The Chimps

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Monday was a blast! We woke up early, ate a quick breakfast, then drove down to the place from which we would get the boat to Gombe Stream National Park. We got there rather early but had to wait for some men to "fix" the boat and buy petrol. We therefore returned to town to purchase a few provisions that we still needed.

Our boat was just big enough for all 8 of us. The ride took just under two hours and we got to see some amazing things. Lake Tanganyika is crystal clear and gets deep quickly. As we left Kigoma, I caught sight of several women who were able to fill their buckets just two steps into the lake. They saw us too. As did the entire town. Literally. Everyone (well, several dozens of people) gathered along the coast as we went by.

When we arrived at the park, we paid the fees, put our stuff down, and immediately went for a walk. For safety's sake, we needed to divide into two groups. Our guide was young and energetic and we went off the path crashing through the trees for a long distance stalking some chimps (Tanga and Tom) at one point. While we were on teh path, some baboons also dared to get to get close to us and even growled a few times. Scary and funny at once!

After about two hours in the forest we left it. We followed the beach to a huge tree where the "S" family was taking a siesta (entire families have one letter starting all of their names running down the female line). Alpha Male Ferdinand (part of Jane Goodall's original chimps) was napping with one eye open watching his entire family. There was a really cute baby in the group which kept swinging on trees and pestering the older ones. And then there was Sinbad. After a while of us sitting under the tree he decided to sit on one of the branches over us. Then he threw a stick at me. Caitlin laughed and he threw a stick at her too. Then Caitlin smirked and he faked throwing something at her. When he ate, he spit the seeds back at us. Our guide told us that the sticks were to play with and that Sinbad wanted us to throw them back. I'm not so sure.

Eventually the chimps left the tree and we did too. We went back to our rooms to "change" for swimming. Lake Tanganyika is safe to swim in; Lake Victoria is not. Thus, we jumped on the opportunity and went in. But wait - I didn't bring a bathing suit! So I just swam in my boxer, both times (once before lunch, once after lunch). The water was nice and warm until the waves came up and upturned the icy deep sea water. That was not fun at all.

When the water became too cold to stay in, we all got out and sat on the pier to begin watching the sunset. It was beautiful, although I liked Lake Victoria's better. Getting off my sitting position I slipped on the very wet planks and partially ripped my toenails. Great, right? So I just put my foot in the lake to wash it out a little bit and then sat on the beach skipping rocks and watching the sunset.

It was a great day and I loved seeing the chimps. They are so human-like in appearance, facial expression, personality, and mind. It's easy to see how we share 98% of our genes. I really found the family units and interactions amongst teh different chimps fascinating. There are clear gender and age lines that have been carefully developed. There's one word for it all - fascinating.

Tuesday began with a morning swim (in boxers...) which to me was surprisingly warm. It wasn't as warm as mid-day, but it wasn't like the night before either. Then we went on a three and a half hour hike where we stalked some more chimps and saw a waterfall. While watching the chimps, their alpha male, Frodo, charged at us and even grabbed at Ryan's leg. Needless to say, we tried keeping a greater distance after that, but we didn't succeed. A mother with her baby started meandering to a new spot and nearly stepped on my leg. I moved it away just in time. It was fun being so close!

The waterfall was a great non-wildlife view. All of the pictures are brochure quality. Only Ashley was daring enough to go under it. Ryan and Caitlin put their heads in (but got soaked everywhere else too). While I was sitting on a log, my water bottle slipped out of my back pocket. I had no good way to get to it, but Angela was nearby to save the day. She went crashing through the stream and finally retrieved it. The things we do to protect the environment!

Eventually it was time to go. We said kwa heri to Gombe and the chimps as our boat slowly made its way back to Kigoma. Some fo the waves were big but we stayed in one piece...luckily. It was an amazing journey and I hope to be able to go back some day.

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