2019 06 Tanzania Day Five and Six

Wednesday, June 19. 2019

Today we must rise at 4:00 a.m., eat the little breakfast the hotel provides for early departures, pack and get downstairs by 5:30 a.m. for our trip to the Dar es Salaam Airport.

This is from the Yellow Zebra description of what comes next: “Lodge hopping flights to and from airstrips during your safari operate on a ‘lodge hopping basis’, which means flights may stop en route at other airstrips and departure/arrival timings may change locally depending on the schedule. The stops are determined on the day and therefore we are unable to advise the number of stops in advance.”

Also our luggage allowance with Auric Air is 44lbs per person (including hand luggage) in soft bags only. Back home, this had caused us endless amounts of negotiations and purchases but our whole party makes it through the size and weight issue. The good news is this airlines does not weight us (which has been true in the past on other small airlines I have flown).

At the Dar airport we are in a different part from the international jet terminal we were in yesterday.

At 7:30 a.m. we board an Auric flight to our camp, Selous (ce-loo) Kiba. Denice, Don and I sat behind the pilot and co-pilot which was pretty cool. The pilot turns around and informs us we are going to have a short 20 minute flight…to Zanzibar (insert your own joke here if you read the previous blog).

Sitting behind the pilot in a very small plane is pretty cool until he had to land the plane—it looked to me like he would be short by about a 100 feet but we landed smoothly and safely.

Our stop in Zanzibar was to drop off some passengers and picked up others. The pilot turned around and informed us that we would have a 55 minute flight to Selous Kiba.

When we arrive at the lodge by air, the runway is a strip of reddish brown dirt that I can testify was not even smooth. It all worked but I might not look when we take off or land the rest of this trip.

9:00 a.m. we are on the ground at Selous Kiba. While we are waiting to board the Jeep waiting to take us to the lodge, we saw another small plane land and load two passengers who had ridden down to the airstrip that morning.

Our guide for the trip to the lodge is Deo and he offers us a ride about. I am glad we did because on that short excursion we saw more animals (and close up) then I anticipated see on the whole trip. This is despite the fact that everyone is saying June is off season.

Deo stopped to show us the remnants of a cape buffalo that was along side the road. What I learned in the first half-hour in the bush is that it is a killing field.

Here is what we saw:

Impala

As time went on during both our safaris, the Impala became the butt of a lot of jokes. Think of the Impala like a sparrow in an urban American city--your first sighting of one might be special but as time goes on for the experience safari traveler not so much. I, on the other hand, found each Impala photo worthy but will not trouble you with too many photos of them.

Egret

Cape Buffalo

Baboon

Zebra

Where we are in the Selous is the 10% of the game reserve that is not for hunting. That means in this area, animals that are hunted are not too happy to see our Land Rover and are skittish to say the least. Zebra are like that. 

 

Warthog

 

Giraffe

Last trip we were thrilled to find sheep blocking our way on the roads of Ireland. We did not expect that giraffe would fill that same role in Tanzania. They are also fun to play the game: Who Blinks First? Giraffe pretty much win that one.

After all of this we arrived at camp. The staff was all out front waving a friendly hello and we were instantly offered tea and some light things to eat because we had no breakfast.

Here is the description we were given to explain where we are: “Sand Rivers is the most famous camp in the Selous! Set up by the famous guide Richard Bonham, Sand Rivers has an unbelievable location directly on the Rufiji riverbank. The main area and rooms all have uninterrupted views of the river and its resident hippo. Each room has an open front, huge fourposter bed and lovely ensuite. Sand Rivers also has one of the quietest game-drive and walking areas.”

Here is the description of the area the Sand River camp is: “Well respected as one of Tanzania’s areas of true wilderness, the Selous is absolutely vast. The northern section is the location of the park’s best camps, the majority being based on Rufiji River or one of the River’s lakes. These waterways are the lifeblood of the park and the focus of the region’s game movements.  The Selous is most famous for its boating and walking safari – it is one of the finest destinations for boating safaris in Africa, as well as being one of the first parks in Africa to operate extensive walking safaris. Game statistics are very high, with the park supposedly containing more elephant, buffalo, lion and hippo than anywhere in Africa!”

Don, Chris, Marijeanne, Michelle the camp manager, Becky and Denice

Next for us was an orientation to our room and a chance to unpack. Unpack at this facility is a euphemism because the best plan here is to keep everything in your suitcase because the room is open air. That means nothing is safe from the monkeys or the bugs. I will admit at this point it took me almost 48 hours to calm down and get used to this.

The view as you enter our room

Pretty much what we saw as we laid in bed

The view from our front window of the Selous River and the hippos. All day and all night we were serenaded by the unique cry of the hippopotamus.

There are no windows on our veranda or in or bathroom. At night I thought it was best to just not turn lights on so as to not attract the bugs. We do sleep on a beautiful bed but under a canopy because it’s a jungle out there.

Denice, Becky, Marijeanne, Chris and Don

We had lunch which included catfish from the Selous River and other delicacies. Our food is cook each day by a wonderful woman named Bernadette who mixes local customs with other types of food. The food here is A-1.

Next it was time to do a driving safari with assigned guide, Ernest. My theory is that a vacation with a guide is only special if you fall in love with the guide. We did.

Here is what we saw:

Unfortunately, those who live become those who die. We did come across a giraffe kill that at this point was only of interest to the Vultures. 

The next part of our safari taught us so much. If there is a kill, there are most likely killers and they can be found. Fat and happy after eating all they could, we were able to find two males lions sleeping off their feast in the bush. (The picture below was take with a normal lens setting on my camera--or, yes, that is how close the Land Rover could park to these two boys!)

In the lion world, it is the females who do all the work (insert your own comment here). We were also able to find two of the females as they recovered from the hunt and the meal.

This next female was sitting in the shade. Just like my cats at home, she looked everywhere except at us. 

Here is my favorite photo of this beauty of the bush:

Nope, not dead...just a sleeping Hyena alongside the road

Not sure what these are so I am going with Antelope

Ernest took us out for a three hour plus tour which is going to be the typical schedule for us each day. Refreshments are served in the bush for each journey. Tonight found us returning in the dark (something not allowed or frown upon by the rangers in this park).

Dinner tonight was on the terrace with one large table holding our party of six, the other guests and Michelle, the Sand River manager.

After dark in this lodge, you must be walked home to your hut by one of the guides. In case you think this might be unnecessary, we were told a story of the night the guests had to walk around the hippo or the fact that elephant scat can be found on the grounds of the lodge.

Each day the staff prepares our cabin after we leave on a safari. At night the staff prepares our room by lowering netting around our bed. It is very elegant.

Again, we slept sound. We know we had bush babies in our room tonight because Denice found their scat this next morning. The trees are right outside our open windows and the bush babies are looking for food. Each room is equipped with a monkey box for food and other things you want to lock away from them while the bathroom has a wire box for looking up that stuff so they do not steal it.

Interesting. Again, if you don’t want this, don’t travel to foreign locations with different ways—a lesson I had to keep learning here.

Thursday, June 20, 2019

This morning we were up at 4:45 a.m., had tea delivered at 5:20 and was with our guide Ernest by 6:00 a.m.

We went on morning drive until 12:30 p.m. which included breakfast by lake Talala (named after a local type of tree).

Here is what we saw:

African Open-Beaked Stork

European Bee-Eater

Impala

Hyena

Giraffe Bones

Impala

Giraffe

Hippo

  

Breakfast in the bush with Ernest, Becky, Chris, Marijeanne, Denice, Don

Dragonfly

Warthog

Wildebeest

Marijeanne and Don

We stopped in this dry river bed to stay hundreds of yards from these elephants so that they would not move on. While we sat in the Land Rover watching them, there was a bunch of noise from the trees to our right.

Ernest told us that the noise was baboons and indeed we could see the baboons busy with the fruit in the trees.

However, when we shifted the Land Rover a bit, we discovered we had a neighbor in the trees.

 

The evidence that life is ongoing in the bush

Lunch was again served at the lodge at 1:00 p.m.  I went back to our place to do this blog while Denice swam in the pool at the lodge.

By 4:00 p.m. we were with Ernest on a night drive until 7:30 p.m.

Here is what we saw:

Giraffe

A very busy dry river bed as the other animals use the holes dug by elephants for fresh water 

Giraffe

African Fish Eagle

Cape Buffalo 

Zebra

Drinks and snacks in the bush with Chris, Marijeanne, Becky, Don, Ernest and Denice

Becky and Chris

At 8:00 p.m. tonight the six of us had dinner alone because a number of guest had left and the remaining wedding couple was having a special dinner this night. We sat up and told very interesting stories about our family life until we went back to our lodges by 9:30 p.m. to get some sleep.

Tonight we had a bush baby come visit us, sit on our coach, a scream us awake. I clapped my hands a few times and out he went. No harm, no foul, no scat.

2019 06 Tanzania Day One, Two, Three and Four

TANZANIA 2019

On Friday, November 14, 2019, Denice retired from teaching for forty years. Most of her career she taught four-year-olds and considering she also married one, she deserves a nice retirement adventure.

Denice’s niece Rebecca Ney is a flight attendant and an adventure traveler and she had planned a trip to Tanzania to see the wild dogs, one of the few specie she has not photographed. Becky decided to take her mother Christine, Denice’s oldest sister, to go along. After planning that, Denice’s middle sister Marijeanne and her husband Don Gorectke join the trip as well.

When Don asked me if I thought Denice would like to go I said, “No.” Denice is a traveler but, despite having traveled to Papua New Guinea with her aunt and brother, she has a lot of places on her short list of “no” countries (and even a few states).

Considering that I am typing this on my veranda overlooking the Sand River in the Selous Reserve in Tanzania, you already know Denice surprised us all by “yes.”

Becky had selected Yellow Zebra Safaris as our tour company and we signed up to reserve our spot. (As an aside, it came to our knowledge that one mile from our lodge in the Selous there is a VIP camp which is occupied by Tom Brady of the New England Patriots while we are here. Perhaps that tells you how much we spent on this trip—read on to see if it was worth it).

Saturday, June 15, 2019

On this day Denice’s cousin Kathy agreed to transport Denice, Marijeanne, Don and I to the Coach USA bus station at 3:1`5 p.m. (CST). We caught the Coach USA O’Hare bus at 4:10 p.m. and arrived in plenty of time to check in for our international flight.

At 8:45 p.m. (CST) we flew Emirates Airlines to Dubai, a 12 hours, 25 minute flight that would find us landing in Dubai tomorrow.

Sunday, June 16, 2019

At 8:10 p.m. (Dubai time—9:10 a.m. CST) we arrived in Dubai (one half hour late). We went through entry in Dubai, leaving our main luggage at the airport and taking our carry on. Becky and Christine were already there from their Los Angeles flight which was supposed to be later than ours. Because we have to overnight in Dubai, Emirates Airline put us up in the Copthorne Hotel and shuttled us there.

On the way to the hotel from the airport, I had a chance to practice one of my favorite photography tricks which I call Out the Window.

Here is what our hotel room looked like.

After checking in and unpacking, we were ready for a Dubai night on the town.

We took a taxi van to the city center which is where the world’s tallest building is located.

Don, Marijeanne, Becky, Chris (photo by Denice)

Denice and I (Photo by Marijeanne)

After walking around the mall area (featuring restaurants like Texas Roadhouse, Red Lobster and Olive Garden), we went for drinks and appetizers at Neos, a trendy bar with a view of the building.  I did manage to get off a few shots before the management told me I could not use “professional equipment” in their premise. I was kind of honored.

We returned to our hotel in another taxi van back to our hotel and was in bed by midnight (Dubai time—maybe something like 48 straight hours of traveling without a good night’s rest).

Monday, June 17, 2019

Denice and I got up at 5:15 a.m. (Dubai time) meaning we only got about 5 hours of sleep. We met Chris, Don, Marijeanne for breakfast (provided by Emirates) in the cafeteria of the hotel. This was a real “elbows up” international experience because in this location at this time, no one waits for anyone. Everyone jumps the buffet line, takes the food right out from under you and poor Chris could not even hold seats at a table for all of us without loosing them to some aggressive men.

Here is what I have to say: if that is going to bother you, if you want all of the world to be exactly like it is back home, than don’t travel. I will have to be reminded of this myself later in the trip.

View from our room

After breakfast we were back to our room to pack. We were in the lobby by 7:30 for the shuttle back to the Dubai airport. Once through check in, we all ate at a Starbucks -ike coffee shop and waited there because there were no seats outside our gate and we got there too early to check in.

We checked in, boarded and took off at 10:05 a.m. for an Emirates flight to Dar Es Salaam 5 hours, 25 minutes duration. We landed at 2:30 p.m. in Dar es Salaam. A representative of a company called Extra Mile met us and got us in the correct entry line where we got in line and had our passports checked, got in another line to have photo taken (except for Marijeanne) fingerprinted printed or not depending on the whim of the counter person. Becky then collected our passports and $100 from each of us and went to get our visas for Tanzania. Meanwhile the Extra Mile guy took our baggage claim checks and disappeared to go get our luggage.

We waited awhile before we got our passports back, with a page for our visas, and we could all relax.

For a minute. Then we moved into the baggage claim area and for awhile we could not find either our baggage or the Extra Mile man. That was pretty much all on us as he was in the back room finding our stuff while we were out front pretty much deciding he had taken off with our luggage.

I have to say it again: if that is going to bother you, if you want all of the world to be exactly like it is back home, than don’t travel. Oh yeah—and maybe trust the process.

We next were introduced to a representative of Alexander’s Hotel and transferred to the hotel, where we will stay for two nights. We all rode in a van to the hotel through Dar es Salaam—my impressions were I was not impressed. (At the hotel we were ensconced behind a closed gate, given a warning about not walking on the streets with stuff in our hands and told not to walk at night at all). There might be a nice touristy part of Dar but we would not see it on this trip.

Here is what I can tell you about Dar from the Internet: “Located on Tanzania’s mainland coast, Dar es Salaam should be the country’s capital. This sprawling city was once a sleepy Zaramo fishing village, and is now East Africa’s second-busiest port, and Tanzania’s commercial and cultural hub. While many travelers use Dar es Salaam for an overnight stay in one of the city’s comfortable hotels after a long journey, those who stick around enjoy the city’s eclectic cultural mix and laidback vibe!”

Once inside the hotel it was quite nice. Here is what I can tell you about these digs: “Alexander’s Hotel is situated on the Masaki peninsula in Dar es Salaam. It was set up in 2008 by the Alexander family, who run the hotel to this day. The hotel is a very contemporary building, featuring whitewashed walls, immaculate archways, and chic wooden balustrades. Inside, all communal spaces are very well appointed. They include a lounge with sumptuous seating, coffee tables, and a grand piano. There is also Alexander’s Restaurant, positioned on the hotel’s rooftop terrace and adjoining the well-stocked bar. There are 17 guest rooms within the hotel, all with modern furnishings and plenty of amenities to ensure a comfortable stay!”

After we unpacked we went for drinks on the upper terrace of Alexander’s where we were served by the charming waiter Abraham. We are the only customers and the hotel’s 17 rooms appear to be empty except for us. We debate things including what to do tomorrow and where to eat tonight. Ultimately we ate an elegant dinner on the terrace served by Abraham. Very late in our dinner another couple showed up so we might not be the only tenants.

This night we went to bed very early for me as I am finally jet lagged.

Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Today we are up at 6:00 a.m. as the family has decided Zanzibar. We have breakfast in the lower library of the Alexander which consists of a buffet with eggs prepared in the kitchen.

Downtown Dar es Salaam

We take an arranged taxi to the ferry (and this same gentleman will show up at 4:00 p.m. when we return from the island).

We had done a little research the night before about this ferry to Zanzibar but as this story will show—not enough. This is off season we think so the tourist booth is closed and we are told to get in the resident line for tickets with everyone else.

First off, we thought the round trip on the ferry cost $35 as the steerage option but that proved to be a one way fair so the actual lowest fair for us was $70. As we approached the ticket counter in the terminal it became evident that we might enjoy the trip by upgrading to either a VIP option ($120 RT) or a Business Class option ($80 RT).

Perhaps this is a good point to explain that in both the UAE and Tanzania we could use US dollars or credit cards. However, in Tanzania because of counterfeiting, the bills must be from 2009 or later. Our goal was to use a credit card to get to Zanzibar rather than cash but the tickets were on a cash only basis. This proved to be a major problem for most of us as we did not think to bring all of our cash on this trip. There was enough cash in our hands to get Becky the Royal while the rest of us went Business.

We had discussed the night before if we should take or not take our passports and decided only to carry the copies of our passports (and Rebecca did not even have that). Zanzibar is a part of the Tanzanian government but appears to be slightly independent as the cashier asked us for our passports.

This led to some friendly but slightly desperate debate as whether or not Tanzania would issue us a permit to got to Zanzibar. After much negotiations, most of us surrendering our copies of our passports and Rebecca waving her California driver’s license we get her a Royal ticket and for some reason, despite the rest of us paying for Business, he gave us all Royal seats as well.

We boarded the ferry to ride across the India Ocean to Zanzibar, about a one hour ride. Let me tell you, the Royal treatment was nice. We had great seats, a great view, a private bathroom and beverage service all on a deck one flight up from steerage, Some of us also spent some time on the observation deck. It was a beautiful day and a very calm ride over to the island of Zanzibar.

Perhaps our first clue on the island as to what was to come next was the banner welcoming us from The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar. (Watching The Road to Zanzibar with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby did not prepare me for the comedy of errors about to happen).

When we walked up to entry, the male customs officer will not let us in because we do not have the Tanzanian visa in our passports which they use to verify arrivals and that we have not traveled from a country that might be a part of a recent Yellow Fever outbreak. The negotiations are all friendly but we are not getting anywhere.

We get taken to an office with two female customs officers and more negotiations continue—we tell them the three women are sisters, we are just here for the day, we had no idea, etc. etc. The more the womanfolk play the family card the friendlier the discussion seems to be getting. Finally one of the women turns us over to a third officer who takes us to a third location.

This guy fills out forms for us to get in but tells us he is going to punish us. After all the work he does and the forgiveness, he asks what we think the “punishment” should be. All of the other five in our party depart in a hurry out the door but I said I would pay the punishment and bribed him $10 US. We shook hands and I thank him for letting us into his country. (He probably went and washed that hand right away in case we actually did have Yellow Fever).

After leaving the entry port, we have to run the gauntlet of buskers and then all the guides and taxi drivers that is typical in any country at the point of entry. Becky is determined to get us away from all of that and takes off walking down the seawall. We walk six blocks down the sea side and by sheer serendipity discover a tourist center where we meet a legitimate and very friendly member of the Zanzibar government who suggest a number of options.

We decide for $5 bucks each we would hire a government guide who takes us on a walking tour of the harbor area of Zanzibar including the stone city area which was what I was hoping to see.

The walk included discussions of architecture, religion, customs and…the market.

Where are we?

These girls wanted their pictures taken...and they wanted to see the results 

In Zanzibar, Christian and Muslim live side by side...in peace

As a fund raiser, these school girls were making hand-made books.

Becky, Marijeanne, Don, Chris and Denice

We ate lunch on our own in the Africa House Hotel which offered African, European and Chinese options. I picked the African delight—Minestrone soup.

We walked back to the dock early to catch the ferry. We have to go to the special customs desk where dumb Americans without a passport are let on the ferry. This part goes just as well as it should because of the work of the bribed official from earlier in the day but… we get in the wrong line to board and have to be escorted to the VIP area by an official.

OK, now we can get on the ferry.

Nope. The ticket takers tell us our tickets for the return are dated for September. So this means after barely getting into the country for a five hour walkabout we will not be able to leave for 3 months.

After much negotiations, they get us on this ferry anyway because it is not full and they probably do not want to ever see us again in Zanzibar.

Once the ferry leaves the port I ride on the prow observation deck. While it had been calm coming over, the Indian Ocean is quite breezy and the sea is rough. I get soaking wet. Eventually, about ¾ of the way back, I got sent back to my seat because of the rough seas. I am not sure why I enjoyed this so much but it was a blast.

As bad as this day has been for planning, our taxi driver finds us and we are escorted back to Alexander’s. We eat a dinner on the terrace and go to bed as tomorrow is another early departure.