Safari Zuri

Due to an intense observational campaign and a 4 day Safari, this blog has been found lacking. I'll cover the Safari here, because it is most recent, and will follow later with a post describing our recent observational exploits, including going to sea 8 of 10 consecutive days.

My guide met me at the Kilimanjaro airport, and brought me to a basic campsite with an incredible view of Rift Valley and Lake Manyara. The electricity was out, but still our cook was able to create some delicious spaghetti with meatballs, and an opportunity to meet my (first) Safari partners. A pair of Dutch girls and a middle-aged German couple were going to travel through Ngorogoro Crater with me the following day.

We awoke early, and slipped out after some eggs and pancakes. Before 9am, we got our first view of the crater’s huge plain with dotted lakes as we descended to the floor. We soon saw cumba (warthogs), though gazelles, wildebeests, and zebra were quick to follow.

It was so much fun, just to drive around a look for stuff. Before lunch, I had seen baboons, some far-off lions, ostriches, a cheetah, an elephant, hyenas, and countless flying birds. We actually lunched next to the hippo pool, dodging the hawk-like kites trying to steal our food. The afternoon gave two rhino sightings, some closer lions, as well as all the other above animals. Our car was the first to sight one of the rhinos, which gave our guide something to brag about in Kiswahili to all the other drivers.

We made it back to camp around sunset, with another delicious dinner ready for us and a decent acrobatic show as entertainment. The next morning was Lake Manyara, a heavily forested National Park providing much closer animal viewings. Baboons, impala, and Giraffes were the standard, with some lucky elephant sightings as well; Giraffes are definitely my favorite.

After a stop off at the hippo pool, we left the park and returned for a hot lunch in camp. In the small town nearby, I haggled down some souvenirs and bade farewell to my car. My afternoon was spent on bicycle safari, taking me through herds of zebra and wildebeests before a banana beer in a mud-brick bar.

On the back of a motorcycle, I found my second camp and group. This time only a younger Italian couple woke with me the next morning to travel to Tarangire National Park. It was so nice, to see such different terrains each day, this time with dry hills and dotted baobab trees forcing the Tarangire River to snake through the region. It was that morning that I realized lions aren’t that cool; they’re so lazy, even when delicious-looking zebra are less than 100 meters away. 

Following my own lunch, a group of elephants passed AROUND the truck, prompting me to bring myself down from the moon roof and take pictures through the windows (elephants are HUGE and kind of scary). We followed this group down the river as they dug for water, sprayed mud on each other, and picked at grass along the bank. On our way out, we saw a lion eating a zebra.

I again exchanged emails and said goodbyes, before catching a local bus into town with my guide. He found me a place to stay, and met me the following morning for a walking safari through Arusha National Park.

The hike was beautiful, though sparse with animals. I guess it is a positive the Ranger assigned to me didn’t have to use the rifle assigned to her, but some excitement would have been nice. After some water buffalo, a waterfall, and a tree big enough to drive through, I found the exit and some Nyama Choma for lunch.

The flight back to Zanzibar gave me a beautiful view of Stone Town during the sunset, where I was able to point out to my single-serving friend each of the islands near town.

Somethings Interesting:
-Arusha is very touristy, and going on Safari is very easy. While I believe regions of the Serengetti are still remote (and too far for my few days), the parks I went to had daily visitor numbers comparable with Yosemite or Yellowstone.

-I have taken accustomed to rolling my eyes back in my head to only show the whites to local children who are starring at me (e.g. when entering a restaurant). I figure, give them something to stare at, and they normally find it funny.

-Haggling is an art, and I only have amateur status. My best advice; (1) always be astonished by the first price; (2) hold the amount of money you are offering in your hand; this lets the person see it; (3) realize that you don’t have to buy anything.

-I love the moment while traveling, where I awake from dozing off, and realize, “Oh ya, I’m in a truck returning from Tarangire/a boat returning from Chumbe Island/a dala dala returning from Jambiani.”

Adventures and Siestas in Vallemí

So I have decided to write another blog about Vallemi, expanding on some of the points from before, because the boat has taken almost a week to pick us up.

The first night was spent on the old boat still, the Cacique II. We were able to set ourselves up on the mattresses they were bringing, and fall asleep above and below a blanket of stars; the stars' reflection in the perfectly calm water provided those below us.

After awakening, and finding a nice Brazilian owned hotel, we adventured out into this town. Some friends adopted us at our request for some beer, and took us to a river nearby to enjoy it. The knee deep water separated us from Brazil, and I took my first steps in that country (note: I don't have the $100 Visa; please don't tell your local Brazillian embassy). Some food and more beer followed at our friends house, making plans to party that night. After a siesta, we took in the local discoteca, dancing with the locals.

The days since have been less productive, mainly focused around a single event, preceded and followed by siestas and reading; the heat will only allow us to do so much. One such day again, took us to the river. This time, however, my friend found a freshwater ray. He described the most pain he had ever felt in his life, and sped off on a motorcycle in pursuit of medicine. I followed on the bed of a truck to find him writhing back in bed at the hotel. He is fine now, but the foot does swell up in the intense heat.



The following day, we got a private tour of the cement factory. Again, there is no tourist industry, so we simply walked in, announced ourselves, and they gave us a young engineer to show us around. It was my first cement factory, so I was impressed by the size, noise, heat, and dust. Reading and siestas saved us from the intense 9am heat which followed the tour.

Yesterday, our adventure was underground, giving us respite from the heat. We went to some local caves with our "guide" showing us the way; he was really just our neighbor who had been there once before, and simply shouted instructions down from the surface. Once inside, it was pretty straight forward, with a series of tunnels which all came back to a central walkway. there were some giant roots hanging from the surface, and a couple of rooms with a large enough skylight to be allow ferns growing 40 feet below the surface. Despite attempts, we did not get lost and made it back to the surface in one piece. Reading and siestas followed.



Sometime between 3 and 7pm, the boat is coming to pick us up. While it is nice to move on, it has been a real restful couple of days here in Vallemi, Paraguay.

Somethings Interesting:

--There are more donkey carts than cars in Vallemi, though motorcycles rule. Everyone zips around on one, even to ages of 11 or 12.

--The cement factory employs 500 people in a town of 15,000. The Austrian machinist we are with describes similar factories in the states with barely 50-70 people doing the same work.

--At about 40cents each, empanadas are my main form of sustenance. My vegetarian travel partner is not so lucky. I have been taught how to make them and WILL be bringing them back to the states.

Rio Paraguay to Vallemí

I am now traveling with a New Yorker as we both wanted to float up the river. He speaks fluent Spanish, which is nice when traveling in rural areas. After our bus to Concepcion, we prepared for the first leg of the boat trip, a 30 hour journey to Vallemí.

This boat followed the same theme I have experienced so far in Paraguay; this is not a tourist country. The people around me are not making money off of me. I do not get fed the expensive, watered down version of a country.



For example, the cargo boat was loaded with bananas, onions, eggs, people, mattresses, refridegerators, desks, motorcycles, flour, sugar, peppers, gasoline, and some other stuff. Actually, it was two boats which were tied together, so as they could use both engines to push the same stuff. At each town, locals of all ages would come on the boat and take their alloted goods. Once the sun went down the second day, I helped out to see how difficult it was; the locals cheered me on, but I was glad it was dark and cool.

The river itself was gorgeous, and went through various transformations as the day went on. The night saw incredible stars, with perfect reflections in the glassy water. Dawn saw a fiery sky, and eerie mist floating up from the river. The day was bright and hot, but still perfectly calm and glassy. Dusk saw amazing sunsets before the bugs started attacking; these bugs included the countless mosquitos, moths, and some hand-sized version of houseflies I thought only existed in my nightmares.



Since then, we have left the boat, made friends with locals, played in the river, had days of reading, siestas, and a tour of the cement factory which employs the better part of Vallemi. All the while, the locals have been incredibly sharing, genuinely interested in where we come from, and excited to show us their country.

Somethings Interesting:

--Hammocks offer very little insulation. You have air all around you, with not but a thin piece of cloth. During the night, I require my sleeping bag.

--Their exists fresh water rays. My travel partner found this out while crossing the river to Brasil. Yes, he got stung, and yes, the only thing separating the two countries is a knee-deep river (and yes, smuggling occurs).

--The country of Paraguay is one of the only which has two national languages, Spanish and the indigenate Guarini. Spanish is stronger in the Capitol and (relatively) larger cities, while Guarini prevails in those small and remote areas.

--I continue to be openly stared at, especially by children. In the town where I helped them unload, I was resting with the adults and a pack of kids was staring at me from no more than four feet away. I barked at them, causing them to run off giggling.