This weekend was amazing. Beyond amazing - zaidi ya nzuri sana! The short of it: 1.5 days in Serengeti + 1.5 days in Ngorongoro = a perfect safari game drive (and by perfect, I do mean PERFECT, ie: seeing every animal you could see, most up close and personal).
The details:
Day 1:
Friday, 7:00 am - picked up at the White House by our driver/guide, Immanuel, and our cook, Prosper. It was completely overcast and raining, but I had high hopes - and kept assuring everyone - that all would pass by the afternoon. It was a fairly long drive, and it was difficult to see anything in great detail. Still, I thought Arusha to Serengeti was marvelous. It's so green here, it's unreal. The other interns (Iggie, AK, EG) all went to sleep, but I was so hyped to be going and amazed at the views that I didn't sleep at all. The one thing that made me uncomfortable, if that's even the right word, was the number of people, particularly children, who would stand at the side of the road with their hands out or who would crowd the car with clothes/jewelry, promising you a low price. No matter how many times you said "hapana asante" (no, thank you), they simply wouldn't leave until the vehicle began moving again. On one hand, I completely understand that because some mzungus (white people) threw money at Africa for one thing or another before, we will also spend $3 on a bracelet (that can be bought for half that price in the market here). On the other, it makes Arusha a very uncomfortable place to be because you can never go anywhere without being approached by someone trying to sell you something (always at the "resident," not "tourist" rate).
After a few hours, we passed Lake Manyara (gorgeous - I totally want to spend a day or two exploring it) and arrived at a picnic site supposedly overlooking the Ngorongoro crater around noon. Unfortunately, the clouds had yet to dissipate so we sat in the car and viewed shadows of trees and something resembling buildings while eating a packed lunch. We then continued on to Serengeti, stopping briefly at a viewpoint where we could *actually* see in the crater and where we were stopped by a group of Maasai. As I got out, they started the typical Swahili exchange - Habari yako? Nzuri sana. Na wewe je? Nzuri. I was handed a beautiful green/blue beaded bracelet by one of the men. I (naively) thought it was a gift, only to quickly realize that they wanted money for it so I immediately handed it back, explaining that I had no money (which was technically not true but with only a $50 bill, I really didn't have any money that I could spend). All of a sudden, they began speaking English - perfect English. I literally stood there for a minute and then blurted out, Oh, I didn't realize you spoke English. You speak perfectly. (Awkward, I know - let's move on). I wanted to ask them where they learned to speak so well, but thankfully my brain kicked in and I said I wanted to take a picture of the crater with the rest of my group. The little boy kept asking for his picture but I kept saying, I can't give you a picture. I have no printer. No. He was not a celebrity-in-the-making nor did he want to be popular with my FB friends. He wanted money for letting me take his picture. Generally, the Maasai don't allow pictures to be taken of them. First, I wonder when and why they (who does "they" even include) change? Second, what do Maasai do with money? Don't they grow/make their own food/clothes, walk with their animals, already have wooden huts in their bomas (think group of homes in a circle)? I'm still not sure what the answers are to such questions but I assume that the answer largely depends on where the Maasai live (ie: in really rural areas vs tourist hot-spots, like Ngorongoro).
Finally getting the pictures we wanted, we hopped back in the car to head towards Serengeti. By this time - and probably because we descended so much - the weather had cleared up and the sun was shining brightly. We stopped at the Serengeti visitor entrance to pay fees and while we were waiting for Immanuel and Prosper, we hiked a bit up this beautiful path and took pictures with the Serengeti in the background. At the very top, we saw our first safari animal - an elephant! We were so excited, and I know I immediately thought Oh - we must find that elephant as soon as we enter the park! Haha. Now I look back and realize how much my expectations of the safari were influenced by my experiences at zoos. (Did I mention this was my first real international trip? Yikes).
I thought once we got in the park, we'd go to the campgrounds and set up tent for the evening but thankfully, we had a mini-game drive for several hours first. Those hours were fantastic, practically non-stop. We saw vultures eating a zebra, hippos spewing water at each other, the head of a lioness among the tall grasses, zebras seemingly "necking" (apparently they're not being affectionate, but rather looking out on either side for predators), wildebeest, water buffalo, and playful elephants (and an angry one who charged at a nearby safari car). Not only were there adorable baby elephants, but also a leopard sitting in a tree overlooking the scene. Immanuel said it is very unusual for a leopard to be so close to elephants because normally they will be scared away. On our way closer to the campsite, we saw a family of baboons (what ugly, chapped butts!), a few very scared-looking fervet monkeys and then the day's favorite: a family of lionesses and baby cubs eating and playing. We must have spent at least half an hour just watching one lioness roll on her back and one of the cubs pounce on her stomach or the cubs literally play tug-a-war with dinner (again, zebra). We were very satisfied and ready to go back to the campsite for a good night's rest. We helped set up the tents, get our stuff in and safe before dark and then ate popcorn while waiting for dinner, which consisted of spectacular zucchini soup, avocado salad, spaghetti and some mince meat.
Day 2:
We woke up at 6:00am for breakfast (cookies + tea/coffee) and then went off for a game drive. During dinner and breakfast, I told Immanuel that Day 1 was fantastic but we still needed to see four more animals: cheetah, giraffe, flamingo and rhino. He told me he couldn't promise anything but I assured him that we'd find them. And boy, did we.
As soon as we went out on the road, we saw a family of giraffe chewing on some trees along the road. They were so cute, but a lot shorter than I imagined. We continued on, stopping for a lone hyena. He came right up the car, staring at us shyly. It reminded me of the chick (?) in the book Are You My Mother?
And then we saw what everyone only hopes of seeing: We came upon a mother cheetah lying on a rock and a group of four cheetah cubs curled together by a nearby bush. We drove so we were literally no more than 5 meters away. Unfortunately, my camera died from the extensive photos/videos I took on Friday, but I am kind of glad because it allowed me to focus on the animals rather than on taking the best picture. After fifteen or so minutes staring in awe at how beautiful they all were, the mother got up and started walking away. After she was about 50 ft away, the cubs began to slowly follow her one-by-one. I grabbed the binoculars and watched the mother walk closer and closer to a pair of gazelles. She ducked behind a group of bushes for a minute or so and then took off full speed. The poor pair had no idea she was coming until it was too late and they could only run frantically in a zig-zag. Once the cubs began eating their breakfast, we drove over to them so we could have a better view. We were so close you could hear the cubs cracking the bones of the poor animal. For some reason, I was upset I couldn't see what they were eating but once they grabbed part of it and lifted it up I sincerely regretted being so concerned with viewing everything in great detail. After another ten minutes with them, we decided it was enough and we left.
No more than 10 minutes later we found a sole lion with a thick, beautiful mane. He started walking towards our car but then decided to lay down and take a morning nap in the bright sun. After, we saw a few more animals (zebras, a few more giraffe, dik diks, water buffalo) and then headed back to the camp site for lunch (pizza that tasted like a mix between bruschetta and corn bread - don't judge, it was good; chips; avocado salad; tilapia sticks; and fresh fruit) and to pack up the car so we could head to Ngorongoro.
On the way to the Crater, we saw hundreds of zebras, gazelles and water buffalos crossing the plain while hippos spewed water at each other behind us. I imagine this is what the migration in June and October/November looks like. It was simply amazing to watch so many of them walk in a single-file line, play in the river, chase each other, "hug," and shake their heads up and down as if they were saying "yes." As we continued, we saw more giraffes with little birds on their necks, who apparently groom giraffes and buffalos by eating the bugs off of them. I really love how they all travel together and not just by species. Symbolic? Or maybe just more magnificent to see such a mix of beautiful creatures all at once.
We quickly arrived back at the visitor center and while we were waiting, we saw a neon pink and purple lizard (?) on the bathroom wall. Definitely one of the prettiest looking creatures we saw. We kept driving for another 2 or so hours to the campsite at the Ngorongoro crater. Since it was so clear, you had a perfect view into the crater and of the nearby lodges that we were unable to see the day before. The sunset was not as beautiful as I hoped it would be, but I thought it was probably because (at least from our viewpoint), the sun rises, but doesn't set, over the crater.
We had access to showers (w/ cold water, of course) and a sink to wash our hands/faces properly. We also had access to electricity so I was able to charge my camera for the next day's game drive. There was a puppy at the site, and I immediately went to pet it. Only later when the Maasai guards were literally beating him to get out of the eating area did I realize that the dog probably has fleas/ticks and needs to be kept away for health reasons. Whoops. Prosper made another amazing dinner with cucumber soup, chicken that looked like curry but wasn't, rice and banana fritters.
Best part of the night: a phone call from MW! We didn't chat long but it was fantastic to hear his voice (and to hear that Celtics had won and advanced to the finals!). Of course, I spent the next 30 minutes telling everyone about him. It's always so funny how law students/lawyers are impressed by his work. Not that's it's surprising, but I think we all think that it's so cool because it's something we were never good at it and/or interested in. Love that I can brag about him. :)
When we went to take the dishes into the kitchen area, I said hello to the other cooks. They asked me to come back after getting ready for bed so they could tell me stories. I asked AK and EG to join, but after ten minutes it was clear they really had only wanted to talk to me. Peace, one of the cooks, said something in Swahili, which Henry translated as "if you have a boyfriend, he is very lucky." Uh... asante sana? Henry asked me if I knew why he said that. Why don't you tell me. "You look like African women here." Ahh yes. Thick. I know, I said, putting my hands on my hips. "Oh someone has already told you?" Yes, my whole life I have been told. They then asked me if I had a boyfriend and when I responded affirmatively, they told me to break up with him so I could date an African man. I kept saying, No, I don't think so. I'm very happy with him. "Oh, but he'll find another woman; he'll be okay." I'm sure he'd be fine but we've already been together 2.5 years and we love each other and are happy. "Are you going to get married?" Can I just say how much I hate this question?! Honestly, I don't know. Maybe. We're happy. We're in love. But you never know what's going to happen so I can't say for sure if we will. Should I be that honest with perfect strangers? Especially to a group of men encouraging me not to stay with MW? At some point later, our own cook, Prosper, said "Mimi ninakupena sana" (I love you very much). Again, not sure how to take it so I just said asante sana :)
After 20 or so minutes, a British and Scottish girl came into the kitchen because their tent had fallen down. Peace and Henry went to fix it and I stayed to talk to them. They're volunteers with a hospital right across the street from the ICTR. Really nice girls though their accents were so strong I had difficulty understanding them. That's definitely something I need to work on... When Henry returned to tell them that the tent was fixed, I knew he'd want me to stay but I thought a) it was awkward and b) I really did need to get sleep before our 6am wake up call + morning game drive. So, I said good night to everyone and went off to the tent, past the dog (who took up residence right outside our door) and into my super warm sleeping bag.
More on Ngorongoro later... I really should be more concise so I can finish these posts sooner but I'm hoping that by writing so much, I'll really have a clear memory of all the wonderful things I experienced. :)
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