I didn't know what to expect from a Safari. Being in Tanzania it was a must, anyway (10 % of Tanzania's total expanse is a conservation area).

But then, I really enjoyed it. So, on September 2nd, refreshed after a restday in the "Springland Hotel" in Moshi we started the trip via Arusha towards Lake Manyara. We, meaning an Australian couple from the Island of Tansmania and me. All my German friends had left already, either back to Zanzibar or Germany.

But before we arrived at Lake Manyara the torture began. The roads towards Lake Manyara are so bad, that the average speed is reduced to 15 - 20 mph with bump after bump after bump.

At 1:30 p.m. we stopped at our camping site for the day and left our cook there. After a drink we finally started our safari. Entering the Lake Manyara Park with our Safari Bus (extendable roof) we've been astonished about how close we got to action. Elephants, Giraffes, monkeys and some of the 380 species of birds which live there. The Lake Manyara National Park is an area of some 325 km², mostly forested. There are natural barriers on two sides, on the west side a 700 m high wall at steep hills, and on the east side the Lake Manyara.

That changed next morning when we left camp to drive to the "Serengeti"-National Park. But, before we got the enjoyment, we suffered a lot from the roads, which got even worse. Nevertheless, at 2:00 p.m. we passed the gate into the Park. And there we got the real "Safari" experience. Now it was really important to watch out to see some the more rare animals: lions, leopards or rhinoceros. We saw giraffes, elephants; the animals we have seen the day before, but we just couldn't find the kings of the animals, the leopards and lions for which we've been "especially" looking for. But at the end we got more than lucky: just 15 m away from us we found two female lions sleeping in the high grass and their 4 cups playing around them. Shortly after we arrived - just like ordered - the four kids changed their playing ground to a 2 m high rock where they've been exposed to our eyes and the cameras. They just didn't care about us, and played their games. This was really touching all of us. We called it a day and drove back to camp where our cook had prepared a delicious meal. Being very tired, we went to bed early, but .......how can you sleep in the middle of Serengeti in a tiny tent not guarded by Rangers? And the lions roaring around you?

We survived the night and spent next morning further exploring Serengeti. The highlight was 2 Simbas walking right next to our bus, tired and not caring about us. Nevertheless, the "Zoo" feeling from Lake Manjara vanished, here you really had to look around to see something. Serenget National Park is roughly the size of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany, with some 14763 km². And together with the other conservation zones around Serengeti, the area is as big as the Netherlands.

After Lunch we packed our stuff and left for the last Safari-Highlight: Ngorongoro-crater. It is the worlds biggest crater not filled with water and has a diameter of 16 km, and area of some 250 km². The rim is at an altitude of 2.250 meters, with the bottom of the crater being 600 meters lower. But even in this crater full of animals we couldn't find two animals we've been looking for the whole time: we couldn't see a Leopard (but a cheetah) and the Rhinoceros just didn't get out of the high grass.

To summarize, I didn't really have any expectations, but the Safari was something really exciting. If you go to Tanzania to climb up Kilimanjaro, try to get some time for a Safari afterwards. I have spent 4 days, and thought that it was a good time frame.

Home