Safari Day 2

Breakfast was supposed to be at 05:30 but the hotel/inn is Tanzanian so it was not ready quite on time. Somehow there wasn’t enough food at once either, even though we had paid for and reserved the breakfast. Something I’ll have to keep in mind while traveling.

We didn’t get to the park until about 07:00 (~ 1 hr after sunrise) and I was itching to get going. Although we saw many of the same creatures today, most were closer to us and I think I got some great photos of elephants, giraffes, zebras, Cape buffalo, impala, ad wildebeest. Unfortunately the warthog was too far away from our van (& I didn’t have my camera out yesterday when we saw them) so the only picture I have is the one Gene took. But I did see a couple of bushbucks! These ungulates are about the size of key deer and not very common to see. I also saw a carcass that I think was an eland but didn’t see any live ones. The other van didn’t see the bushbucks but did spot a jackal. Birds we included shrikes, black-billed bustards, hornbills, Egyptian goose, tawny eagle, superb starlings, blacksmith lapwing, white-faced whistling ducks, yellow-billed oxpeckers, doves, and marabell storks. That is, if we identified them correctly using Eula’s African Wildlife book. At one point we went into a very steep ditch that would be a creek if it had rained (think arroyo). Normally, the short rainy season starts in the beginning of October but we hadn’t had any rain. No rain meant we could get to the other side and a really big tree. Naturally, many of us climbed it. The tree was at a designated camping site and there was a buffalo skull there with a note stuck inside it. Eric wrote another note w/ clues or a map to some “treasure” – some money they stashed somewhere.

On the ride home, we saw another accident but luckily the injured had already been carted off. I am not looking forward to the time(s) when I will have to deal with the carnage of an accident here. Our spare time from yesterday popped so it had to be replaced w/ the spare from the other van. Glad it didn’t pop in the park and that someone had the foresight this time to rotate the tires so the spare was in the back where there are 2 tires, which would help if that spare blows (since we didn’t have any more spare tires left).

I was exhausted at home but showed my family some pictures on the digital camera and did some lesson planning. I got to talk w/ my parents tonight too. While on the phone, the power went out so my dad said that’s what I get for going to the 3rd world – and he’s right lol. It also rained tonight! The sound and cool, fresh breeze were refreshing. Before bed, I watched one of my sisters make maandazi, small pieces of fried dough. I would like to try baking the dough when I get to site, instead of frying it in oil.