For the Love of Tapas

The past few days have been spent in tapas heaven...oh...and we saw some more stuff here in Spain too.

After finishing our time in Madrid we boarded the high-speed train for Granada. There is nothing more civilized than zipping through the countryside at 200+ kmh while you enjoy a glass of wine in the club car. The scenery was also spectacular and changes quite a bit as you move further south. We were also pleasantly surprised by change in weather, and stepped off the train to a beautiful 23 C Mediterranean day.

We looked around briefly for the local buses, but decided to hoof it to the downtown instead. It turned out that the train station was only about 1 km from our hostel and we had enjoyed a pleasant walk along Granada's Gran Via. Its worth mentioning at this point that we're very glad we decided to buy backpacks with wheels on the bottom. Its much easier to pull a backpack behind you than hitch it on your back. Although wheeled luggage is definitely a no-no for chic travelers (only backpacks with shoes and water bottles hanging off will do), we're no longer care. We've only had to carry our packs five or six times on this trip, but we have used those wheels everywhere.

We quickly found our way to Hostel Antares. The manager was elated that we were from Canada as he is a huge fan of Bachman Turner Overdrive. Anyway...we settled in to our very nice room and set out immediately for tapas and wine. We managed to pull ourselves away from the restaurants long enough to see the Cathedral and a few other sights in the city. Granada is nestled at the foot of the snow-clad Nevada Mountains and was a sanctuary for Muslims after the fall of Cordoba and Seville. The Alhambra is really a commanding presence over the whole town and we had tons of fun wandering around the maze-like streets of the town.

At the manager's advice, we walked up the hill (a very big hill) at 7:30 in the morning to get our tickets into the Alhambra. Because of the large number of people who visit each day, entrance to Palacio Nazaries is tightly controlled and everyone is assigned a specific time. We would have booked tickets on the internet in advance if we had known. The manager gave us good advice though and we got to visit the palace at 8:30 a.m., well before the crowds.

The Alhambra is one of the greatest accomplishments of Islamic art and architecture in the Mediterranean. It is at once a fortress, a palace, and a maze of patios and gardens. The Alcazaba - the Alhambra's fortress - dates from the 11th to the 13th centuries and boasts spectacular views of Granada from its towers. The Palacio Nazaries was built for Granada's Muslim rulers and is the centrepiece of the Alhambra. The detail and intricacy of the stuccos and woodwork are really awe inspiring. We spent over 4 hours walking around the area taking picture after picture of carved stone and beautiful tiles. Then we headed back into town for sangria and tapas (again). We also ate some great Lebanese food at the Samarkanda restaurant.

We went to bed at a reasonable time so we could get up and catch a bus to Seville early in the morning; however being Saturday night, it didn't quiet down until 6:30 a.m. Oh well, we had a great breakfast and managed to head down to the bus station around 10:30 am. No need to buy tickets ahead of time here(love the public transportation!). We caught a noon bus and three hours later found ourselves in Sevilla.

We got a little lost trying to find our hotel in the old historic part of town. It is a beautiful city and the streets wind around every which way. Our hotel was down a busy street with no sidewalks. The door to the hotel opened off a cobblestone road approximately one foot from the traffic on the street (really). Fun trying to get luggage in and not get hit by cars.

Gradually, we started to "get" the layout of the crazy streets so that we could get to a tourist attraction and back without getting lost. Along the way we visited many impressive plazas and enjoyed looking in the shop windows. We also enjoyed the sangria and tapas.

Although we only stayed one night we did manage to see a lot. Seville's cathedral is primarily Gothic and it holds the honour of being the largest cathedral in the world (by floor area). Yeah, seriously, wow. It was built over-top of an ancient mosque. A tower adjoins the cathedral and is called La Giralda. It use to be the mosques minaret and dates from the 12th century. We climbed up the 37 floors to get to the top and see all around Seville.

We also visited the Alcazar and the nearby Starbucks. Okay, Susan and I really enjoyed finding Starbucks again. Anyway...the Alcazar was a residence of Muslim and Christian royalty for many centuries and was founded in 913 as a fortress. It has been updated over the centuries and is a real mishmash of styles. The gardens were beautiful and well, it is hard to find other words to describe some of these old buildings. A joy to be able to see inside and every bit as impressive as Alhambra in Granada

Oh, we also had more sangria and tapas.

My parents picked us up at 1:30 pm the next day and we headed to Lagoa, Portugal. Aidan had been driving us crazy for hours waiting for his grandparents so we were very happy to see them arrive. We are looking forward to being pampered for a few days in Portugal.

Real Madrid

Madrid is a magical city, and we have very much enjoyed playing
tourist here for the past few days. One of the best features of Spain
is the incredible food, and we made a point of visiting several
different restaurants for tapas. Most places have a set menu for
lunch (the biggest meal of the day) and then people eat tapas for
dinner. Typically, this includes small baguette sandwiches. Hams,
sausages and cheeses are important food products here and we really
enjoyed trying the different meats. We had our last dinner in Madrid
at the Museo de Jambon (yes, the Museum of Ham!).

Being in Europe, we knew it was going to be expensive, and we were right.
It is pricey here and I don't know how people manage to
eat out all the time (they do) and dress so nice. The one deal we did
manage was for accommodation. We originally looked into staying in a
hostel, but most were more expensive than the budget hotels, so we
ended up staying at the Best Western, in the centro for less than 50
Euros a night. It was within walking distance of everything.
Perfectly situated.

Yesterday we jumped on the double-decker tourist bus (ubiquitous in
every big European city) to see the sights. Madrid did not disappoint.
Our first stop was the National Museum. Interestingly, the Prince and
Princess of Spain were visiting the same time we were, so there was a
ton of extra security and sections were being closed off as the royal
party toured the exhibits. It took us about 2 hours to go into sensory
overload from all the paintings. We saw at least 20 masterpieces
during our wanderings, including works by Raphael, Titan, Caravaggio,
Goya, El Greco and Reubens. Aidan's favorite was The Triumph of Death
by Brueghel, which featured skeletons doing battle with people. All
that and we caught a glimpse of the future King and Queen of Spain.
Cool!

Our other big stop on the tour was the Royal Palace. After spending an
hour outside at a playground we journeyed back in time to the 17th and
18th century when Spain was still a colonial super-power. We enjoyed
seeing some incredible rooms (the throne room and the porcelain room
have not changed since 1755), a collection of 255 clocks, and 5
Stradivarius violins. Aidan particularly liked the Armeria Real
(armoury).

Once again we are reminded how functional European cities and towns
are compared to their North American counterparts. During the day,
there are hundreds of stores and cafes open and most people are
walking down the sidewalks enjoying the fabulous weather and
window-shopping. If you need to get across the city, you hop on the
Metro for the quick and whisper-silent trip. Airport, bus and train
stations are all reachable by Metro. At night, the streets fill with
even more people as everyone stops for a glass of wine and a tapa. By
9 pm the pubs have opened and the nightlife is just getting started.
The is an incredible variety of people on the streets at all times of
the day. Families, friends, and senior citizens are all out in force.
Groups of older women and men, dressed to the nines, are out having
glasses of beer and tapas or chocolate and churrios. It really was a
pleasure to wander around this beautiful city. What a difference from
the hollowed-out cities we live in!

One other interesting point about Madrid. There is a tremendous police
presence in the downtown, which makes you feel very safe, but also
makes you think about why all the security is necessary. You can't
even get into the national museum without going through a metal
detector. Ditto for the train station and any other important
building. An unfortunate reality for Spain.

Susan had her first severe diabetic low blood sugar of this trip on
our last night in Madrid. Luckily we are carrying several glucagon
injection kits, and after 13 years of marriage, I am an expert on
using them. Once administered, she was as right as rain. Aidan was a
bit freaked out, but once things were explained to him, he was fine.
The low blood sugar was a result of a lot of walking, a light dinner,
and a few glasses of wine. Things do go wrong and you just have to be
prepared to deal with them.

This morning we got up early to catch our train to Granada. Its a
pleasure to travel on European trains. As I write this we're being
whisked through the countryside at about 200 kmh in quiet comfort.
What a change from East Africa.

Out of Africa

Hard to believe we have already arrived at our last day in Africa.
Susan and I are really sorry to go. We've met some wonderful people
here and have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Kenya and Tanzania.
Ironically, after taking it easy in Nairobi for a while, we're ready
to see the rest of the eastern half of the continent. We've heard
great things about Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi, Botswana and South
Africa, That will have to wait until next time.

We spent our last few hours in Nairobi enjoying the perfect weather
and saying goodbye to everyone. We're really going to miss Lynita and
Alan, the two expat Australians who run Wildebeest Camp, and Aidan is
going to miss their young son Oliver. The other person we're going to
miss is Justice, a young Masai man who is living with Lynita and Alan
while he completes his degree in wildlife conservation. We promised
Justice that when he's done, we'll come back and he can guide us
around the Masai Mara. His family lives there and he said we would
have a great time visiting with them as well.

Alan joined us on the way to the airport. Their Land Rover has been
impounded in Customs for the past month. He was hoping that the import
problem they were experiencing had cleared up. At issue was their
import paperwork. A Customs official told them it would require
200,000 Shillings ($3,000) to make it go away. Lynita and Alan are
both upright people and refuse to pay bribes, which can be a real
impediment when you live in one of the 20 most corrupt countries on
the planet. They countered by writing a letter to the top customs
official who seemed to be willing to act on their behalf. Good luck
Alan!

After doing some last minute souvenir shopping in the airport we
enjoyed a pleasant flight out of Nairobi on Qatar Airways. Upon
arrival in Doha, we were pleasantly surprised to find the the airline
supplied free meals to people who had to wait more than 5 hours
between connections. We'll fly Qatar anywhere. Their service (and
food) is way better than any airline in North America.

We arrived in Madrid, Spain around 7:00 am in the morning. The
temperature outside was a balmy 3 Celsius, What a shock after 5 months
of tropical weather! After stopping for a quick continental breakfast
we made our way on the Metro to our hotel in the heart of the Centro
district.

We really enjoyed our time in the developing world, but its also fun
to be back in a Western country. Hot showers with unlimited water,
fantastic architecture, no litter or crime to speak of, and
outstanding food. We're enjoying Spain already.

The Other Side of Nairobi

We have spent the past few days learning about the other side of
Nairobi. The side that tourists don't usually see and the rich try to
turn a blind eye to. Over half of the population of the city of
Nairobi live in slums, which translates into approximately 1.5 to 2
million people. Unbelievably the slums themselves only cover 5% of the
land area of the city, so you can imagine the population density in
these places. People are practically living on top of each other.

Our first visit to the other side of Nairobi was to Kibera, which is
the largest in slum in East Africa and one of the largest on the
continent. Kibera covers approximately 2 square KMs and is situated on
government land. This means that nobody in Kibera can own property and
everyone lives under the threat of eviction. The exact population of
Kibera is not known. We heard estimates as high as 1.5 million people,
but more likely it is about one million.

Kibera is the largest but by no accounts the only slum in Nairobi. All
together there are 66 slums in the city. Other well-known slums
include Mathare and Korogocho. Slum populations have grown rapidly
over the past decade and continue to increase as a result of rapid
urbanization in East Africa. Its hard to imagine the living conditions
in the rural areas being worse than slums, but for many that seems to
be the case.

Perhaps our biggest surprise visiting Kibera was that there is large
socioeconomic gradient inside the slum. People are better off on the
outskirts of Kibera than those living in the middle. Many of the
people living on the outskirts have low-paying or irregular jobs and
walk back and forth to downtown every day. There are a large number of
shops and services catering to this group; and there is also hope.
Almost everyone we bumped into in these areas way happy and smiling.
They are trying hard to escape the slum.

Closer to the centre of Kibera the scene changes. Open sewers are
everywhere and people are living in absolute squalor. There is a
general feeling of helplessness. People don't have jobs and most exist
on less than $1 a day. They live so close to the edge that even a
small hardship would push them over the edge. Just walking through
these areas was hard. The smell makes you want to retch and you feel
completely unclean after spending only a few hours there. It was
overwhelming.

Our host for the Kibera visit was a young man named Sandi who
works/volunteers for the Kibera Community Youth Program. The
organization was founded about 3 years ago to help young people in the
slum build a better life. Most of the projects sponsored by the
program focus on self-improvement, like self-education and skills
development for young adults, but they also help offset costs for
nutritional food. Like many small grassroots projects, there is no
formal funding for the organization and they rely on the generosity of
small doners, like us, who visit them. We were impressed with the
group and what they were trying to accomplish. The most exciting
project from our perspective was to set up an internet learning
centre. To do this, the organization needs about 7-10 used laptops and
an internet connection. They figure that they can use 3 or 4 of the
laptops to set up a basic internet cafe, which would pay for the
internet connection and electricity.

Susan also joined our Wildebeest Camp host, Lynita, and her friend
Marion on a visit to the Shepherd's Orphanage Centre in the Kayole
slum. There are many orphanages in the city that are run as profit
making enterprises. Owners get money from the government and most of
it doesn't go to the children. This one was different.

A very caring man named Lusweti started the centre five years ago and
does not have any government support. Well, they do get a couple of
bags of maize every year. The orphanage (think tin shacks) was put
together under a major power line. Basically, they are squatting on
power company land and could be forced to move at any time. However,
they don't have to pay any rent. They do not have any outside support
and rely solely on donations of food, clothing, and money. They get
by on very little. There are 49 children ranging in age from 2 to 16
that live in the small compound. The majority of the children are
orphans whose parents died of AIDS, however there are some that were
abandoned or who ran away (e.g., mother was a prostitute). The
children all call Lusweti, Dad. There are also three women volunteers
who cook and help take care of the children.

Susan was immediately impressed by Lusweti's sincerity and all that he
is trying to do for the children. Thanks to the support from Marion's
donors in the Netherlands, all of the children have uniforms and
attend school. A child cannot attend school in Kenya without a school
uniform. Uniforms cost about 700 shillings (approximately $15). Many
children in the slums only have a uniform and no other clothing. Yes,
this is free education in Kenya.

Susan spent the next four hours talking to the children and seeing where
they live. There are two dorms - one for the boys and one for the
girls. They have latrine toilets and all take bucket baths. There is
no running water or electricity. When it rains the entire yard floods
and they usually have to move into only one section of the compound.
A tiny area is used to cook ungali (a porridge like mixture made from
maize). All of the children are very proud that they go to school and
they are so smart. These were probably the warmest and most polite
children we have ever met. They didn't ask for a thing and wanted to
know all about Canada. The little ones just wanted a hug.

Lynita was doing the tour to find out if the orphanage would be
something that she could funnel some of her great energy toward. We
visited Kibera through the Wildebeest Camp and she was seeing if
something could be set up for visitors to volunteer at the orphanage.
All kinds of options were discussed, including sponsoring a child.
The biggest thing on the wish list for the orphanage is to have their
own land so they don't have to worry about being kicked out. Susan
found out that they need the equivalent of $5,000 to do this. Seems
so small to some of us and so beyond their reach. They also
appreciate any clothing for the children, shoes, and other small
things. Susan found out that many of the girls miss a week of school
each month because they cannot afford to buy sanitary pads for them.

Our trips to the slums were a real eye opener. There is terrible
poverty, but we expected this. However it is one thing to sit in Canada and
discuss it and quite another to see and experience it. It certainly
made us want to get more involved, but what project to choose?

After discussing the pros and cons, we decided to support the
orphanage. We cannot change the world, but we do have the power to
improve the lives of 49 children. So don't be surprised if we hit you up for a little help when we get back to Canada.

Living an Expat Life

Yup.  We are plunked down in Nairobi and hanging out with expats who work and live in Kenya.

We spend our days learning about the people here, going to the Nacomart grocery store, exploring the city, and trying to come to grips with the amount of corruption.  We have had many conversations with the expats about life in Kenya, the economy, and the politics here. 

On the positive side, Nairobi is exotic and unpredictable, and certainly more exciting than living in the west.  The city is relatively cosmopolitan and has access to some of the most spectacular scenery, culture and wildlife in the world.  Resource wise this country is blessed in many ways, and the weather in Nairobi is absolutely spectacular. There is nothing, we have discovered, like living in the tropics at a good elevation - warm days and cool nights.

On the downside, Nairobi has one of the greatest economic disparities in Africa. Outside the gated communities there is extreme poverty, urban overcrowding, and massive alienation. There is a soaring incidence of AIDS/HIV (15% of adults infected), and only 42% of the population has access to clean drinking water. Another problem is that Kenyans generally consider their tribal affiliation first and being Kenyan second, which has led to rampant nepotism. With more than 70 tribal groups in Kenya this is a very real problem.  

Not surprising given the economic and political situation in Nairobi, crime and violence are not far below the surface of everyday life. As our guidebook notes, 'Nairobbery', is regarded as one of the most dangerous cities in Africa, and most Westerners fly in and flee the city as quickly as possible. We pay heed to these warnings and take reasonable precautions when leaving the Wildebeest compound - like never going out with valuables, and always taking taxis in the evenings. So far our decision to hang out in Nairobi has resulted in nothing more sinister than sore feet from walking around. We are having a great time! 

We are using thoroughly enjoying this relaxing time to decompress and see a few sites around the city.  Nairobi was built within the last 100 years. The whole place was a big swamp until the 1890s when a rail depot was developed. The old colonial government established it as an administrative centre and built some grand hotels to accommodate the first safari tourists to Kenya.  Following independence in 1963, most of the colonial buildings were replaced by modern office buildings. Surrounding downtown on all sides are the suburbs, many of which contain one or more gated communities. There are also slums, the largest being Kibera with over a million people crammed into 2.5 square kilometers.

So what have we been doing?

One day we decided to go out and tour Sheldrick's Elephant Orphanage and the Langata Giraffe Centre.  The elephant orphanage is only open to the public one hour every day.  The orphanage has teams that rescue baby elephants and then keep them until they are old enough to be reintroduced back into the wild.  Many of the babies have fallen in wells or been injured and abandoned.  We got to watch them eat and play in the mud.  They each have a handler that works with them every day because some have been very traumatized.  We also learned about the life of rhinos and were introduced to a 2 month old rhino.  The baby walked right by Aidan and both Mike and I agreed that we haven't seen such a cute animal in a very long time.  The orphanage does really great work. 

We also visited the Langata Giraffe Centre where we got to feed some endangered Rothschild giraffes.  There is an education centre with lots of information about breeding, preserving and monitoring the giraffe.  Aidan really enjoyed feeding them and getting licked by very long purple tongues. 

Our final stop on our tour was the Kazuri Bead Factory.  This is a Kenyan success story.  The factory was established in the 1980s and employs single mothers to make pottery, ceramics, and beads.  The products are exported all over the world.  There were so many beautiful pieces of jewelery that I had a hard time deciding what to buy!

On another day we took a taxi downtown to the Kenyatta Conference Centre.  The building towers over the city square and was designed as a fusion of modern and traditional African styles, with a big saucer tower.  A staff member took us up to the rooftop viewing platform.  The sight lines go all the way to the suburbs and to Nairobi National Park.  Wonderful views of the entire city.

A visit to Nairobi wouldn't be complete without seeing the National Museum.  It is in a nice big building surrounded by lush gardens. It has really good exhibits on culture, geology and natural-history. The museum also has volunteer guides and so a nice young lady led us around and provided all the highlights of the exhibits. Before stepping into one room she asked us if we believed in evolution.  I found this rather odd at first, but then realized that many people here believe strongly in creationism (despite the evidence in the next room).  So in we went and saw many of the early human skulls that were discovered in eastern Africa.  A world-class display on evolution. 

There are many supermarkets and stores in walking distance of the Wildebeest Camp, so on another day we visited the Ya-Ya Centre.   We spent a few hours at the shopping centre, had lunch, went to a bookstore and got Aidan a haircut.  While at the bookstore I tried to find a book about Kenya called "It's our turn to eat".  I was told that I wouldn't find this book in Kenya and that if I did happen to find it, I shouldn't be seen reading it.  It is a book about the corruption in the government here.  I will definitely be reading the book when I get home. 

At the Ya Ya centre we also picked up some cheese, bread and fruit for dinner.  We have been eating quite well while in Nairobi.  On some nights we eat with other guests at the camp, some nights we have sandwiches, and other nights we go out.  We went to an Ethiopian restaurant with two American filmmakers who had been staying at the lodge. We all had some amazing food and even Aidan enjoyed the injera (bread).  

The desparate conditions many people face in Nairobi make us wonder what we can do to help, so we have made plans to visit some volunteer organizations in and around the city. Our first stop is the Kibera Community Youth Project.  Kibera is the largest slum in sub-Saharan Africa and is located near the camp.  More on the visit in the next blog.

Nairobi Eye

The Riverside shuttle service picked us up at our hotel at 7:30 and took us to the mini-bus we would be taking to Nairobi, Kenya.  We seemed to be the last ones to arrive.  The luggage was put up on the roof and we piled into the bus with 25 others.  Okay it was more like a van, and had jump seats down all the aisles.  Four people across the rows.  Once you were in your seat, you couldn't move or get out.  But we thought how bad could it be since Nairobi is only 350 km north.  Yeah.... 9 hours later....

Indeed it took 9 hours to get to our accommodations in Nairobi.  In a few years there will be a new high speed highway running from Cairo to Cape Town.  Right now the road between Arusha and Nairobi is being worked on.  This meant that 300 km of our journey was spent on gravel pot-holed detours.  Also, it is the dry season and it was soon apparent why the local women on the bus immediately covered their heads with scarves.  Oh the dust... the dust. 

I should also note that we were delayed for over an hour at the border waiting for our visa application to be processed so we could get into Kenya.  No problems but everything must be done by hand in triplicate.  For the rest of the trip we prayed that the bus wouldn't shake apart and that I wouldn't throw up.  I was really starting to feel ill.  Aidan was great for the whole trip and listened to his music player for hours.  Once we got to Nairobi, it was another 2 hours of fighting traffic and dropping people off at different hotels.  We were able to get a taxi to the Wildebeest Camp and arrived disheveled at about 5:30.

On the brighter side of things, the Wildebeest Camp is wonderful.  It is an oasis in the middle of Nairobi.  We are in a large permanent tent (with shower, toilet, and running water).  There is a large stone mansion where other guests stay and where the owners - Lynnite and Allan and their baby son Oliver live. They have hostel type rooms in the mansion and they also allow tenting on the property.  It is a large garden area that is walled and has a security guard. This is one of the best places we have found to meet travelers and we have connected with wonderful people here.  Aidan loves it here too.  He plays with the two dogs - Fatty and Barney.  He runs around and plays and mingles with the other guests.  There is a large TV room, a big dining room, and lots of outdoor seating.  Breakfast is included with the price and buffet dinners are also served every night, although we've only eaten here once.  Aidan has become good friends with the cook, Margaret, and Justice, a young Maasai man who is working and living here while he completes collage.  On our first night, one of the resident tortoises (very large) laid her eggs in a hole she had just dug in the garden.  Everyone was out watching.   

We arrived on February 27 and planned on staying two nights. It is now March 5th and we are still here.  I ended up getting quite sick with a stomach ailment that has only just cleared up.  I spent a few days in the tent eating toast and bananas.  That really waylaid our original plans.  Once I started feeling better we started looking into another safari.  But it is really expensive and we have already seen pretty much everything we want to on our previous safari.  We really started to question what we wanted to do in Kenya.  We didn't feel like going to another beach resort and we really didn't want to spend thousands of dollars on another safari in the same landscape.  So, in the end, we decided to stay in Nairobi and do some day trips that we can arrange with the camp. 

Before I forget, we need to get back to Nairobi Eye story. Michael took Aidan to the Nairobi Hospital to have the crazy rash/burn on his arm looked at.  The good thing is that this is the place to go for any weird tropical diseases.  They have seen it all.  He was referred to a specialist, who took one look at it and said "Nairobi Eye".  Nairobi eye is casued by the Nairobi fly, a tiny insect the size of a grain of rice that comes out after the first rains in the Serengeti.  The doctor theorized that one landed on Aidan's arm in the night and was mushed in when he moved.  This tiny fly has a fluid sac in it and the toxic contents cause an extreme skin reaction in humans. A tiny drop causes a big, red blistering sore, similar to what you would get if you were physically burned.  Nothing to do but keep it clean and let it heal.  They call it "Nairobi eye" because these little flies like to land on peoples faces at night and then when when you swat it you end up with a swollen, burned eye.  Yikes. In Africa, we learned, you brush insects off instead of batting at them like we do in North America. Aidan is very proud of his trophy and made us take pictures. 

The other thing Michael found out was that the little bumps on the back of his legs that have been spreading since southeast Asia is actually a large crop of warts.  Tiny warts.  Great.  So the doctor gave us a caustic pencil and we have made an attempt to slow the progression.  I think we will end up taking him to a doctor once we get back to Canada, as these may have to be properly burned off.  Total cost for hospital visit and medication: $100.

Now for the big show...or so we thought

After a wonderful overnight at the Sopa Serengeti Lodge we headed out for a day of wildlife viewing on the Serengeti. We were told that we were here at the right time to see the large migration of over 2 million wildebeest, zebra and other antelope across the Serengeti.  Unfortunately for us they were not on the Serengeti.  Our guide Damas explained that due to lack of water, weather patterns, and by extension global climate change, the herds movement was no longer predictable.  Damas said that for years and years they could predict where the herd we be at a certain time, but no longer.  The herd was actually much farther south in Tanzania. So we missed the big show.

On a brighter note, we still got to see a lot of animals and the Serengeti landscape itself, which was breathtaking.  The grasslands and the kopi rocks are right out of the movies.  Damas took us to one of the kopi where we saw some 400 year old Masai rock paintings.  We were also impressed by the hyena feeding on a gazelle and the wiley jackal trying to sneak in and get his share.  The vultures also slowly creep in until they are chased off.  Aidan also pointed out all of the male elephants, baboons, and zebras to us.  Oh the discovery of a child.

We left the Serengeti in the afternoon and headed toward to the Ngorongoro Crater.  By the time we reached the crater rim it had started to rain and so the last 30 km were a muddy bumpy ride.  The Sopa Lodge is on the crater rim and we arrived in time for a beautiful sunset.  I am suspicious that the fish I ate for dinner here may have been the cause of the horrible stomach ailment that laid me up for over a week. Anyway, we were up again early in the morning for a game drive in the crater.  Our days have typically been about 10 hours out driving around so we told Damas that we wanted the day to end a bit earlier tonight.

The Ngorongoro Crater is like a fish bowl for wildlife. The average height of the crater rim is over 2,000 metres and is the largest dry crater in the world.  The diameter is almost 20 km and it is 304 square km.  All of the safari jeeps follow a road circuit making it kind of like an animal viewing theme park.  This aside, it did allow us to check off the final animal on the big five list and see rhinos.  According to our guide, the volcanic soil in this area has a lot of minerals that make the tusks on elephants and the horns on the rhinos very big.  We also stopped for lunch at a very large hippo pool and happily munched with 8 hippos and many other tourists. Happily, at least, until Mike had his sandwich stolen by a bird. 

For our last night, we were at the Kirumumu permanent tented camp near Lake Manyara. It has a spectacular view of the lake and feels very connected to nature. Our tent was beautiful and had a nice hardwood floor and full bathroom in the back. Actually calling it a tent is a stretch, but its a wonderful twist on the safrari theme and works well here in the tropics.

In the morning we got up and were surprised to see that Aidan had a huge rash on his right arm. It didn't seem to hurt him so we put some hydrocortizone cream on it, ate yet another big breakfast, and jumped into the truck with Damas. Our last day on safari took us around Lake Manyara National Park. Compared to Ngorongoro and the Serengeti, Manyara is tiny. At its widest it is no more than 10 km across, sandwitched between Rift Vally escarpment on one side and the edge of the lake on the other. We saw most of the same creatures that we encountered the previous four days.  What was really amazing was the numbers of baboons we saw.  We spent some time just sitting and watching the antics of baboons in the hundreds. It was also funny observing the black faced monkeys, which are also called blue balled monkeys.  Funny because the testicles on the males are a really nice powder blue colour. :-)

After our picnic lunch at some hot springs, we headed back into Arusha.  Boo hoo the safari was over.  We had a quiet drive back into Arusha where we settled into the Outpost Lodge.  By this time, I wasn't feeling not that well so it ended up being an early night.  We were also a little concerned by a rash on Aidan's arm that appeared overnight.  A bright angry looking marks up his forearm, which later raised and started turning into a blister.  We decided that we would take him to see a doctor in Kenya.  We are being picked up at 7:30 in the morning to head by mini-bus the 350 km to Nairobi.

Both Michael and I agree that the Serengeti safari was one of the top 3 things that we saw and experienced on our trip around the world. We definitely will be coming back to this part of Africa to try and see the migration and, when Aidan's a bit older, go visit the mountain gorillas.  A young man named Justice, who is studying to be a safari guide, wants to take us to the Mara River during the migration to see the big crocodiles eat the zebra and wildebeest as they try and cross the river.  How fun would that be!