For the record...I don't seem to be a really good blogger, or at least make posts in a timely fashion. I'll just blame it on IST - Indian Standard Time.
Lake Manyara and Ngorogoro Crater (aka the true Lion King)
Where did I stop last time? Oh yes, I posted just before my Ngorogoro/Lake Manyara weekend. SOOOO...the entire EWH group took a weekend trip to Ngorogoro Crater and Lake Manyara, which are both west of Arusha towards the Serengeti. We left on Saturday morning (June 19) and traveled to Karatu where we lodged. In five land rovers, 25 students embarked on a fun-filled weekend of animals, nature, and...more animals. On Saturday, for the day, we saw Lake Manyara - a mix of dense and sparse forest and wet and dry land - standing as the car drove with the rooftop up. As the air swept through my hair and the dust found shelter in it, I saw elephants, baboons, small monkeys (specifically white ones with black faces), flamingos, storks, wildebeest, zebras, giraffes and hippos. The elephants, specifically, were everywhere, which meant Ruvi was very happy. They traveled in small groups - parental elephants with the watoto elephants. (Watoto = children) Only once were they irate at our presence as they would pick up dirt from the road and throw it everywhere; however, I still love the elephants and were my favorite at Lake Manyara. The baboons were interesting because they could be identified by their flaming red butts, and the other monkeys I mentioned were known for their bright blue male specific area. (Pictures will be shown in due time) The hippos from afar look like gentle, rotund, and loving grandmothers, but up close they remind me of irate, old (and obese) men. I can definitely see at least ten people fitting in their ENORMOUS stomachs - but despite their obvious dangers to my life, I thought they were pretty amazing...from a far distance. Storks...well...they're everywhere. I did see a herd of zebras and wildebeest (did get an awesome panorama shot of them walking) - but this was only a small sample of the many more zebras and wildebeest I was to see that weekend. Giraffes...were also everywhere, but more exciting than seeing storks. Most of the giraffes seen would gracefully sit and slowly make 360 degree turns with their mouths as they chew. That is, they were always eating. (Swahili side note: twiga = giraffe). Lake Manyara, though, was (to put it simply) awesome - I loved the dense, wet forests. There is just something different about the greenery in the forested areas - it was refreshing, serene, and peaceful to be under a sky of trees and overhanging branches. The sparsely forested areas were more eerie and ominous - but fascinating to see at the same time. It was definitely a different kind of nature I had not seen before.
After going to Lake Manyara, the entire group returned to our lodging area for the rest of the evening. Some of us ventured out onto the road to see the town...fortunately my small group was not assaulted by random people calling us mzungus. Unfortunately, the town was not too exciting. The next morning (Sunday, June 20) we headed for Ngorogoro Crater.
Ngorogoro Crater was a volcano that imploded on itself and formed this massive crater and over thousands of years has enabled life to subsist at an altitude of 1400 m. Again, my group insisted we stand up for the ride up the Crater, which was amazing - it was morning and the breeze was cool but not too cold for the most part. Our driver sped along the road, providing us a makeshift roller coaster while we began to dissect the massive crater through the fog. The fog tended to inhibit our vision and the whole area just seemed cryptic and mysterious; but we saw spots of the sun creeping through the clouds onto the crater's rim and down the slopes. Animals were initially sparse - we saw many antelope, wildebeest, and zebras. We spotted an ostrich and hyena from a far distance. The morning portion of the trip was mostly looking at wildebeest, zebras, and zebra butts - zebras really love to show off their butts - it's a little awkward (but hyyyyy-larious). Antelope and dik dik could also be seen everywhere. We also saw more hippos and such; however, ftw, as we left the crater, we saw...(drum rolllllllllllllll)....LIONS. Yes, two lions came right near our safari car seeking shade from the cars. It was truly epic.
(Side Note: Wildebeest intelligence versus Zebra intelligence - Zebra ftw).
As we left the crater, we went up and through a densely forested portion of the crater's slopes. The most memorable moments were viewing the expansive images of the crater as we continued to ascend the crater. At each moment we saw a different view, a different perspective, and a different component of the crater. As our group dodged the prickly thorns of the acacia trees, we observed a once in a lifetime spectacle of nature - a diverse but little version of nature that cannot describe what we saw with justice. If only Rombo hospital would let me upload pictures with my flashdrive.
In one word, Ngorogoro Crater was phenomenal. Perhaps it was because I find great joy out of seeing something real, original, and natural; however, it was something beautiful and untouched - something we rarely find today - and I can't put into words how much I enjoyed those hours looking at what many of us just imagine seeing in our lifetime. I will soon post pictures and continue posting - at a more regular basis.
Kwaheri! (Bye!)
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