Meals on wheels

Please take a moment and look this crater up on wikipedia . It is incredible. The whole crater is it's own Eco system. Predator and prey. There are no trees so no giraffes. Have had the pleasure of spotting all the big 5 lion, leopard, water buffalo, elephants, rhino. This does not included the many other species of birds, and other wildlife. Yes there are many rovers and land cruisers but the rules here are strict. At no time can you get out of your car. Even if you had drank 3 liters of water. Yes really I can attest to it.


Can you imagine what this Large male was thinking. Get a little closer come on just a little closer. They did not surround him he actually walk to them.


This lion was injured. They think by a water buffalo. The lion is a young male and took on more than he could "chew".


She was 6 feet from the cruiser.


They are not an active bunch but strangely beautiful.


From what I saw the area was very clean and the guides adhered to all park rules and policies. You have an option to go to the Massai camp for a fee. The reason why we did not was due to the fact it was a tourist set up and the money does not always go to the local people. The park fees are to mange the parks and the local people. We did not really see that in benifits . the Massai did not seem to reap the benefits. One of the safari companies has 600 rovers. So can you imagine how many people go on safari at any given time. At $50 per person per day plus the $30 per night for camping. And of course the truck had a fee to $150 per day Good thing was the locals could go to safari for only 1000 tsh. Less than a $1. This way it allows the local people to experience their own country.


A rare civet cat we had 60 feet from our land cruiser.

Location:Ngorongoro crater , tanzainia

Ngorongoro crater and the Serengeti day 1

We are on our way. The beginning of the safari was a little tense. Our driver is very defensive and a bit of a control freak. He and Martin did not hit it off. We will have a discussion with him and see if we can come to an understanding. Hakuna matata This is a fun experience would be a shame to have it damaged by a personality conflict. I do trust he does know what he is doing. when he pulls over, and where he drives is good with me. I just want to have a great time. We all paid $620 US each for 4 days. Sadly most of the costs are entry fees to the parks. Not much of the money goes back into the parks. It's a little more of a cash grab for the government.
By the time we got to our camp it had been 8 hours and you could taste the dust on your teeth. The land cruiser has a pop top roof so today we will have a better vantage point for photography. First day was considered very basic and I managed 80 photos. Today os the big game drive.
Dinner was spaghetti and soup. The kitchen is Full of the cooks. Every group has there own. Ours did a fine job and we ate till we could eat no more. Sat outside till well after the sun had set.


Left to right. Ryan, Martin, Jami and our guide Abusa. before we entered the Serengeti gate.


This was not even the game drive and the animals were everywhere.


Giraffes are one of my favorite. They are never poached and have a huge population here at the park.


Look closely in the water it has about 8 hippos keeping cool in the water.








Finally got to use my tent. The camp site is full of westerners again I ran Into Matt and Liz the Canadian auzzi couple. They plan to come to the island this summer. I met them on the Island of lamu in Kenya, then again in Moshi and today here in the Serangetti. Africa has been very small.

Location:Serengeti, Tanzania

Amazing lands. The beautiful beasts of the Serengeti.

Abasa Our driver has been great today. Everyone deserves a bad day. We have seen more animals than you could imagine. Just made it back to have lunch relax and go out again.


The grace and beauty


Mother and baby getting water


As thick as thieves


Simba crossing. There were at least 12 at once. Not bothered by the trucks at all.


Thompson Giselle





Cheetah awaiting a kill. We saw the third cheetah stalking Thompson Giselle across the grasses. We watched the chase. The speed was unbelievable. Sadly he failed the chase and ended up with nada.

Location:Serengeti , Tanzania

Game drive day two.

Zebras zebras everywhere.


Ngorongoro crater view


Elephants of the Serengeti

Zebra watering hole

Location:Serengetti , Tanzania

Safari day 2 part 2

There is no time to rest your eyes. Animals everywhere. Knowing that the roads here take up
Less than 1 % of the whole park. You have to be astounded that we would see animals all so close to the roads. Can you imagine how many there are.


They eat from a thorny tree.








I may not be a bird man but wow the bird life was quite amazing. The predatorily birds were incredible.





Theses were the sweetest kids in all of Tanzania. We were at the local saloon that the safari drivers frequent. Theses kids father was making the beer delivery. They giggled and smiled and of course they loved the candy.



Trees male a wonderful scratching post. The trunk was actually worn down.

Location:Serengeti national park, Tanzania

Rad safari experience

This was the early day 6 am and off for the safari. Not being a negative person but sadly i still had issues with our driver. We had hired a cook and tour guide. Well our guide was more of a driver. When we would arrive at any location he would disappear into thin air. Lucky that other guides were happy to share their knowledge with us also. The animals are amazing so all is not lost. It was not a cost effective tour but it is an amazing experience that everyone should try to do once in a lifetime. The cost will run you from $600 to $1000 for 4 days. This includes either the budget camp or the higher end lodges. Three meal a day and your camping gear. If you are used to the smooth roads of your country or not a fan of bumps you may have a challenge. The roads are for 4x4s only. Be prepared to have a sore ass after 7 hours of animal watching. The time flys by with all the animals, and warm breeze.



This was all worth it. The Tanzania people have been lovely and kind. The Massai are are interesting bunch and a huge part of the east African culture. They have a very strong personal culture of there own. They still have Massai warriors who also sell necklaces and other bits and bobs when they are not tending to the cattle.

This is what we saw on route to the crater today. The lions had just finished a fresh kill.





If you are used to the smooth roads of your country or not a fan of bumps you may have a challenge. The roads are for 4x4s only. Be prepared to have a sore ass after 7 hours of animal watching. The time flys by with all the animals, and warm breeze.

This was all worth it. The Tanzania people have been lovely and kind. The Massai are are interesting bunch and a huge part of the east African culture. They have a very strong personal culture of there own. They still have Massai warriors who also sell necklaces and other bits and bobs when they are not tending to the cattle.

This is what we saw on route to the crater today. The lions had just finished a fresh kill.


Hyena


Jackal


We are now camped at the new site. It looks over the valley has a green lawn and as I write there is a large buffalo about 40 feet from the tent feeding. We expect to hear wild pigs and the local elephant may pop by. We will hear the hyenas again tonight I am sure. Tomorrow the new truck arrives and we hit the valley. The largest accumulation of animals anywhere in the world.
We really enjoyed our time. Stopped for water at a Massai village. The rad was shot so we made the best of it and purchase a few necklaces and bracelets from the locals. We were stopped on the side of the road when another rover came flying by. It had a large spare tire break off just before I reached us. I tried ro flag them down with no luck. The tire would have cost the driver over $400 so I made sure our driver would get it back to them. He flagged down another car and has them bring it to them.

Location:Ngorongoro crater, Tanzania

Waiting for safari land .

Hopped a bus to Arusha. Will miss my new friends. Ready for the next adventure, Martin, and jami were waiting for me at Massai camp in Arusha. The bus ride was all the others colorful and a true adventure. After arriving in this bus sling town. The roads were full of land cruisers and rovers. I opted for a motorbike taxi. He weaved and shot through the traffic perfectly.
I knew where to find the boys. At the bar beer in hand. I soon followed. At the bar I met Ryan a charming guy from cape town. He was our fourth for the safari trip in the morning. Ryan was kind enough to after me to share his room. The idea of putting up my tent after numerous beers was not to inviting.

Excited for the trip.

Location:Arusha, Tanzania

Day at kili

We started our day at 8am meeting Phillip for breakfast. We have a plan to go to the waterfalls at kilimanjero the road was bumpy and red. We made our way up to over 1500 meters and parked the rover at a small church. We walked down this lovely path with small fruticose trees and palms everywhere. It was like a small rain forest with a few small homes. We paid 3000 tsh and started down this steep winding path. It was amazing how they could walk with the flimsy flip flops but they all made it intact.








We then made it back up the trail only to leave for another magic spot. Lake Chala! The road was amazing with bumps and turns. The soil was bright red. In some parts it was like silt. The rover had been overheating but Phillip a budding engineer was like a boy scout with all the basics to keep it all running.





This lake is 300 meters deep and the water comes from Mt kilimenjero it was the perfect temperature. Monkeys play in the trees overhead. What a glorious day.

Location:Kilimanjero , Tanzania

Tanzania children have a smiling addiction. There was nothing we could do

My new friends and myself had a lovely night of food and laughs with a few well priced beers. The next day was a wonderful day. Dominika has an association with the local Anglican parish in moshi. We made arrangements to go for a visit. After a very short cab ride we arrived in a very rural setting with a lovely church and 4 or 5 outer buildings. The parish had pre schools with over 100 children. We entered one of the classes only to be swamped by smiling and laughing children they grabbed our hands. We took pictures and showed them the pictures to there great entertainment.


My little lollipop girl.


Dominika and her little gang.


We went to every class and visited the teachers and students. After a while playing with the children I ran to the local store with a teacher and get some lollipops. The kids were so well behaved then all thanked us and waved. It is s great feeling to share with the local kids.

Location:Moshi, Tanzania

The Dominika's and a Bas

How plans change. The last 8 days of the trip and no plan at all. Hopped a bus to Arusha with no idea or any plan what to do or were to go. Theses things have a way of working themselves out. Waiting on the bus as dusk was approaching three other travelers
Let's that I had noticed from Jambo guest house entered the bus. Bas is a friendly dutch man and two lovely young woman from Germany. Monica and Dominica yes when said together sounded like a new country. Or good verses evil. Dominica was not happy after my 3 rd or 4th joke. They are a lovely bunch and made the long bus trip slip by. After reviewing my book and realizing I had no idea where I was going ask to join them. They happily agreed. Turns out they had only met Bas the night before and he had requested the same. The ladies had a good plan all we had to do was tag along. Travel is the people, the culture food
and the experience. My new friends were another great part of the experience.


Left to right. Phillip, Bas, Dominica, Monika. With the elder in the middle.
Monika is a nurse and lives in uganda. Dominica is a law student that specialized in tax law. She came to Uganda to organize the NGO,s at least I think that was it. I am sure she will correct me after arriving were greeted by another German named Phillip. A very industrious young man that is here working at a hospital. He has agreed to write his story for me tomorrow.
it will be a good story.

Also funny how things fall together. I got a facebook message from Jami. He and martin Are in Arusha and have booked a 4 day safari!! The timing is perfect! I hope to join them tomorrow night in Arusha if it all works out. What a lovely way to end a trip to africa.



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Location:Moshi , Northern Tanzania