ad libitum

FOLLOWING A LEOPARD

There were two leopards lying in a tree when our jeep approached. One decided to climb down.

 

We were able to follow the leopard as he walked across the savannah.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK

Lake Manyara is higher in altitude and much more lush than Tarangire. We saw monkeys and a group of banded mongooses (mongeese?), zebras, and cape buffalos and wildebeasts from afar.

I was enchanted by the monkeys.

 

 

 

 

As always, I loved the zebras.

It was fascinating to watch a zebra roll over in the dust to coat himself.

BIRDS IN LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK

They don't really have these birds in Michigan (ToTo, I didn't think I was in Kalamazoo anymore).

The bee eater is a pretty, small bird.

Look carefully and you can see the very large flock of flamingos on the water's edge in the distance.

The vultures here are checking out to see if anything is left on the hippo's carcas.

When we arrived at the Farm House in Ngorongoro, we thought the Maribou storks looked like greeters.

BITS OF TANZANIA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tanzania has entered my soul

And paced my blood;

So that when I wake each morning,

I search for the warm December sun

And the bright blue sky

In the grey, crisp Michigan air

That stings my lungs with cold.

 

“Polepole,” I tell myself,

As I drive too quickly over

Good roads covered with ice and snow,

Missing the washboard roads

That jarred my body as much as

The vast array of sights and sounds

Jarred my First World expectations.

 

“Asante sana,” I whisper to the Cosmos,

In gratitude for being allowed to witness

The wonder of animals and birds

Going about their daily life in a

Array of landscapes that photos

Can hint at, but not fully recapture.

 

I can still feel the courtesy and dignity

Of the Maasai herders on the sides of hills

Or open plains,

The dedicated teachers of a struggling school,

The orphans lovingly cared for in a small, stark compound,

And Athumani or Richard,

Explaining where to look so we could really see.

 

I have washed my clothes

And sent my camera out to be cleaned;

So the dust of Tanzania is a visceral memory.

I have started to post photos on my blog,

To try to share the wonders of what I saw;

But when I wake at three in the morning,

Not quite back in my own time zone,

I can feel Tanzania in my body

And see it in my head;

And I know that being there changed me.

TARANGIRE ANIMALS

Tarangire National Park is full of elephants.

 

 

There are families of baboons.

 

Warthogs are also plentiful.

 

And, Wildebeasts and zebras mingle - a foretelling of the Great Migration, which will start during the rainy season.

 

I was lucky enough to capture a picture of a gazell leaping.

We passed two lions relaxing on a hill.

And, we saw two juvenile leopards in a tree.

The photos above (and in the previous Tarangire posts) are just a few of the photos I took my first two days in Tanzania.

MORE TARANGIRE BIRDS

The vultures (I'm fairly sure these are vultures) look like the drawings of birds (yes, I do know it's the other way around; but I saw the drawings before I saw the real things).

I was lucky to get this photo of a lavendar throated roller just as it was taking off.

The birds flying over the elephants at the tarangire swamp almost seemed like one big being. I loved how they swarmed.

SOME BIRDS FROM TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MY FIRST DAY AT TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK

 

 

 

We drove to Tarangire National Park our first morning in Tanzania. We checked into the Tarangire Safari Lodge, where we stayed in very plush tents (platform floors, ceramic toilet, warm showers in the tents). There were wild animals in the valley below us and in the area of our tents (Jeanne, my tent-mate, and I awoke to the sound of an impala grunting next to our tent the next day).

We took an afternoon game drive. We saw many beautiful and exotic birds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We saw tons (literally) of elephants,

grazing zebras,

and impalas.

We also saw some predators. Look carefully under the tree and you can see a cheetah - her prey was across the road under another tree.

We came across a lioness eating a warthog (we were told they are delicious).

WOW! I WENT TO TANZANIA!

Wednesday night, I got home from two weeks in Tanzania. I traveled with a group of 7 other ladies (I didn't know any of them when the trip started and they were kind and inclusive); we spent 11 days in national parks (the "bush") and the rest of the time traveling and in Arusha. It was an incredible trip. I took 5,000 photos (don't worry, I'm not going to show ALL of them to you). I'm still recovering from jet lag and I'm still digesting all I saw and did.

 

In fact, I'm a little tired and have been taking some naps these past few days.

I was impressed by people in traditional garb embracing technology (note the lady on the cell phone) and took as many photos as I could without being intrusive.

 

I was often overwhelmed by the vast surroundings and natural habitat for the wildlife.

And, I was sometimes observed as if I were an intriguing piece of wildlife.