Jenn's Adventures in Africa (Tanzania- August, 2006)
Oct 2nd, 2006, 09:40 PM
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PB (Bill),
On that note of the batteries and the radio-collars.....you did mention that the batteries on lion collars die out after two years or so, what is the norm? Do they dart the animal again and replace the batteries? Is there a long term effect on the animals with all the tranqualizers that are injected for the purposes of research?
Thanks
Hari
On that note of the batteries and the radio-collars.....you did mention that the batteries on lion collars die out after two years or so, what is the norm? Do they dart the animal again and replace the batteries? Is there a long term effect on the animals with all the tranqualizers that are injected for the purposes of research?
Thanks
Hari
Oct 3rd, 2006, 08:19 AM
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Hari: there are big variances in available equipment and of course the purposes of a study. Battery life is dependent on the size/type of the battery so in general larger animals can carry longer lasting batteries. The best (most expensive collars) have special options built in that allow you to remote tranquilize which is an awesome feature -- basically you track the animal and when in sight you can just push a button that injects the animal right from the collar avoiding the stress of darting with a gun which can be difficult especially since you don't want the animal to associate people or the vehicle with the darting. Another feature is break away collars which can be programmed to drop off at a certain time or triggered again by remote. This way the researcher can recover the collar and not have to disturb the animal to do so.
If the study is longterm than yes the animal must be handled to change out the battery at whatever interval is necessary. Tranquilizing agents should not cause any long-term effect from multiple uses as it just has a temporary impact and works its way through. However, each time there is an element of danger as there is stress to the animal and there is always a possibility that the animal could suffer a bad reaction (rare), proper dosage is also critical. Then the animal must be protected during the recovery period since they are helpless until they get their wits back.
If the study is longterm than yes the animal must be handled to change out the battery at whatever interval is necessary. Tranquilizing agents should not cause any long-term effect from multiple uses as it just has a temporary impact and works its way through. However, each time there is an element of danger as there is stress to the animal and there is always a possibility that the animal could suffer a bad reaction (rare), proper dosage is also critical. Then the animal must be protected during the recovery period since they are helpless until they get their wits back.
Oct 4th, 2006, 06:41 AM
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Exactly Hari -- it's all about $$$. There is amazing satellite technology now that can track all kinds of things and well funded researchers are using it but as you saw first hand in Phinda there's still a lot of people using the wand and triangulating positions which is very labor intensive but still cheaper since us biologists will work for just about nothing.
Oct 4th, 2006, 06:58 AM
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Bill,
Treston told us that the research was done by KZN parks dept and Phinda was nice enough to allow them do the research in their property. Also, the research trip by Phinda guests is a way to help the research project. That to me was the highlight of the Phinda trip.
Hari
Treston told us that the research was done by KZN parks dept and Phinda was nice enough to allow them do the research in their property. Also, the research trip by Phinda guests is a way to help the research project. That to me was the highlight of the Phinda trip.
Hari
Oct 4th, 2006, 04:21 PM
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I'm still laughing over the bathroom rules. Until I read your trip report, all I worried about was that my roommate might snore. Now I'm afraid she might put me on bathroom restriction! I'll know in 5 days...
Oct 4th, 2006, 04:50 PM
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Nevermind- I'm glad you are enjoying the trip report, thanks for reading! I'd love to see Arielle's version myself 
Ann- I don't think most people put their roommates on bathroom restriction, so you should be okay
Leely- I haven't been feeling well this week, but I did just finish the next installment
Jenn
Ann- I don't think most people put their roommates on bathroom restriction, so you should be okay
Leely- I haven't been feeling well this week, but I did just finish the next installment
Jenn
Oct 4th, 2006, 04:51 PM
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August 16, 2006
All of this moving around every day is getting to me. We are supposed to be ready this morning to leave at 7, so I asked for a 5:30 wake up. I was already awake and I heard the guy walking down the path coming to wake me up, but I had a hard time actually getting up. I hate to be late though, so I make myself get up and hop in the shower. I have to say the rain head showerhead is very nice plus there is an abundance of hot water here, so I get out feeling very clean and refreshed.
We all manage to make it to breakfast on time and chose to sit outside again by the pool. The others all get omelets of some sort, but not me. I got tired of eating eggs about 5 days ago, so I just eat cereal and fruit. We get to see the sun rising over the hills which was very pretty. We are all ready to go on time, but then Susan has trouble paying for something she bought at the gift shop the night before, so we don’t get going until about 7:20. I secretly think Muro has been telling us we have to be ready earlier than we really need to be
We have a very long drive today all the way to Tarangire, so we hit the road running. Teri later tells us that she thinks Muro was driving too fast, but I was fine the whole time. We don’t make any stops and get back to the central part of the Serengeti in good time. We stop briefly at the gas station, but then we’re off again.
We’re not far from the gas station when we get a call from Godfrey on the radio. As they were leaving their lodge they found another leopard! I can’t believe how lucky they are. Muro tells us it’s a really good sighting too because it’s very close, plus it has a fresh kill up in the tree. We ask if we can go, but it’s too far in the opposite direction. Oh well, at least we saw one leopard Muro then hears on the radio about another leopard that it close to us, so he takes us to see that one. It’s a little closer than the one we saw yesterday, but we can’t see this one’s face. We take a few pictures, but we don’t stay long.
We continue on driving towards the Naabi gate. We stop when we see a few lions along the way, but they are hard to see in the tall grass. We finally make it to the gate and meet up with the Italians. The guides go to do whatever it is they do at these gates and we get to wander around a bit. We have learned that we will not be staying in the same lodge again tonight, so we all exchange addresses with each other. Soon enough it’s time to go, so we pile back into the jeep and hit the road.
We are visiting Olduvai Gorge today, so that is our first stop. We get plenty of time to look around the museum first. Then we go and listen to the brief lecture on the history of the gorge. It was all very interesting, but I am tired so I’m not paying close attention. The whole group has decided we would like to try and get some pictures of all of us together, so we gather everyone after the lecture. We ask some poor unsuspecting soul to take our picture and then shock him when we hand over a million cameras!
We’re back on the road soon enough and soon reach the Ngorongoro area. It’s clear today, so our group makes a quick stop at the rim so we can take some pictures. We continue on and finally reach the paved road again! Hooray!!!
As we are driving on the windy road through the Ngorongoro area we come upon a safari vehicle that has had a very bad accident. When we see it is off the road, upside down and all dented up. There are lots of Maasai sitting around guarding the vehicle, so Muro asks them what happened. They tell us that the driver of the vehicle came around the corner too fast and hit a Maasai that was walking on the road and then lost control. The vehicle flipped over 2 or 3 times and all six passengers plus the driver were injured. Also, the Maasai that the driver hit was killed. We feel bad for everyone
Seeing the accident reminds us that things can happen anywhere, even when on vacation. We all make sure our seat belts are buckled up for the remainder of the trip.
We continue on driving and soon make it to Karatu. Arielle and Susan would like to use the ATM, so Muro takes us to the bank. Unfortunately neither one is able to get any of their cards to work here, so it ends up being a stop for nothing. We meet up with the Italians for lunch and then continue on to Tarangire. It’s been a long day of driving, so I’m very happy when we make it to the Tarangire gate. Elephants are my second favorite animal, so I have really been looking forward to visiting Tarangire.
We head into Tarangire and the first thing we see is a pair of dik dik. One of them has a broken leg, but it somehow manages to get around fine on three legs. I had heard many stories about the elephant population at Tarangire, so I had these visions of elephants being everywhere. I’m a little disappointed when all we seem to see is zebra, zebra and more zebra at first. We finally find some elephants though, so then I’m happy.
We’re driving along when Muro suddenly stops and backs up. He points out to us that up in the tree is a dead baby zebra. He tells us it must be a leopard kill and it looks pretty fresh to him. We also spot a lone lioness hanging around in the tall grass at the bottom of the tree. We stay and watch the lion for a bit, but she doesn’t seem to be doing anything so we move on. We go and see the poachers hide and then it’s time to head to camp as it’s getting late.
We were supposed to stay at Maramboi Tented Camp, but of course that’s not where we are going! We had learned earlier in the day that we would be staying at Tarangire River Camp instead. At this point I’m so tired of driving that I really don’t care as long as there is a bed for me to sleep in
We arrive at Tarangire River Camp just as it’s getting dark, so we don’t really get a good look around, but we are met again with nice cold wash clothes and drinks. We all head up into the lounge area for our briefing about the camp. It’s close to dinner time, so they ask us if they can just drop our things off in our tents and then show us around after dinner, so we all agree. Dinner here was very good, especially the chicken they served.
After dinner we are shown to our tents and they are very nice. I am really tired tonight and I have another headache, so I’m rather quiet this evening. I’m feeling sad that our safari is ending too, so I’m not in the best mood. Muro wants to take us on another game drive in Tarangire tomorrow morning before we head to Arusha, so we have to be ready to go at 7 a.m.
I took a quick shower since I feel so dirty from all of the driving. Then I got most of my things packed up and ready to go for the morning. I want to take time and write a nice thank you note for Muro, so I go outside to sit on the porch so I can get all of my thoughts together. Arielle comes to join me, but she doesn’t last very long as she swears she hears something out in the bushes. She tells me I have to come in as well, but I just ignore her.
After I’m finished I’m come back inside and climb in bed. Arielle is very worried about sleeping here and is almost in a panic as we are going to bed. She really thinks that a lion will come in and eat us up and that is what she is most scared of. She has made me sleep closest to the door once again, so the lion can eat me up first (her words, not mine)
I try my hardest, but I can’t convince her that she is safe here. When I say to her “thousands of people come to East Africa every year and I’ve never heard of a lion coming into a tent in the middle of the night to eat them up” she responds to me “well, there is a first time for everything”. I am really exhausted, so I finally just give up and just fall asleep.
All of this moving around every day is getting to me. We are supposed to be ready this morning to leave at 7, so I asked for a 5:30 wake up. I was already awake and I heard the guy walking down the path coming to wake me up, but I had a hard time actually getting up. I hate to be late though, so I make myself get up and hop in the shower. I have to say the rain head showerhead is very nice plus there is an abundance of hot water here, so I get out feeling very clean and refreshed.
We all manage to make it to breakfast on time and chose to sit outside again by the pool. The others all get omelets of some sort, but not me. I got tired of eating eggs about 5 days ago, so I just eat cereal and fruit. We get to see the sun rising over the hills which was very pretty. We are all ready to go on time, but then Susan has trouble paying for something she bought at the gift shop the night before, so we don’t get going until about 7:20. I secretly think Muro has been telling us we have to be ready earlier than we really need to be
We have a very long drive today all the way to Tarangire, so we hit the road running. Teri later tells us that she thinks Muro was driving too fast, but I was fine the whole time. We don’t make any stops and get back to the central part of the Serengeti in good time. We stop briefly at the gas station, but then we’re off again.
We’re not far from the gas station when we get a call from Godfrey on the radio. As they were leaving their lodge they found another leopard! I can’t believe how lucky they are. Muro tells us it’s a really good sighting too because it’s very close, plus it has a fresh kill up in the tree. We ask if we can go, but it’s too far in the opposite direction. Oh well, at least we saw one leopard
Muro then hears on the radio about another leopard that it close to us, so he takes us to see that one. It’s a little closer than the one we saw yesterday, but we can’t see this one’s face. We take a few pictures, but we don’t stay long. We continue on driving towards the Naabi gate. We stop when we see a few lions along the way, but they are hard to see in the tall grass. We finally make it to the gate and meet up with the Italians. The guides go to do whatever it is they do at these gates and we get to wander around a bit. We have learned that we will not be staying in the same lodge again tonight, so we all exchange addresses with each other. Soon enough it’s time to go, so we pile back into the jeep and hit the road.
We are visiting Olduvai Gorge today, so that is our first stop. We get plenty of time to look around the museum first. Then we go and listen to the brief lecture on the history of the gorge. It was all very interesting, but I am tired so I’m not paying close attention. The whole group has decided we would like to try and get some pictures of all of us together, so we gather everyone after the lecture. We ask some poor unsuspecting soul to take our picture and then shock him when we hand over a million cameras!
We’re back on the road soon enough and soon reach the Ngorongoro area. It’s clear today, so our group makes a quick stop at the rim so we can take some pictures. We continue on and finally reach the paved road again! Hooray!!!
As we are driving on the windy road through the Ngorongoro area we come upon a safari vehicle that has had a very bad accident. When we see it is off the road, upside down and all dented up. There are lots of Maasai sitting around guarding the vehicle, so Muro asks them what happened. They tell us that the driver of the vehicle came around the corner too fast and hit a Maasai that was walking on the road and then lost control. The vehicle flipped over 2 or 3 times and all six passengers plus the driver were injured. Also, the Maasai that the driver hit was killed. We feel bad for everyone
Seeing the accident reminds us that things can happen anywhere, even when on vacation. We all make sure our seat belts are buckled up for the remainder of the trip. We continue on driving and soon make it to Karatu. Arielle and Susan would like to use the ATM, so Muro takes us to the bank. Unfortunately neither one is able to get any of their cards to work here, so it ends up being a stop for nothing. We meet up with the Italians for lunch and then continue on to Tarangire. It’s been a long day of driving, so I’m very happy when we make it to the Tarangire gate. Elephants are my second favorite animal, so I have really been looking forward to visiting Tarangire.
We head into Tarangire and the first thing we see is a pair of dik dik. One of them has a broken leg, but it somehow manages to get around fine on three legs. I had heard many stories about the elephant population at Tarangire, so I had these visions of elephants being everywhere. I’m a little disappointed when all we seem to see is zebra, zebra and more zebra at first. We finally find some elephants though, so then I’m happy.
We’re driving along when Muro suddenly stops and backs up. He points out to us that up in the tree is a dead baby zebra. He tells us it must be a leopard kill and it looks pretty fresh to him. We also spot a lone lioness hanging around in the tall grass at the bottom of the tree. We stay and watch the lion for a bit, but she doesn’t seem to be doing anything so we move on. We go and see the poachers hide and then it’s time to head to camp as it’s getting late.
We were supposed to stay at Maramboi Tented Camp, but of course that’s not where we are going! We had learned earlier in the day that we would be staying at Tarangire River Camp instead. At this point I’m so tired of driving that I really don’t care as long as there is a bed for me to sleep in
We arrive at Tarangire River Camp just as it’s getting dark, so we don’t really get a good look around, but we are met again with nice cold wash clothes and drinks. We all head up into the lounge area for our briefing about the camp. It’s close to dinner time, so they ask us if they can just drop our things off in our tents and then show us around after dinner, so we all agree. Dinner here was very good, especially the chicken they served.
After dinner we are shown to our tents and they are very nice. I am really tired tonight and I have another headache, so I’m rather quiet this evening. I’m feeling sad that our safari is ending too, so I’m not in the best mood. Muro wants to take us on another game drive in Tarangire tomorrow morning before we head to Arusha, so we have to be ready to go at 7 a.m.
I took a quick shower since I feel so dirty from all of the driving. Then I got most of my things packed up and ready to go for the morning. I want to take time and write a nice thank you note for Muro, so I go outside to sit on the porch so I can get all of my thoughts together. Arielle comes to join me, but she doesn’t last very long as she swears she hears something out in the bushes. She tells me I have to come in as well, but I just ignore her.
After I’m finished I’m come back inside and climb in bed. Arielle is very worried about sleeping here and is almost in a panic as we are going to bed. She really thinks that a lion will come in and eat us up and that is what she is most scared of. She has made me sleep closest to the door once again, so the lion can eat me up first (her words, not mine)
I try my hardest, but I can’t convince her that she is safe here. When I say to her “thousands of people come to East Africa every year and I’ve never heard of a lion coming into a tent in the middle of the night to eat them up” she responds to me “well, there is a first time for everything”. I am really exhausted, so I finally just give up and just fall asleep.
Oct 4th, 2006, 05:05 PM
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She made you sleep closest to the door "so the lion can eat you first"???!!!!
I'm still laughing. I can't imagine anyone over the age of 6 actually saying that.
I admit that one reason I wanted a roommate was because I thought it might be comforting to have another person in the tent when hearing animals outside, but I'm not considering a tent-mate to be lion fodder!
I'm still laughing. I can't imagine anyone over the age of 6 actually saying that.
I admit that one reason I wanted a roommate was because I thought it might be comforting to have another person in the tent when hearing animals outside, but I'm not considering a tent-mate to be lion fodder!
Oct 4th, 2006, 05:30 PM
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Ann- She made me sleep closest to the door on many occasions....LOL. She was VERY scared of lions in the night, she honestly thought they might come inside the tent. I'm just glad that we never heard anything that was actually scary during the night because I think she may have had a heart attack she was so nervous about it.
Jenn
P.S. I hope that you have a wonderful trip!
Jenn
P.S. I hope that you have a wonderful trip!
Oct 5th, 2006, 04:51 AM
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How awful for the poor Maasai man and that driver - it's hard to imagine sometimes that a pedestrian would get hit out in the middle of nowhere. Our guide was awakened during the night to go help get some people out of a over turned vehicle that slid down an enbankment next to the road heading from the Sopa to the main gate. At least one person was fatally wounded.
As for Arielle, I would have been tempted to attach fresh meat to her headboard after she fell asleep - she's a trip - too funny.
Sherry
As for Arielle, I would have been tempted to attach fresh meat to her headboard after she fell asleep - she's a trip - too funny.
Sherry
Oct 5th, 2006, 05:26 AM
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Sherry,
I was very sad for the Maasai and his family Apparently the Maasai didn't want help the driver of the vehicle because of the situation and that was one of the reason's they were guarding the vehicle so closely when we came by. We never heard if anyone else died in the accident, so I hope that everyone else was okay. It certainly was a wake up call for us and we buckled up the rest of the trip.
Jenn
I was very sad for the Maasai and his family
Apparently the Maasai didn't want help the driver of the vehicle because of the situation and that was one of the reason's they were guarding the vehicle so closely when we came by. We never heard if anyone else died in the accident, so I hope that everyone else was okay. It certainly was a wake up call for us and we buckled up the rest of the trip. Jenn
Oct 5th, 2006, 06:38 AM
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August 17, 2006
I wake up at 4 am this morning to Arielle yelling “Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn”. I can tell it’s early because it’s still pitch black out, so I can’t imagine why she is calling my name. It takes me a few seconds to process what is happening, but I finally ask her what is wrong. She is in a panic and tells me she keeps hearing noises. She is convinced there is a lion inside the tent and actually says we are going to die! I don’t hear anything, so I am convinced she is crazy at this point!
She continues to yell at me “don’t you hear that?” over and over. I finally tell her to be quiet so I can listen. I listen for a few seconds and I don’t hear anything at first. I finally I hear something rustling in the grass outside, but it could be just the wind. I grew up riding and I hear that familiar sound “Brrrrrrrr” sound that horses make through their noses, so know it must just be a zebra. All of this fuss and it is zebra outside grazing on the grass!
I am not happy at this point so I tell her to please be quiet now so I can go back to sleep and next time she thinks she hears something “inside the tent” switch on her darn light and have a look around herself. She does apologize for waking me up, but tells me that because it took her 10 or 15 times of saying my name before I answered she thought I was already dead! Now how something could have got inside and killed me without her knowing or hearing anything is beyond me.
Arielle apparently has no trouble falling back asleep, but I never managed to. I finally just get up at about 5 a.m., take a quick shower and then head out to the lounge area. I’m in a grouchy mood and tired of traveling with Arielle, so I’m happy for the peace and quiet as I’m the only guest who is up so early. I meet the camp managers nephew and we have a nice conversation. He was brought up in Zambia and is really a nice guy. He laughs when I tell him the lion in our tent story, and I’m in a better mood by the time everyone else gets up.
We all eat breakfast together and are on the road right on time. On the drive to the park I ask Muro if he has ever seen leopards or cheetah here in Tarangire. He tells me yes and in fact he saw a mother cheetah with 4 sub adult cubs hunting the last time he was here. Then I ask him if he has ever seen zebra here. He laughs and answers “no, zebra are very rare here in Tarangire” We enjoy a nice game drive in the park seeing thompson’s gazelle, elephants, lions, dik dik, zebra and many others. We drive by the spot where we saw the leopard kill yesterday and see that a lot more has been eaten. There are two different kinds of eagles there picking at the carcass today, but it is hard to get pictures of them.
We leave the park by about 10 and start heading towards Arusha. Susan and Teri are catching the 2 p.m. shuttle back to Nairobi and Arielle and I are on the 3:20 flight to Zanzibar, so we have plenty of time. The Italians had an earlier flight as they are heading to Mozambique, so they left early this morning. We stop right before we get to Arusha to eat our last boxed lunch and then continue on our way.
On our way to Arusha we see another safari vehicle off the road. We stop to see if they need any help, but they are okay. Thankfully it was just a blown out tire and not a big accident this time. Everyone was okay and they had another vehicle there already to take the passengers.
We arrive in Arusha at about 12:30 and it’s just as bustling as when we left. The office has called Muro and asked him to bring us there before we leave so they can’t speak with us about all the changes in our itinerary. Arielle and Susan still need to get money, so he takes us to Barclay’s bank first. I decide to get some money out as well, so we all use the ATM with no problem’s. We also make a quick stop in Arusha at a shop so that Susan can buy some last minute T-Shirts.
My cell phone works here in Arusha, so I make sure to call my mom while I’m here to check in and because it’s her birthday tomorrow. It’s very early on the west coast, so I just get the answering machine, but I leave her a message telling her I’m still alive and wishing her a happy birthday.
We finally make it to the office by about 1:30. Teri and Susan are worried about missing the shuttle bus, but apparently they have told them to stop and pick them up here. Teri is very upset at this point with all of the changes in our itinerary and things do not go well at the office when the lady gives an explanation. They end up shouting at each other and it’s not a very pleasant exchange.
The other lady gives Arielle and I our plane tickets to Zanzibar and tells Muro to take us to the airport. We are surprised when we learn that the plane leaves from the Kilimanjaro airport and not the one here in Arusha like we thought. It’s almost 2:00 by this point, so we need to get going! We say a quick good bye to Teri and Susan and are on our way to the airport. I’m nervous that we are going to miss our flight, but Muro says it’s no problem.
On the way out of town Muro sees his brother in law so he stops quickly and tells him when he will be back. We joke that he will have tell him what a crazy group of girls he had on safari this time! He smiles but says that we are very nice, fun girls and he will miss us. He says that he thinks should keep one of us here to be his second wife!
On the way to the airport it’s clear so we get a to see Mt. Kilimanjaro with is very pretty. We make it to the airport at about 2:40 and quickly unload all of our things. We give Muro a big hug and say thank you for everything. We have each wrote him a nice thank you note and put our tip inside, so we give him that as well. There is a big line of people just to get inside the airport, so we line up. The line moves slow, but we finally make it inside.
We must have the worst luck ever because when we get up to the ticket counter we learn that the flight to Zanzibar is full so we can’t check in! As we are standing there we meet two other families of 4 that are in the same predicament, so there are 10 of us total that don’t have seats on this flight. The flight to Zanzibar leaves on time without us and nobody is happy in this little group of 10.
Someone from Precision Air finally comes out to deal with all of us. He collects all of our tickets and tells us he will be back soon. We can’t really do anything but wait, so we all make ourselves comfortable. One of the families is from Canada and the other is from Germany. Both families are extremely nice and each have two older teenagers.
I sit and talk with the oldest child from the Canadian family. She is 18 and heading off the college this fall, so we talk about that. When she learns that I am a nanny she tells me that she grew up with a nanny too and always loved her nanny. She tells me that she had the same nanny for about 7 years when she was younger just like I have been with my current charges.
The fathers of the two families basically take charge of the situation and do all the negotiations. They try valiantly to get us to Zanzibar today, but in the end it doesn’t work out. For a while it looks like we might be getting a private charter flight, but that falls through because they can’t find a pilot to fly the plane. Then they say there is a flight from Nairobi that can stop and pick us up, but then it doesn’t have any free seats.
We are all tired of sitting around the airport, so we finally give up on getting to Zanzibar tonight. We all agree to stay at the Kia Lodge with meals included and have confirmed seats on the 11 a.m. flight tomorrow morning. Nobody is very happy to be staying the night here instead of Zanzibar, but at least the Kia Lodge is very close to the airport. I tell the airline they have to give Arielle and I separate rooms so I can have a peaceful night
I don’t know what to expect, but am pleasantly surprised when we arrive the Kia lodge. It’s very nice here and the staff is very friendly. We all get checked in and I am ecstatic to have my own room! The rooms are very nice as well and they even have A/C. It’s not really hot here, but I turn on the A/C just because I can.....LOL.
I sit in my room and think about what I should do now that we didn’t get to Zanzibar today, since we will now only have 2 nights there. I don’t really want to go, but am not sure what else I would be able to do if I stayed in Arusha. Also, since my flight leaves from Dar Es Salaam, I would need to get there on Sunday. I’m just so tired of moving every single night, I just want to stay in one place!
I finally go see what Arielle is up to and we talk about what we should do. I tell her that I don’t want to go to Zanzibar and she asks what I will do instead. I tell her I am happy to just stay here for the next 2 night and relax. She is tired of moving every night, but she doesn’t want to stay in here or in Arusha. I tell her she should just go to Zanzibar alone, but she says she can’t go by herself. I ask her why and she says that her parents told her she wasn’t allowed to travel by herself and that’s one of the biggest reason’s she is traveling with me.
I can’t believe it as I didn’t realize this before. Now I understand a lot of her behavior and see why her parents have called so many times while we have been here. I am at a loss for words as I have always been so independent and would never let my parents tell me what I could and could not do at this age. Not to mention my parents have always encouraged me to travel and experience new places even if it meant going on my own.
We decide to go eat dinner because it’s getting late. We see the other two families that missed the flight and say hello. I am really hungry and I thought the food was quite good, but Arielle didn’t like it, so she didn’t really eat anything. Things are a little tense between us because of our differences in opinions on what to do with the next two days. I don’t see what the big deal is if we split up since we are both grown ups here, but Arielle is against it. We finally decide we will get a good night of sleep and then decide what we want to do in the morning.
I wake up at 4 am this morning to Arielle yelling “Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn”. I can tell it’s early because it’s still pitch black out, so I can’t imagine why she is calling my name. It takes me a few seconds to process what is happening, but I finally ask her what is wrong. She is in a panic and tells me she keeps hearing noises. She is convinced there is a lion inside the tent and actually says we are going to die! I don’t hear anything, so I am convinced she is crazy at this point!
She continues to yell at me “don’t you hear that?” over and over. I finally tell her to be quiet so I can listen. I listen for a few seconds and I don’t hear anything at first. I finally I hear something rustling in the grass outside, but it could be just the wind. I grew up riding and I hear that familiar sound “Brrrrrrrr” sound that horses make through their noses, so know it must just be a zebra. All of this fuss and it is zebra outside grazing on the grass!
I am not happy at this point so I tell her to please be quiet now so I can go back to sleep and next time she thinks she hears something “inside the tent” switch on her darn light and have a look around herself. She does apologize for waking me up, but tells me that because it took her 10 or 15 times of saying my name before I answered she thought I was already dead! Now how something could have got inside and killed me without her knowing or hearing anything is beyond me.
Arielle apparently has no trouble falling back asleep, but I never managed to. I finally just get up at about 5 a.m., take a quick shower and then head out to the lounge area. I’m in a grouchy mood and tired of traveling with Arielle, so I’m happy for the peace and quiet as I’m the only guest who is up so early. I meet the camp managers nephew and we have a nice conversation. He was brought up in Zambia and is really a nice guy. He laughs when I tell him the lion in our tent story, and I’m in a better mood by the time everyone else gets up.
We all eat breakfast together and are on the road right on time. On the drive to the park I ask Muro if he has ever seen leopards or cheetah here in Tarangire. He tells me yes and in fact he saw a mother cheetah with 4 sub adult cubs hunting the last time he was here. Then I ask him if he has ever seen zebra here. He laughs and answers “no, zebra are very rare here in Tarangire”
We enjoy a nice game drive in the park seeing thompson’s gazelle, elephants, lions, dik dik, zebra and many others. We drive by the spot where we saw the leopard kill yesterday and see that a lot more has been eaten. There are two different kinds of eagles there picking at the carcass today, but it is hard to get pictures of them. We leave the park by about 10 and start heading towards Arusha. Susan and Teri are catching the 2 p.m. shuttle back to Nairobi and Arielle and I are on the 3:20 flight to Zanzibar, so we have plenty of time. The Italians had an earlier flight as they are heading to Mozambique, so they left early this morning. We stop right before we get to Arusha to eat our last boxed lunch and then continue on our way.
On our way to Arusha we see another safari vehicle off the road. We stop to see if they need any help, but they are okay. Thankfully it was just a blown out tire and not a big accident this time. Everyone was okay and they had another vehicle there already to take the passengers.
We arrive in Arusha at about 12:30 and it’s just as bustling as when we left. The office has called Muro and asked him to bring us there before we leave so they can’t speak with us about all the changes in our itinerary. Arielle and Susan still need to get money, so he takes us to Barclay’s bank first. I decide to get some money out as well, so we all use the ATM with no problem’s. We also make a quick stop in Arusha at a shop so that Susan can buy some last minute T-Shirts.
My cell phone works here in Arusha, so I make sure to call my mom while I’m here to check in and because it’s her birthday tomorrow. It’s very early on the west coast, so I just get the answering machine, but I leave her a message telling her I’m still alive and wishing her a happy birthday.
We finally make it to the office by about 1:30. Teri and Susan are worried about missing the shuttle bus, but apparently they have told them to stop and pick them up here. Teri is very upset at this point with all of the changes in our itinerary and things do not go well at the office when the lady gives an explanation. They end up shouting at each other and it’s not a very pleasant exchange.
The other lady gives Arielle and I our plane tickets to Zanzibar and tells Muro to take us to the airport. We are surprised when we learn that the plane leaves from the Kilimanjaro airport and not the one here in Arusha like we thought. It’s almost 2:00 by this point, so we need to get going! We say a quick good bye to Teri and Susan and are on our way to the airport. I’m nervous that we are going to miss our flight, but Muro says it’s no problem.
On the way out of town Muro sees his brother in law so he stops quickly and tells him when he will be back. We joke that he will have tell him what a crazy group of girls he had on safari this time! He smiles but says that we are very nice, fun girls and he will miss us. He says that he thinks should keep one of us here to be his second wife!
On the way to the airport it’s clear so we get a to see Mt. Kilimanjaro with is very pretty. We make it to the airport at about 2:40 and quickly unload all of our things. We give Muro a big hug and say thank you for everything. We have each wrote him a nice thank you note and put our tip inside, so we give him that as well. There is a big line of people just to get inside the airport, so we line up. The line moves slow, but we finally make it inside.
We must have the worst luck ever because when we get up to the ticket counter we learn that the flight to Zanzibar is full so we can’t check in!
As we are standing there we meet two other families of 4 that are in the same predicament, so there are 10 of us total that don’t have seats on this flight. The flight to Zanzibar leaves on time without us and nobody is happy in this little group of 10.Someone from Precision Air finally comes out to deal with all of us. He collects all of our tickets and tells us he will be back soon. We can’t really do anything but wait, so we all make ourselves comfortable. One of the families is from Canada and the other is from Germany. Both families are extremely nice and each have two older teenagers.
I sit and talk with the oldest child from the Canadian family. She is 18 and heading off the college this fall, so we talk about that. When she learns that I am a nanny she tells me that she grew up with a nanny too and always loved her nanny. She tells me that she had the same nanny for about 7 years when she was younger just like I have been with my current charges.
The fathers of the two families basically take charge of the situation and do all the negotiations. They try valiantly to get us to Zanzibar today, but in the end it doesn’t work out. For a while it looks like we might be getting a private charter flight, but that falls through because they can’t find a pilot to fly the plane. Then they say there is a flight from Nairobi that can stop and pick us up, but then it doesn’t have any free seats.
We are all tired of sitting around the airport, so we finally give up on getting to Zanzibar tonight. We all agree to stay at the Kia Lodge with meals included and have confirmed seats on the 11 a.m. flight tomorrow morning. Nobody is very happy to be staying the night here instead of Zanzibar, but at least the Kia Lodge is very close to the airport. I tell the airline they have to give Arielle and I separate rooms so I can have a peaceful night
I don’t know what to expect, but am pleasantly surprised when we arrive the Kia lodge. It’s very nice here and the staff is very friendly. We all get checked in and I am ecstatic to have my own room! The rooms are very nice as well and they even have A/C. It’s not really hot here, but I turn on the A/C just because I can.....LOL.
I sit in my room and think about what I should do now that we didn’t get to Zanzibar today, since we will now only have 2 nights there. I don’t really want to go, but am not sure what else I would be able to do if I stayed in Arusha. Also, since my flight leaves from Dar Es Salaam, I would need to get there on Sunday. I’m just so tired of moving every single night, I just want to stay in one place!
I finally go see what Arielle is up to and we talk about what we should do. I tell her that I don’t want to go to Zanzibar and she asks what I will do instead. I tell her I am happy to just stay here for the next 2 night and relax. She is tired of moving every night, but she doesn’t want to stay in here or in Arusha. I tell her she should just go to Zanzibar alone, but she says she can’t go by herself. I ask her why and she says that her parents told her she wasn’t allowed to travel by herself and that’s one of the biggest reason’s she is traveling with me.
I can’t believe it as I didn’t realize this before. Now I understand a lot of her behavior and see why her parents have called so many times while we have been here. I am at a loss for words as I have always been so independent and would never let my parents tell me what I could and could not do at this age. Not to mention my parents have always encouraged me to travel and experience new places even if it meant going on my own.
We decide to go eat dinner because it’s getting late. We see the other two families that missed the flight and say hello. I am really hungry and I thought the food was quite good, but Arielle didn’t like it, so she didn’t really eat anything. Things are a little tense between us because of our differences in opinions on what to do with the next two days. I don’t see what the big deal is if we split up since we are both grown ups here, but Arielle is against it. We finally decide we will get a good night of sleep and then decide what we want to do in the morning.
Oct 5th, 2006, 07:40 AM
#78
I've never been lion bait before but you have! I am really enjoying your trip report. It's really fun reading about your adventures (and misadventures). It sounds like you had a great time even with the problems.
Would you use the same company if you were to return? It doesn't sound like to trip you paid for is the trip you took.
Cindy
Would you use the same company if you were to return? It doesn't sound like to trip you paid for is the trip you took.
Cindy
Oct 5th, 2006, 07:59 AM
#79
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Hari- I'm glad I can give you a good laugh It is quite funny now when I think about it, but at the time I was far less than amused.
Dennis- It still boggles my mind that she actually thought I was dead! How did she think anything could have got in there and killed me without her hearing anything? I told her it would have been her fault had I died anyway since I always had to sleep closest to the door
Cindy- I'm glad you are enjoying my trip report I wouldn't use the same company again simply because I wouldn't trust them to not mess up. We got to stay at some lovely places, but it was not fun to have to move every single night.
Jenn
It is quite funny now when I think about it, but at the time I was far less than amused.Dennis- It still boggles my mind that she actually thought I was dead! How did she think anything could have got in there and killed me without her hearing anything? I told her it would have been her fault had I died anyway since I always had to sleep closest to the door
Cindy- I'm glad you are enjoying my trip report
I wouldn't use the same company again simply because I wouldn't trust them to not mess up. We got to stay at some lovely places, but it was not fun to have to move every single night. Jenn
Oct 5th, 2006, 08:09 AM
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Jenn--
I'm interested in the particulars regarding the verbal exchange between Teri and the folks at the office during the debriefing session (what was the company, again? Go2Africa?) I understand the strong probability of one or two hitches in any given trip, but the number of changes for your group was ridiculous. What was the explanation, and was there any attempt to offer some sort of compensation? I agree with Cindy--the trip you took certainly was not the one you signed on for.
I'm interested in the particulars regarding the verbal exchange between Teri and the folks at the office during the debriefing session (what was the company, again? Go2Africa?) I understand the strong probability of one or two hitches in any given trip, but the number of changes for your group was ridiculous. What was the explanation, and was there any attempt to offer some sort of compensation? I agree with Cindy--the trip you took certainly was not the one you signed on for.
