Safari is Swahili for journey, but the real translation should be more along the lines “damn, look at that.” Other than seeing a few animals, I really didn’t have any idea about what would happen on our safari. I had no idea I would see a giraffe from 7 feet, a lion brush against our bumper, or elephants 20 feet from my shower... Or that I would see all the above within an hour.
A small side note to give you an idea of scale and distance, all of the pictures here were taken with a happy snappy, look what I wore to the costume party camera. No 600, 400, or 200 millimeter lens on a tripod resting on a sandbag.
We met my mom in Nairobi during Kenya’s elections fiasco. Probably not the safest time but our options were pretty limited and (on a good note) the complete dearth of tourists gave us great bargaining power at the artisan markets. After a day in Nairobi we rallied the landcruiser 3 hours west to Tanzania (which we found out, the locals pronounce Tan-ZAN-ee-ya, not Tan-za-NEE-ya) and just a few hours later we were on our first game drive in Tarangire National Park. Within 2 minutes we were treated to our first game sighting, a huge bull elephant slowly crossing the road in front. Yes, elephants are the largest land animal in the world, but the size of the jeep (or lack thereof) gives a better perspective.
A small side note to give you an idea of scale and distance, all of the pictures here were taken with a happy snappy, look what I wore to the costume party camera. No 600, 400, or 200 millimeter lens on a tripod resting on a sandbag.
We met my mom in Nairobi during Kenya’s elections fiasco. Probably not the safest time but our options were pretty limited and (on a good note) the complete dearth of tourists gave us great bargaining power at the artisan markets. After a day in Nairobi we rallied the landcruiser 3 hours west to Tanzania (which we found out, the locals pronounce Tan-ZAN-ee-ya, not Tan-za-NEE-ya) and just a few hours later we were on our first game drive in Tarangire National Park. Within 2 minutes we were treated to our first game sighting, a huge bull elephant slowly crossing the road in front. Yes, elephants are the largest land animal in the world, but the size of the jeep (or lack thereof) gives a better perspective.
That evening we settled into our “tent” on the shore of lake Manyara to enjoy our first African sundowner, a fantastic expression simply meaning to enjoy the sunset and beverage simultaneously. This would be, more or less, the routine for the next 10 days. A day later we left Tarangire and drove up to, and then inside, Ngorongoro Crater, the largest intact caldera in the world. The flat and almost treeless crater floor is teeming with millions of flamingoes, thousands of wildebeest and zebras, and hundreds of elephants, lions, and cape buffalo. Not to mention jackal, hyena, rhinos, gazelle, baboons, monkeys, and countless others.
After two days in the crater we moved on to the great Serengeti, another Swahili word for endless plain, where millions (literally, about 1.7 million to be somewhat exact) of wildebeest migrate across the plain every February in search of water. Accompanying them were not only millions of zebras, but also thousands of predators and scavengers. It was on the Serengeti where we watched lions feasting, cheetahs hunting, and scavengers, well, scavenging.
We spent the majority of our time in the Serengeti, about 4 days, with two game drives a day. In the morning we enjoyed playing with the kittens.
And later we watched giraffes snacking while making hilarious faces.
On the way back we came across the huge elephant family, about 80 in total, that kept us up every night as they marched through or camp. But how could anyone be mad at faces like this for keeping you up at night?
The safari was amazing, far better than we ever imagined. There are so many amazing memories and pictures. Thank you mom not only for this wonderful gift, but also for coming halfway across the world to enjoy it with us.
If you all want to see more pics, check the link on the top right. If you want the memories, you’ll have to go. You won’t regret it. Stay tuned for Meredith’s entry, Safari part II, the people.
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