delicious meal.  The dinner menu included potato soup, salad, red cabbage, rice, pork, lentils, zucchini, and bread.  Caramel custard and pineapple cake for dessert, plus drinks on the house.  We could get used to this …

Monday, August 22

Today we were up before the sun, grabbed a quick snack, and took off for early-morning game-viewing about 6:15am.  We split into two groups – each in a 7-passenger land cruiser.  We four from SC were joined by Stepanie (Los Angeles CA) and Susan (Billings MT).

As we headed out we could see Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance and before long we were spotting animals right and left. 

Animals:  Zebra, Maasai giraffe, African hare, Thomson’s gazelle, Black-faced vervet monkey, Kirk’s dik dik, yellow baboon,  African elephant, dwarf mongoose, red-headed agama.

Birds: Lilac-breasted roller, kori bustard, tropical boubou, white bellied bustard, go-away bird, Von der Decken’s hornbill, superb starling, and black-bellied bustard.

Morning Highlights:

Dwarf mongoose – Africa’s smallest carnivore.












Red-headed agama – colorful lizard about 12 inches long.

First sighting of giraffes - the world’s largest land mammal.  These are Maasai giraffes; they have jagged-edged, spots of dark brown on a brownish-cream background.  (The more familiar reticulated giraffe has bright orange-brown patches separated by bold white lines.)

Yellow baboons – terrestrial primate; lives in troops.

 Nearby, a family of black-faced vervet monkeys.

Kori bustard – world’s heaviest flying bird - males may weigh up to 40 pounds; females are smaller.

African elephants – in their search for food, elephants are significantly changing their environment.  We saw lots of elephants this morning; here are a few of our favorites and a video of a herd of elephants munching away at a clump of trees.

Lilac-breasted roller – one of Africa’s most dazzling birds.

Tropical boubou – also known as the bell shrike

Von der Decken’s hornbill – eats insects, fruits and seeds

 Animal tracks – our Maasai tracker points out lion tracks.

Dust is everywhere, covers everything and everybody.  We even learned the Swahili word for dust - VUMBI!

We headed back to camp for brunch about 11 am and then it was siesta time.  Or at least time to download pictures, recharge batteries and organize duffel bags.  Everyone reconvened about 3 pm for an afternoon game drive; armed with cameras and binoculars, we’re ready to go again.

Animals:  Maasai giraffes, elephant, and Grant’s gazelle.

Birds:  Ostrich, crowned plover, and kori bustard.

Afternoon Highlights:

Tower of giraffes – our guide said this was the largest group (tower) of giraffes he’d ever seen – we counted 36 in all. 

Here’s a video of the gang as they ambled along in front of us. 

And here are a few of our favorites …

More elephants –a group of bachelor males who got together for a nice dust bath. Be sure to take a look at the video below. 

Ostriches – the world’s tallest bird – this is a family portrait, fourteen immature young birds.  They were quite a sight racing across the plain. 

As the sun dropped low in the sky, we headed up Oldonyo Mali, a small hill that is considered a sacred site by the local Maasai.  The view is impressive, too.   This is William's homeland - he sure looked like he belonged here.

As we headed up the hill, we were followed by some women from a nearby Maasai village.  They brought handmade bracelets and other jewelry, which they spread out to create an instant shopping opportunity. 

Oldonyo Mali is also a fine spot for a sundowner, as our trusty guides had packed along glasses and bottles of wine.  

And the sun DID go down – quite spectacularly….to the west is Mount Longido and to the southeast is Mount Kilimanjaro.

We had a little more excitement on our way back to camp – the truck’s electrical system was overwhelmed by dust and out went the headlights.  Driving in this terrain is challenging in the daytime, but at night it borders on insane – even with lights.  David found a piece of string and tightened up some connections to bring back the lights and we made it back in time for dinner – with wildly inventive stories about what happened out there in the dark ..