HIII EVERYONE!!!! Now we have internet connection again and I can finally tell you about the last few days of safari. There are no words to describe how fantastic it has been, it was just so cool! In my opinion this was the absolute highlight of our journey so far.
Okay we’ll take it all from the beginning...
On the first day of the safari we left really early, as I wrote from the hotel that day. We met our travel group in Mbulu, consisting of two Tanzanian guides and drivers, who drove one jeep each, and ten other adventurers, like us. So in each jeep we were eight persons, including driver and guide, but it was plenty of space for all of us. The other travelers in our jeep were a middle-aged couple, who looked like they had lots of money and never had been outside a city before, a guy in his early thirties, with a pair of binoculars who looked like a nerd, and an older man, who looked like someone’s nice grandfather. We drove out of the city on a small road, our jeep first, and after just a few minutes we were out in the wilderness. We drove across the savannah and soon the city behind us were out of sight.
We drove past a lot of small villages where people worked on the fields, similar to the village we visited in Uganda. The nature was so beautiful! But we didn’t saw any other animals than the big herd of cattle around the villages. Our guide told us that it was because we hadn’t reached the Serengeti national park yet. It took about an hour, then we reached the Lake Eyasi and the guide told us that now we were in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and that we were going to drive through the outlines of the area for about an hour before reaching the Serengeti national park. The noble, middle aged lady in our jeep started immediately to complain, she and her husband had payed for a safari in the Serengeti, not some other park! Emma and I could barely hold back a laugh, what a crazy person! We didn’t have anything against driving through the Ngorongoro because it was a beautiful nature and it looked pretty the same as the photos we had seen from the Serengeti and the guide told us that the Ngorongoro is known for it’s diversity of wildlife.
The first wild animals we saw were a smaller group of giraffes, standing some distance away. Everyone in the jeeps were so excited and talked at the same time, the middle aged lady from the couple started screaming so much that we looked at each other and thought she had never seen an animal before. The guide had to speak very loud to drown the others and tell them to be quite, otherwise a safari would be meaningless because all the animals would run away before we even saw them. Ever since then everyone went quiet as soon we saw anything moving. But the giraffes had already heard our noisy travel group and disappeared.
Just a few minutes before we reached the Serengeti the jeeps stopped again and we could hear a loud thunder in the ground. Then we saw a gigantic herd of animals running at the horizon. The guide told us that they were wildebeests and that they were characteristic for the Ngorongoro and Serengeti. It was a fantastic experience to watch so many, so big, animals running as one unit. And not just to see them, to feel the ground tremble under us! Wow, that was such an amazing feeling. I had thought of this safari since we planned it and had really big expectations on seeing many wild animals and now we hadn’t even come into the Serengeti and had already seen so many of them. As the herd came nearer we saw that there were zebras too, among the wildebeests! The guide told us that wildebeest and zebras often live in the same herds. And he told us about The Great Migration. Each year, those big herds of wildebeests and zebras move through the Serengeti. According to our guide the rain or the lack of rain, causes the migration. Some people call the great migration one of the greatest wonders on earth, and I can understand them so well! I don’t even have words for how gigantic it was!
As the animals had passed by and the ground had stopped trembling we continued. And just some minutes later the guide told us that we now were driving into the Serengeti.
Okay we’ll take it all from the beginning...
On the first day of the safari we left really early, as I wrote from the hotel that day. We met our travel group in Mbulu, consisting of two Tanzanian guides and drivers, who drove one jeep each, and ten other adventurers, like us. So in each jeep we were eight persons, including driver and guide, but it was plenty of space for all of us. The other travelers in our jeep were a middle-aged couple, who looked like they had lots of money and never had been outside a city before, a guy in his early thirties, with a pair of binoculars who looked like a nerd, and an older man, who looked like someone’s nice grandfather. We drove out of the city on a small road, our jeep first, and after just a few minutes we were out in the wilderness. We drove across the savannah and soon the city behind us were out of sight.
We drove past a lot of small villages where people worked on the fields, similar to the village we visited in Uganda. The nature was so beautiful! But we didn’t saw any other animals than the big herd of cattle around the villages. Our guide told us that it was because we hadn’t reached the Serengeti national park yet. It took about an hour, then we reached the Lake Eyasi and the guide told us that now we were in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and that we were going to drive through the outlines of the area for about an hour before reaching the Serengeti national park. The noble, middle aged lady in our jeep started immediately to complain, she and her husband had payed for a safari in the Serengeti, not some other park! Emma and I could barely hold back a laugh, what a crazy person! We didn’t have anything against driving through the Ngorongoro because it was a beautiful nature and it looked pretty the same as the photos we had seen from the Serengeti and the guide told us that the Ngorongoro is known for it’s diversity of wildlife.
The first wild animals we saw were a smaller group of giraffes, standing some distance away. Everyone in the jeeps were so excited and talked at the same time, the middle aged lady from the couple started screaming so much that we looked at each other and thought she had never seen an animal before. The guide had to speak very loud to drown the others and tell them to be quite, otherwise a safari would be meaningless because all the animals would run away before we even saw them. Ever since then everyone went quiet as soon we saw anything moving. But the giraffes had already heard our noisy travel group and disappeared.
Just a few minutes before we reached the Serengeti the jeeps stopped again and we could hear a loud thunder in the ground. Then we saw a gigantic herd of animals running at the horizon. The guide told us that they were wildebeests and that they were characteristic for the Ngorongoro and Serengeti. It was a fantastic experience to watch so many, so big, animals running as one unit. And not just to see them, to feel the ground tremble under us! Wow, that was such an amazing feeling. I had thought of this safari since we planned it and had really big expectations on seeing many wild animals and now we hadn’t even come into the Serengeti and had already seen so many of them. As the herd came nearer we saw that there were zebras too, among the wildebeests! The guide told us that wildebeest and zebras often live in the same herds. And he told us about The Great Migration. Each year, those big herds of wildebeests and zebras move through the Serengeti. According to our guide the rain or the lack of rain, causes the migration. Some people call the great migration one of the greatest wonders on earth, and I can understand them so well! I don’t even have words for how gigantic it was!
As the animals had passed by and the ground had stopped trembling we continued. And just some minutes later the guide told us that we now were driving into the Serengeti.
Impala antelopes
The whole morning our drivers continued to drive the jeeps further into the Serengeti, the road became more bumpy and sometimes it was really uncomfortable to sit in the jeep, and the lady complained with her shrill voice, and we weren’t allowed to leave it so we had to cope with her complaining. And it was so terrible hot too! But we forgot all that when we saw the first herd of animals, impala antelopes, standing right beside the road. There were maybe about fifty of them, standing in the dry grass, staring at us. They were very close to the jeeps and it was so cool! The guide told us, in a low whisper, that their great leaping ability and fast run are characteristic for them. They can jump about three meters high and covering ten meters long distances, using their capacity to jump over bushes and even other impalas when scared. And that although they’re less than one meter high! Some of the impalas had horns, the guide told us that they were the males and that their horns can be up to ninety centimeters long. They were fantastic, so elegant and graceful as the whole herd began to move away from us, first slowly and then faster and faster until they ran with wide leaps. I knew that such a safari would be fantastic, but it was so much more than just fantastic and I can’t describe the feeling with words.
The whole morning our drivers continued to drive the jeeps further into the Serengeti, the road became more bumpy and sometimes it was really uncomfortable to sit in the jeep, and the lady complained with her shrill voice, and we weren’t allowed to leave it so we had to cope with her complaining. And it was so terrible hot too! But we forgot all that when we saw the first herd of animals, impala antelopes, standing right beside the road. There were maybe about fifty of them, standing in the dry grass, staring at us. They were very close to the jeeps and it was so cool! The guide told us, in a low whisper, that their great leaping ability and fast run are characteristic for them. They can jump about three meters high and covering ten meters long distances, using their capacity to jump over bushes and even other impalas when scared. And that although they’re less than one meter high! Some of the impalas had horns, the guide told us that they were the males and that their horns can be up to ninety centimeters long. They were fantastic, so elegant and graceful as the whole herd began to move away from us, first slowly and then faster and faster until they ran with wide leaps. I knew that such a safari would be fantastic, but it was so much more than just fantastic and I can’t describe the feeling with words.
After the impala antelopes we saw a lot of animals, single individuals, small groups and really big herds. We saw zebras, hippos, more giraffes, lots of monkeys, squirrels, hares, jackals and many different kinds of antelopes, for example kudu antelopes and the guide told us that there were two species, greater- and lesser- kudus. The ones we saw were greater kudus, they are the second biggest antelopes in Africa after the eland antelope which can become as high as the size of a big horse, about 1.8 meters! The kudu’s horns are very special, they are formed like a spiral and sometimes used as a music instrument. In some parts of Africa, mainly in the south, there are a sport called kudu dung spitting, but there is even a world championship held each year. The participants are spitting pellets of kudu dung so far they could, the one who could spit the dung pellets farthest is the winner. In my opinion it’s a very strange sport and just the thought of spitting with kudu dung is disgusting, isn’t it?
The first of the big five
And when it was nearly lunch time we saw two lions! The first animal of the big five! Today the big five are the five animals which people mostly want to see on their safari. But a hundred of years ago the big five were the most wanted and the most dangerous animals to hunt, the ones that could hunt the hunter. Those great animals are lions, leopards, buffalos, elephants and rhinoceros. So now we had seen the first of those five! It was a majestic view, three fully grown male lions, with their great manes and golden fur, lying in the grass some distance away. The guide told us that one of them were an older gentleman, as he said, and the other two lions were just a few years old. The color of their mane can indicate that the older lion has darker mane. The lions hold their heads high and looked like they were about to leap at some prey. I really understand why they’re called the “kings of the jungle” and that they have been a symbol for royalty, stateliness, power and bravery during times in several cultures.
The guide told us a lot about lions, much of which we already knew before, but there were some interesting facts I had no idea of. Lions are the most social of the big cats. They live in prides of about 15 individuals and behave like a cooperating family. The females do most of the hunting, but still the males eat first and while the females, lionesses, are hunting the males are watching over the cubs. The males’ task is to defend the pride’s territory from rivals or other dangers, although lions don’t have any natural enemies. When hunting the lionesses hunt in groups, cooperating to catch their prey. The lions are known for their speed and wildness, they can reach speeds up to 80 kilometers per hour and leap over 10 meters, but actually they sleep about 20 hours a day!
And when it was nearly lunch time we saw two lions! The first animal of the big five! Today the big five are the five animals which people mostly want to see on their safari. But a hundred of years ago the big five were the most wanted and the most dangerous animals to hunt, the ones that could hunt the hunter. Those great animals are lions, leopards, buffalos, elephants and rhinoceros. So now we had seen the first of those five! It was a majestic view, three fully grown male lions, with their great manes and golden fur, lying in the grass some distance away. The guide told us that one of them were an older gentleman, as he said, and the other two lions were just a few years old. The color of their mane can indicate that the older lion has darker mane. The lions hold their heads high and looked like they were about to leap at some prey. I really understand why they’re called the “kings of the jungle” and that they have been a symbol for royalty, stateliness, power and bravery during times in several cultures.
The guide told us a lot about lions, much of which we already knew before, but there were some interesting facts I had no idea of. Lions are the most social of the big cats. They live in prides of about 15 individuals and behave like a cooperating family. The females do most of the hunting, but still the males eat first and while the females, lionesses, are hunting the males are watching over the cubs. The males’ task is to defend the pride’s territory from rivals or other dangers, although lions don’t have any natural enemies. When hunting the lionesses hunt in groups, cooperating to catch their prey. The lions are known for their speed and wildness, they can reach speeds up to 80 kilometers per hour and leap over 10 meters, but actually they sleep about 20 hours a day!
The guide pointed at a big bush to the right of the lions and we saw four small cubs, lying in the grass half hidden behind the bush. The guide told us that their mothers probably were out hunting and that the males were watching over them. Everyone in the jeeps was very quite and just watched for a long moment. Even the lady was completely quiet, hoping for the lionesses to return. We forgot the terrible hotness and were just focused on the lions. How the cubs played together, tumbling around and crawling over each other. They were so sweet! I belive you never get tired watching those fantastic small animals. I don’t know how long we waited, but finally our guide said that we couldn’t wait anymore. We were disappointed, but realized that he was right. We had to continue if we wanted to be at our first accommodation before nightfall. We left the lions behind us and drove about half an hour before we stopped for a lunch break. First then I realized how hungry I was!
After lunch we drove faster and stopped less times, but we saw lots of animals! We saw several herds with different kinds of antelopes, zebras, wildebeests, giraffes and oryxes. We saw a lot of birds as well, but mostly they were so far away that we couldn’t make out which kind they were. Later, as we drove behinde a small lake we managed to see African clawless otters. A mother with two small cubs were swimming in the water, but ones we were near enough to get a closer look they dived down under the surface and vanished. The lady was so fascinated by their fur and wondered where she could buy such a nice coat. The guide looked extremely surprised and told her that the clawless otters biggest threat are people like her, he slammed it right in her face, and I thought booyah, right in your face bitch! I don’t understand how she could want to contribute to the clawless otters death!!!
It was nearly dark as we reached the first accommodation. And it wasn’t a tent after all, luckily, otherwise the lady maybe had broken down, haha! It was a nice place with three low buildings standing tight together under a group of trees. One was the main building, with a dining room and living room with an open fire. In the other two buildings were guestrooms and Emma and I got a really nice one. We ate some soup with freshly baked bread and then we went to sleep. If we hadn’t been so tired I would have wanted to take a nearer look at the place, but as it was late we just lay in our beds and fell asleep immediately. //AK
Now to the second day:
We woke up in the cottage, fully rested, and ready for new experiences and adventures, even though we had to get up pretty early. I and AK had to hurry to catch the jeep in time, but still we had to wait 20 minutes. Do you understand how annoying it was! The lady “Cruella” had apparently overslept because the beds were not comfortable enough! And you wonder why we call her Cruella?! Haha ;)
Now I think we need to return to the journey. We took the jeeps and were, as I said, a little bit after the second jeep because we had the luck to end up with Cruella. This day we were in central Serengeti, Seronera and then Maasai Kopjes to end this day at Retima Hippo Pool and stay at Seronera Wildlife Lodge.
We woke up in the cottage, fully rested, and ready for new experiences and adventures, even though we had to get up pretty early. I and AK had to hurry to catch the jeep in time, but still we had to wait 20 minutes. Do you understand how annoying it was! The lady “Cruella” had apparently overslept because the beds were not comfortable enough! And you wonder why we call her Cruella?! Haha ;)
Now I think we need to return to the journey. We took the jeeps and were, as I said, a little bit after the second jeep because we had the luck to end up with Cruella. This day we were in central Serengeti, Seronera and then Maasai Kopjes to end this day at Retima Hippo Pool and stay at Seronera Wildlife Lodge.
Seronera
The trip to Seronera took about an hour. We were extra excited for this day because Seronera is regarded as one of the park's best areas. Why this area is so popular is because it’s a border zone between the two habitats, the guide explained. If I understood it correctly, it's grass savannahs in the south and trees savannahs in the north. This means that we saw many different animals. On the way we saw some giraffes again and after a little bit, we saw topi antelopes. We also stopped and looked at the waterbuck, which are animals that I never had heard of before, and the guide told us that they can be quite high and we saw some around 120 cm high and about as long. They apparently have pretty long, wiry hair, especially on the neck. The ones we saw were males with long horns, in my opinion, but according to the guide, they can be 51-102 cm long!
The trip to Seronera took about an hour. We were extra excited for this day because Seronera is regarded as one of the park's best areas. Why this area is so popular is because it’s a border zone between the two habitats, the guide explained. If I understood it correctly, it's grass savannahs in the south and trees savannahs in the north. This means that we saw many different animals. On the way we saw some giraffes again and after a little bit, we saw topi antelopes. We also stopped and looked at the waterbuck, which are animals that I never had heard of before, and the guide told us that they can be quite high and we saw some around 120 cm high and about as long. They apparently have pretty long, wiry hair, especially on the neck. The ones we saw were males with long horns, in my opinion, but according to the guide, they can be 51-102 cm long!
We also saw warthogs which unlike the other pigs are active during the day, but during the hottest hours, they can lie in the shade and rest. It was very hot that day so we managed to see some lying under a tree and rest. The only thing I could think of when I saw the pigs was Pumbaa from Timond and Pumbaa from The Lion King ;) We got some interesting facts about the pigs and they're bigger than I thought. They can grow up to 1.5 meters long and have a height of 70 centimeters. They also weigh very much, around 50-150 kg. The most fascinating thing is their extended canines.
Not far from the warthogs, we managed to see a herd of African buffalos. These animals are very difficult to see, but we managed and an interesting fact about them is that they are walking up to 18 hours per day. They are also quite fast and can reach a speed of 57 km/h. It was great to see the buffalo because it belongs to the big five. It was an amazing sight and really cool to see such animals as you would otherwise only see on TV.
After further 15 minutes in the jeep we saw a group of elephants. They were so majestic when they walked after each other in the sun. They are between 2.5 to 4 meters high depending on whether they are male or female and weight between 2000-6000 kg. What I think is cool is that they can become quite old, between 50-70 years old. This elephant is actually the largest living land animal, and they have large ears to cool down, but they also lubricates themselves with mud to protect themselves against the sun. I was very happy when we finally got to see the elephants, and we stood there for a while as they walked past. It was so beautiful and I can’t describe the feeling. It was not just awesome because it belongs to the big five, but because we managed to see a whole herd.
After the elephants both I and AK were really satisfied with the morning's pass and I felt that it couldn’t get any better. Even Cruella looked pleased! We stopped at a rest spot when the elephants had moved on and finally we could leave the jeep. We stayed at the rest area in 20 minutes and took the opportunity to eat a little. They had not much vegetarian food, but we managed to get hold of smoothies with bananas, yumi!!
After the break the bumpy ride continued to see more animals. On the road to Seronera we saw a female cheetah, together with two cubs, with the beautiful spotted black and yellow coat. Apparently it is common to see the cheetah because it’s active during the day to not have to compete with the cats that are active at night. It also has a dark stripe under and around the eye in order to mitigate the impact of sunlight. One particular thing that separates the cheetah from other cats is that they cannot withdraw their claws.
There we even saw servales. It is a medium-sized African cat. It hunts small preys such as rodents, hares and birds. Their need of water makes it impossible for them to live in deserts or semi-deserts. They are really cute animals and I just wanted to get closer and cuddle with them, but we had to continue and ended up on a very bumpy road. It was so bumpy that we had to take another route, but because of that we managed to see jackals and mongooses. Mongooses are small predators that live on the ground or in nests built under the ground. They apparently live mainly on the different kinds of insects. It was lucky that the road was so bumpy otherwise we had not seen those cute little animals!
Luckily the other way only took a little bit longer and we managed to take us to Seronera River which was one of the highlights of the trip. It’s because of this river that there are so many different kinds of animals in the area, because it’s filled with water all year. We could go next to the river and saw hippos, but after a while we managed to see a crocodile lying and sunning in the grass. One interesting thing that the guide told us about the crocodiles is that they only eat about once a week. After we had driven an hour we came to the main rest area in central Seronera, where we stopped for lunch. We received some form of bread, but it felt like a mix between pancakes and bread with vegetables, it was really good. Before we left, we took the opportunity and checked out some souvenirs in the store next to the lunch area. Cruella came out with a whole bag, of course. AK and I actually bought a respective t-shirt.
Maasai Kopjes and Retina Hippo Pool
The journey continued and we came to the Maasai Kopjes. It is an area with rocks and grass. There we could see rock badger. The cool thing was that we managed to see rock eagles, up close, which doesn't always happens according to the guide. In the afternoon we went to the last stop at Retina Hippo Pool. There we could once again see the hippos, but the cool thing this time was that we could leave the jeeps and move by foot and in that way we were able to watch and photograph hippos closer than we had done before, but we had to keep a distance because there could be crocodiles nearby. What I will remember most from Retina Hippo Pool was that Cruella managed to walk right in the hippo poo when she would go out and shoot one. She got extremely mad and stormed back to the jeep and the poor guide had to find out a pair of shoes and a bucket of water for her. Her stinking brand new shoes smelled disgusting in the jeep all the way back to the lodge, luckily we could open the windows ;) On the way to the lodge, where we stayed, we saw Grant's Gazelles that ran beside the jeep.
The journey continued and we came to the Maasai Kopjes. It is an area with rocks and grass. There we could see rock badger. The cool thing was that we managed to see rock eagles, up close, which doesn't always happens according to the guide. In the afternoon we went to the last stop at Retina Hippo Pool. There we could once again see the hippos, but the cool thing this time was that we could leave the jeeps and move by foot and in that way we were able to watch and photograph hippos closer than we had done before, but we had to keep a distance because there could be crocodiles nearby. What I will remember most from Retina Hippo Pool was that Cruella managed to walk right in the hippo poo when she would go out and shoot one. She got extremely mad and stormed back to the jeep and the poor guide had to find out a pair of shoes and a bucket of water for her. Her stinking brand new shoes smelled disgusting in the jeep all the way back to the lodge, luckily we could open the windows ;) On the way to the lodge, where we stayed, we saw Grant's Gazelles that ran beside the jeep.
After an hour we arrived at the Seronera Wildlife Lodge and I looked forward to the food and the sleep for the night. This lodge was very large and had many rooms, but like the hippo poo wasn’t enough, no, we were forced to face an even bigger challenge. Someone had forgotten to book the right number of rooms, so there were only two rooms available, which meant the guys had a room and we had to share a room with Cruella, yay!
Luckily the room was big otherwise we had pushed her out through the window, I think. When we were extremely tired after dinner we just wanted to take a shower and then sleep, but it was only one shower in the room and Cruella didn’t shower for just a little time! She was in there for one hour before she was ready, I nearly got crazy! The rest of the evening, we heard her whining over the bed and that she did not understand how she could be forced to share room with us. We did manage to get some sleep and only woke up by her loud snoring that made the whole room shake. Well, we survived the night and was pretty rested on the next adventures, if we compared with Cruella of course ;) // Emma
The third day of safari…
On the third day of our safari Emma and I began the day with trying to get Cruella up on time. The noble lady overslept again! And as we tried to call her name, her real name haha, she didn’t even move! Her poor husband, who probably has that problem every day… Anyway finally we managed and as we were sure that she was awake we left the room to get some breakfast.
As we sat in the jeep again, driving further north, we heard Cruella complaining to her husband how horrible the night had been. Emma and I smiled at each other and tried to hold back a laugh. This morning was it even hotter than the last few days and it felt like a thunderstorm were gathering. We saw lots of animals, but they all were moving and the guide told us that was the surest sign of an upcoming thunderstorm. The animals were moving to search for a safe place to hide while the storm passes and after some discussions with the drivers our guide told us that we should do the same.
We drove of the main road and followed a smaller one, right through the bushes. I didn’t worry too much about the upcoming thunderstorm because we saw so many animals! Both big herds and smaller groups, all moving in different directions to find protection. There were every kind of herbivores, lots of smaller animals such as jackals, hares and squirrels. Once we saw an African fox, but the guide told us we had no time to stop. I wondered why, because the sky still was bright blue with no clouds in sight, but the guide said that when the storm comes in sight you have barely any time to go somewhere before it’s over you. We accepted that, but still it was too bad that we had no time to stop.
On the third day of our safari Emma and I began the day with trying to get Cruella up on time. The noble lady overslept again! And as we tried to call her name, her real name haha, she didn’t even move! Her poor husband, who probably has that problem every day… Anyway finally we managed and as we were sure that she was awake we left the room to get some breakfast.
As we sat in the jeep again, driving further north, we heard Cruella complaining to her husband how horrible the night had been. Emma and I smiled at each other and tried to hold back a laugh. This morning was it even hotter than the last few days and it felt like a thunderstorm were gathering. We saw lots of animals, but they all were moving and the guide told us that was the surest sign of an upcoming thunderstorm. The animals were moving to search for a safe place to hide while the storm passes and after some discussions with the drivers our guide told us that we should do the same.
We drove of the main road and followed a smaller one, right through the bushes. I didn’t worry too much about the upcoming thunderstorm because we saw so many animals! Both big herds and smaller groups, all moving in different directions to find protection. There were every kind of herbivores, lots of smaller animals such as jackals, hares and squirrels. Once we saw an African fox, but the guide told us we had no time to stop. I wondered why, because the sky still was bright blue with no clouds in sight, but the guide said that when the storm comes in sight you have barely any time to go somewhere before it’s over you. We accepted that, but still it was too bad that we had no time to stop.
In the thunderstorm
It was still just morning but as hot as it had been during lunchtime the last days, and the air was so thick! Soon we saw thick, black clouds appear on the sky. At first they were far away but after just some minutes, in which we watched a lioness with two cubs running over the dry grass and vanishing behind a big bush, nearly the whole sky were covered with them. Now we didn’t saw any more animals, probably they all had found somewhere to hide. Cruella began to complain again but no one listened to her. We drove around a group of trees and in front of us was a small shed of wood. The first raindrops fell already as we left the jeeps and sought protection in the shed. And then the storm was over us, the rain just poured down and the wind made the whole shed shake.
It was still just morning but as hot as it had been during lunchtime the last days, and the air was so thick! Soon we saw thick, black clouds appear on the sky. At first they were far away but after just some minutes, in which we watched a lioness with two cubs running over the dry grass and vanishing behind a big bush, nearly the whole sky were covered with them. Now we didn’t saw any more animals, probably they all had found somewhere to hide. Cruella began to complain again but no one listened to her. We drove around a group of trees and in front of us was a small shed of wood. The first raindrops fell already as we left the jeeps and sought protection in the shed. And then the storm was over us, the rain just poured down and the wind made the whole shed shake.
It was over again as fast as it had begun. But the rain had left big puddles and the air felt cool and fresh. As we continued to drive everywhere around us the animals left their hiding places and came out into the sunshine. Now we had all time we wanted and the drivers stopped the jeeps as soon we saw an animal, and that happened often! What an activity it was! Inwardly I thanked the storm, because otherwise we probably wouldn’t have seen so many animals. First some hours later we met the first problem due to the storm. We drove down into a small valley and as we nearly had reached the bottom and were about to drive upward again the jeep stopped suddenly. At first we thought that there was an animal but then we saw the road in front of us, or more exactly we didn’t saw the road. Because down in the valley a small lake had formed! On the other side of it we could see the road appear again. Both the drivers left the jeeps and went to the water, to see how deep it was. As they came back they didn’t look very pleased but our guide told us that they would try to cross the water anyway. The drivers drove toward the water with high speed. Cruella screamed but no one reacted. There was water everywhere, but we got through!
After that, our safari continued without any more problems. We saw lots of animals and so many birds! As we drove past a smaller lake we saw two fully grown female elephants with their calves, who played in the water. They were so sweet! And later we managed to see the rare and endangered caracals! Our guide told the driver to stop and pointed at something golden brown in the grass some distance away. A catlike animal jumped up from the high grass, where it had been resting, and vanished into a nearby shrubbery with wide leaps. It was beautiful and looked a bit like a lynx but the guide told us that the caracals are only distantly related to the lynxes.
Night safari
Although we saw lots of different animals, we hadn’t yet seen the rhinoceros, the last of the big five, as we arrived at our last accommodation in the Serengeti. True, we hadn’t seen any leopard either, but since they’re active in the night that, wasn’t strange. We went to bed really early, about nine in the evening, because only a few hours later it was time for night safari! That was one of the absolute top experiences during the safari! We just got a few hours of sleep, before we once again were sitting in the jeep. We drove out of the camp and followed the same road as we had come on. At night it all looked so differently! Before we had just seen the Serengeti in bright sunlight and now it was looking like a familiar, normally colorful, photo in black- and- white. And everything was so quite! It was like traveling through a world where everyone except you are asleep. And in some ways it was just like that, because most of the animals were hidden somewhere to get some rest, as the guide told us.
After about five minutes we drove of the main road and followed a smaller, even bumpier, road instead and the guide told us that we were on the way to some observation place. On the journey there, which lasted about ten minutes, we just stopped once when we saw a group of hyenas eating from some bloody thing on the ground.
Although we saw lots of different animals, we hadn’t yet seen the rhinoceros, the last of the big five, as we arrived at our last accommodation in the Serengeti. True, we hadn’t seen any leopard either, but since they’re active in the night that, wasn’t strange. We went to bed really early, about nine in the evening, because only a few hours later it was time for night safari! That was one of the absolute top experiences during the safari! We just got a few hours of sleep, before we once again were sitting in the jeep. We drove out of the camp and followed the same road as we had come on. At night it all looked so differently! Before we had just seen the Serengeti in bright sunlight and now it was looking like a familiar, normally colorful, photo in black- and- white. And everything was so quite! It was like traveling through a world where everyone except you are asleep. And in some ways it was just like that, because most of the animals were hidden somewhere to get some rest, as the guide told us.
After about five minutes we drove of the main road and followed a smaller, even bumpier, road instead and the guide told us that we were on the way to some observation place. On the journey there, which lasted about ten minutes, we just stopped once when we saw a group of hyenas eating from some bloody thing on the ground.
The observation place was like a high building with big glass windows. We were there until the early morning hours and saw many animals. We had to be very quite because at the slightest movement the shy animals would vanish again. Even though Cruella apparently didn’t understand that, we managed to see many animals. We saw wild cats, mongooses and genets. Once we saw a honey badger with two, quite big cubs. We saw crested porcupines, aardvarks and bush babies, which are really small monkey-like animals.
The guide came and told us that we should leave soon, but just as he was about to leave us again to inform the others, something moved in the dark outside. First we saw nothing. Then we saw a shadow jumping down from a tree branch. The characteristic spots in the fur told us that it was a leopard. It was soo elegant as it carefully sneaked away in the dark. The guide was back and while we watched the leopard he told us a lot about them. From all the big felids the leopards are the stronges. They can carry really heavy preys while climbing a tree and they are strong swimmers and can run fast and leap wide and high. But they’re not nearly as fast as the gepards are. While a gepard can run up to 120 km/h a leopard can reach speeds of about 60 km/h. Leopards live alone in very big territories and only when mating they tolerate other individuals in their territory. In some manners those big cats are like our normal house cats, when they are angry they growl and when they are satisfied they purr. The guide told us also that leopards are the most difficult to see of the big felids and that we were lucky that saw one. Now we had seen all the animals of the big five except the rhinos and our mode were on top!
The last day and the last animal of the big five
We managed to get some sleep when we were back in our accommodation, before we once again and this time for the last time sat in the jeep. It felt a bit sad to know that our safari ended in just a few hours but then I thought of Australia, our next destination. It was like all the animals wanted to say goodbye to us, because there were animals everywhere. Haha, I think it was because of the rain the day before and not because of us, but it felt good anyway.
The guide had just told us that we would be in Bunda, were the safari would end, in about an hour, as the jeeps stopped. Just a small distance away two full grown rhinos stood and looked at the jeeps! They were really big, actually they are the second largest land mammal after the elephants, and looked dangerous with their characteristic horns on their noses. We just looked at them for a long moment and they looked back at us, before turning around and trotting away. The guide told us that there are five different species of rhinos. Two of them are Black Rhinoceros and White Rhinoceros but despite their names both species are grey in colour. He also told us that horses, zebras and tapirs are the closest living “relatives” to the rhinos, but I really can’t belive that… Anyway I really appreciated to have such a nice guide on the safari because we learned so much! And I hope that you learned something from reading about our adventures, haha… So finally we had managed to see those gigantic rhinoceros and thereby all the big five!!! Yey! :)
We managed to get some sleep when we were back in our accommodation, before we once again and this time for the last time sat in the jeep. It felt a bit sad to know that our safari ended in just a few hours but then I thought of Australia, our next destination. It was like all the animals wanted to say goodbye to us, because there were animals everywhere. Haha, I think it was because of the rain the day before and not because of us, but it felt good anyway.
The guide had just told us that we would be in Bunda, were the safari would end, in about an hour, as the jeeps stopped. Just a small distance away two full grown rhinos stood and looked at the jeeps! They were really big, actually they are the second largest land mammal after the elephants, and looked dangerous with their characteristic horns on their noses. We just looked at them for a long moment and they looked back at us, before turning around and trotting away. The guide told us that there are five different species of rhinos. Two of them are Black Rhinoceros and White Rhinoceros but despite their names both species are grey in colour. He also told us that horses, zebras and tapirs are the closest living “relatives” to the rhinos, but I really can’t belive that… Anyway I really appreciated to have such a nice guide on the safari because we learned so much! And I hope that you learned something from reading about our adventures, haha… So finally we had managed to see those gigantic rhinoceros and thereby all the big five!!! Yey! :)
The last animals that we saw on our safari were a smaller group of impala antelopes. Then the fantastic safari was over. We said goodbye to our travel group and gave Cruella a big hug who didn’t looked so pleased about it. Then we took a bus-like something from Bunda to Musoma. After a good, but early, lunch we went over Lake Victoria back to Entebbe with some speed-boat. Wow, it was so fast! But again we managed to get really late to the airport, haha :) Anyway right now we’re sitting on Entebbe airport waiting for our flight to Nairobi. This post got veeery long, but during those three days it has happened so much (hope you didn’t get bored)! I already miss to sit in the hot jeep and drive over a bumpy road and most of all I miss the animals. This was really a journey of a lifetime, sooo amazing!!! Next time you’ll hear from us when we’re going to be in Kenya! //AK