Off to the Serengeti

Jambo,  again.

We left the cool Tuesday morning of the Ngorongoro rim at 7,000 feet,  and headed west toward the Serengeti. Half an hour into the trip, coming off the mountain, we saw our first giraffes,  feeding a little way off the road,  then stopped to see some Maasai camels being herded by a man who turned

Maasai Talking Stick

out to be a cousin of Robert, our guide. Robert explained the purpose of the Maasai talking sticks they were trying to sell us,  and soon almost all of us had to have one. Yes, even me.

We continued our trek west,  visiting the dig site of the Leakeys at Olduvai to see the birthplace of one of the very early modern man. Turning off the main road at Nduto to try and track down the elusive cheetah,  our three cars spread out across the savannah, thinking that surely one or another would come across one of the solitary cats.  But the radio stayed silent. No cheetah reports to share. As we searched we came to a low,  marshy area,  and started to cross to see if our luck would be any better on the other side.


Before we knew what happened, our car was stuck in the mud of the marsh. We tried to push it out, no way. The other vehicles came to rescue us, and one of them  promptly got stuck, too. The third car attempted to pull out our second car,  but the cable broke and the car went in even deeper. Our drivers are very experienced,  and it paid off for us.  They were able to jack the cars up,  fill the hole with some big stones, and finally pull out our car.  Then they did the same to car number two and got it out.  We re-loaded all our gear back into the cars and headed off to lunch in the middle of the savannah, and then on to the main entrance to Serengeti National Park.

Lionesses on Duty

During that time we stumbled across two groups of plump lionesses relaxing in the afternoon, digesting their kill from the night before.

Pride Rock

We entered the Serengeti NP and soon came to Pride Rock,  you know,  from the Lion King. And sure enough,  there was a pride of lions sleeping up high on the rock.  The rock is a great example of a  kopje (sounds like "copy"), a special rock formation unique to this area;  they are scattered throughout the Serengeti, and they are absolutely wonderful.

We continued our game drive on into the park, getting our first idea of what the Great Migration must look like.  There are zebra and wildebeest everywhere,  thousands and thousands of them.  They are noisy and chaotic. And these are just a small portion of what has separated from the main herd.

I have to tell you a little bit about our lodge here, the Serena Serengeti. Each building is again styled after an African hut, and the view from the room is a vast panorama. It is so secluded and so much in the middle of wild lands that, after dark,  if we want to go from our rooms to the restaurant or vice versa,  we are to call reception and request an escort, an armed escort.  We were told last night that there were both a hyena and a lion on the property.  I just counted over thirty elephants from my balcony.

Two lions sleeping in a tree

Wednesday’s game drives continued the amazing sights from the day before. We are still seeing herds of elephants, various antelope species, more zebras and wildebeests,  lions enjoying their rests and others a short honeymoon,  and then stalking the nearby zebra herd.

Cheetah with Prize

But the most jaw-dropping part of the day was finally seeing our first cheetah. And not only did we see it,  but we were able to witness first-hand its blinding speed and ability to focus on the task at hand.  Despite the distraction of quite a few safari vehicles, she ran down a small Thompson’s  gazelle to share with her cubs. As many times as I have watched this scene play out on my television screen at home, I could never have imagined the speed and grace and drama involved in the chase and the capture when seen in real life.  What an experience!  What an awesome day!


And the day wasn't over yet. After I thought I was done with today's entry,  we headed for the restaurant for dinner, only to be told that we were going out for a supper in the bush. It was unbelievably cool to be out under the brilliant blanket of stars here, eating a barbecue dinner served on linen with all the trimmings. We were serenaded by the Maasai music group by a roaring campfire. And were watched over the whole time by guards with guns to make sure we weren't disturbed by any local creatures.

Tomorrow we leave the east/central Serengeti and head to the west,  to maybe catch the larger part of the migration, maybe a river crossing, we'll see.

Our final lodge in Tanzania is at a Serena camp known as Kirawira Luxury Tented Camp.  We've been told that it's the greatest of the Serena properties.  Can't wait to see it.

Asante Sana again for checking the blog. I’m hoping to have an update for you Friday.

Jay


Thursday AM postscript: I was awakened slightly early this morning by an angry elephant somewhere nearby,  roaring and trumpeting.  Pretty cool!

No, not charging, just eating.