Maasai Village

The Maasai are a semi-nomadic tribe of people that live in Kenya and Tanzania. They have realized that tourists love taking pictures, and have capitalized on this by charging for the privelege.  For $50 per car, tourists can visit one of their villages. I had mixed feelings about this seemingly intrusive practice, but my guide reassured me that the money would help the villagers pay for staples like clean water and school books. I was greeted by a young Maasai man who spoke excellent English. (The Maasai have their own language and use Swahili or English to communicate with those outside of their tribe.) Then the women performed a welcome dance for me. I was brought into the center of the group and encouraged to jump up and down with one of the women in a sort of dance ritual!

The men performed a welcome dance for some Asian men, 

who were encouraged to join along. (And they got sticks).

After the welcome dance, I was led through the fence made of thorny Acacia branches and brought inside of one of the traditional dwellings. The women make them out of branches, mud, and sometimes trash. In the rainy season they are covered with hides. There are no windows. The only ventilation was a hole in the roof for the smoke of the fire used for cooking and warmth. The entire hut wasn't any bigger than a king sized bed and would sleep an entire family.

Next came shopping! The women make pretty beaded jewelry and small carvings. I was instructed to pick out things I liked. I would be told prices after I finished (hmmm). I picked out a necklace and finally asked how much. The English speaking man, the woman artist and another man had a conversation that lasted several minutes. I could only imagine what they were saying in trying to come up with a price ;) I was able to bargain a little. Then I was shown a 'school', which was a small hut with a blackboard, teacher and several toddlers. All of the adults I'd encountered looked very respectable, but the children looked as though they had been rolled in the dirt. Was this an attempt to elicit pity? Of course I was asked to donate to the school. I declined (I mean I did just give $50 and overpay for some jewelry!) 

A friend told me that when she went to Africa years ago, she visited a village where the inhabitants had never seen a white person before. How different this experience was! The Maasai have seen plenty of white people and are skilled at profiting from their curiosity. The young man that guided me around the village could hold his own in any sales job in NYC! I don't mean to be overly critical - I felt I paid a fair price for a relatively authentic experience and I hope the money they make allows the Maasai to continue their traditional way of life. I would recommend the visit to other tourists, but maybe leave most of your money in the car!

Tarangire scenery

The baobab tree, also know as the 'upside down tree'. These are over 1,000 years old!

Ostrich family. Note the babies hiding in the shade under the mother!

Tarangire wildlife

Zebras

One of the many iridescent birds

Baboons

Water buck

Wildebeest
    

And this guy was spying on me from the balcony :)

Hakuna Matata!

On my first day of safari, I woke up late (yeah, hard to imagine, I know) and rushed to meet Harry, my guide. I apologized and Harry said "Hakuna matata", or "no worries" in Swahili. He added, "there's no such thing as late in Africa!" Really? Yes! I can get used to this! This sense of ease persisted throughout the trip. I was prepared for Africa to be hectic, stressful, even dangerous (I guess there is still plenty of time for that!) but my time in Tanzania has been incredibly relaxing. I lucked out and had Harry to myself the whole trip. On game drives, it was just the two of us. The parks were shockingly uncrowded, especially Tarangire. There were moments when Harry and I would come across some animals, pull up next to them and turn off the engine. There was no sign of another human being in any direction and the only sound was of the wind in the trees or the animals chewing grass. Incredible! The hotels I stayed in were within the parks, which meant animals wandered freely past. I had to have a security escort to my room once dark! All three hotels had views of the surrounding landscapes and were dark and peaceful at night ( whick took this New Yorker some getting used to). I could sit on my balcony and see an amazing display of stars. It's been incredibly peaceful to be unplugged and to spend days enjoying simple pleasures like observing animals.

On that note, off to bed, and time for my favorite Swahili phrase: Lala Salama! (Sleep well!)

"Free African Massage"

This is the euphemism the drivers use for riding on Tanzania's many unpaved roads. A more accurate description would be "bouncing on a pogo stick in a rock quarry while a giant fan blows hot dust on you"!

The road in and out of Serengeti National Park is a rocky, dusty path that winds through the legendary endless plains. Each passing vehicle sends blinding billows of smoky dust. On either side is a parched landscape of ochre earth, lean acacia trees, dry grass, rocks and the occasional buffalo skull. Sometimes an ostrich or a few impala wander along, but the further you are from the park, the less animals you see. For hours, the sole diversion from this monotonous landscape is herds of cattle or goats, tended by Masai boys draped in bright red or blue. Some look as young as five or six. They wave at us, hoping we will stop and give them gifts or food. We don't. Their appeals become a part of the strange, repetitive world outside of the truck that we are eager to put behind us.

The road seen from atop the kopje just inside the park entrance

A few seconds of video from the drive

Serengeti lions

While driving, we came across three lions. Two males appeared to be courting the female. One male was under a tree. The other walked passed us, posed and then hid behind a mound of grass.

The lioness, however, knew she was hot stuff and seemed to enjoy the flash of our cameras.

 She stayed in her place, about eight feet from our truck!

I had to post a few shots of this beauty :)

Serengeti Sunrise

My day started at 4am (I know, I can't believe it either)! I took at hot air balloon ride at dawn.

We had to climb in sideways, which was rather comical. You can see everyone's heads hanging out. Once the balloon was inflated the basket swung upright. Luckily we landed sitting up!

 



After bouncing around in a 4WD vehicle, gliding along was a delight!

We floated over hippos, impala, hyenas, jackals, warthogs and lions. 

 

 

This was followed by breakfast in the bush. By 9am I was ready for a nap!

Exhausted!

I woke up early and spent 8 hours on safari. We saw giraffes, zebras, wart hogs, monkeys, baboons, gazelles, buffalo, hippos, birds, impala, lions, a leopard, a cheetah and I'm sure some other animals I can't remember! Then I had a massage and dinner. Heading to bed to wake up at 4am for a hot air balloon ride tomorrow. Pictures soon :)

How well does anti malaria medicine work?!?

The good news is I'm not having any side effects from the anti malaria medicine I'm taking..however the instructions say to keep it at 75 degrees F. Hmm, rather difficult near the equator. I think I've been keeping it at around 95 degrees in the back of the truck! So now I'm in a new hotel ( more on that later) with only one fan and one small window for ventilation ( and did I mention being near the equator?) For some reason there is no screen in the sliding door. I finally hooked up the fan near the bed and near the window only to find out that when I turn the bedside light off, the fan goes off. Grrr!

So, sleep with the light on, call housekeeping, or trust the mosquito netting / medicine and open the sliding door?!

Tarangire Park

This park has the largest concentration of elephants in the world. There are over 4,000, which means you see dozens on game drives! They aren't frightened by the vehicles, so we are often only 10 feet from them. And while we've all seen elephants in the zoo, the main difference here is seeing them as families. There are lots of babies and the elephants are often in groups of 3-6.

We also saw lions today!

Za Asubuhi Tanzania!

That's Good Morning for all of you non-Swahili speakers!
I'm starting my first full day with breakfast in Arusha before driving to Tarangire National Park. Hoping to meet some elephants along the way...

And I'm off!

Yeah thanks, NY, you're not making it easy to leave!

Packing - the shoes and luggage

Merril, sketchers and fit flops

And it all fits into 2 bags, 18 lbs each!

Packing - the clothes

Safari clothes: 3 safari shirts, 2 bug-proof t shirts, 2 pairs of convertible pants (zip off for shorts) and 2 safari hats. Thanks to Sharon Klein for the pants and to Travel Beyond for the free hat. One shirt is from REI and everything else is from ExOfficio. Their clothing is wicking, quick drying and contains bug repellent!

City clothes: 2 long sleeve cotton t shirts and 2 pairs of denim leggings from Uniqlo, 2 long cotton skirts from H&M, and 2 button up shirts from Old Navy and Joe Fresh. 

Extras: lightweight sweater, waterproof hooded jacket, scarf, 2 'Airism' tanks and 2 boy shorts (aka PJs) all from Uniqlo, plus a one piece bathing suit and swim shirt. 

(The Newyawkers will gasp at the absence of anything black.)

Get used to these outfits - you'll be seeing A LOT of them in the coming weeks!

My itinerary

Depart 10/18
Tanzania 10/19-28
Cape Town 10/28-11/1
Safari in Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana 11/2-16
Mozambique 11/17-21
Ethiopia 11/22-30
India 12/1-21
Dubai 12/21-24
Sleep 12/24-31

Pre Departure Madness

3 days until I depart for a 9 country, 9 week trip! And no, I'm still not packed...