TRAVEL BLOG December 6th, 2021 - SERENGETI SAFARI

 

12/6/21- Another place, another time zone. We fell back an hour when we landed in Tanzania, which is good to give us an extra hour of sleep. We sorely needed it as we wake up early to have our bags ready for checkout. They also agree to hold our suitcases as we’ll be back in a few days from our excursion.

Breakfast is at 7:30am, which has a nice wrap-around view of the street, although it’s raining quite a bit. They make Sharece fresh scrambled eggs and have veggie pizza and fruit on buffet. Once done, we meet with our driver for the African Serengeti safari (from Monkey Adventures). When looking for a guide did our research to find just the right one as we wanted a private tour. It did cost more, but we were able to customize what we wanted and all meals and lodging are included. A small price to pay to enjoy going out into the wilderness.

The drive takes several hours to get to the Serengeti, plus an added thirty minutes to change a flat tire during the drive. The driver takes care of everything as he was quick, and we didn’t even need to get out of the vehicle. It was impressive to see how efficient that was.

We stop for lunch around 12:30pm and picnic outside of the Ngorongoro crater, which we’ll visit more in the days to come, but was able to see the entire crater from up top along with some zebra. We’re given a box lunch with kabobs, chicken, rolls, juice and fruit. I’m not sure what I was expecting but it went beyond that expectation for sure. Our driver warned us about the birds in the area that like to take food out of your hand, so we're careful to block our food when we see a bird circling around. The other group that was there wasn’t so lucky as it swooped down at them twice. I feel bad for rooting for the bird but it was pretty funny.

At 2pm we enter the gaming zone and begin our quest. First up was the giraffe, which already hit one of our top animals to see. Farther down we run into some gazelles and emu as they jump in front of the vehicle to cross the road. Already we’re feeling fortunate as getting up close to these animals is exactly why we chose this tour, but it wasn’t until we see the lions that we feel complete. It was so cute as the mom lion returns to her cubs from who knows how long and rubs up against the dad lion. We’re in awe over this reunion as we can’t believe what we are witnessing.

Then, an elephant herd crosses through the vehicles as some kick up dirt into the air as if about to charge. Luckily, they continue their walk without any issues, but some of the other drivers were concerned for sure. We continue to see packs of wilderbeest, warthogs and such before leaving the park as the sun begins to set.

We end the day at our tented camp of Tukaone where we're warmly greeted and served dinner. The camp is smack in the middle of the Serengeti, so we're asked to be cautious at night when leaving our tent. Oh and when I say tent I mean it is maxed out like a suite, with a large canopy bed and private bathroom.

What a fantastic day as this was much more than I’d hoped to get. The drive was rocky at times as he sped through the dirt road throughout the trip, but it was all necessary to get to where we wanted to go. I’m so happy for this safari and can’t believe we still have two days left of it.

Side Note: Nobody in Tanzania wears a mask (except for the hotel staff).