December 8, 2004 -- A collection of pictures taken in the Sinya region can be found at Kambi ya Tembo; A collection of pictures taken at Mama Wilson's, in Arusha town, and Arusha National Park can be found at Arusha and Environs.
We awake to the symphony of African bird songs. Breakfast is scheduled for 7:30 a.m. but many of us are up and ready by seven. We mill about exploring the house grounds and drinking good strong coffee. Breakfasts at Mama Wilson's and those at the other camps and lodges were excellent. They always started with fresh fruit: mango, papaya, pineapple, watermelon, and bananas. Fruit juices were also available. The fruit course was followed by oatmeal and/or millet porridge. Then came the eggs, beef bacon and/or sausages with toast and crepes. The crepes were particularly good when lathered with jelly or honey.
By 8:30 a.m. we are on the road heading north towards Sinya, also known as Kambi ya Tembo, located on the western side of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Kitoi, a Kibo Safari nature guide joins us for the trip. He is the resident naturalist at the Sinya camp. James told us in a pre-departure briefing to expect the unexpected. We were not disappointed. About 45 minutes into the trek, James spied a group of people with video cameras in a clearing. They turned out to be a Seventh Day Adventist Church Choir from James' native region near Lake Victoria recording their performance outdoors. We were invited to participate in the production. What a sensational cultural beginning!
Back on the road, we suddenly veer east off-road and travel on a rough dirt track for 1 1/2 hours to reach Sinya. The country here is dry and desolate, peopled by nomadic Maasai and their herds of cows, goats, and donkeys. Clouds shroud Mts. Kilimanjaro and Meru, the two tallest peaks in the region. Game sightings on the way to Sinya include jackals, Burchell's zebras, Grant's and Thomson's gazelles, giraffes, ostriches, kori bustards, and wildebeest.
We arrive at Sinya around lunchtime and meet Sylvester, the camp manager and his staff, as well as our Maasai guides, Lomanyani and Leyo. The camp, on the bank of a dry lake bed, just south of Kenya's Amboseli National Park, is in the Kilimanjaro Heartland, a conservation area designated by the African Wildlife Foundation. It is still very dry here, the rains in this region are late this year.
Lunch included pasta with a delicious meat sauce with sides of marinated sliced cucumbers, corn and carrots, and freshly baked bread. James suggests that we take a siesta before a late afternoon game drive. Some do take a nap, and others stay in the mess tent to talk with our new camp friends.
We leave for our afternoon game drive at 3:30 p.m. In addition, to the Kibo guides, each vehicle has a Maasai guide. In no time we are adding to the number of giraffe, gazelle, and zebra already sighted. The highlights are kudu, dikdik, leopard turtle, and two wonderful herds of elephants. One is a bachelor herd led by a large bull. The second has several youngsters led by the matriarch. Now we know we are in Africa! We are losing light and head back to camp for showers and dinner.
Hot showers are available each evening between the last game drive and before dinner. Each tent is equipped with a bucket attached to a hose with a shower head. Water is heated centrally behind the tents and buckets are filled manually. One bucket suffices to shower two people but refills are available if needed. Showers in lodges are available on demand.
Before dinner we meet at the camp fire to chat about the day and munch on roasted cashews and popcorn. Dinner started with cream of tomato soup, followed by Talapia (from Lake Victoria), potatoes, and lettuce and tomato salad. Fresh bread was plentiful. Dessert was a fruit cup. Coffee and tea was always available. I won't continue to provide detailed menus except to highlight something special. Food was not a problem on this trip. Every meal was a culinary delight regardless of venue -- tented camp or lodge.
Maasai guides escort us to our tents. Lala salama was had by all!
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Siku ya kwanza na Siku ya pili (Day 1-2): En Route to Tanzania
December 6-7, 2004 -- A collection of pictures taken at Mama Wilson's, in Arusha town, and Arusha National Park can be found at Arusha and Environs.
For those on the pre-trip the safari started on Monday, December 6, 2004. We left from various U.S. airports and came together at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. From Amsterdam, we took a nine hour flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport. Once on the ground in Tanzania at about 9:45pm, Tuesday, Dec. 7th, we took a 45 minute Land Cruiser drive north to Mama Wilson's House, our base in Arusha. James Mazigo and Pascal Foster, our cheerful Kibo guides, do their best to keep eight weary travelers from falling apart. The air was warm and fresh. I rode "shotgun" next to Pascal with my window down to breathe in the African air. At Mama Wilson's, we are warmly received by some of the staff -- David, the manager, and Babu, everyone's favorite grandfather. We get our room assignments, and freshen up for a late but welcome pasta/marinara meal. James tells us that most groups party when they arrive. We don't believe him and head for our rooms for some needed sleep.
For those on the pre-trip the safari started on Monday, December 6, 2004. We left from various U.S. airports and came together at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. From Amsterdam, we took a nine hour flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport. Once on the ground in Tanzania at about 9:45pm, Tuesday, Dec. 7th, we took a 45 minute Land Cruiser drive north to Mama Wilson's House, our base in Arusha. James Mazigo and Pascal Foster, our cheerful Kibo guides, do their best to keep eight weary travelers from falling apart. The air was warm and fresh. I rode "shotgun" next to Pascal with my window down to breathe in the African air. At Mama Wilson's, we are warmly received by some of the staff -- David, the manager, and Babu, everyone's favorite grandfather. We get our room assignments, and freshen up for a late but welcome pasta/marinara meal. James tells us that most groups party when they arrive. We don't believe him and head for our rooms for some needed sleep.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Trip Preparations
When planning to travel abroad, particularly to the African continent, remember the little things that can make a meaningful difference. For example, bring small items that can be distributed for the simple pleasure of offering a gift to a new friend or, on occasion, be used for direct exchange/barter. In addition, bring picture books about your home state. We brought along multiple copies of Vermont Scenes and Seasons and Vermont Impressions as well as fifty 1-1/2 ounce bottles of Vermont maple syrup. Another important item to consider is a Polaroid camera. This technology provides an excellent opportunity to provide a precious gift to local peoples who seldom, if ever, have seen a photograph of themselves. Some cultures think that photography steals the soul so why not take a picture and leave it with them. If your trip includes school visits take school supplies of all kinds. We discovered that pens are coveted over pencils. On this trip school visits were planned but unfortunately schools were not in session. We left the supplies with our safari leader for later distribution.
Thinking ahead pays off, particularly if you have connections with research/educational institutions. Denny Dvergsten, one of our traveling mates, is connected with the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He was able to make arrangements for us to meet with Craig Packer who is researching lion populations in Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. Dr. Packer met with us later in the trip at the Ngorongoro Farm House for a lecture and dinner. He shared some of his current projects including the inoculation of canine populations against rabies and distemper in order to slow the spread of those diseases in wild animal populations. His work on lions is documented at the Lion Research Center.
Thinking ahead pays off, particularly if you have connections with research/educational institutions. Denny Dvergsten, one of our traveling mates, is connected with the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He was able to make arrangements for us to meet with Craig Packer who is researching lion populations in Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. Dr. Packer met with us later in the trip at the Ngorongoro Farm House for a lecture and dinner. He shared some of his current projects including the inoculation of canine populations against rabies and distemper in order to slow the spread of those diseases in wild animal populations. His work on lions is documented at the Lion Research Center.
Friday, December 24, 2004
Trip Summary
While I wait for pictures to develop I thought I'd provide a trip summary. The Safari Serengeti trip we took with OAT also included two possible extensions: a pre-trip to Meet the Maasai in the northern region of Sinya and/or a post-trip to Cape Town & the Peninsula in South Africa. Of the 14 travelers who participated in the main trip, eight took the pre-trip and none took the post-trip. My family plus two Minnesotans, Joan and Denny Dvergsten, and one Californian, Frances Kirchner stayed three nights in Kibo Safari's exclusive permanent camp in Sinya. Absolute Adventure Travel, a group that organizes international luxury adventure travel in Nepal, South America, and Africa, calls Kibo's Sinya Camp, on the Western side of Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the "Top 5 Destinations in Africa." The camp is located in a private Maasai concession and is exclusive to Kibo Safaris. Our Kibo guides for the pre-trip were trip leader, James Mazigo, and Pascal Foster.
After three wonderful nights in Sinya, the pre-trippers traveled back to Arusha to meet up with the rest of the gang at Mama Wilson's House: New Yorker Harry Pinsky; four more Californians: Kathy Shaddox, Mary Ann Heinzen, Bruce Carlson, and Robin Serfass; and, Connecticut native Beth Abrahams. We are also joined by Alex Saul, a third Kibo guide. From our base at Mama Wilson's we explored Arusha National Park by foot and by Land Cruiser vehicles. Arusha is known for its black and white Colobus monkeys. We did see them.
The group then traveled south to our next base for two nights at Tarangire Tented River Camp. This camp, set on a bluff overlooking the Tarangire River Valley, is also owned and operated by Kibo. We spent two days doing vehicle safaris in the Tarangire National Park, Tanzania's third largest national park.
We then head in a Northwesterly direction to our next base, Ngorongoro Farm House, another Kibo-owned facility. On the way we visited Lake Manyara National Park, located at the base of the Great Rift Valley escarpment. This park includes forests, woodlands, grasslands, swamps, and of course, lots of flamingos. On the second day of our stay at the farm house we climbed and then dropped down by vehicle into Ngorongoro Crater, one of the world's most unique geological and wildlife environs. The crater is the largest unbroken caldera in the world (610 meters deep and 260 km squared). Back to the farm house for one more night before heading off to Serengeti National Park.
The trip to the Serengeti takes us along the southern rim of the Ngorongoro Crater and down sharply to vast grassy plains the Maasai called Siringitu -- "the place where the land moves forever." Before reaching the Serengeti we make two stops at Olduvai Gorge and Shifting Sands. Olduvai Gorge is the archaeological site where the Leaakey made their famous discoveries of the earliest hominid remains including a fossilized pathway of the footprints of three of our earliest ancestors. Shifting Sands, discovered in the late 1960's, are dunes of volcanic ash deposits from an extinct volcano in the area of Ol Donyo Lengai. The crescent shaped dunes move at rate of about 5 meters per year. Markers indicate yearly movement. Since 1969 the sands have traveled over 2 kilometers. The Maasai consider the sands religious sites. We spent four days in the Serengeti in a private tented camp site serenaded nightly by lions, hyenas, and leopards.
Our return trip back to Arusha took us back to Ngorongoro Farm House for one night. Rains had transformed Lake Manyara from what seemed a puddle five days earlier to a significant body of water. We spent our last day at Mama Wilson's House before returning home. Detailed day-by-day postings with pictures to follow.
After three wonderful nights in Sinya, the pre-trippers traveled back to Arusha to meet up with the rest of the gang at Mama Wilson's House: New Yorker Harry Pinsky; four more Californians: Kathy Shaddox, Mary Ann Heinzen, Bruce Carlson, and Robin Serfass; and, Connecticut native Beth Abrahams. We are also joined by Alex Saul, a third Kibo guide. From our base at Mama Wilson's we explored Arusha National Park by foot and by Land Cruiser vehicles. Arusha is known for its black and white Colobus monkeys. We did see them.
The group then traveled south to our next base for two nights at Tarangire Tented River Camp. This camp, set on a bluff overlooking the Tarangire River Valley, is also owned and operated by Kibo. We spent two days doing vehicle safaris in the Tarangire National Park, Tanzania's third largest national park.
We then head in a Northwesterly direction to our next base, Ngorongoro Farm House, another Kibo-owned facility. On the way we visited Lake Manyara National Park, located at the base of the Great Rift Valley escarpment. This park includes forests, woodlands, grasslands, swamps, and of course, lots of flamingos. On the second day of our stay at the farm house we climbed and then dropped down by vehicle into Ngorongoro Crater, one of the world's most unique geological and wildlife environs. The crater is the largest unbroken caldera in the world (610 meters deep and 260 km squared). Back to the farm house for one more night before heading off to Serengeti National Park.
The trip to the Serengeti takes us along the southern rim of the Ngorongoro Crater and down sharply to vast grassy plains the Maasai called Siringitu -- "the place where the land moves forever." Before reaching the Serengeti we make two stops at Olduvai Gorge and Shifting Sands. Olduvai Gorge is the archaeological site where the Leaakey made their famous discoveries of the earliest hominid remains including a fossilized pathway of the footprints of three of our earliest ancestors. Shifting Sands, discovered in the late 1960's, are dunes of volcanic ash deposits from an extinct volcano in the area of Ol Donyo Lengai. The crescent shaped dunes move at rate of about 5 meters per year. Markers indicate yearly movement. Since 1969 the sands have traveled over 2 kilometers. The Maasai consider the sands religious sites. We spent four days in the Serengeti in a private tented camp site serenaded nightly by lions, hyenas, and leopards.
Our return trip back to Arusha took us back to Ngorongoro Farm House for one night. Rains had transformed Lake Manyara from what seemed a puddle five days earlier to a significant body of water. We spent our last day at Mama Wilson's House before returning home. Detailed day-by-day postings with pictures to follow.
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Back from Tanzania
Ndugu Habari Zenu (NHZ) represents a personal journal of my family's trip to Tanzania. NHZ will also serve as a method to communicate with our new brothers and sisters in Tanzania. My wife Carol, my daughters Brittany and Siobhan, and Carol's sister, Beverly, and nine other travelers, spent 17 life altering days in Tanzania on an Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) trip called Sarafi Serengeti from December 6-22, 2004. OAT contracted the trip with a local Safari operator, Kibo Safaris, headquartered in Arusha, TZ.
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