Game drives and life on the big yellow truck

We slept soundly occasionally waking to the faint high pitched laugh of a hyena and other night creatures but thankfully nothing life threatening. After packing down our tent and a quick breakfast of toast, Sean and I left the group and jumped back in our safari van with Michael to seek some animals in the dusk. The sun rose as we searched the plains for lions, leopards and cheetahs, lighting up the entire sky with a vibrant mix of oranges and burning reds, making silloutes of the sprawling trees. We came to a holt, parking behind another car of tourists staring into the grass, when we finally sighted about 6 lady lions soaking up the morning sun. Not much more than a few heads and some ears were visible so after about 15 minutes we decided to head further down the track to spot some more wild and breathtaking game. 

Not much further down the bumpy dirt track we spotted a leopard resting on a branch in a tree. Unfazed by us he just moved from branch to branch finding comfort until he climbed down the tree and we lost sight of him amongst the long grass. It was easy to spend hours gazing and admiring the beauty of these incredible animals and taking in the surreal serenity of the Serengeti, but before too long we were due back at the gate to meet the bus again. 
Not before one final spot of the ‘hippo pool’, which was just that! A small lake absolutely striving with the backs of hippos as they made loud groans and splashed about. Michael was very cautious as a girl had previously died in that exact location for getting too close. Despite the nature we see of hippos; that being big, fat lazy water animals, they actually kill more people than any other animal and have a very vicious nature if you get too close. 

With Michael insisting we hope back in the car we did just that, and as we drove off we were thankful when we saw three big ones lurking in a bush extremely close to where we were standing. On a time limit we drove swiftly back to the main entrance of the Serengeti to reunite with the group for good. Farewelling our friend Michael we jumped onboard the large yellow adventure truck and we were assigned seats. 
We then journey back though the plains and up to the top of the crater, driving for around for 4 hours sighting giraffes, zebras and gazelles, we reached our campsite in good time to set up our tents before dark. A meal of rice, chicken and roasted tomatoes later we slipped into our sleeping bags for an early 9pm bed time.

Our alarm sounded at 5, and routinely we unpacked our tent and woke up to a coffee, once the burning fire had boiled the kettle. Two 4 by 4 cars came to collect us as we split into two groups for a morning game drive just after the sun had shed some light. The dark green Land Rover we jumped into were to be filled with the half of the group that we naturally gravitated to who had a brilliant energy. In the front seat we had Trev, & his girlfriend of ten years behind me, named Vaida. Two friendly Canadians from Yukon County. In the backseat were the two English sisters, Holly & Katie. Katie had done the same tour when she was nineteen & had loved it so much she had to go again! Holly’s recent tour hook up & free spirited Melbourne lad, Robbo sat behind Sean, & finally, Nick, a nice guy detective from Nelson Bay who had an undeniable bromance with his fellow Aussie overlander. 

We set off down the side of the crater, which in truth, was actually a ‘cyclade,’ however the name crater had an simpler ring to it. The wind outside was freezing, & the low lying clouds formed what looked like an incredible waterfall flowing down the side of the mountain. It wasn’t long before we spotted a lonely lioness, walking up an embankment in search of food. Heading further down the declining road, it begun to flatten out & the abundance of zebras, wildebeest & gazelle was evident. However, our main prize for this game hunt was the rare, & once critically endangered Black Rhino, which were tragically hunted for the alleged aphrodisiac quality of their horns. With collectors paying poachers over 800,000 USD to get their hands on on. Fortunately, protection has now been enforced, & though still rare & not always spotted, we were optimistic at our chances. After driving past herds of restless elephants, packs of stalking lionesses, & grazing buffaloes, Trev suddenly spotted a lone rhino, enjoying the company of other game. We gazed at him through our binoculars, & he was quite a handsome young specimen. Sean & I mentally ticked off the final member of the ‘Big Five,’ an aptly named collection of animals that once gave big game hunters the greatest difficulty, by killing them. The five were; Lion, Elephant, Leopard, Buffalo & the most recently spotted Rhino. Satisfied, we now headed towards the giant lake in the middle of Ngorongoro - which was awash with a pink tinge thanks to the countless Flamingoes living there & feasting on brown & green algae, which amazingly gives them that delightful pigment. 

We wrapped up the flamingo gazing & headed back towards the exit of the crater. All of a sudden, we spied a collection of other 4 by 4’s stopped in one spot. Something big was going on up ahead. As we pulled up closer, we discovered the justified source of all the commotion - a large male lion lying in the middle of the road, cozying up to one of the other lucky trucks. However, it was soon to be us, the fortunate ones. As we edged closer to the action, one of the other two kings slowly trotted over, politely, & generously, spraying the other one who was clearly in a food coma, right in his big ol’ lion face with urine. He then continued walking, only to stop right in front of our now questionably safe vehicle. We all rushed to the front & the big fella took each of our breaths away while we snapped as many photos as humanly possible. He then retreated towards the shade casted by one of the other trucks. Still working to catch our breaths, we headed off again. 

Exiting the crater, & getting a group snap at the lookout point, we drove back down the way we came the day before to meet Vee & the bus in a small town & to grab a local lunch. We all rocked up at the ‘Mushroom Cafe,’ & the food on offer was a choice between beef & rice, chicken & rice, omelette & chips or any of the pastries that lined the cabinet. We settled on two beef & rice with two samosas. The meal wasn’t bad, & dirt cheap. The pumpkiny-oniony sauce that accompanied the meal was a highlight. Fed & ready to get back on the road for the few hour journey to Arusha, we chatted to our fellow overlanders about the game plan for that evening. It was a couple of birthdays; firstly Alison, another Canadian gal who was here with her boyfriend, Chad. It was also Jess, a kiwi girl’s birthday the next day, and we were to be Farewelling vita, Trev and Nic so a big night was on the cards.
We arrived in Arusha after a smooth bus ride, & pulled into the Masai camp around 5:30. After setting up our tent & a long overdue shower (we hadn’t had one since the night in Sharjah!) We dressed & headed straight to the bar for a cold Serengeti lager & a game of pool. Dinner was served at 7:30, & was a full on banquet of pasta salad, coleslaw, sausages, chicken & to my delight - big juicy avocados in a tomato salad. 
Guzzling our booze down we were picked up by 3 cabs at 9:30 sharp. Our driver’s name was Happy, her Ma and pa were driving the other two cars! A short ride through Arusha we were all dropped at a pretty tame reggae bar with a live band and a different area for karaoke! After a few hours of jiving to the live music we all headed into the centre of the city to a club. It was a small venue and we all danced and drank the night away! Sean was excited to be able to be buying flasks of spirits straight from the bar! A few too many drinks later we decided to jump in the first cab with Alison and Chad and made it home before two, whilst the rest didn’t get in until after 3. 

We were woken at 7 by Vee as we all didn’t seem to be moving very quickly that morning! Struggling to find our feet, the group (minus those we had farewelled) clambered on the bus to sit and feel sorry for ourselves for an entire day’s drive past sunflower fields and rows upon rows of agave plants. We stopped briefly to pick up some groceries, (for lunches on the road) money, and didn’t arrive to our stop-over (not a place of interest just a place to sleep the night) at the white parrot camp site until about 5pm. 

Sean and I were assigned into groups and whilst my group cleaned the truck Sean’s cooked us a big serve of spag bowl! Still feeling the effects from the night before we all had an early night only to be woken about midnight. We heard Katie and Holly talking to the police as it had turned out whilst they were sleeping a man had been watching them from beyond the fence, then crawled through a hole and cut open the gauze on their tent. Katie had woken to a hand thumbing around and screamed, he ran off, but not before he stole her IPhone 6. 
Luckily there is a safe on the truck so valuables like money and passports are kept there but phones are needed for alarms! It definitely could have been worse as he was clearly a desperate man with a knife, so we were glad the girls weren’t injured. The next morning we didn’t get on the road until about half 9 as the girls had to go to the police station and make an official report. The roads change along the way from bumpy dirt roads to semi developed roads. Making a meal out of tinned tuna and wholemeal biscuits on the way, we have just hit traffic coming into Dar es Salaam on a busy street lined with funky furniture for sale, at half 3. It’s a bustling coastal city in which we are to spend the night before heading off to Zanzibar island for the next 4 nights! Already in love and blown away by the wildlife in Tanzania, I’m excited to splash the days away at the incredible beaches it has.