Tarangire

The first thing I noticed when we arrive at Tarangire National Park, English major that I am, is that I have been spelling Tarangire incorrectly. Whoops! We got up early Friday morning to be picked up by our guide, Abraham, at the Peace House gate at 7am. Despite it being only a one night stay, our small duffels were packed to within an inch of their duffely lives. Camera gear, sunscreen, bug spray, first aid kit, etc etc etc all add up! We get to do another mini-pack this week for the crater and that is for TWO nights. We might need our full suitcase!

The drive to Tarangire is an interesting one, going through Kisongo and then out further into Maasai land. We saw a lot of huts and herds of goats and cows. We also saw a lot of young boys and girls herding who should have been in school. The government is trying to force Maasai children to go to school, but it’s not working well. I’m torn between knowing that education is important and letting these people live their lives. Who knows what the right answer is?

Abraham also told us that most Maasai fathers pull their daughters out of school around nine years old so they can focus on the skills needed to be a good wife. When a daughter marries, the father is given a cow in compensation. Since Maasai men count their wealth in cows, it’s important to get their daughter a good match. I wonder how many cows Rich owes to my mom!

We seemed to choose two of the hottest days to visit Tarangire. It was swelteringly hot and I did not get sunscreen on in time so I have two red arms. It was a constant battle over what got shade – the camera or me. Seeing as Rich once told me he would throw me in front of the camera if we were attacked by a bear, I tried to protect the camera as best I could. The sun also brought out tsetse flies. These are the flies that cause sleeping sickness in cattle and for a little while I thought I had it as I couldn’t keep my eyes open in the back of the jeep. Eventually I chalked it up to the heat, early morning, and lack of coffee. Tsetse flies aren’t all that dangerous to humans but are very annoying as they do bite – even through socks!

Almost immediately after entering the park we were greeted by some animals we didn’t see in the Serengeti. Some of the new things we saw were waterbucks, oryx, leopard tortoises, squirrels, mongoose, and cape buffalo. We also saw many more warthogs, vervet monkeys, and impala than we did before. But what we really came for were the elephants. And oh did we see elephants! There were a lot of very small babies as well as big family pods. Most amazing was near the river where many groups had come together and there were several dozen elephants, spread out almost as far as you could see. Because there was a lot of food and water, theydifferent pods didn’t need to compete with one another. Normally they all keep their distance but we got to see them all together.

We also saw a great little group of lions with one or two females and six little cubs. These were definitely the youngest we’ve seen and the most active as well. They were adorable and playful, a bit wary of the truck but too distracted to care much. I think Abraham took us slightly off road to see them, something not allowed in the Tarangire, but it was totally worth it. The area was pretty dry and bare so we didn’t drive over any grass.

When we got to the Tarangire Safari Lodge for the evening, we ran into Lara. She and her family were visiting their research camp for the weekend so we set up a plan to stop by the next morning after breakfast. We did a little shopping in the lodge boutique and had a delicious dinner before heading to bed. After the long day, we fell asleep very quickly despite the heat.

After breakfast we headed through the park and down a very bumpy and winding road to the Elephant Research Camp. The camp was started by Lara’s husband, Charles, and has been expanded over time. They lived there for ten years, even for the first two years of their older daughter’s life, before building a home in Arusha. It’s a small and cozy little place with a few tents for researchers and staff, a small kitchen complete with gas powered fridge, bucket shower, dining area, office, and porch. Pretty much all their power (except the fridge) comes from solar, charging up batteries that then charge laptops and lights. Coming into the camp, one of the first things you see is a funny little covered ledge with cell phones lined up on it. Apparently they determined that was the only spot in camp with reception, and built a phone stand. It’s pretty cute.

The next morning was another early one, meeting Abraham at 6:15am in hopes of catching the sunrise. Unfortunately the small break in the clouds went away so we didn’t get a very dramatic morning. We did see a pod of elephants just outside the lodge, shadowy masses in the dark dawn. A few other animals were up and moving around but the pickings were slim so we headed back for breakfast.

Some of my favorite things in Tarangire are the massive baobab trees. These huge trees can be anywhere from 300 to thousands of years old. The fibrous trunk is often scratched by elephants and over time is so weak that it will just fall away, leaving the tree hollow. In some cases elephants and other animals have damaged the tree so badly that there will be holes right through, or the entire side will collapse. And yet the tree still stands. Some people call them upside down trees as when the leaves fall off, their thick twisted branches look more like roots. I first recall learning about baobab trees from Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) in French class and I was very excited to see them in person. It is daunting to touch something than might be more than 1000 years old. We are such tiny specks in the scheme of things.

We had a lovely time with Lara and her family and also met some more friends of theirs, making it a regular little tea party in the bush. Their research is pretty fascinating and I love that they get to name the elephants. I would have far too much fun with that!

The game drives after that were pretty uneventful, with animals seeming to hide from both us and the heat of the day. After another nice lunch we headed back to Arusha, Abraham seemed to be sick of us and the lack of animals and rushed us home quite a bit more quickly than we arrived. But I know that guiding like that is hard, especially when the fish don’t bite or the animals don’t cooperate. It was a slightly harried end to an otherwise good trip and I won’t let it ruin the experience.

It was nice to be “home” and to take a shower after two sweaty days. We had popcorn for dinner and spent the evening backing up photos and playing Bananagrams. And then I got the best night of sleep I’ve had for a week. It was awesome.

Today is Sunday and it’s another quiet one – for now. The big women’s group arrives today and we will meet them for lunch in the dining hall in a little while. Then they are throwing a tye dye party this afternoon and movie night this evening. Our quiet weeks at Peace House are likely over but it will be fun to see what they have planned for the kids.

[Despite my date editing (I am Doctor Who! I control TIME!!) it's actually Monday morning now, there was no internet yesterday. I have like four more photos for this post but the net is so slow, I can't upload them right now. Will edit later when the net is quieter. Coffee tour today!]