Police Problems

Going on safari was absloutely amazing. (Wild Things Safaris - so highly recommended I am giving them a plug here.) The experience far exceeded my hopes and expectations. It began early on the morning of the 24th. We were picked up from our hostel by our guide, Woody, around 8:30 or 8:45. It was supposed to have been 8:00, but there were traffic problems and also mechanical problems with our land rover. Luckily they were able to fix the problem quickly and, just for good measure, it was decided that we'd bring the mechanic along on safari with us. Why not?

The real excitement began just minutes after getting into the land rover when Woody got pulled over. I was not sure how this was going to go since dealing with the police in Tanzania is not necessarily like dealing with the police at home and I was eager to get going. Happily, Woody was able to resolve the situation quickly and we were soon on our way. Obviously, Woody was much more adept in dealing with the vagaries of Tanzania than Jason and I who were feeling quite special because it was our 2nd police incident in as many days...

The previous day Jason had taken a photo of a lizard on the gate of what was to our surprise apparently the State House where the President lives. You aren't allowed to take photos there, thus providing a most likely fake police officer with an opportunity to earn some extra cash. We insisted that he take us to the police station rather than just pay up on the street, 'cause word is that this usually gets rid of the fake police which judging from the look of his badge he probably was. We started walking and fortuitiously a) a police car went by which Jason flagged down and b) the officers in the car didn't feel like getting in on the scam and told us we could go. This was most likely due to the fact that the police car was already full.

The Selous

After police incident number 2 we headed out of Dar es Salaam and to the Selous Game Reserve. The drive was beautiful. We were mostly on dirt roads and passed through a lot of villages which allowed us to see many (close to) traditional homes and to wave to many, many, children as we passed by. We also saw an otter or mongoose with a sort of diamond shaped tail cross the road and the first of many, many baboons. Although it was quite a long drive it passed quickly and we were soon at our campsite just outside of the reserve. At that point we dropped off Twiga (the mechanic - his name means giraffe in Swahili) and Hamisi (our cook) to set up camp and went into the park for a game drive (but not before seeing a monitor lizard). The game drive was just undescribably wonderful. We saw hippos, elephants, giraffe, zebra, a pygmy mongoose, impala, crocodile, and a bunch of birds, including a hornbill. But the list of animals doesn't even begin to do the experience justice. To see the animals in their natural environment, how they behave, how they move is just amazing and is nothing like the zoo or even the wild animal park. It is seeing a crocodile stalk a stork or turning the corner and wow - there is a group of giraffe! And they run so gracefully. I could probably spend the rest of my life watching giraffe run and never cease to be amazed.
And the drive was amazing too. The scenery was very beautiful. I was actually quite surprised by how many trees there were. The area we were in was more woods than savannah. It was ridiculously hot outside, but our land rover had a pop top and Jason and I stood on the seats so that we could easily see out over the roof. The wind running across our faces and through our clothes just felt amazingly cool and refreshing. And just standing up in a moving vehicle is a lot of fun. One of the hazards of doing so, however, is the risk of being hit by low-hanging branches. It sort of felt like we were in a real life video game - whenever you see a branch quickly headed your way you'd better duck. And did I mention that we got to see lots of animals?
The next day we spent almost all day on a game drive in the reserve. First, though, we stopped at a local village to pick up some supplies. While other people were dealing with such practical things, I brought out my beanbags and started juggling with some of the children. I juggled a little bit on my own and then had the kids throw one ball in to me. I also did some "passing" with the kids. I think we all had a lot of fun.
On the drive into the park I spotted some elephants in the woods and we also saw some Vervet monkeys. In the morning the weather was nice and cool (for Tanzania anyway), which was a nice respite from the blazing sun. We saw impala, elephants, zebra, impala, giraffe, warthogs, impala, buffalo, wildebeast, impala, hartebeast, waterbuck, impala, crocodiles and lions (I told you they wouldn't eat me). Oh yeah, and did I mention that we saw some impala? We actually saw 3 lionesses resting under a bush. We got within about five meters and they were aware of us, but they didn't really care and barely moved. Apparently thats how they get after they eat. Woody said we could probably go up and pet them without them caring, but we decided to stay in the landrover anyway. The wildebeast were really fun to watch. They sort of seem to just run around for fun with no real purpose. The impala jump so gracefully, although it looks like they will tip over. The zebra were really skittish and would not let us get close. It is really quite amusing how straight up in the air the warthogs stick their tails. At one point we turned a corner and there were a bunch of elephants. We stopped to watch and a couple minutes later we heard something in the trees to our right. Then four elephants came walking out of the trees right in front of us.
One of the best parts of the day was the carmine bee-eaters. They are beautiful, brilliant, red birds with blue heads and blue at the start of their tail. (No, they are even more beautiful than you are thinking. Someone who is not paying for internet right now should go find a site with a good picture and post the link in the comments for everyone to look at. Really. They are that beautiful.) As we were driving down the road we were scattering grasshoppers in front of us and the birds were flying all around us eating them. At one point there must have been about 20 birds flying around our vehicle, some only a couple feet away. We could look up at their underside as they flew above us and down at their backs as they flew lower than us. They were all around and we were able to see them better than I have ever before seen a bird in my life. It was like we were part of the flock.
After spending most of the day on a game drive we arrived at our campsite by a lake, completely in the middle of nowhere. As on the previous night we dropped off Twiga and Hamisi to set up camp and then went on what Jason and I thought was going to be just another ordinary game (as if such a thing is possible). We were very pleasantly surprised to end up at some a hot spring where we got to go swimming in some wonderfully warm water and to stand under some (sort of) mini-waterfalls showering down hot water. It was wonderfully peaceful and relaxing. I'm actually not sure that I have ever been more relaxed in my life. Afterwards we went back to camp for dinner and after dark I looked at the stars and watched the heat lightening.
The next day was our last in the Selous. We went game driving again before leaving the park and saw elephant, hippo, eland, zebra, giraffe, another monitor lizard, birds, and, of course, impala. As we were exiting the park, Jason and I were sitting on top of the land rover. There is really nothing quite like sitting on top of a vehicle barreling down a dirt road at 50kph in the middle of nowhere with beatiful scenery, leg dangling over the side, wind whipping through your hair and hey look! - Some zebra. And that one is a baby, its still brown!