One thing I had to do during my time in Tanzania was go on a Safari. I wanted to see with my own eyes what I’d seen on television and in books so many times before. I had booked a three day trip that would show me a local Maasai village, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Lake Manyara.
My trip started with a four hour car ride from the volunteer house to the Maasai village. Here I met some of the local people, saw their homes, learned about their way of life and how they’re adapting to modern times. We met people from all over the village, from the chief with thirty wives to all the children, many of whom were working with the goats and cows. It was amazing to see such a different way of life with my own eyes, a personal highlight for me was seeing some Baobab trees with their vast water storing trunks swelling to hold enough water to get through the dry season.
From the village we continued in the car for a short while until we reached the camp site, our base for the next two nights. At the camp site we were provided with brilliant food, a swimming pool and hot showers, making it the perfect place for us to recover from the days of game driving.
The next morning saw a relatively early start as we set off to reach the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. This was the place I was most excited to see on my trip as it is somewhere I studied extensively at school back in the UK. Having read about the area before visiting I had high expectations, these were instantly met as soon as we entered the large crater. The animals were everywhere meaning that my guide Ben was constantly having to stop the car to let me observe and take photos of my stunning surroundings. By the time we stopped for lunch I’d already seen four of the most famous animals in the park, the buffalo, lion, rhino and elephant. From the lunch spot we drove back through the conservation area, getting up close and personal with more animals until we reached the view point on the crater rim. Here we could see the entire crater in all its glory, it was certainly worth all the driving!
On the way home we stopped off at some local shops, this allowed me to see regional products and even meet the people who were making them, see their tools and the processes that all the crafted items go through.
The final day started with a very short drive to the Lake Manyara national park. Here I was hoping to see giraffes and some elephants. Once again I wasn’t disappointed, soon after entering the park we saw two male elephants fighting in the forest. Just around the corner from them we were greeted by a herd of giraffes and shortly after that we saw a family of elephants, including a young calf walking through the forest. Along with these animal sightings we were treated to striking views of the lake and saw many of the local water birds. After this it was back to the campsite for our final hot lunch, and then the drive back to Moshi.
I would strongly encourage anybody visiting Tanzania to visit some of the safari spots and really appreciate the animals in their natural habitats. A special thanks to my driver and guide Ben, without his experienced eye I wouldn’t have even spotted half of the animals I managed see!
We had chosen a three day volunteer’s safari, containing of a visit to the Masai village, N’gorongoro crater and Lake Manyara. On friday five excited people climbed into the 4×4 driven Land Rover. We were heading to the west, through Arusha aiming for our first stop, the Masai village.
The third day was also filled with game watching. This day with a different terrain, because we were heading to Lake Manyara and the jungle. It almost felt like we were in the movie “Planet of the Apes”, since baboons and monkeys were everywhere. Here we could also see the giraffes, which are not living in the crater.
Art in Tanzania Blog 