The journey from London to Tanzania was pretty touch-and-go. After a three hour delay, broken plane, missed connection and eight-hour wait in Nairobi we finally made it.
Going on Safari has to be one of the most exciting experiences of my life. We spent two nights in Serengeti National Park (Kimondo Camp) followed by two nights in Tarangire (Little Oliver's) and we couldn't have been luckier considering the short duration of our stay.
Our first full day in the Serengeti, we saw the big 5 (elephants, buffalo, leopard, lion and rhino), I honestly didn't think it could get any better. We were also lucky enough to see a river crossing which was amazing. I'm embarrassed to admit that I did bawl my eyes out while watching the wildebeest be snapped up by enormous crocs and the zebra struggling to make it against the raging current. It was quite an intense experience to say the least.There was one calf who managed to make it to the other side but couldn't keep up with the herd or find his Mum. We all watched in disbelief as this baby proceeded to leap back into the croc-infested waters, completely alone. Everyone cheered as the baby managed to outswim two of the predators and make it back to his friends on the other side. I discovered that while the animal world is not for the faint-hearted, it truly is spectacular.
In Tarangire, the animals were much more lively. We saw a leopard devouring a pelican she had caught and dragged up a tree. We encountered a lioness pounce for a warthog, miss, but go after one of the piglets instead (literally a mouthful for a lion) and saw cheetah drag a reedbuck antelope into the shade to snack on. The hundreds of elephants who marched to the swamp each day to bathe were a spectacle to behold. I'm not sure whether we were exceptionally lucky, or whether life is just exceptionally abundant in these parts.
My favourite thing about Tarangire was by far the dik-diks, otherwise known as my new favourite animal! They look like any other deer but they are SO INSANELY TINY with massive eyes. It's hard to get the perspective in this photo but the average adult dik-dik is only 30-40 cm tall. My absolute dream is to see a dik-dik baby - I physically can't imagine them any smaller. If you need some procrastination material, this distractify article has made me love them even more.
What really stood out about Tanzania was the hospitality. Everyone we met was so welcoming and humoured my attempts at speaking Swahili. Both our safari guides, Noel and Festo were completely fantastic and all the staff everywhere we stayed went above and beyond.
The whole experience felt like a David Attenborough documentary come to life. I couldn't believe what I was seeing at times. I really hope that I'll be able to do another game drive one day - I'd love to go to South Africa.
While this is just a few stories, I will also do a post about my tips for a successful Safari. Also, a big thank you to my Dad for his brilliant photography.
Happy November!
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