Serengeti and Ngorongoro Safari's

  Arusha, Tanzania
Monday, October 16, 2006

GPS Coordinates:
S 02°25'08.1"
E 034°51'38.6"

Temperature: 23.3°C
Humidity: 60.5 %
Pressure: 84.7 kPa
Altitude: 1481 m

Abundant Flamingo's in Lake Manyara

Lake Manyara Area

Left Arusha with 3 hours of preparation (e.g. laundry) and 5 hours of sleep to go to the Panorama campsite overlooking Lake Manyara NP. At this point the group includes me, the guide Julius, the cook "Deo" (Not because he smelled or anything!), and another client named Esai a Dutch computer engineering professor. Did a game drive into Lake Manyara NP and saw a variety of animals despite the rainy overcast conditions. We couldn't get close to the Lake because of the road system but you saw that there was litteraly thousands and thousands of flamingos living there (See pic).

The next day two other persons joined our group. Katie, an engineer from the UK and her friend Corey a lawyer from Australia. Our merry group drove through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area where traditional Masai are allowed to live. They were seen often times along the route but no pictures were taken out of respect (i.e. money$ needed...). They went along herding goats and cows like they did for the last several decades.

Zebra on the Ngorongoro Crater Rim

Social Leopard of the Serengeti

We also saw a few animals on the Ngorongoro crater rim. We finally got into the Serengeti and did a game drive for several hours. The Serengeti is everything you expect, vast dry dry savanah's mixed-in with bushes and lonely trees. Again, saw a variety of game animals including a few that I didn't see before (i.e. Thompson's and Grant's gazelles). The highlight of this game drive was seeing a leopard (One of the big 5) up close and personal, and especially during the day. It put on a real show for us... (See pics).

Giraffe on the Run #1

Giraffe on the Run #2

We got to Tumibili (Seronera area) Campsite to camp in the middle of the Serengeti bush where any animals could possibly wander into camp anytime (I heard a hyena very close during the night!). HOW COOL IS THAT!!!

Lioness in wait for Zebra at a Serengeti Waterhole

Nice Serengeti View

Left camp at 6AM for an early game drive through Serengeti. AGAIN! saw many animals but most special was my first Cheetah, although from afar. Also, of note a gazelle kill which was hanging from a tree and brought there by a leopard. We saw numerous lionesses (Because the lady's do all the work...!) stalking / hunting herds of animals at different times but with no results, no LIVE kill! It sounds cruel but it would have been interesting. Had lunch at camp, packed up and left for Simba A camp on Ngorongoro Crater rim.

Crowned Cranes in the Ngorongoro Crater

Elephant Skeleton

Left the campsite at 6AM for another early game drive into the Ngorongoro Crater itself. The crater is actually an ancient volcano caldera where a micro-climate has set in. The variety of animals here don't need to migrate to find food, although some do. There are no giraffes here because of the steepness of walls and the size / height of the animals makes treading to get down into the crater difficult. Again, we saw a variety of animals which seemed more concentrated in a "smaller" area (Than Serengeti that is...!). We were fortunate to again see lionesses from different prides in action, stalking / hunting herds of animals but with no success over many minutes. Had lunch at camp and left to go back to Arusha.

I had the chance to see many animals during this safari, many that I hadn't seen before and it still amazes me like it was the first time all over again!

Modern Masai Market

Got up the next morning to go on a walking Masai cultural tour with my guide John. I was expecting a traditional Masai experience but was really disappointed when I realized it was a tour of a "modern" Masai village where they live in regular shacks and cultivate their little plot of land for banana's, coffee, fruits and vegetables for subsistance and selling the excess for money at market. Here they don't even wear the traditional red shuka's anymore because many now go to school or work in town. We then took a local Dhalla-Dhalla (van transport) to go to a "modern" Masai market. Imagine cramping into a mini-van with 20 of your friends in humid 30 degrees Celsius weather...! The market was interesting where it was similar to our flea markets back home but they also sell / buy livestock, meats, and fish. Again it was difficult to take a picture of Masai dressed people because they ask for ridiculous sums of money just for a picture. Consequently, I think that through the years they learned to take advantage of the money brought by the tourists.

MC in Traditional Masai Garb

I bought a traditional Masai "shuka" cloth and was surprised when the merchant actually showed me how to dress like a real Masai, without the Masai knife (i.e. machette) of course (See pic). Maybe I'll have a chance to visit a traditional Masai village in Kenya...?

I need a much needed REST!

Next Chapter: The Exotic Island of Zanzibar!

KWAHERI (Goodbye in Swahili)

Martin