Safari (1)

After much bustling about the country (this is an understatement), I finally have the time to sit down and write about my travels.  The title of this post seems self-explanatory; however, in Swahili, “safari” actually means “trip” or “travel” so it was perfectly fitting!

Since there is a lot that I need to catch up on (over three months worth), I am going to make it a trilogy, with the first being the longest.  This is…

PART MOJA – Safi Safaris

The day before my family arrived, I was able to stay at a super swanky hotel in Dar called Tanzanite Executive Suites, which my family paid for.  The bed and comforter felt like I was sleeping in a cloud.  There was even a fridge and microwave in the room!!  [Yes, I have been in Tanzania for a year now, so it’s a big deal.]  It was the first taste of what was to come for the next couple of weeks travelling with family, and I needed to get used to it.  Though, I don’t think I ever really got used to the fanciness of it all, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

My family arrived on June 8th at around 10pm and they had their first experience of being in Tanzania – my aunt Ponnie’s bag was lost and was stuck in Amsterdam [TZ Experience #1].  Just imagine Steve (who was nice enough to accompany to the airport to officially meet my family for the first time in person) and me waiting at the doors of the baggage claim and seeing my family run back and forth as the doors slid open and closed, looking for all their bags.  The second I caught a glimpse of them, I could tell something was wrong, and as expected, it was a lost bag.  After finally accepting the inevitable, my family came out of the doors, gave us great big hugs, and we were able to talk to the airport officials about further arrangements of retrieving the bag later.

I also need to mention that my aunt got stuck in a bathroom at the airport, which was pretty hilarious given the situation at hand [TZ Experience #2].  Don’t worry though, we got her out after several minutes of jiggling the door handle exactly right.  I was hiking up my skirt and just about to kick the door, when my mom and aunt got the door open.  I was a little sad I couldn’t rescue someone from a bathroom by kicking open a door, just like how Stephanie (my sitemate) rescued me from getting stuck in a choo during Shadow Week almost a year ago.  But of course, I was INCREDIBLY ecstatic my family was here in Tanzania, Africa!!!

We got to the hotel, exchanged gifts (I bought us all matching Tanzanian football jerseys, because I know how much my family loves to match on trips lol) and they brought some things for Steve, which he was not expecting.  :)  Another awesome surprise was the Thai food they carried with them from one of my favorite Thai restaurants!  Mmmmm…pad see ew, heaven beef, and sticky rice!  :D  After chatting a bit about updates back home and names of new technology that made me feel like I had been living under a rock, we all went to our very comfortable beds and fell fast asleep.  The next morning we ate complimentary breakfast and Steve waved us goodbye as we got in our airport shuttle to fly to Mbeya via Precision Air.  [Steve was staying in Dar to wait for his friend, Jake, to arrive the next day.  This is a link to his blog of their adventures: ----]

We got to the Dar airport with time to spare and I was able to FLY for the first time in over a year!!!  We got to Mbeya in about two hours, which is about 12 hours less than the amount of time it takes on a bus.  SO CRAZY and unusual for me!  Once we landed at the Mbeya airport, my family got to see firsthand my bargaining skills.  The taxi driver was going to charge us 50,000/= at first and I was appalled, but I finally got it down to half the price after using some Swahili and my village language (Kinyekiwsa).  ;)    When we got to his car, my family hesitated because it was a sedan. He was really accommodating because the first guesti we went to was full, so he drove us to the one where I usually stay at, which fares less both in price and quality.

The next day, we ran errands around town and made our way to my site via taxi Land Cruiser, which was crazy to be in without cramming myself in with 14 other people.  Luckily, I made arrangements with one of my good Land Cruiser drivers beforehand because my dad was having major issues with his back and had to lay down on the bench seats the entire way up the mountain.  After a relatively painless trip, we all made it back safely and unscathed to my house.  Everyone in my family was so thrilled to finally set foot in my home!  A quick tour, home-cooked grub, and a few bucket baths later, we were all fast asleep.

We took the next day for our rest and recuperation period.  My family pampered me by making me delicious food (Thai food mainly, yum!) and doing my laundry.  I love them.  :)  I’d never really done that much laundry before, so we had to jerry-rig a line outside to take advantage of the sunny day.  Although I would have liked my family to just relax, asking my family to just sit around is like starting a meeting in this country on time – it just doesn’t happen.  I was thankful for it though, because I got to teach my brother how to start a charcoal jiko and they were able to experience the simplicity of my life here.

The next day was when we went down to my school and my family got to meet my headmistress, second master, and the school financial advisor, as well as the Form II and Form IV students taking “tuition” during the break.  [The Form II and IV students were required by the Ministry of Education to continue with studies during their long break since the NECTA scores last year were horrid.]  They were more than thrilled to meet my family.  The girls were especially going gaga for my brother.  LOL!  My mkuu gave everyone Mwatisi shirts and we took a picture with everyone that cared to stay.

Over the bridge and through the forest, off we went to Kandete village to see my village family, the Mwakibambos.  We greeted some people along the way and even stopped in the sokoni [“market”] before getting embraced by my Baba and Mama Mwakibambo.  Steph was already there, and they were so incredibly welcoming to everyone in my family!  There was a smorgasbord of traditional Tanzanian cuisine (ugali, plantain meat stew, kachumbari, cabbage, beans, soda, and yogurt milk).  It was more than I could ask for to show my family what it’s like dining in a real Tanzanian home.  And if that wasn’t enough, they got my parents gifts!  My father received a hefty looking spear and my mother a scythe/sickle of some kind.  I still have no idea how I’m supposed to bring that home for them…  But seriously, SO COOL!

After some pictures and some small talk, my Baba asked me to translate something to my family – a Swahili monologue, if you will, of how blessed he felt to meet my brother, mother, father, and aunt, as well as how thankful he was to have Steph and me as his daughters.  It was so overwhelmingly sweet and I was so happy my Swahili was good enough to translate it.  That was a big step for me, as a Swahili speaker, as well as having a family here that accepts the family I came from.  It was a wonderful night and they walked us back part of the way home.  That evening, we made some more Thai food and got ready to head out the next day to Mbeya to fly to ARUSHA!

We arrived in Dar in about two hours, had a quick layover at the airport, and another 1.5 hours later, we arrived in Arusha.  Oh, how I missed the efficiency of flying!  We went straight to the Impala Hotel and I got my first taste of fancy Tanzania.  The hotel even had a spa run by a Thai lady!  All of us were so surprised and took advantage of the opportunity to pamper ourselves each with a Thai massage.  IT.WAS.GRAND.  :)  The next morning, we started our true “safari”!

At this time, I should probably mention the fact that my family loves to wear matching clothes, especially when we go on a big trip.  I knew this, so before they arrived in Dar, Steve and I bought all of us identical blue Tanzanian football jerseys.  Therefore, to mark our first day of safari, we all wore our shirts with pride.  The first day was to Lake Manyara National Park, where we’d be staying at a tented lodge.  Our tour guide, Haji, took us to the lodge first to drop off our things and eat, then we were on our way to see the animals!  I could tell my family was anxious to go into the park entrance and finally see some wildlife, so we all ate as quickly as possible.

 

As luck would have it, we ran into Steve and his visiting friend, Jake, at the park gate!  Just as they were leaving, we were going in.  It was such a nice surprise, since I was disappointed I missed Jake when he arrived in Dar.  After a short meet and greet, we were off into the wild!

The first animals we saw were monkeys hiding in trees.  But THEN, a little ways into the park, we saw elephants!  They were so close to the car, and my family was so excited.  One down for the Big Five!  Of course, I told them that we’d be seeing so many elephants and monkeys that we’d probably get sick of them.  I was still happy for them though.  :)

Lake Manyara is a very small park – you can usually traverse the whole lake in just a few hours, and that’s exactly what we did.  I had also read on the plane that Lake Manyara was known for their tree-climbing lions, so I was constantly looking into trees during our game drive.  Unfortunately, we did not see any tree-climbing lions,  but we did see a herd of water buffalo , lots of antelope and some exotic birds.  Haji even drove us to the edge of the lake and let us get out of the car to take a family picture, that is with Haji, as the sun was setting.  Haha.  Our first safari sunset of the trip!  [Notice how he surrounds himself by us gals lol.]

It wasn’t until we were on our way out of the park that we encountered some excitement!  My mom sighted a giraffe off in the distance and Haji got us a closer look at the family of giraffes!  My aunt was SO excited because she LOVES giraffes.  :D  And THEN, we were road blocked, first by a huge group of blue balled monkeys cleaning themselves in the middle of the road, which was pretty funny to see their different personalities, and then by a herd of elephants.

One of the males in the elephant herd was staring at us, and I was momentarily cautious of what I would need to do if it charged.  Luckily, we passed by safely after some time, but man, they were REALLY close!

Note: This picture was taken without zoom.

On our way back to our lodge, we stopped by Steve and Jake’s campsite.  Theirs was a much more normal and typical way of camping while on safari, so I wanted my family to get to see the other options.  The campsite had tents big enough to fit two small bed frames and mattresses, as well as a community hot shower.  Haji was super nice to wait for us to look around a little bit before we headed back to our lodge for a delicious dinner (I had lamb!!!) and sleep.  After our first day, we saw two out of the Big Five – not bad!

The next day, we drove a couple hours to Ngorongoro Crater and started Day 2 of our safari!  Before we got to the Sopa Lodge, we stopped at the viewpoint that overlooked the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area.  The lookout was at the edge of the crater and we were able to take pictures while Haji explained some history of the area to us.  We got to the hotel lodge, checked out the gorgeous view, ate our three course lunch as quickly as possible, and got in the car to get down into the crater.  Steve and Jake were already in the park and they told us they saw lions!!  I could barely hold in my excitement because I had yet to see any lions in country so far, even after going to Mikumi National Park in Morogoro during my PST.

This time, the first animal we saw was an ostrich, followed by water buffalo, gazelle, something that looked like the cross between a roadrunner and crane, warthogs, and zebra (crossing).  [<—see what I did there? Here in TZ, street crossings are called “zebra crossings” and we actually saw a zebra crossing the street!]  On our way to a bathroom break, we stopped at a hippo pool!  They were pretty shy, but we did see a few of them pop their heads up.

The main event, however, was when we finally saw a SIMBA [“LION”]!!!!  He was HUGE and was passed out in the grass, by the side of the road.  I have never been so close to a lion before, without protective glass between me and the lion, so I was pretty darn stoked!

He looked pretty skinny to me, but this was because he and a lioness were in a mating bout.  When lions mate, they copulate for just a brief moment (less than a minute) for 20 to 40 times a day.  Often times, they forgo hunting or eating, and so when they aren’t copulating, they just sleep to rest their energy.  This lion did give us a little show by waking up to yawn and walk to another bush to lay back down hahaha.  He must have been VERY tired.

Although I would have loved to see lionesses hunting down some prey, later that afternoon we did end up seeing a couple mating in the distance, literally for 30 seconds or less, walk a few paces, and then fall back asleep.

After seeing three of the Big Five, we were all pumped to go further into the heart of the crater and readied our binoculars for other sightings the day may bring.  I am pretty sure I strained my eyes the whole day looking out for something new, though lo and behold, it was worth it!  We saw a couple jackals, some resting hyenas, and  what I thought was a small leopard, but was actually a serval!

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to see the black rhino that some other safari cars were talking about, it was an all-around great day of more unique, exotic animals!  We were all so pleased, and so ready to head back to our safi Sopa Lodge to watch the sun set and eat delicious food!

This was the view from our lodge into the the Crater.

The next day, we were on our way to SERENGETI, but not before stopping at a Maasai village in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area grounds!  The Maasai are a semi-nomadic ethnic group that resides mainly in Kenya and Tanzania.  They stick with their old ways instead of adapting to the western-influenced development of the rest of the country.  Typically, they live in huts made of cow dung, clay, and grass, are polygamists, and their diet is composed mainly of meat and blood (often for medicinal reasons).  Not all Maasai live like this, because they are also seen around the major cities as well, but the ones that do mainly get their income from tourists near national parks.

We paid an entrance fee of 30,000/= per person and got a whole introduction, tour, and pictures of a particular Maasai tribe in the Crater.  The chief’s son, who was very adept in speaking English, Swahili, and Maa (the Maasai tongue), put us in Maasai clothing and ushered us to watch a tribal jumping dance, that my brother also got to participate in.  It was amazing how high they can jump!!  Lol.  Then, after a tour of a typical home, we were highly encouraged to buy Maasai handmade crafts and jewelry.  I knew how ridiculously expensive the asking prices were, so I did most of the haggling for my family.  We still ended up overpaying for a couple of things, but we did get what we wanted and I was mostly content as we were leaving the village to get to the Serengeti gate in time for our park fee to be valid.  [Park fees last for 24 hours, so if you are still in the park for more than the allotted 24 hours, you have to pay for an extra day – NOT worth it if we were late!] 

We get to the gate right on time, eat our boxed lunches, and take pictures at a viewpoint while Haji is getting things in order at the gate.  What a great way to spend Father’s Day – at Serengeti National Park!  :D

 

 

 

Serengeti comes from the Maasai word siringet, which means “the place where the land runs on forever” or “endless plains,” which is incredibly appropriate because its plains are so vast.  Once we got into the park, it was a while until we saw our first animals, the East African crowned crane and the topi, a type of antelope.  As the day progressed, we saw about four more different types of antelope, lots of exotic birds, vultures, elephants, warthog, water buffalo, hippos, ostriches, zebra, flamingos, and quite a few lions!  On our way to our lodge for the night, we took a detour to a watering hole, where there was a sleeping lioness and her grown cubs waiting around for prey.  I immediately wanted to stay and just camp out until something happened, but Haji was trying so hard for us to see a black rhino, so he moved on, assuring us that nothing would happen for a while.

On our search for the evasive black rhino in the Moru area of the park, we instead saw herds of elephants of all different generations and instead encountered something just as interesting - our first group of wildebeest and zebras that were on the move as part of the Great Migration.  Wildebeest and zebras tend to migrate together, using each other’s attributes to protect each other, especially their calves – wildebeest are bigger and have a great sense of smell but have poor eye sight, while zebras are more agile and have a keen eye for predators.  We were there during the end of mating season, so it was the first time I’d ever seen so many young wildebeest and zebras.  It wouldn’t be until the next day’s game drive that we would REALLY experience the Great Migration.

As the sun was setting and we realized we were not going to see a black rhino, we headed back to the lions at the watering hole, saw they were getting closer to a group of gazelle, and waited.  We waited until the last possible moment that we could before we had to go to our lodge, when there was a shift in the wind and all of the gazelle were spooked.  Alas, the lions would have to wait for another day to get their kill, and I would not get the chase I so desired to see.  Another day done, and still two more of the Big Five to go…

…what will happen next on this great adventure?  To find out, read on in the second installment of Safari!