"Long journey" -the phamly on safari...

The term safari means "long journey" in Swahili, and that is a good word for our extended search for animals on the African Serengeti Plain and Ngorongoro Crater.  It was an amazing, thrilling, once in a lifetime four days for me.  I left behind the cares of the world and enjoyed a mental vacation from reality unlike anything I've ever experienced before.  I had no internet access to speak of, and I was too exhausted each day to write a blog post, anyway.  So I will catch up now in a series of posts for each of the four days.

Saturday, May 26:  Our guide for the safari, Ema, picked us up in his safari truck at 8 a.m. to set out for Olduvai Gorge and the Serengeti Plain.  After a stop for a couple boxes of water, and an interesting short cut around the rush hour traffic (we quickly learned short cuts were one of Ema's many talents!) we were on our way.  Frankly, the road to Ngorongoro Park was better than a few I've traveled in the vicinity of my house, which was the first of many surprises in this adventure.

Ema made quick work of the trip to Ngoronogoro Park, and almost before we knew it, we were entering the gates.  We saw our first wildlife the moment we entered the park - gazelles, which were right there at the entrance to greet us.  Shortly after, we started to see zebras, buffalo, and twigas (giraffes.)  Then Ema spied Erin's favorite, the tembo (elephants.)

To digress for a moment, we spent a lot of time looking at tembos, as Erin never seemed to get tired of them.  I must say, our guide was unusually patient about her obsession.  Ridiculously so, some people in the truck would say (not naming names cough-Adam-cough.)  I am pretty sure we have seen all 2000 tembos in Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Park, and she is on a first name basis with more than one of them.  (Pictures to come later.)

We viewed the exhibits at Olduvai Gorge in the Great Rift Valley, and ate lunch there, as well.  Called "The Cradle of Mankind," it was an interesting place, and I wished they had more information available about it at the site.  It is one of the most important prehistoric sites in the world, and they did give a little information about what has been learned there.

The museum is primarily dedicated to a discussion of the Laetoli Footprints, discovered by Mary Leakey at a site where she had been working for many years.  A set of footprints from three people was perfectly preserved by volcanic ash, which covered and buried them.  There was a very good display about the discovery and subsequent casting of the prints, which can now be studied without damaging the originals.  They are planning to build a preservation building around the original prints and then reopen them, so people can see the originals, to be completed in the next couple of years.  I personally think they should leave it as it is, but I guess that's progress.  Our guide was informative and supplied us with lots of information.

I also discovered that the actual name is Oldupai, which is Maasai for sisal, a plant which grows in great abundance there.  And they have extensive archaeological evidence of the use of tools and food in the strata which you can see where the rock has washed away in the gorge.

Then we were off to the Serengeti Plain, and some intense animal scouting.  Without question, the guide will make all the difference in your experience, because between the difficult driving and the siting of animals, they determine the success or failure of the safari.  Ema was fantastic at both, and we ended our first day having already seen a variety of animals that met all expectations for the whole four days, and all without driving off a cliff.  That first afternoon, we saw all of the above animals, plus a leopard and a few birds.  (Well, to be strictly accurate, Ema saw a leopard and took pictures of it for us with Erin's camera.  I saw something in a tree that may or may not have been a leopard, but I wouldn't want to bet the farm on it.  Or TidBit's dog kennel, if it comes right down to it.)

By 6 p.m., we were exhausted, and Ema dropped us at our hotel for the evening.  We were greeted at the door with a cool cloth for our hands and faces, and a glass of juice.  It was odd, but appreciated.  Once we were checked in, we waited for dinner, which was an amazing buffet.  Erin was particularly excited, as she hadn't seen a western style buffet like that in quite some time!

We fell into bed early, setting our alarms for 6 a.m., so we could be up and out by 7:30 a.m. to go and find the Great Wildebeest Migration.  As far as I was concerned, the safari was already a success.  I didn't even imagine what was in store for me in the coming three days.

Meanwhile, some things I learned about safaris:

• You can't trust Germans to translate Maasai words.  The entire world knows Oldupai Gorge as Olduvai because the German man who first wrote it down had a miscommunication.  :(
• Safari vehicles really CAN go through just about anything.
• It's really fun to ride around with the top up so you can stand while you ride.
• Safari guides have incredible eye sight, and they take their job very seriously.  They want you to see the animals as much as you want to see them, and they will do everything they can to help you.
• Having a fun safari guide is really important, and treating them well pays huge dividends.  We saw and did things others would not get to do because our guide liked us, and we liked him.
• Just because a hotel advertises they have internet does not necessarily ensure they will have it while you are staying there.
• Having a shower after a long day on the dusty roads in the Serengeti is one of life's greatest pleasures.
• Leopards hang around in trees.  Literally.  If you want to see a leopard, you will likely have to look up.
• Being driven around all day induces extreme hunger and coma.  Our guide is now under the impression that we do nothing but eat and sleep all day long.  Unfortunately, he appears to be correct.  Safaris turn normal humans into sloths, to quote Adam.

Day two coming next!