When Nature Calls

When in Africa, you have to go on a safari. No question about it. That’s also conveniently the first thing people think of when you say you’re going to Africa. They think of the vast savannah, lions roaming next to elephants, zebras, and giraffes like in the Disney movie, The Lion King. Well in reality, it’s pretty much just like that!

(The lion that almost ate us!)

We went on a 5 day Safari to Lake Manyara, the Serengeti, the Ngorogoro Conservation area and Crater, and Tarangire National Park. It was all I could’ve hoped for an so much more! We had the amazing opportunity to watch animals in their natural habitat, eating, running, loving, and just going about their lives despite the obnoxious 4x4 Jeeps driving everywhere.

We started Day 1 of our safari at Lake Manyara: Home of the tree climbing lions. This was my least favorite park, but a good one to start at. We were weaned into Jeep life with this park and realized just what kind of things we would be experiencing while on safari. Right away monkeys and baboons, and birds of all sorts surrounded us! The monkeys are brave creatures and one even jumped in our jeep in attempt to steal our lunches! Thankfully someone came and banged on the windows to make it leave, but we were all flabbergasted! There’s really no other word to describe it! After that encounter we set off and the diversity of wildlife began to unfold! Looking back, this would be the one park I wouldn’t mind skipping because it kinda feels like you’re in a zoo. The animals are practically enclosed because it’s such a small park and feels like you’re enclosed, stuck between the mountains and a lake. Despite this, it was still cool and it a very nice park.

(Thanks Kandoo)

Day 2 and 3 were my favorites because we were in none other than the Serengeti! I feel like I walked right into a movie! First thing we see- three huge male lions! Just lounging in the shade of a tree, they seemed very relaxed and didn’t seem to mind our presence. I thought that if this is how our day begins, then what wonders await us?! After that, we saw 40+ more lions, lionesses, cubs, lions eating, lions growling, lions doing it on a rock, and even a near lion hunt! If you haven’t figured, I love lions, so I was thrilled to see so many! Along the way we also saw 2 separate leopards lounging in trees. The first one was a bit nervous at our being there under his tree so he climbed high to hide, but the second was so relaxed and just continued to sprawl on his perch. We also lucked out and saw 4 cheetahs! Two of them were eating something recently killed and the others were just peacefully lying in the grass. We also saw some Servals (smaller cats but similar to cheetahs) catching prey and carrying it off. You’d think that because some cats have spots, that they would be easy to pick out, but that is not so! They camouflage themselves so well since their fur matches their surrounding so perfectly. I count myself lucky that we saw all the big cats in one day, as many people miss one or the other.

(Cheetahs digging in)

In addition to cats, we saw antelope of every kind, elephants galore and giraffes walking in front of our jeep, zebras a plenty, and buffalo and wildebeest roaming free. We also went to a hippo pond and watched these lumbering creatures for the better part of an hour! They are disgusting and smelly creatures, but also really fascinating! At one point this huge hippo stood up and pooped right on his neighbor! But he didn’t just poop- as he released his bowels he swished his stubby tail from side to side, flinging his poop in all directions! It was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen and so we all are cracking up laughing in the jeep when all of a sudden the hippos join in our laughter with their own! It was hilariously fantastic! After 2 long days in the Serengeti, soaking up sun, getting coated in dust, and sleeping in “luxury tents” surrounded by hyenas at night with Masai warriors protecting us, we felt we had really experienced all the wonders of the savannah.

Our 4^th day on the safari, we went to the Ngorogoro Crater. This is a huge conservation area were the Masai people are free to lives their traditional lives, raising families and livestock on the outskirts of the crater. They are not allowed to live in the crater but can graze their cattle there. The crater itself is a snow globe filled with forests, lakes, marshes, animals, and jeeps. There are so many habitats and all are occupied by different animals- all coexisting within. We saw a lioness hauling a zebra back to her cubs, hyenas fighting over scraps, birds of all sorts picking out food from the lakes, and hippos and elephants relaxing in the wet and tall grass.  The most elusive and impressive animal to see on the Ngorogoro Crater is the Black Rhino. There are only a handful of these guys left in the world and the crater boasts a population of about 15- the highest concentration anywhere! As we were leaving the crater, looking down from above, we spotted 2 rhinos on the hillside below. After a long day of seeing everything else but the Black Rhino, we lucked out and rounded off the day by seeing these endangered animals.

(The view from the top of the crater. Those 2 black dots are rhinos... Good luck finding them!)

(To the tune of 12 Days of Christmas) On the fifth day of the safari, our great guide Felix gave to us, a lot of elephants! Haha Tarangire National Park is home to the highest population of elephants in Africa supposedly, and I’d believe it! They were everywhere we went! As were the huge Boabab trees that Rafiki made famous in the Lion King as the Tree of Life. This whole park was pretty lush despite the dryness of the season. When the rains come, it transforms into marshes, swamps, and green forests where life thrives. This a really nice park to end with as we saw every animal we’d seen previously and it was much more interesting than Manyara. We only spent a few hours here because the Powers had to get to the airport and Laura and I were being picked up to go to our placement house in Arusha. But it was time well spent and overall, I wouldn’t change a single thing about the safari!

Africa is not only the cradle of civilization but also the home to such a massive diversity of creatures of all shapes and sizes. It was so neat to be able to experience these animals in their natural habitats, not stressed out by small enclosures or worried about being hunted. It is an experience I’ll cherish forever as an animal lover and one worth sharing to bring awareness to poaching and harm some of these animals endure. This giant continent is a mystery to most travelers and it isn’t until you go there that you really start to appreciate its splendor in all of its forms. I’m excited to live and work in such a diverse place and to learn about the many cultures, traditions, and peoples that occupy Tanzania.

(Wildebeest left, right, and all around!)