Zanzibar (27 Feb - 2 March 2010)

We flew from the Serengeti air-strip to Arusha, got out of the plane for 30 mins to stretch our legs and have our picnic box and then boarded it again to go straight to Zanzibar. I seem to recall it took about 2 hours all in all (incl. the 30mins stop over). NOT bad. We were hoping to fly over the migration area to appreciate the huge numbers, but it didn't happen... sometimes they have to make additional stops to pick up people on private air-strips, but not this time.

It was 35C when we landed and absolutely baking... the sun was biting your skin so much that we just couldn't stand in the heat for very long at all. Once we'd collected our luggage and found our driver, we turned the A/C full on and drove the 45mins to the Shooting Star Hotel.

I was sitting at the front and was pleasantly surprised by how very lush the island was. Lots and lots of coconut trees, banana plantations and hardly any cars at all (most people seem to bike it once you leave Stone Town). Truly one of the prettiest islands that I'd ever seen.

Our hotel was much smaller than the Sopa ones but it was quaint with an infinity pool and a lovely four poster bed as well. It also had a resident cat, Link, who was a lot of fun as he "talked" a lot :)

The beach itself was very poor, with lots of seaweeds and some rocks and though we wanted to walk towards the nicer end of the beach (smoother sand, cleare waters), we were told off my various security guards as each beach was 'private' to each hotel.

I wasn't planning to spend a lot of time on the beach myself (as snorkelling is very poor on Zanzibar due to the fact that they still 'fish' with dynamite !) but Roberto did want a whole day doing nothing and I knew I wouldn't be able to keep still for that long.

Nathalie knew this too and felt 'caught in the middle'. She had been approached by a guy on the beach who sold private tours and so she introduced me. I was a a bit reluctant, as you can imagine, to embark on a 1:1 tour with a guy I'd never met but the rep from the Zanzibar company never showed up and I knew I couldn't be 3 days doing nothing so I had to take a chance. I prayed a lot :)

The guy charged me $90 for a tailor made tour of the island ($150 for 3) and I selected to go to the spice plantation and the town centre to see the famous 'carved wooden gates', but most importantly, I wanted to see the N.W. beaches as they were supposed to be the most beautiful ones (and we were on the East coast where the tides were more 'obvious').

That evening I went to join Nathalie & Roberto who had managed to 'negotiate' a way to use a better beach and the Indian ocean was really warm. Just like bath water ! It was just lovely to sit in the sea, by moonlight and the sky was a very unusual blue.

We then had dinner in the restaurant (you have to be 'half board' at least when staying at Shooting Star as there really isn't anywhere else for you to go and eat without a car) but there was sand everywhere so it was nice to walk barefoot. They also provided sandals and light colourful bathrobes to help us feel more 'at home'.

The next day Philip (my tour guide for the day) was right on time to pick me up and the first stop was the Spice Plantation. As usual, they give lots of facts and figures on the various spices but the two that made me smile the most were about the hot chilli peppers called the 'pili pili ho ho' and the 'ho ho' is because once you bite into it, it's SO hot that you go 'ohh.... ohhhh' as you try to catch your breath. The other interesting plant was one whose leaves would curl up if you touched it. He said that jealous husbands usually plant them around a house and when they come home, they can check if their wives has been out or if anyone has visited because if you step on the plant, its leaves will 'shut inwards' for a good 6 hours (depending on the pressure applied). So it was like having a little invisible spy !

The next stop was Stone Town, but I was very disappointed by it because it is incredibly run down and they are not investing much money at all to refurbish it. There really isn't much of interest to see, even the Sultan's palace is barely furnished and looks rather plain compared to the extravageance of Versailles or the Taj Mahal ! The wooden gates were ok but nothing spectacular and I personally could not understand what all the fuss was about. I didn't even 'smell all the flagrances in the air' as promised by the guide book. Besides, people really do NOT want to have their photos taken so it's always disappointing when this is the case. Tanzania is 80% muslim so a lot of women wore veils (at least in town).

I then went to have lunch at 'Mercury's Zanzibar' a famous cafe on the harbour. They say that Freddy Mercury was born in Zanzibar and so this cafe is there as a reminder, with some photos of the guy on their wall. The menu was pretty good, fairly reasonable and very extensive, with lots for vegetarians and a lovely view across the harbour, so I was happy there for 30 mins.

It then started to rain heavily so we had to quickly make a dash for the car and head for the beaches. It actually poured down for a good 40 mins and I did worry that I would be unable to take any decent photos as I knew that the various hues of blue would not come to anything on a cloudy, rainy day. I did enjoy the drive across the country-side regardless as it did look so interesting and we passed so many villages with very humble homes (more like huts).

Thankfully though, the rain stopped pretty much 10 mins before we arrived. We walked along this most glorious beach with very white sand and went to visit a turtle centre for a few minutes. Then Philip had arranged for me to board a 'sunset cruise' as well and it was a fantastic idea because I knew I could take better photos from a 'high up' perspective. The beaches here were definitely MUCH nicer... the sand felt like flour... ever so fine, I'd never felt anything like it under my feet.

We were due to pick up another 5 people at various hotels but NO ONE showed up... So I ended up with 5 crew members 'for myself' and was able to just sit on the top desk and enjoy the view and the warm breeze... It was a fantastic view point and I just wished that Roberto and Nathalie had been here because I felt totally spoilt having the boat to myself.

It was supposed to be a 'snorkelling' trip too and if 6 of us had been, the captain would have taken us to an island where snorkelling was 'adequate' but because it was just me in the end, he soon changed his mind and suggested I snorkel much nearer to the shore.... however, it was just pointless, with hardly any fish and half destroyed corals. I really was not impressed but the water was so warm, it was delightful.

We then sailed along until the the sunset arrived and though it wasn't as amazing as I'd hoped, it was the first sunset I'd seen in the last 8 days.

By the time Philip drove me back it was pitch dark (9pm) and Nathalie was getting seriously worried (I think that if I'd been murdered she'd have never forgiven herself as she had made the introduction !). Philip was very decent man as it happens but as I told him, it's not easy for a woman to trust a bloke. In fact, at the first stop we made on the way that day, he told me 'we'll stop here, this is where they sell gas'.... but because of his accent I thought for a second that he'd said 'this is where they sell guests'.... ooops. He saw the worried look on my face and then laughed when I told him why !

I also noticed that he gave a lot of hand-outs to various people at various check-points and I'm sure that it's because he didn't have an official licence or an official car to drive tourists. So he had to pay bribes throughout the day. When he quoted me the fee, he said '$30 will be for government tax' and I realised, the $30 were for bribes, not tax at all !

As much as I find this despictable, it's such common practice the world over that you have to turn a blind eye otherwise you'd do nothing.

The next day Nathalie & Roberto joined me for a repeat of the Spice Plantation tour and the guide's assistant made up some really fun hats with some palm tree leaves. I took some great photos and it was actually good to hear all the 'facts' again because it's amazing how quickly one forgets things (hence this blog !).

Roberto also wanted to go to the ex-slave market and this was particularly sad but in some ways, it's the kind of tour that does make one realise how EASY we have it these days... and how our many complaints are just so meaningless compared to what these people endured.

They took us to a cellar with a tiny window (for air) and we were told that 4o people were usually kept / packed in this room where many died of suffocation or starvation. This was the first 'endurance test'. The ones who survived this one were then tied to a pole and whipped repeatedly to test their strengths as this would determine their worth. If they fell to the floor too quickly, they would be deemed too weak and sold off at a cheap price for human sacrifices. If they could withstand the pain for much longer it showed stamina and they would fetch a higher price.

Some of the men were sent to Oman to live in harems and they would be castraded very crudely beforehand. Their penis would just be chopped off with a sword, with no anaesthetics and as you can imagine, many would then subsequently die of blood loss or infections to their wounds (and how incredibly painful this must have been!). To think that a man could do this to another man just seems unimaginable.

It was just unbearable to hear all of these horrible, horrible stories and yet there were also 'redeeming' stories ('silver lining' in this dark, ugly cloud) of kind missionaries who did their utmost to rescue these people from their misery. One of them was bishop John Steere who bought as many slaves as he could and then built them a village so that they could re-build their lives. These people had been traumatised for months and had no more jobs or homes. They were nothing anymore and he tried to give them worth and a home and ... a future.

The other (more famous) man who helped to highlight their plight was the great Dr David Livingstone (one of my heroes). He spent 3 years in Zanzibar and witnessed the brutal treatment that these people had to endure. He reported it back to England many times and fought all his might to abolish such practices. As you may know, the treaty to end the slave trade was signed just a few days after he died. Dr Livingstone was in Zambia by then and he had told his assistant that he had such a heart for Africa and its people that he would like his heart to be buried here. And so when he did pass away his faithful friend removed his heart and buried it under the tree where he'd breathed his last breath. He then cut out a branch from the tree and had a cross made out of it that he sent to Zanzibar as a constant reminder of what he'd fought for over there. The cross is now on display at the Cathedral in Zanzibar. They also have a museum dedicated to Dr Livingstone but I ran out of time to visit - sadly.

I then suggested to N&R that we have lunch at Mercury's and they loved it as much as I had.

When we got back to our hotel we were told that our Zanzibar-Nairobi flight was on again and were SO happy. We had been told 2 months earlier that the flight had been cancelled and that we'd have to take a ferry to Dar-Es-Salaam and then fly to Nairobi from there. But this would have meant leaving the Shooting Star hotel by 11am instead of 3.30pm and having 6 hours to kill until we could check-in (what a total waste when the airport was boring and small and the island was so beautiful)... plus it'd have been a lot more hassle. This was fantastic news and we certainly made the most of the pool to celebrate.

We'd recommend the Shooting Star. The manager and his wife couldn't have been more helpful and worked almost round the clock (7am-10pm). There was internet access and they bring you a flask of tea, coffee or hot chocolate on your private patio every morning for those who prefer to breakfast alone. They were also able to give us 100,000 in cash whereas in town we could only withdraw 300,000 or 400,000 NO LESS (and believe me, we tried many banks!).

We had been told that we needed $30 departure tax but when we asked we were told that this wasn't necessary. Phew. It all helps ! Whether they got it wrong or not, I don't know... but we were pleased. Roberto used our last Tanzanian shillings to buy cigarettes in duty-free -- it is illegal to take local currency out of the country.

People have recommended we read "Memoirs of an Arabian Princess from Zanzibar" (ISBN 9987-8877-32) as it's a book that went into obscurity pretty quickly after it was published but then enjoyed a big 'revival' when it was re-printed. Many people read it again and again. I'm not a book worm myself (never enough time on my hands to finish a book !) but some of you may enjoy it !

The flight back was painless, I managed to sleep 5 hours so I was ok on arrival at 5.30am.

A whole month has now gone by since then and it feels like it happened more like six months ago but I've been sooo busy with work and various other commitments that I just haven't had the TIME to type this up any earlier... Time does slow down in Africa and it is like being given a 'new lease of life' when you can go there to recharge your batteries. Life in London is definitely tooo stressful (or maybe I just try to do too much) but I already can't wait for my next trip: Madagascar, out 19 May, back 30 May --- yes, Africa, again ! Well, it is my favourite continent in the whole world... and Madgascar is unique, with 80% of its flora and fauna found no where else on earth ! They call it the 'African Galapagos'... :)

Obviously, with the recent volcanic ash from Iceland having crippled air travel for a whole week a few days back I just hope that the volcano won't decide to spit ash again when I'm there as coming back could prove an expensive business. A case of 'watch this space'....

Tanzania - Serengeti (25 Feb 2010)

Who hasn't heard of the legendary Serengeti ??? Its name means 'where the sky meets the earth' (something like that) and it's so easy to see why when you're there.

Getting to its gate took us about 3 hours but it was really enjoyable... we really started to see the huge numbers of the migrations with black dots (i.e. wildebeests) as far as the eye could see, for miles and miles... they say that 3 million wildesbeests migrate but we felt we'd seen more like 10. We even asked Josuah: 'how on earth can they count them ???' and he'd explained that they take an aerial photo (say 1 square mile) and count the dots on that and then multiply it by however many square miles there are in the park.

I've never seen such huge numbers myself and we were so excited. The animals aren't jammed pack right next to each other but there were babies absolutely everywhere and they were so cute. We also passed many Masai people just sitting under a tree, chatting to each other, with their typical red cloth with blue stripes wrapped around them and it felt so 'typical'.

We also saw many warthogs and hyenas (first sightings).

We got the chance to visit a Masai Village on the way ($45 entrance fee to be given to the chief). It felt like it was a bit much for 40 mins but it was going to be our only chance to visit a typical Masai village and the only bit of 'cultural' inter-action we were going to have and we really couldn't pass up the chance (different photo ops too !).

Our allocated guide showed us his very humble home, which was pretty much made up of wooden sticks and cow dung, with just two tiny rooms, one where they cook and one where they sleep. There was almost no light coming in (no windows), just a small hole on the roof so that the smoke could get out when they cook. It was so dim in there that your eyes really had to adjust and it was also quite slippery so you had to manoeuvre carefully around the fire ! I couldn't wait to get out, I felt quite claustrophobic in there - sitting down uncomfortably, stooping over towards the fire.

He said that he had a wife in this village and another wife in another village 'as he had enough money to buy another cow in exchange for her'. Roberto asked how many wives he could buy and he'd replied: 'however many you want, if you have enough cows to swap them for'. Roberto had been asked earlier if Nathalie was his 'wife' and he said 'no, she's just my girlfriend' and so when pointing out to me the Masai chief had said 'and 'so who is that one then? your mother?'... oops. 15 years ago when I was younger (well, 3o) a chief had asked to 'marry me' stating he could give my father a cow or 3 goats, as he preferred. I guess I'm starting to show my age now ! :) NO marriage proposal this time round. Oh well, no regret... as much as I love the scenery I know that a life of making necklaces with beads would not fulfil me... besides, I would really miss feeling the wind in my hair if I had to shave it all off to 'fit in' !

The children's faces were covered with flies and I did wonder how many would develop an eye condition as a result. Basic principles of hygiene seemed to be lacking. Women were all bald, as traditional (only men can have hair). We were shown to the local school. Actually, the kids were playing outside and as soon as we started heading towards the school they quickly dashed in and sat at their desk in an orderly fashion. One then went to the blackboard and pointed to the letters of the alphabet and they all said in English 'A, B, C'... or '1, 2, 3'... and of course, for this performance, you were expected to put some money in the box to help towards their pencils and notebooks.

It was an interesting break and surely made us appreciate all the more the luxury of our homes in the West... Even my studio flat with minimal appliances was like a palace... just for having toilets that flush, a cosy carpet to walk on instead of slippery mud and a proper bed to sleep on instead of a straw mattress. They seemed to lead a very simple existence, at the bottom of valley, surrounded by barren but beautiful scenery. We'd been treated to the 'welcome dance' on arrival and Roberto had been asked to join in (i.e. leaping up in the air as high as you can). We got some fun videos of that.

Eventually, after a further hour, we got to the gate that said 'Serengeti'... with vast open space as far as the eye could see. Again, like at Nnorongoro, it has several types of scenery in there and the first day was mainly huge, 'endless' open space with 'rock islands' scattered here and there. Millions of years ago, when there was a lot more volcanic activity, some magma had pushed its way to the top and created these bizarre rock formations, now beautifully polished by the rain and winds. It was 'Lion King' scenery... you know the scene where it stands on top of the rock, contemplating its kingdom.... this was very 'Serengeti'. In fact, the first 3 'rock islands' we saw had lions on it -- because these 'islands' (in a sea of tall green/yellow grass) were the only areas where one could find shade.

It was harder to spot animals because of the tall grass and because there wasn't a great many tracks we could actually drive on. So, again, if a cheetah started to walk away from the tracks, you'd soon lose it.

This kind of scenery was very beautiful in its own right but after a few hours we did start to miss having some trees around... and once we'd lost the area with the 'rocks' then we pretty much didn't see much at all for the next 2 hours on our way to the lodge. Nathalie worried that we'd never see any animals again, especially 'no leopards who need trees to sleep on' but I assured her that there would be parts of the Serengeti with many many trees and that this was just a parenthesis.

Indeed, as we eventually drove closer and closer to the forested areas, we started to see more elephants, more giraffes in particular and lots of birds (plenty of bee-eaters, rollers...). We had seen PLENTY of birds in Nnorongoro as they too had migrated but they were mainly bigger ones. I really enjoyed their vibrant colours too... parrots, love birds, etc.

What we did see here that we had not seen before were the Marabouts (with such an ugly face) and the vultures.

By the time we got to our lodge it was just the golden hour and the view from the Serengeti Sopa left us awe-struck. We had a gorgeous room with a balcony overlooking the park, and Roberto even told the guy who showed him around the room 'is this view real or did you stick a poster on the window?'. But it's exactly how it felt: too beautiful to be true.

Knowing that the 'golden hour' doesn't last a proper hour I quickly ran out with my camera and tried to capture the magic of this moment before its quality disappeared. I was so glad I did because the next day was cloudy so we never saw it again quite as beautiful as we did the moment we first checked in.

The lodge was just gorgeous with lavish buffets and massive four-poster-beds with mosquitoe nets. Every Sopa lodge we stayed in had two massive beds in it, you could see that it was tailor-made to the American way of thinking !

We did see 2 leopards here, but they were not great sightings (we never saw their faces as they were sleeping) and they were not too close to the road so you needed binoculars to appreciate the beauty of their coat. Compared to the incredible sightings we had had at Sabi Sands (in South Africa), Nathalie was quite disappointed as they are her 'favourite'.

It was actually quite cool whenever it was cloudy and we did have to dress up warm if we wanted to the roof open but we were enthralled by the scenery pretty much constantly. I think that the Serengeti worked its magic on Nathalie & Roberto just the way it had done so on me and on pretty much everybody who comes here, I'm sure. You'd have to have a heart of stone not to be moved by such 'raw' beauty.

We were ever so sad at the thought of leaving... my heart was ever so heavy when Josuah dropped us off at the Serengeti air-strip. We had had such a wonderful time, taking in so many beautiful landscapes, landscapes that had not changed much for millions of years, with the cycle of the migrations intact... (more or less)... even just 10 mins before we got to the airport we saw a beautiful hippo pool with gorgeous lush palm-trees around.

When we took off on the 12 seater plane and looked down, again, it looked so barren... like a desert with hardly anything standing out (the Serengeti is mainly flat, or hilly at most) and yet we knew different.

I'd like to think that I'll go back one day... it'd be unbearable to think I may not. I really enjoyed February so much more than November. This was my 7th safari but come to think of it, I'd always gone Sept-Oct-Nov-Dec, I'd never done one Feb-March and what a mistake it was !

At least we knew we were still going to have 3 days of sunshine and beach in Zanzibar before heading back to London in the winter. I don't think we could have coped with a harsher transition. We did need these three days, psychologically, to recover from the game drives (not just 'emotionally', i.e. for losing the sheer beauty of what we saw, but also 'physically' as it was very tiring to do all this driving). You wouldn't think it is if you don't do the driving yourself, but it still affects you.

Tanzania, Nnorongoro (23 Feb 2010)

Nnorongoro ('the Valley') is one of the wonders of the world... it is so massive that you just can't imagine the power of this volcano when it used to erupt, millions of years ago... it almost takes a whole day to drive across it !

All of the hotels are located on the edge of the crater so that you can look down into it and so as you climb higher and higher you really see the vegetation change and feel the temperature drop. There were a lot of moss on some trees (very much like in some parts of Costa Rica) and it was very green.

We had a lovely lunch and then just leisured around the pool (not inside -- tooo cold) and took it easy. We had had a few hectic days with lots of driving around and it was actually quite pleasant to sit back and just enjoy the view.

The buffet for dinner was just superb and in the evening and when you went back to your room, they had even put a hot water bottle in your bed (with a Masai pattern on the soft cover !) as it can drop down to 15C or less in the evening, at such high altitude. Very nice touch, me thought. They even changed towels twice a day if you wanted to. For the/my records, it cost 4,000 Tsh to call home (i.e. £2/min) and using the internet was 15,000 Tsh for an hour (i.e. £7.50). A 1L bottle was 2,500 shillings but a 1.5L bottle was 16,000 at the market (so we did do the smart thing by stocking up on the way, esp. as it's not like we had to carry them since they were in the boot of the car -- or in the cooler box with ice cubes). I always hate sounding obsessed with money but these are all the 'extras' that are not included in the package and that you need to 'budget' for when planning the trip.

I also forgot to say, whilst on the 'formalities' side of things that the tourist Visa cost us £36 but can be obtained on arrival. They also have 'tip boxes' for staff working at the lodges (an average of 48 'behind the scenes') -- all of whom probably earn even less than the drivers and will never make the kind of tips that he will ($10 divided by 48 doesn't go very far !).

I usually send lots of post-cards and used to have a big budget for this but the post cards I saw were just dreadful... and I refuse to send anything that doesn't do the scenery justice.

Here is an email I'd sent after we'd spent the whole day in the crater (as I'm writing this, a whole month has gone by -exactly- and so my memory isn't as 'fresh' as it was on the day:

"Helloooo again,

No sunset tonight (again) so I thought I'd go back on line... while I can.

We had much better sightings today, with about 4 different lion sightings (the 1st one with 10 of them) but no real small cubs... most of the lions we saw were about 18 months - 2 years old..... cute, but not as 'cuddly'... still, we won't complain. We also saw a cheetah which is even rarer (i.e. there are only about 10-15 left in the crater, and the crater is HUGE... we drove all around it today and it took us ALL day).

I've taken a few good shots by now and managed to record the light quality ok on some pix... it's the light that fascinates us the most on some days... we find that no means of recording it does it justice, well... most of the time. You'd click away (or film away), look at the preview on the screen, look at the view again and think 'no, no, no... the colours are much brighter in reality'... and finding the right exposure for something bright in distance but darker in the foreground is impossible for me... I'm not technical enough... this is when I miss Roberto even more !

We are also enthralled by the trees and the beautiful flat-top acacias in particular... almost eerie...

I forgot to say yesterday that the food is absolutely gorgeous (buffets or menus) and that we are probably putting on weight due to serious lack of exercise... (you can't really jog where lions abound !). So far, none of us have been sick either, we are being very sensible and even cleaning our teeth with mineral water (as recommended by our 1st contact on arrival). The lodges give you 500ml or 1L a day (complimentary) anyway, but on top of it, we bought 12 x 1.5L bottles to be on the safe side...

We don't drink enough of it though... (a) Nathalie absolutely refuses to use their public toilets as they can be quite smelly and so won't drink to make sure she won't need to use them... and (b) I forget how hot it can get and don't drink enough, period. As a result, I am starting to have a slight sun-stroke and looking very red (we keep forgetting to apply sun-block, grrrrr). Yes, we should know better... just like we keep meaning to call our parents every night, and keep forgetting too... bad daughters !!!

The SOPA lodges, as I have said before, are spectacular.... the ambience, the staff are lovely, the rooms are massive, the showers are spacious, they give us lots & lots of goodies (they'd put the BA goodie bag to shame!) and we feel really pampered here. They have a lovely pool overlooking the crater but it is just too cold to use it. Our driver had warned us (as it can drop to 14C at night here as we are quite high) but we thought 'he's from Tanzania, 23C water temperature would be cold for him'... but it was probably around 20C and just not warm enough for us either.

The best thing about being high up is the lack of mosquitoes because I managed to get biten about 45 times in the first 48H... mainly when we stayed in the tent I think. In fact, I haven't managed to have ONE good night's sleep since I arrived in Tanzania... either too hot, biten to death by mossies, or having nightmares and waking up... the beds are comfy enough, it's just me not acclimatising as I should I think.... (I know, it makes no sense considering how much I'm used to travelling and this is my 7th safari -- I can therefore only assume I'm getting older :)

Roberto has had acute anxiety attacks himself and we are starting to think it could be a side effect of the anti-malaria tablets ? (he's on Malarone, I'm on Doxycycline).

But we feel that London is absolutely miles away.

What else? Oh, the bird life is amazing too... lots of really big ones, many being migratory so I didn't see them last time (I'd come over in Nov 1997). The crater was also beautifully green... much much greener than I remembered (it was yellow & dry last time). So this is like a whole new experience for me too...

So far we've seen the usual suspects : giraffes (lots everywhere but none here), elephants, 3 jacals, hundreds of flamingoes (but in the distance, you can't drive to the lake shore anymore), some cute mangoose, some hyrax, lots of zebras, gnu (spelling? kind of wildebeest), buffaloes, Thomson gazelles, impalas, a few other types of antelopes, incl. the elans, about 20 lions, 1 cheetah, 4 rhinos, and I can't remember what else without looking at my pix again.

The big one missing is the leopard, of course... if we don't find them at the Serengeti then we've had it basically.

It is the season of the babies too, so we always have to stop every time we see a baby of any kind of animal because they are so playful and inquisitive (or shy) and Nathalie always makes the funniest drooling noises when she's in front of them... one little gnu had even lost his mother and just ran after our car with the saddest noise, thinking we were 'it'... We stopped the car so that it could sniff all around it and realise we were not his mother. It just broke our hearts.

Dinner is beckoning soon so I'd better stop here ... I can't wait to share the photos with you all to show you why I'm so in love with this place. I haven't really written a diary as such on this trip, I kind of know most of the animal facts already by now having heard them all before... the one I didn't know is that the female elephant, when in heat, can communicate with bachelor bulls all around the area by sending ultra-sound so that they know she's willing ! Saves a lot of wasted time chatting up girls who will NEVER say YES in a million years... if you ask me. Very smart. Pity we can't do the same... (she: "am I interested? are you getting ultra sound? No...so, take the hint"...).

Righteoo, I shall really go now..... bisous, Sylvie xxx"


We really loved Nnorongoro, you have to BE there to understand its appeal and we were really quite sad to be leaving it behind. Our driver was having problemw with his car though so before we headed to the Serengeti we first had to go to the Leopard Tours office at the Nnorongoro Wilderness Lodge and it was a real 'blessing in disguise' as we loved the view from there even more ! It seemed to be much nearer to the lake. The clouds would reflect in it and you could appreciate the perfect round shape of the crater even more. As a member staff pointed out 'it looks so empty from here, when you look down on it, and yet it's so rich with wildlife', in fact, some say that at the peak of the migration it has the highest density of wildlife in the world. It is so massive that you can't convey its magnitude in photos but you'd need more than one frame to fit it all in (no matter how wide an angle your lens has !).

We were so thrilled that Josuah that we'd had the chance to visit this beautiful lodge. It looked a little bit more 'basic' than the SOPA lodges in terms of facilities and decor looked quite 70's but it still looked like a very nice lodge with comfortable lounge and room and we'd recommend it for the view alone - probably the best in the whole area.

What we liked about the crater too is that it had different aspects to it. Most of it was open plains (perfect for cheetahs) but it had a forested area as well (better for leopards -- though they are incredibly rare there). The park regulations state that there shouldn't be more than 5 cars near an animal and for no more than 15 mins. Well, when we did see a cheetah, there were 28 cars and we were there for a good 30 mins. It was just like the paparazzi effect, everybody out with their big zoom lens... it seemed quite sad and this was a perfect example about why it's sensible to keep the jeeps to the road and not follow the animals off it otherwise the harrassment would never stop for them and they'd have no chance of ever getting a meal. Rangers are supposed to watch the cars from a distance (with binoculars) and drive down if such situations occur, but they didn't.

We were discussing poaching with our driver and he said that, unfortunately, it still happens and always will. A few individuals will always think they have the right to ruin it for everybody else so long as they can feed their own family. Tourism is the number one source of revenue for the country and in Arusha alone, pretty much 95% of employment is because of safaris (ALL safaris for Northern Tanzania start from Arusha)... so killing what people have come here to see is certainly not a sensible idea... not just for the animals themselves but for SO many who depend on the trade to survive.

Josuah said that to become a driver there is so much competition, a new company may need 15 but they'll have 500 applicants. You have to be quite knowledgeable to be able to answer most questions, must have strong driving skills (you can slip quite frequently in mud) and excellent sight to spot the well camouflaged animals. I don't think that the pay packet is very much at all but the biggest appeal are the tips - the recommended rate is $10 per person per day and this is in a country where the average person may earn $35 a month !

Our driver said he tends to work a week and stop a week (probably to have time to see his family) and said that as soon as he's dropped off his tourists at the local air-strip, as he's driving back the 6 hours to Arusha he"turns off the radio, puts his music on and doesn't care about the leopard sightings anymore... though of course if one crosses the road, I'll still give it right of way". He said that sometimes he sees even better sightings when he's just on his own, on the way back... in 8 years he'd seen some pretty lovely ones with cubs from every big cats. We were so envious !

Tanzania, Lake Manyara (22 Feb 2010)

The beauty of touring Northern Tanzania is that all the national parks are very near to one another, geographically. So you spend very little time 'in between'... and even 'in between' you can see the odd elephant or giraffe or zebra by the road side, so the fun of 'treasure hunting' never stops.

Lake Manyara was the greenest park by a long shot. The first glimpse we saw of it was from a road high up, looking down on the Great Rift Valley, with a low cloud hovering over this massive lake at the bottom. It looked pretty neat !

We checked into the Kirurumu Tented Lodge and I quite liked it there as it looked very old fashioned, with old lanterns in the tent (but with safe bulbs inside, instead of candles) and proper cemented en-suite bathroom with hot water and flushing toilets. The only downside is that I got bitten to death overnight because I think that in spite of all the mosquitoe nets, they find it a lot easier to get inside a tent than a hotel room. But the staff was lovely (most spoke French to us) and so was the food. Throughout our week we heard French spoken almost *everywhere*, it must have coincided with the French school holidays ?

We then went to the park and we really wanted to see a lot more zebras. In Tarangire we'd seen lots of ostriches and baboon colonies but in Manyara they had lots of flamingoes and quite a few giraffes and elephants. We saw 3 species of monkeys there too. But still no big cat. It was quite frustrating though we had been warned that we probably wouldn't see any big cat until we got to Nnorongoro and Serengeti. Still, being in the land of 'Simba', we were getting itchy to see a lion at least.

However, the vegetation there was quite different from the other parks so it was nice in this respect.

We got back to the lodge on time for dinner (with enough time for a shower beforehand as they know you'll be covered with dust due to the open roof, esp. if there was a car in front of ours). I actually had to wash my hair every night... not because of pollution but mainly because my hair was caked with fine dust ! I had to wash my clothes most days too for the same reasons. The SOPA lodges all had hair-dryers in the room but here we could request to borrow one (they had at least two, thankfully).

When we were in the car at a reasonable speed, we did feel the cold a lot more and welcomed a scarf around our necks even. Wearing sunglasses was also a must to protect our eyes UVS and from insects that could have flown into our eyes.

Over dinner I suggested to Roberto & Nathalie to change our itinerary. We were due to drive to Nnorongoro as of 10am but as there was very little to do at the lodge once we'd be there, I suggested heading back to Manyara for one more drive, otherwise we would have had no game drive in one out of 6 days. They agreed it made sense and we negotiated to have a late lunch at the next lodge (since they serve till 2.30pm). I thought we may have to pay extra (at least for the entrance fee) but we were not asked for any more money. The whole point of this 1:4 tour anyway was to be flexible so that we could do just that (within reasons), i.e. linger on where we liked and go faster where we didn't. No stop over at the tourist trap, etc. You really get maximum value for money then because it's exactly how YOU want it... not a 'happy medium'... besides, I think I've lived on my own for too long by now and I know I'm not great at 'compromising'.

I'm glad I suggested this because we saw a very beautiful kingfisher (the biggest in Africa) on this game drive. It was sitting just inches away from our car roof top and I was able to take some truly gorgeous photos of this beautiful bird. It turned out to be one of my top 10 best shots in the whole safari (out of 2,300 pix I ended up taking in 10 days !). I was so pleased with it (I've always had a connection with birds anyway).

We had an enjoyable morning but at the same time I think we were eager to get to Nnorongoro as we were so keen to see some big cats :)

Tanzania, Tarangire (21 Feb 2010)

After driving through a few villages (always interesting to see how people live and how modest their homes are) and buying lots of 1.5L mineral bottles on the way, we eventually reached Tarangire. We got out of the car to sign the entrance papers and all and stretch our legs and there in the distance were our first giraffes ! I'd gone out to take photos of the area and spotted them first. I ran back to the car to tell Nathalie & Roberto that I'd fount our first treasures... I'll never forget how excited I was when I saw my very first giraffe "in the wild"... it validated that 'this was it, we were in East Africa'...

It was about 4pm by the time we'd got there and we were trying to get to the lodge before it got too dark. Tarangire is a beautiful national park and quite different from the others because of its huge number of baobabs. When I was there last time, in Nov 2007, the baobabs had no leaves on and the grass was quite dry, but in Feb, it was so much more beautiful. The grass had a yellow/green quality to it and it captured the light beautifully.

We saw our first elephant on a river bed, trying to dig out the sand bank with his trunk to access cooler water down below. It happened to be the 'golden hour' and was just spectacular. We were in awe of the whole scenery. The elephant gave us a neat focal point but we were trying to take it all in, with a gentle breeze in our hair as we stood up to gaze at the endless view (the 4x4 mini van had a roof top that could be lifted for better photography ops). We kept thinking 'aren't we lucky ?'... we kept pinching ourselves (mentally). East Africa had cast its legendary spell on us already...

A bridge that we would have needed to use as a short-cut had recently been washed away though so we had to drive a further hour than planned to access the lodge. It was a pity as it meant it was dark by the time we got there (our driver must have been shattered). We did see a whole herd of elephants cross our paths and then wander into the sunset (quite literaly) which was a lovely sight.

The SOPA lodge in Tarangire was gorgeous (they all are !) and we enjoyed a lovely a la carte menu and then a good night's sleep on very big comfy bed. We were SO tired from the journey, and I think the temperature didn't help. We had (all) kept nodding on & off in the car, on the way to the National Park and though we really did NOT want to miss anything, as we had looked forward to this moment for well over 8 months, we just couldn't help it. 15 years ago the adrenaline was enough to help me cope with jet-lag but not anymore ! I guess the clock didn't stop ticking for me either... sigh.

In the morning I saw lots of velvet monkeys, squirrels and hyrax around the grounds. I thought that some of the smaller creatures were almost as cute as some of the bigger ones. Hyrax are like a cross between a rabbit and a big rat (rumours are they are actually related to elephants !) and look just very sweet.

We had a nice buffet and then had to set off for 8am to be able to enjoy a nice leisurely drive in Tarangire before driving onto the next park.

I was totally enthralled by the scenery and took lots of gorgeous shots there. I'd highly recommend Tarangire to anyone who visits Northern Tanzania, it is as scenic as the Serengeti and as special as Nnorongoro in a different way. As pictures speak louder than words and I've put lots of my Facebook -- check them out if you know me.

Tanzania - getting there (20 Feb 2010)

Of all the places I've ever seen, Tanzania is my favourite: TOP of the list ! Probably because I'm an animal lover and the diversity of animals in East Africa is unmatched anywhere else on earth... and I do love the scenery there too, slightly more beautiful than Kenya I'd (dare) say and (a lot) less crowded (because it's around 30-50% more expensive !).

I went with my sister Nathalie and her boyfriend Roberto. Our other friend Roberto had to pull out at the last minute due to a lung problem, but it was originally booked as a 'private tour for 4' , which comes at pretty much the same amount of money as what you'd pay to join a tour with another 4-5 strangers. We'd booked with 'Africa Travel' on this occasion. £2,500 each. Quite a lot for 10 days -granted- but we wanted the trip to be memorable.

We had a BA 18.20 flight to Dar-Es-Salaam - it was on time and it was a beautiful smooth ride with lots of good movies... the only downside is that I was 'grobbed' a few times by the French guy sitting next to me (younger than I was and very blond actually). Why do I always seem to attract perverts? A few scratches on his (wandering) hand soon sorted him out, if not, I'd have had to lodge an official complain or ask him to change seats.

It was very hot when we landed and we were soon taken to a nice hotel to have lunch before we drove onto Arusha (about 3 hours away). It was such a warm day that we decided to have our lunch outside, in the courtyard, by the pool... It was probably 7C when we left London, so to be basking in 27C temperatures 'overnight' was just pure bliss ! Good service, good service, good start... We were given our itinerary for the week and soon set off. A bit of trivia: Arusha is exactly half way between Cairo and Cape Town !

On the way to the first lodge in Tarangire we experienced a massive downpour... the kind when you just cannot see what's on the road, it was like being in a car wash factory... so we had to pull out and wait for it to stop. It soon cleared and after that we never really 'encountered' rain like this again - thankfully. We'd picked February because it's supposed to be one of the sunniest months and a good month for migrations too in some parts of the country.

Our driver was Josuah. He didn't say much at first and didn't seem to invest a lot of energy looking out for things but he ended up having a pretty good sense of humour and very sharp 'eagle' eyes when he could get 'in the mood'. For instance my sister asked 'would a lion actually try to eat us?' and he said very seriously: 'absolutely not... unless they had salt & pepper'.