Manyara National Park

Our final lodge is named Losirwa Camp (the first time we will be staying more than one night in one place), It has a pool overlooking a plain with Massai herds, but no Internet access (no surprise there). The only guests are us and another couple.

Like all other lodges, we were greeted with cool, wet towels to wash our hands and faces and a cool drink. It is amazing how much dust and dirt are on our hands and faces after driving all day on dirt roads. At one point we had looked at the back seats of the safari vehicle and it had about 1-2 mm of dust collected on it. One of our cameras is not functioning properly and we think it's due to the dust. We have developed (at times) what our CACHA team had dubbed "the Kilema cough" because of all the dust we have been breathing in. We've now determined that the cough is not just limited to Kilema!


Morning coffee waits on our porch

 Our night at the lodge was a restless one. This is the first time that we did not have a good sleep. Because of the low altitude (1,000 m), the heat is high and there is absolutely no (or very little ) breeze in the area. The tent was sweltering, even with all flaps open. The birds in the area were EXTREMELY noisy and woke us up way too early. As we lay in bed, we could hear the tinkling of the cow bells of a nearby Maasai herd, the lowing of the cattle and the faint sound of Maasai voices calling to each other.  Despite our lack of sleep we are enthralled with this surreal experience.

  Coffee was delivered to our porch at 7:15. A quick wash, breakfast, then on our way again.

KUDU!

Today our game drive is in Manyara National park. Not even a km out of the lodge area, Issa stopped the car stating "oh my god...its a kudu. He said this was a very rare animal to see and that this was the first time he had ever seen one. Since we were not inside a park, we were able to get out of the vehicle. Rick and him got out, both with cameras in hand, and started tracking it for a shot. It was definitely aware of us so we didn't get a very good shot.


emanyara


Back into the vehicle and we continued on to the park. We learned that the park name "Manyara" is derived from a Massai word (surprise, surprise) emanyara —a plant that grows plentiful in the area.  When you break off a piece of the plant, a white milky sap comes out. This sap can apparently cause blindness so we didn't bother.



Hippos at the hippo pool





In this park we encountered a lot of monkeys! This really was the first park where they were plentiful. Something else that we hadn't seen a lot of were hippos. There was a huge herd of hippos lazing around a big pool. We were able to get out of the vehicle to stretch our legs and get some shots. The hippo pool seemed to be a popular spot because a huge bus load of school kids arrived and a lesson in hippo behaviour began.



Mother and baby elephants

 Like in other parks, we saw lots of elephants yet this was the first time we actually felt in danger. We happened on a mother and her baby. Issa stopped (as usual) and we started taking pictures (as usual). The baby started walking, slowly towards us. We were so excited to get close up shots of the baby that we didn't notice the mother getting agitated because we were closer to her baby than she was. Issa firmly told us to "stop moving" and "don't make a sound". We didn't want to even breathe. The mother started "running" towards the baby and strategically placed herself between us and baby. She ended up being so close to us that we could have reached out of our window and touched her. It was so bizarre to be eye-to-eye with an elephant in the wild.



Small stream running out of the Hot Spring

 








Looking into the "hole" of the Hot Spring

 Another interesting feature at this park is a hot spring. Although it is a very small spring, the sulphur smell permates the air for quite a large area around the spring. Issa invited us to touch the water warning us to be careful—that it might be too hot. It was hot, but not that hot. We could see egg shells scattered around the area. Apparently people bring eggs to cook in the hot water (not sure if they eat them after that though —ewww).

On the way back to the camp we took the opportunity to stop at a few more curio shops along the way. Some of these shops are incredibly over-packed with goods. The shops can be dark, very dusty and cramped—generally you need to watch where you are walking because you could easily step on or knock something over. Regardless, shopping in these stores is fun and very interesting because you just don't know what you are going to find.

Enjoyed drinks, a swim and an amazing sunset by the pool. There is one other couple staying at the camp. and they were poolside with us enjoying the sunset. Turns out they are retired, living in Vancouver, but had lived most of their life in Stittsville, Ontario. WTH!!!! Small world indeed. Tomorrow will be our last day in Africa.

A day of hiking with the "Bushmen"

A child's soccer ball: multiple layers
of plastic bags tied together

We had managed to sleep in a little (7:30 am) but the sleep was rather restless due to the monkeys that kept chattering in the night.

Our security guard

First thing we did this morning—swim!! then enjoyed the great breakfast made for us by our cook. After breakfast we started packing up our gear, getting ready to leave. We didn't realise that our guides had more in store for us.

Our security guard (who apparently had been awake all night, tending the fire and yelling at the monkeys) was ready to take us on a guided walk of the area. We ended up walking for about 3 hours. During that time, our guard would occasionaly disappear into the underbrush and then peek his head back out, beckoning us to follow him. He was definately a wealth of knowledege about local plants, animals and farming practises and was quite happy to share his knowledge and anwer our questions.

First stop...a local cave where locals had found and killed a leopard that had been killing their livestock. To get to the cave we had to cut through the property and gardens of one of the locals.

Another side path took us to an amazing waterfall were we sat and took pictures. During the walk we passed rows and rows of gardens, all of them tilled, planted and weeded by hand. Plants that were growing at that time were rice, onions and tomatoes.

rice

workers in the field

Cathy and Erick crossing the bridge

At one point we were guided across a small suspension bridge made from ropes, wires and wooden boards. It was the first time we had ever traversed such a flimsy bridge—fun,yet stressful.

 
Crossing over the bridge we happened upon a small hydro electric plant. It was quite a surprise to see something like that there. It was generating power for some of the local homes; homes that were dilapidated, dirty and many times without glass (or screens) in their windows.

Homes near the electric plant that were
using the electricity.



Rick hamming it up with the children in the village

At one point our security guard brought us to an area where crocadiles are known to live. We saw the nose of one, peaking out of the water, after it had rushed in to hide. We never did see a full one (thankfully) but it certainly wasn't for lack of trying. We were constantly crawling through bushes, grass tunnels and under trees looking for crocs.
We had planned to end our day in Arusha, however communictions were mixed up, so we ended up deciding to go back to the Haria Hote in Moshi.  A quick couple of phone calls and the $35/per night "suite" was booked and our safari operator—Judith at Ajabu Adventures—had been contacted and she was willing to have us picked up in Moshi instead of Arusha.

Before dropping us off at the hotel, we made a pit stop at the Bushmen Expeditions main office in Moshi. We really wern't sure why we were being brought to the office...we had paid the fee, we were extremely happy with the service and our experience... Turns out the owner wanted to meet us, say hello and ask us about our experience. It was a truly personal touch that we wern't expecting and a most pleasant surprise.

Our first Meeting with the Maasai

After some last minute shopping in Moshi and some final goodbyes to our team members, we were picked up this morning by Bushmen Expeditions. We had three expedition members accompanying us—Erick (who had been one of our translators over the last two weeks), a driver and a cook. We headed off for Maasai country but first, a quick stop to buy Tuskers, Savanna Dry and some bottled water.

Like many other places where we have travelled, drinking water straight form the tap is a bad idea. We have been drinking bottled water for most of the trip (a 1.5 litre bottle usually costs us about 1,000 Tanzanian shillings~75 cents Canadian). We have had boiled tap water for coffee and tea (and probably in soups) with no side effects, however drinking the boiled water straight—after it has cooled—was not the most enjoyable experience. It usually has a deep, smokey taste, probably because it was boiled over a fire. Many of the team did not like the taste.

One of the many dust devils that we saw

Travelling through Maasai country was very surreal. It was very flat and very dry. The dust was very fine and powdery, about 3-5 inches thick. There were patches of tall, yellow grasses and thorny scrub brushes. Frequently we saw "dust tornadoes" (not sure what they are really called—maybe "dust devils"?) Anyways, we would sometimes see up to four of them across the landscape.

The visions of Maasai tribesmen, dressed in red plaids, walking along the plain with their mass herd of horned cattle, donkeys and goats is forever etched in our minds. It was truly beautiful.

When we reached the tribal area we were surprised to find that many of the young children speak perfect English, yet the elders only spoke Swahili.



Maasai woman sitting in the entrance of her boma

 They brought us to a boma where we were dressed in traditional clothing. They then lead us into some of the bomas to explain to us about the construction of the different houses. The women build the bomas; the men usually stay outside of the compound, tending the herd.

We participated in a traditional dance which we were later told, was used in marriage ceremonies.






The safari operator usually pays a nominal fee to the tribe who is hosting the visit. The guests are also invited at the end of the visit to look at the crafts they have for sale, with the hopes that you will buy something to support them further.

We headed of for lunch at a local restaurant- samosas and omelets—then off to go swimming.

Usually it is recommended that you don't swim in Africa because of possible parasite infection, however we had been reassured by several people that this place would be OK to swim.

A single baobab tree in the distance

We travelled for about an hour through some pretty barren, dry land. The sight of baobab trees in the distance was amazing. Throughout the drive we would come across small "villages" that looked very poor and we wondered how some of them got their water.

The "Hot Springs"

The landscape started changing dramatically. It was like we hit a wall of of lush, green plants and trees. We had arrived at an oasis; our swimming and camping spot.

Eric and the guys set up the tents and then cook went to work. He wore a big, white chef hat and was chopping up veggies for tonights soup (cucumber and leek soup, served hot).

The swimming spot was a small pond that had a swift current (~ 1 to 2 knots) from an underground tunnel coming out of a bordering rock wall. The locals call the place "hot springs". It definitely was not hot, but it certainly wasn't cold either.

Seven local boys showed up and then jumped into the pool. Two of the older ones started swimming into the small tunnel,then let the current shoot them out into the pond. We were pretty scared for them but they didn't seem to think of the danger. As we were swimming monkeys were jumping through the trees overhead.

At one point, some dude drives up on a bicycle with a huge stack of sticks tied to the back of his bike. He was taking to cook for a while, then we noticed a handmade bow and a bunch of arrows leaning up against his bike. Our security guard had arrived and he brought wood for the nights bonfire.

Dinner was amazing! Rice (of course), curried veggies, deep fried tilapia fish, and two other vegetable based dishes.

For desert—sliced, fresh bananas and pineapple.

After dinner, as we were sitting around the bonfire, a large jet flew overhead. One of the guides pointed up to the airplane and said KLM. Our friends were heading home.