Lake Manyara National Park

I've had a hard time sitting down to type my final thoughts because I don't want it to be final. I've been home a week now, back to work, back to my little life, and I still don't want to believe the trip is over. Then again, I keep thinking it's February. It's like I decided to take a nap, had a fabulous dream, and woke up. I can't quite grasp that it was all real.

I'll start by just going over our last few days. On Thursday the 25th we left with the women's group to visit Lake Manyara National Park and Ngorogoro Crater. Thursday we drove through Lake Manyara National Park and I was amazed at how, once again, we were seeing a totally different landscape from our previous safaris. The road towards the lake winds through lush green canopies, some places have trees so thick and dense that it's quite dark. When I think of jungle, this was the image in my mind.

Though a small park, Lake Manyara offered a beautiful vista all its own. Most of the animals were "repeats" but we saw some different behaviors like a giraffe lying down. That's an odd one! Some new sightings included a chameleon (which was bright green though crossing a brown road - it did an odd slow wavy walk which our guide said was to look like a leaf. i.e. not food) and a Nile Monitor Lizard. I was excited by the lizard as I was the one to spot it. Not as exciting as spotting a leopard but hey, I'll take what I can get.

After a relaxing evening at our BEAUTIFUL lodge, we got up early on Friday to head towards the crater. The road into the crater is a steep and winding one through dense foliage. It was a foggy morning and the road had an eerie quality to it. An elephant could have been fifty feet ahead of us and we'd hardly know it! Our fabulous guide, Eli (ell-ee, short for a name I can't spell!), said it was rare to see many animals other than monkeys and baboons along the escarpment. We started our day on a lucky note when three big female lions wandered into view. After spending some time with the lions in the mist (one got so close I could have reached out and touched her. If I had, I wouldn't be typing quite so well.) we pulled forward to find a cub and two more young lions. The females were on their way to meet this group and we waited while they gathered. It was pretty cool and the fog gave it a unique feel.

I might have to come back to the actual crater as it deserves it own entry. Suffice to say it was one of the beautiful places I've ever seen and as we drove into this amazing ecosystem I was suddenly overwhelmed with a sense of longing to stay in Tanzania. Despite some serious home sickness the week before, I ended up feeling drawn to the country, its beauty, and its people. More on that soon.