Tuesday, Nov 8. Town visit. The market was large, busy, and bossy. T-short salesmen, etc. assailed us while we tried to buy food for our home visit. Flies.

School was fun. Principle was a take-no-prisoners kind of woman, with the size to match. “We have no trouble with parents.” Period. All students have nearly shaved heads, so the girls are identified by the skirts. They all wear sweaters! Crazy from my perspective. Balloons were a BIG hit. Took photos too.

Home tour was at a middle class family with a small but efficient farm. Nice people, but certainly not a representative demographic of the country’s poverty. Good food.

Afternoon was free, and I took advantage of it. Pool, beer, rest. (Almost) no dust.

Monday, Nov 7. Departed the Serengeti. Encountered a male lion just sauntering along the road. Great final photos. Dusty again. We are all very tired of the dust.

Climbed back up to the Ngorongoro Crater rim. Drove down inside. Massively large area, with both an alkaline, undrinkable lake and a fresh water swamp. Story is that animals inside the crater do not leave. An entirely different ecosystem is in place. Oddly, no giraffes. Every other animal seems present. Pink flamingos in the alkaline lake.

As we exited the crater Emanuel offered an extended drive through the crater. Only two people took him up on the offer. Most of us were eager to return to niceties such as endless showers and private rooms with solid walls. Took a dip in the pool. I skipped dinner (and lunch). After two nights trying not to snore, I needed rest.

Beautiful full moon.

Sunday, Nov 6. Drove west to new terrain that was much closer to what I envisioned the Serengeti to be like. Endless, flat grasslands dotted with wildlife. Today was dominated by giraffes. Had tea at another camp with a tremendous view and an infinity pool. Lunched at a tiny empty airfield that had wifi!

Cocktail hour was fully attended, a first. Dinner was celebratory, with the staff singing and dancing.

Very dusty day again. Bucket showers aren’t quite cutting it. Tomorrow we tour the Ngorongoro Crater, then return to the same hotel we left four nights ago. Camping, even glamour camping, has gotten old.

Saturday, Nov 5. Five companions went off for a balloon ride. [Their flight featured far more animals than mine. Jealous.] We were able to view their flight during our morning ride. Meanwhile, we encountered lions multiple times. The ENCOUNTER OF THE TRIP was with a family of four adults and an indeterminate number of cubs (4?). Precious! (I’m having such a hard time trimming the photos to a manageable number.) One lion, hiding in the tall grass, seemed to be checking out a herd of wildebeests, but it turn out that the lion was injured and actually hiding. The wildebeests caught wind (literally; they have poor eyesight) of her and chased her away. That’s when we noticed the limp. The other adults appeared to hustle the cubs away. The wildebeests actually seemed to be aggressively looking for the lions. One adult lion, with a monitor collar attached, climbed a tree, followed by one cub. More precious!

We saw several other lions. In the afternoon we visited a hippo convention in a pool of river water way too small for them. The floating mass of hippo manure was both disgusting and incredible. These hippos included some that were far larger than anyone expected.

Another hot day, but a fun one. Lunch included pasta with meat sauce that really hit the spot. Skipped dinner.

Friday Nov 4. Morning viewing drive. Lots to see. The coffee break was at the Park’s center, with a short walking tour describing the Park’s layout, history and current issues. More viewing. Return to camp for a late lunch, free time (90 minutes) and a second viewing drive. I bailed on the drive. I could tell that it would reurn late and there would be a rush to dinner. I’m tired of rushing. I spent the time contemplating where I was. Also deleted 500+ photos out of 650. Took a leisurely shower and arrived on time for dinner, which was then delayed 30 minutes for others to get settled.

The camp is literally temporary, as are most camps. Per Park rules. The idea is that if everyone knows that they’ll have to tear it down annually (and go through an inspection), they won’t mess up the grounds. The camp is a wonder of simplicity and glamour camping. A bucket containing cold water for gravity toilet flushing and sinks, a raised bucket filled manually for hot showers, so hot water lines don’t have to be run. Solar power at each tent. A generator runs for five hours to let people charge things.

Thursday, Nov 3. The Ngorongoro Crater is a geographical wonder, which we will visit next week. For now we drove along the rim on our way to Serengeti National Park. Rough road, of course. This time on the rim of a crater. Saw a truck that had gone off the road. Lots of traffic with very little passageway. Climbed to 7,600 feet, into fog, making the scenic overlook useless. Emanuel says it’s always foggy in the morning. The downhill stretch reveal numerous Maasai homesteads, which the government is trying to take away.

Once we hit flat land, the road became rough and very dusty. Very fine dirt. I put on a face cover. The official entrance of the Serengeti had a surprisingly nice rest stop, complicated by the presence of a lion, forcing the closing of the lookout. I had prepared an alien PB&J sandwich in the morning by “stealing” the jelly from the breakfast section. It was a welcome rest.

The forecast called for rain in the afternoon, much needed. Just as we turned off the main road for a viewing drive, rain clouds appeared. Very shortly afterwards the rain fell. It wasn’t much but it totally messed up the roadbed. The water didn’t drain, and it made the road incredibly slippery. At one point the truck’s rear wheels lost all traction and we went into a sharp skid, nearly overturning. We ended up unable to regain the center roadway and spent about 30 minutes in the shoulder, often getting temporarily stuck. But it all worked out eventually, the rain stopped, and the viewing began.

Saw at least 8 lions. One couple had just killed a water buffalo, leaving it under a tree while they rested. Blood was still on their lips and paws. Viewed many other animals.

The camp is basic. More on it tomorrow.

Thursday-Monday, Nov 3-7. No Wifi.

Wednesday, Nov 2. Feeling better. Not nearly so hot.

Visited a village that feels and looks like a living museum. The chief is big and impressive. Everyone, including the children, are extremely well behaved. “Set up”, is all I could think. But even if it was mostly for show, it was done well. I used my balloons to charm the children.

A short drive to Ngorongoro. Sounds like its spelled. Higher elevation, with cooler temperatures and much greener pastures. Marvelous hotel with all the rooms facing out into a field. Great pool, though cold. Happy hour was free gin and tonic, due entirely to the fact that the gin is distilled in the country. It can stay in the country is my evaluation.

Tuesday, Nov 1. Very hot day. I’ve contracted an intestinal ailment. Limited sleep. Fortunately, we only spent the morning in the park. First we visited a dairyman with Dreams. Has a Brahman cow but wants to buy a different breed that provides more milk. Very focused.

The main draw of the day was discovery of a leopard up a tree. (I had to be woken up.) Got some great photos. Also saw a pride of lions. Nothing much else. Too hot to sleep, so I swam (to cool off), then napped. The leopard was terrific. The rest of the day can be forgotten.

Monday, Oct 31. Drove to Tarangire National Park. Along the way we stopped at two watering holes where we presented the filters we’d bought yesterday. Emanuel shown them how they worked. Several of us have doubts that they’ll be used properly. Hopeful. But their dire situation was so very sad. A person at the second hole said it was the first time they’d traveled to this one, and didn’t know where to find the next one when this one dried up.

See photos of the Park. It’s a lot hotter than I expected.

Checked into the lodge. Absolutely beautiful infinity pool, looking out over an open area that had vultures always and occasionally zebras, warthogs, mongooses, gazelles, and various birds. Idyllic. Pool was surprisingly clean. And Cool! Great way to relax. Dinner was outdoors, in the dark. Really, I couldn’t see the food.