Tanzania
Tanzania Safari Program Description
June 15 - 24, 2008
Make it YOUR Story
Giggle at the uplifted tails of baby warthogs as they frolic in tall grass.
Hold your breath as the cheetah, still as a crystal vase, eyes the gazelle.
Envy the lions lounging on the kopje enjoying warm summer rays.
Take a moment to picture yourself in the diversity of the Tarangire National Park. The dry season has begun, and the elephant herds knowingly frequent the swamps, wallowing in the mud while they still have a chance. You are there. The largest flying bird in the world, the Kori Bustard awkwardly alights near the gazelle, will they notice? Have you ever seen the infamous baobab tree - or had your photo taken while joining hands with your travel partners measuring the span of this remarkable display of nature’s art?
Does your home have euphorbia surrounding it? If it does have this type of decorative hedge, then your home qualifies for a scene from ‘Out of Africa’. Lake Manyara, resembling a tropical rainforest, is named from a Maasai word emanyara, a species of euphorbia. Dramatically located at the edge of the Great Rift Valley, Ernest Hemingway admits this alkaline lake to be the “loveliest ……in Africa” with its diverse birdlife. A tree-climbing lion? (truth or rumor??) Was that a leopard slinking into the acacia woodlands? Only in Lake Manyara National Park. See for yourself.
Hey look! Over there! Is that a young Maasai initiate dressed in his coming of age costume? Want to trade places?
As the Landrover passes by ridiculously poised baboons along the road, the market town of Mto Wa Mbu with its multi ethnic population initiates the ascent to the Ngorongoro Crater. Your first impression of the world’s largest caldera measuring 12 miles in width is simply not a TV event. Remember to keep breathing. It’s real, and this is a World Heritage Site.
Winding down into the depths of the collapsed volcano, this prime real estate is where 30,000 wild game call home. One thing is certain: The black rhinoceros is a guarantee on the list of wildlife you can check off. You see, there is no escape from the Ngorongoro for the majority of its inhabitants. Scaling the slopes is not within the repertoire of lion, zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, or the bulky bull elephants. They are there to stay. Lucky for us.
Next stop is a visit with Lucy, or more precisely an impression of her linear footprints. It’s only been about 3 million years ago since she took those tiny steps. The Olduvai Gorge excavated by the Leakey’s, reveals multiple layers of evolutionary history. Here we contemplate the original ancestor.
And now, what many consider to be the highlight of a safari is the Serengeti Plains and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. What’s the difference you may ask? Any Maasai will tell you that their prized possession, cattle, can happily graze in the protected Conservation Area.
The umbrella-like acacia trees form rooftops over sections of the Serengeti, especially picturesque at sunset. It’s not only the expanse of the Plains with images of predators and prey that tease our curiosity; it’s the vastness of possibilities that can exist in a world where nature rules. Close your eyes and visualize The Migration, and I’m not talking birds. Wildebeest and zebra unite for this cyclical journey, driven by the seasonal rains. To witness these grazers as far as the eye can see, is simply awesome: seeing is believing!
Next stop Loliondo Game Controlled Area, a natural and diverse extension of the Serengeti ecosystem. Depending on the location of the herds, our fearless guide will cross back into the Serengeti for a very special game drive to the Mara River. Loliondo is the best of both worlds according to those who wish to enlighten friends and family with stories about walking gingerly through the Bush, the awesome night drive, or that chat with the Maasai as he leaned on his staff, smiling. Cultures are bridged, memories engrained.
As an integral part of all Sangha Tours, travelers will have the opportunity to offer donations of clothing, feeding utensils, sports equipment, school supplies, or cash to the Sibusiso Foundation, and/or the Children for Children’s Future. A percentage of this tour will be applied to a Kiva recipient in Tanzania.
Check out the Tanzania Wildlife Orchestra and the Trip Itinerary.
Make this YOUR Safari Story!