We traveled to Tanzania in December, which is the wet season in Serengeti, the country’s largest national parks. We wanted to see the migration and relive our memories of our young adulthood traveling in Africa. In my view Tanzania is the natural beauty of Africa you envision in your dreams at it’s finest. We traveled with http://www.naturalhighsafaris.com and their subcontractor http://wayoafrica.com.
River view for breakfast
Our first stop was Lake Manyara National Park which is situated at the foot of the Rift Valley wall. Our quarters were a single row of tents at the riverbank. The scenery was taken right out of a Tarzan movie. Your mind seems to be unable to grasp the amount of beauty and tranquility, yet on another level your body immediately feels connected to nature.
On our first night there was a heavy rainfall above the Rift Valley and even though we didn’t see much rain ourselves the rain came gushing down over the cliffs making the stream swell to full scale river in 20 minutes. We had to seek refuge behind the tents in the deep african night and sat there conversing with fellow travellers reassuring one another that things were going to be fine! One member of staff took the opportunity to share tales of lions in the camp. Once he got stranded in his tent with a huge pride of lions resting outside, two males sleeping with their backs up against his mosquito net.
Next morning we went for a walk with a park ranger and found the leftovers of lions’ meals. The ranger is holding the hind leg of a young giraffe.
Later in the day we were lucky to spot the famous tree climbing lions, which are only found in Lake Manyara featured above. On our way back to camp we ran upon a huge heard of elephants quietly crossing the road. As they had young ones the bull pushed us back swinging his trunk and waving his ears walking straight at us. Our pulses went through the roof!
I challenge you to hear 40 elephants crossing through the bush. They are absolute silent, only the leaves rustle gently as they move their giant bodies softly through the woods. This also means that you will never be able to tell which dangers the forest holds as you will have a hard time hearing or seeing the animals without the help of a guide.
Our next stop was the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera (crater floor much like a sink hole). There are no pictures that are fully ableto relay the unparalleled beauty of Ngorongoro. It’s as if you’re allowed to relive the dawning of time, the beginning of life on Earth. And befittingly some of our earliest forefathers have been found in the crater, which in Maasai means “the gift of life”. Here is James explaining about the crater from the viewpoint before descending into the crater floor where we saw our first Rhinos.
We stayed at the Ngorongoro Farm House, which grows all of it’s own produce and is situated in a beautiful garden.
From Ngorongo we ventured down the hills and into Serengeti proper. On our way we passed numerous Maasai villages. The young Maasai boys herd the cattle and seeing them with their cows interspersed with flocks of gazelles was almost biblical. In reality life is hard for the Maasai and being a young male is a gigantic wait for coming of age when the male privileges kick in and they must be treated with respect. If they as much as flinch during circumcision they will be forever ridiculed and mocked in their village and will have a hard time finding a girl.
We proceeded to Naabi Hills which is an entry way to Serengeti. We camped with Wayo Africa in comfortable, rustic tents after receiving safety instructions. Throughout the night you hear the lions roar, the hyenas laughing and the wildebeest mooh-ing. Right outside our tent my husband encountered the illusive ever-hard-to find leopard looking straight at him 10 meters away.
Our home away from home for two weeks, a custom build Toyota with a roof that opens and closes for the rain.
Very quickly we saw the first herds of wildebeest. An estimated 3 mio animals rotate the Serengeti during migrations and when we reached camp we slept during loud muuuh-ing which rose and fell according the potential threats from predators who feast on meat during this season.
Mess tent in Nabi Hills
Nabi Hills sunset
One morning we got up at 4:30 to see the sun rise in a remote part of Serengeti. We encountered a pride of female lions, marching over the plains and heading for a tall Kopje (rocky boulders emerging from the ground). Their furs and mouth were smeared in blood and their bellies hung heavily just above the ground, full of flesh
A lonely kopje in the early morning.
Breakfast with no man in sight for miles on end