Long days

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May 17, 2006 - Day 32 - Today was another early day - up at 5:30am, gone by 7am. We crossed the border into Tanzania, which required $50 from everyone except Jules (go Ireland!) and we didn’t even have to get out of the truck to go through immigration ourselves - Anne-Marie did it for us. But then we were delayed almost two hours because the guy we needed to pay to collect a permit to bring the truck into Tanzania was missing - smoke break? Eventually he came back and we were able to get on our way. Tanzania was immediately different than other countries thus far. We went to a market pretty soon after arriving and we weren’t allowed to get off the truck. Only Walt did. Immediately he was surrounded by 20 people trying to sell him everything you can imagine. Next thing I know and Walt is kicking some guy in the butt - literally. Apparently he was a very unskilled pick-pocket who got caught. Then, as Anne-marie was telling us about Tanzania, some guy reached through the cab window and grabbed a bag of cds and money. She ran out of the truck after the guy and he threw it back at her. It as crazy. Afterwards we drove to a more secluded place, had lunch, and drove again until 7:30pm, so that we arrived in the dark to a camp site near Iringa. Another long day. Made longer by the fact that we didn’t finish dinner until 9:45pm, and then they told us that it was actually 10:45pm (after the border crossing) and we had to get up the next day at 5am.

May 18, 2006 - Day 33 - Well, driving through Tanzania is interesting. There are speed bumps everywhere, and they are oddly shaped and close together, which makes going over them in the truck quite an experience. At one point we drove through a national park, but at pretty quick speeds, so that we saw elephants and giraffe, but not for long. Who would have thought we would get used to them so quickly that some of us only glance up from their books briefly to see them? Most of the day was spent like yesterday, in the truck. We did stop at a restaurant for lunch, and I ordered chicken curry. Unfortunately, these chickens must have been hungrier than I was, because it was so tough I couldn’t find a way to eat it. Luckily there was tons of rice. We were on a driving rampage towards Dar es Salaam. Once we reached the city, traffic brought us to a near stand still. Then we had to wait to board a ferry, with the whole truck, to reach the other side of the city where we would be sleeping. There was only one ferry running that day and we had to wait for the third one, which took quite a long time. There were a lot of cars and so many more people than you would have thought. Once the cars boarded, they opened the gates that people were waiting behind and hoards of people just ran like mad to get on. When it was our turn, once the truck was on, we made a mad dash to get on and board the truck before the crowds. Somehow, we were waiting in front of everyone (in front of the cage, maybe because we were white?) and we were able to stay together. Once on board, some people climbed to the top of the truck to watch the action from there. The ferry pulled away and we started to move. Then it was going backwards all of a sudden. Before I knew it everyone was getting back in the truck, and eleven people from another tour who were coming back from Zanzibar got on our truck as well. Apparently, the ferry was overloaded and we had to have some people get off to transport everyone safely. Once people left, we took off again and then drove to the camp site where we would be staying. We dropped the eleven others off at their truck and then set up our tents in the dark, once again. At this site there were hot showers, and like most sites, a pool, but there was a catch - they were both salt water. How enjoyable is that? I mean, how clean can you get in salt water? So I opted out of the shower, thank you, even though I had been sweating like a pig all day. We have finally come to the Africa that is hot. Anne-Marie took the night off from cooking and the campsite bar prepared a feast of yummy grilled chicken with a few sides. Stayed up until midnight, as it was the last night with the group for several people, including Thomas, who would be leaving at 6am the following day, before any of us were awake. It was also the second punch night, and Lorens, our punch master, mixed a mean brew. Everyone was trashed, which is both funny and annoying from my perpetually sober perspective. It was a hot night for sleeping, and I wasn’t sleeping well because of it. Then I was woken up by the boys coming back around 2am, doing the oh-so-loud-but-i-think-I’m-being-quiet getting into the tent drunken manoevers. Silly boys. Then I was awake due to a mosquito in my tent than I couldn’t see but could hear and feel. I spent an hour trying to escape it into my sleeping bag, where I cooked like a Thanksgiving Day turkey. It was a nightmare. Then I was busy listening to someone or someones throwing up for quite some time not too far from my tent. It was an overall winner of a night.

May 19, 2006 - Day 34 - Today we were supposed to be ready to head out at 8am but got off to a late start. We had to catch the 10am ferry to Zanzibar, but first several people needed to get money or plane tickets for flying home (for some, the tour ended here or in Zanzibar). It involved a lot of running around and finagling, but eventually everyone took care of what needed to be done and we made the ferry. The ferry actually left at 10:30am with a check in at 10am, which involved a minimal security bag check. The ferry ride was ok, except that they showed a Van Damme movie, the bits that I saw possibly making the worst film ever. I sat inside next to Mike, the new guy who started the trip that day. He’s also American, from San Francisco. We were also supposed to get a new girl named Emily, but she never showed up. Here’s to hoping she just changed her mind. Zanzibar, the “spice island”, joined with former Tangynika in 1964 to form what is now known as Tanzania. Though it is the same country, Zanzibar requires you to have your passport and go through immigration there, so we took care of that and then piled into a large taxi minibus and headed to lunch in Stone Town. Jules and I finished early so we ran out to find some internet, the first in weeks. We found a cheap, fairly fast place and just read and sent a few emails before the group was ready to head out. The plan was to head straight out to the north of the island to the beach for two nights and then back to Stone Town for a night before heading back to Dar. We got in our sweltering bus and zoomed off, literally; it should have taken two hours to get there but only took one. We got to the hotel and Barbel and I decided to share a double. It was a really nice room with mosquito nets, our own bathroom, and no mosquitos in either room, a shocking and pleasant discovery. We even had a fan and a locking dresser where we could store valuables. Once we got settled we changed into suits, headed to the water, and got in the Indian Ocean. By then it was about 5pm or so. It is absolutely beautiful here. It is exactly the place you see when you think of perfect tropical waters and beaches. The water is crystal clear with several shades of blue as you move out and the sand is white powder, similar to Siesta Key, a beach where my grandmother and aunt live in Florida. Amazing. We swam until after sunset, and what a sunset. It was gorgeous - the sun sank into the water (our beach faces west) and then it only got prettier as the different colors lit up the sky. We finally got out of the water, and just at the right time - the tide was coming in and my flip flops were going out to sea. Any darker and I would have missed them. Came back to the room where we had showers and then went to the restaurant to meet everyone for dinner. I think I forgot to mention that Zanzibar is an optional activity on this trip - so that everything is paid for by us separately and there is no official group, though most of us are staying together, and our main guide/driver Walt is helping organize it for us. For dinner I had tandoori chicken, yummy. Afterwards everyone went to bed fairly early - I was asleep by 10:30pm and this was after falling asleep several times trying to write in my journal.

May 20, 2006 - Day 35 - Woke up after a wonderful night of sleep, had breakfast (included with my pricey $15/night room) and organized some laundry to turn in, especially my stinky clothes from the hike to Livingstonia. I only have two pairs of pants and a pair of shorts, so it makes a big difference if something is that dirty. Afterwards I went down to the beach and met up with the others. I walked a bit further with Richard to try to find a beach big enough for him to fly his kite, and that proved difficult. The beaches are all very small here and not connected, so we had to walk through different hotel/hostel grounds and a construction site to get to it; and once we got there it wasn’t windy anymore. Instead we swam and I walked on the beach looking for shells, some of which were beautiful. When the tide was a bit lower we walked back around to the others in the water itself. Once there, I swam some more and had some nice chats with Diana and Jennifer. Around 2pm we packed it in and all went to have some lunch. I was running out of shillings so I had a cheaper lunch of vegetable pakura. After lunch, I went to my room to use Richard’s computer to catch up on my blog writing and after an hour Barbel came back from her snorkelling trip and we headed back to the beach to get some more swimming in. On our way there we ran into Richard, who had just gotten his hair done into cornrows. Very cool for a white boy. Or should I say red boy? He is classic English and burns at the mere mention of sun. Today the only bits of him not red were things covered from clothes or his sunglasses; he looks very raccoon-like. We met up with the others and stayed in the water until after sunset again. Richard wasn’t the only one who got sunburned - Austin, Mike, and Alejandro got it pretty bad. It started getting cooler at that point so we got out, had showers, and again met up with the others for dinner. This time I had grilled calamari, yummy. Barbel bought me a coke, as she has done several times lately, so nicely. After dinner we moved over to the next door bar for a free round of drinks - apparently it is owned by a Canadian who took a fancy to our Canadians and gave us a round of drinks on the house. I chose a virgin mango daquiri. Yum. Then to the room where I had a bit of a belly ache and then to bed.

May 21, 2006 - Day 36 - I woke up today beautified from all the high intensity sun exposure. Or was that uglified? In any case, my face was covered with tons of little bumps, pimples given as a present from the sun god. Highly unappealing. We left the beach and on the way to Stone Town some of us took a spice tour, which I would highly recommend if and when you come to Zanzibar. We were taken to a plantation where they grow all kinds of fruits and spices and got the most hilarious guide named "Ali Babba". The laughs just kept coming with this guy. He had a really posh British kind of accent and really overly pronounced so many words, intentionally, of course. It was one of the funniest things I'd seen in a long time. All the while he was showing us trees and plants and telling us about spices (which Jules and Jon were able to supplement while we weren't in tears over laughing so hard), little boys were making us jewellery out of palm leaves. I had a ring, a necklace with a frog, a bracelet, a purse...it just kept coming. They first made us a little triangular cup that held a sample of all the fruits and flowers and spices Ali was showing us. Then we got to try several teas and fruits from the area. It was a great tour overall. Once back in Stone Town Barbel and I got a crappy room at an ok hotel. Nothing special. I ended up using some time at a highly coveted internet cafe and then meeting up with others for dinner. Went back to the same place we'd eaten lunch at the first day.

May 22, 2006 - Day 37 - Woke up sick with a stomach ache - seems to be a perpetual state of affairs. And in traveling, you really get to know the health and bowel movements of everyone you're with. Just a perk of travel I guess. Everyone else got up for the tour of Stone Town, which I really wanted to do but just couldn't manage. The tour went for about 4 hours, combination of shopping stops and rain. It was an ok day to be inside. Once everyone was back we took off for the ferry and had an interesting ride back to land. It was really bumpy and I had to really tune out and talk over the sounds of others being sick to avoid it myself. Pleasant. At least this time people were throwing up due to the sea and not drinking the night before. I think. Finally arrived in Dar es Saalam one last time and back to our same hot uncomfortable tent. Dar was one of the few hot places we stayed. Lots of good chances for malaria in case we hadn't been affected so far.

May 23, 2006 - Day 38 - Today was a truck kind of day. Like most days, every day on this leg of the journey. Up at 5am again and on the road all day. We had to get up so early to catch the ferry, and we still had to wait about two hours in line for the truck to make it onto the ferry. Meanwhile, we drove through a market area and a great number of us bought things through the windows, including extra bags to store some things. To add to the fun, we had three hours of truck problems where we were just camped out on the side of the road while Walt had his head in the engine in the hot hot sun trying to work out the problem. In the end it was dirty diesel. Sounds bad, but he got it fixed up. For the most part I spent those hours on board reading an entire book. We were parked right next to a highly active ant colony that was covering most of the surrounding land, so I found it easier to avoid it altogether. Once we got on our way, we were heading to the Serengeti, or just outside for the night. The scariest thing about driving in Tanzania is the width of the roads. They are so narrow and huge trucks come screaming by and you can feel it. I was usually glad I didn't have a window seat - too much stress man. On a few occasions I did sit by the window to take some photos, but this proved scary as my camera could easily have been knocked out of my hands if I had it the least bit out the window. And my camera isn't small. Eventually rolled up to camp and set up in the dark. Had some dinner and to bed.

May 24, 2006 - Day 39 - Today is a special day. For one, we would be starting our Serengeti journey, which I have been wanting to see for years. It is also Lourens' 27th birthday, and even more fun, it is my good friend Tracy's birthday. Tracy and I have been friends since we were at least 13, and of all my friends, she is the one who most wants to visit Africa and the safari game parks like the Serengeti. She is expecting her first baby this year and I just wanted to say Happy Birthday Tracy and I'll be thinking of you today while I'm game viewing! The day started with a view into the Ngorogoro Crater, one of the best wildlife viewing spots in Africa and a place we would visit in two days time. Had lunch outside with lovely views, and our first upclose sighting of the ugliest stork you ever saw. Poor dear. Then we finally entered the Serengeti and did a late afternoon drive to the camp site. It was absolutely beautiful. It is a huge stretch of plains and simply amazing to see. There are all the classic acacia trees that you would picture as well as some different vegetation types as you drive through. We saw all kinds of animals, including giraffes, lions, elephants, all kinds of gazelles, zebras. You name it. We even saw the beginnings of the widebeest migration. Thousands of wildebeest in a line in the distance is an impressive site. The thing that surprised me most about the Serengeti was the temperature. It was downright chilly! We cruised around in small minivan type cars with roofs that opened so you could stick your head out for photos. I had a great group with Jules and Jon, Richard, and Alejandro. Richard is completely insane with the picture taking and of course we had to leave the roof open even when it was freezing or dusty. But we had gotten somewhat used to being dirty and cold by then. In the evening we had the most gorgeous sunset - it was classic African, exactly what you would picture with the colors and the acacia trees in the background. Simply beautiful. And my camera batteries died, so I will have to rely on the pictures of others for this memory. Camped for the night at a place with a stinky long drop toilet. Once we entered Tanzania a lot of the toilets went from being "western", or the kind you recognize, to being "squat toilets", where it is just a hole in the ground you squat over. Some of these are just as high tech as western toilets - porcelain and they flush. But some, as in this camp, are just literally "long drops", with a really lond way down to the bottom. Some of these are ok, no problems at all. Some though, are a bit unpleasant, as this one happened to be. Even more unfortunately, there were two actual toilets, but someone had used one and missed the hole, leaving a very unfortunate reality for anyone else who went in. Needless to say I didn't. Toilet paper in bathrooms is also virtually non-existant, so you tend to have to carry your own everywhere you go. After a nice dinner we went to sleep early again.

May 25, 2006 - 40 - We spent the morning driving around the Sernegeti today. We saw bunches and bunches of water buffalo, one of the "big five" - lions, buffalo, rhino, elephants, and leopards. I believe this name comes from the five big animals in Africa that are hard to kill, or at least dangerous to kill, back in the days when that was all they were good for. Saw a good deal more animals and then we went back to the camp for lunch and to take down the tents. We were under the impression that we would be driving throughout the afternoon as well, but we had to be out the national park by 2pm or so. As it is, Tanzania's National Parks are very expensive to visit, and our permits cost $50 each for 24 hours, and we had entered at 2pm the day before, so that was that. We were a little disappointed that this was the case, but there you are. After the park we drove to the Gorge where what might be the bones of the first modern people were discovered. Had a little tour around and then went to a Maasai Village. The Massai people are very distinct and found in Tanzania and Kenya for the most part. They are in general very tall, and their clothes are red and blue checked patterns that they where wrapped around themselves. Almost like a blanket. Actually the patterns are very kilt like, though they are wrapped around the torso more like a blanket. The med herd cattle, which are their life line, and the women do everything else, including having kids, taking care of them, cooking, building the houses...Men can several wives, as they can afford. We started out with a welcome dance and then were invited inside the village where we proceeded to dance with the Maasai. I had a particularly shriveled old woman that I was holding hands with and she gave me her necklace to try on while we bounced. It was funny. We had a tour guide there and broke up into smaller groups to see inside of their small wooden houses/huts. Even though you see so many houses and villages from the roadside, it is still a shock when you see one from the inside. It really is that small and that different than what we are used to. So dark inside that it takes a while to get used to. And of course it is somewhat comercialized at this point - they try to sell all the jewellery that they make, as well as the blankets. After the village we went to a camp site at the edge of the crater and set up camp. It was really cold that night. Decided to take a shower because they were hot and I needed to warm up. The woman's hot water was broken so we were all in line for the men's...and there were two girls in there chatting away and washing their hair like you would expect in an Herbal Essence's commercial... at least, that was my impression. Finally we asked them to leave, as there was such a line. Had some dinner and got in the tent as soon as I was able to get out of the cold. First Barbel and I helped Anne-Marie put up her tent; she was worried about elephants and buffalos roaming through the camp into her tent. We calmed her down, sent her to bed, and went ourselves.

May 26, 2006 - 41 - Today was our venture into the Ngorogoro Crater. It is literally a crater that was formed years ago and that holds all kinds of wildlife in a relatively small and compact area, making viewing easy. When we woke up it was really pretty cold outside and extremely misty. It was beautiful but I was worried that I we wouldn't be able to see anything through the mist. We drove off and just before we started our descent into the crater, the fog parted. Or should I say it ended, as it was clearly visible and then just next to that point it was over. Very nice. We went down the sketchy road into the crater and then we were there. I expected an immediate Noah's ark of animals to bombard us and that we would practicially be tripping over the animals. It wasn't exactly like that, but it was nice. They have everything there you could want to see animal-wise, excluding giraffes, which happen to be my favorite. But it was amazing. Early on we went to the water and saw thousands of flamingos. I could even hear some chicks that reminded me of hand raising them at the zoo. There were even two hzenas sleeping near the edge of the water. Afterwards we drove along to a rhino sighting. Our first rhino. It was great. It was actually a mother and baby. and they were fairly far away, so it wasn't perfect, but through my enormous camera lens I could make them out pretty well. We were concerned because only two of the three vans were together and we didn't want the others to miss the rhinos, but then on our way out we ran into them. We were all shouting out the top of the car "Rhinos! Rhinos!" and pointing like mad freaks. The others were pointing in the opposite direction screaming "Cheetahs! Cheetahs!" So we all high tailed it out of there and we got to see the cheetahs. I didn't expect to see them anywhere, and it never crossed my mind to see them here. It was great and they were beautiful, two walking together. Then laying down. Then walking. The only thing that detracted from it was the ten other cars watching them as well. At some point you feel bad for crowding them, and so we left. But it was a great site. There were also a couple of hyenas running around, one with a vertebrae of some kind in its mouth. We saw a bunch of lions and we even had one fly covered female crawlunder then car behind us - to get out of the sun! She basically wedged herself in there and they had to carefully pull back and get around, but she did it twice. It was hilarious. Now the only thing left for me to see was a leopard, but it wasn't to be in the crater, no matter how many trees I stared into. Overall it was a great trip. I highly recommend this place; if any of you are considering a safari, come to Tanzania. Made it back to camp in Arusha and repacked my things as tomorrow will be the last day on this trip!

May 27, 2006 - Day 42 - Got up early and made a quick stop in Arusha, where I checked my email and spent some last shillings. Also managed to leave behind my all important notebook for the anal planner, and had to ask to go back for it. Embarrassing, but I need it. We drove into Kenya fairly early on and then made our way to Nairobi. Barbel and I decided to get the $50 expensive visa, as this would allow us to go into Uganda and come back with the same visa. The other option was a transit visa for $15 and was only valid for 7 days, but we would need another one, so we went more responsibly and expensively. Once we got into Nairobi, we dropped several people off at the Comfort Inn Hotel, whcih turned out to be a disaster. Most of them decided to come to the camp where I would be staying a bit outside the city (they don't call it Nairobbery for nothing). Two people had prepaid rooms reserved and were almost denied their rooms, but finally it was cleared up so we said good bye to Mark and Ashley and Lyoba and Suzanne and then dropped Barbel off at the lovely Boulevard hotel where our next tour would start the following day. The rest of us spent the night at the camp, where I shared a dorm room with Lourens, Austin, Richard, Alejandro, and Mike. Included in this list are three of the more ferocious snorers. Thanks God for earplugs. Spent the rest of the time between chatting and copying some of Richards photos onto disk so I can have something to show on this site (hopefully sooner than later). Had to wait up until 10:30pm to meet Matt, the tour guide for the next part of my trip with a new company, Africa Travel Company (ATC). I just needed to know where to meet him in the morning as I was the only one from the trip staying at the camp, and didn't want to be left behind.

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Photos

Introduction to the Maasai
Photo by Richard Todd

Maasai Men
Photo by Richard Todd

Welcome dance
Photo by Richard Todd

Creative Flag Picture
Photo by Richard Todd

Get the girls in there
We got in on the action and participated in the dance, wearing the women's jewelry. Of course, we could then BUY similar jewelry. I'm in the front - check out my wares.
Photo by Richard Todd

Bouncing dance
Photo by Richard Todd

Higher!
Photo by Richard Todd

Two together
Photo by Richard Todd

Jon joins the fun
Photo by Richard Todd

Missing class?
Photo by Richard Todd