Oct. 3

       Well, I'm getting used to waking up around 6 a.m. Same routine, a cup of really good brewed coffee on our "veranda" after staff wake us, then off to brekkie and into the safari truck.
It was quite pleasant this morning. The sun came out and there was little cloud cover. It's a tad chilly when we start out but it soon gets warm enough to take off the fleece.
Our mission today was to find cheetahs. We drove for about an hour and a half to get to cheetah land. There were several giraffes that greeted us as we left camp and a small herd of wildebeest that, apparently, ran right next to our tent last night. We didn't hear or see anything.
I did see a large bat circling the light outside our camp last night but when it gets dark, it's dark. We have a couple of guys with bows and arrows that patrol the camp at night. They don't speak much English. They also accompany us to supper and back to our tent afterward.
We stopped to take a few scenic photos then we got to the grassland area where the cheetahs hang out. But just before we got there, there were a couple of vehicles parked among the boulders so we went to check it out.
It was a mama leopard with three cubs so we watched them for a while and got some photos.
About a half hour later, we spotted three lionesses. It looked like they perhaps were positioned and poised for a hunt, and that's why everyone was hanging around watching them. They didn't hunt, though. They wandered back under a tree for a bit, then across a water hole up a hill where there was a pride. We could barely see them through the trees but one of the lionesses was full of milk so we speculated that there were some pretty young cubs in the location to which they went.
We didn't see any cheetahs. But we did see a monitor lizard, a push-up lizard, some mongoose and a secretary bird - something Beth wanted to see. I didn't get a good photo because it was too far away, and it was walking away from us.
       Maybe this afternoon we'll spot another one.
We did, however, go to the international boundary between Tanzania and Kenya. We illegally crossed into Kenya but we had our passports with us. Ha! It's nothing more than a marker on a hill. You look to the north to Masai Mara reserve in Kenya; the Serengeti is to the south.
       As I sit and type the blog, there is thunder in the area, and it's the hottest day so far here in the Serengeti. Not a breeze to be had and before the clouds rolled in, it was steamy and hot.
Anywho, we napped a bit after the morning drive, ate lunch and we're awaiting our 3:30 p.m. appointment with Severin.
Severin was a little late, only because the plane that was taking the Aussies away was about two and one-half hours late. It was supposed to take off at 1:15 p.m., although there was some disagreement between the Aussies and Severin. It apparently didn't take off until 3:30 p.m. or so.
He ate a quick lunch, and we visited with Clarion. He's a staff member, and he's from the Paro tribe near Kilimanjaro. We talked about the different reserves in northern Tanzania, and he explained where wildebeests give birth and how they migrate to different areas. It was very interesting.
Off we went with Severin, drove through the rocks and happened upon a male leopard sleeping on a rock. As we drove, you could see rain all around the horizon but we kept dry.
Well, we kept dry until it started raining. Severin insisted we stay with the leopard until he got up, and he eventually did get up when the rain become more persistent. He climbed down a crevice, walked behind the truck and tucked himself under a bush to keep dry.
We weren't so lucky. It rained pretty hard before we could get our warm, cozy ponchos on but it was no big deal. We actually thought it was fun. Severin was having to clean the window with a cloth.
On the way back to the camp, we had a déjà vu moment when Severin stopped the vehicle and jumped out. Mind you, it was still raining. He had a windshield wiper and a pliers, and he proceeded to put the windshield wiper on the truck. We had something very similar happen in Ukraine when our hosts stopped the vehicle, jumped out, pulled windshield wipers from the trunk and proceeded to put them on. They had them in the trunk to keep someone from stealing them. I think the one windshield wiper wasn't on Severin's truck because he usually has the windshield folded down and the wiper would be in the way.
It was still drizzling when we arrived at camp. We took showers, downloaded photos and finished this blog.
It's raining so there probably won't be a campfire tonight.
And we don't know the plan for tomorrow.
        I'm only posting a few photographs, as we're in Stone Town and the internet is not fast. Sorry.

This is what we thought was a quail, but it's not. I'll identify it later, as our bird list is elsewhere. :)

A ballito tree on the Serengeti with the Great Rift Valley escarpment in the distance.

A giraffe we encountered.

A mama leopard with her cub.

A leopard stretching during a nap.

The rain on the plains of the Serengeti.

Oct. 2

Up and at 'em at 6 a.m. with a wake-up call and hot, fresh brewed coffee brought to our tent.
Brekkie at 6:30 a.m., then we had to wait for our two Aussie friends to start the safari. We were supposed to have a guide and vehicle all to ourselves today but somehow, the Aussies were included.
They were alright company but we wanted to talk more with Severin, our guide, and the Aussies only spoke to him when they needed something, like tea. We want to stop, take photos and ask questions.
But today, we were on a mission. Severin wanted the Aussie women to see the wildebeest crossing the Mara River - you know, the crossing you always see in relationship to the Great Migration.
The women had waited five hours the previous day, and the wildebeest didn't cross, and it was their last day in camp.
So we staked out a spot above the river across from a really large herd of wildebeest; it was about 8:45 a.m. We watched them go back and forth, back and forth. Apparently, it just takes one bull male to set off the frenzy when it figures it's safe to cross. But no such luck.
They turned and headed up river, so we snaked our way down to the spot where they were congregating. Again, it can happen in a flash. But it didn't.
We waited about four and a half hours, going back and forth until about 1:30 p.m. and there was a HUGE herd of wildebeest.
One took off, the others followed. It was amazing and fascinating. Beth counted 50 wildebeest every 10 seconds during the largest surge. It went on for at least 15 minutes so we figure there were well over 2,500 wildebeest crossing the river.
It slowed and, of course, a crocodile got a small wildebeest that looked a little crippled and was behind. I didn't see it take it under; Beth saw it. There was no struggle.
But immediately after it was taken down, the herd abruptly stopped and turned away from the river.
Wow! My photos don't do the event justice but perhaps you can get a sense of it.
While waiting for the wildebeest, we did see a family of elephants crawl down the river bank to the river for a drink.
Other than that, our time was spent waiting. I did spot a couple of monkeys on our way back to camp but not much else. The Aussies were ready to go back to camp and insisted we get there before 5 p.m. so they could shower.
I dunno. Supper isn't served until 7:30 p.m. The sun sets around 6:30 p.m. and it's almost dark at 7 p.m. when we head to the bar for a beer before supper.  Wienies.
Although, I do have to say that it was probably good we arrived early. After we showered, it began raining. Just a quick shower but it really cooled things down quickly.
Speaking of showers, we do have a shower in the tent. It's a bucket shower. The water is heated by a solar heater, and the camp staff will fill the bucket with 20 litres of hot water when you're ready to shower. As I mentioned previously, you turn it on, get wet, turn it off, soap up, turn it on, rinse. We actually get 40 litres (20 litres per person) but we haven't even used a full 20 litres yet. Perhaps the last night we're here, we'll take a long shower.
There were several people that arrived yesterday: a guy from Scotland who is traveling alone (his wife died a year and a half ago), two black women from D.C. (haven't really talked with them yet), a young heterosexual couple who eats alone, and a couple from Germany who don't speak much English.
They were all at the campfire last night before supper.
When I say the young couple eats alone; it's a little odd because the guide assigned to each group eats supper with the group. So Severin joins us and the Aussies, and the young couple had no guide joining them.
We are doing a morning safari tomorrow because Severin has to return to camp to get the Aussies and get them on their plane. Then we'll do a late afternoon drive. No pics of the crossing because I'm tired or waiting. Sorry. Perhaps later!

This is Alfred, our most wonderful guide for Kilimanjaro and the Ngorongoro Crater. He went out of his way to make sure we were happy!

A white-headed buffalo weaver.

An Eland, the largest of the antelopes in the Serengeti.

Mom and dad elephant taking a drink together from the Mara River.

These are hyraxes, a type of lassie lounging among the rocks.

This is a lilac-breasted roller with a grasshopper!

Oct. 1

What a lazy afternoon around the pool can do for you after having bumped and grinded along African safari roads for three days.
And we got some good sleep.
Had a leisurely morning - got up, showered, had a couple cups of coffee and headed to brekkie around 8:30 a.m.
       Alfred took us to the airstrip at 10 a.m. A half-hour drive on paved roads was exquisite. Our flight was delayed an hour so we didn't leave for the Serengeti until around 11:30 a.m.
       A few words about Tloma Mountain Lodge that has been our home the last three night and two days. It's a lovely space. Our cabin looks out over a beautiful flower garden with a manicured vegetable garden just beyond the trees. There's rows and rows of cabbage, spinach, beets and what we believe might be broccoli, except it is much taller stalks than our broccoli.
       There is a beautiful lodge at the top of the hill where we could use the internet, entertain ourselves at happy hour and eat. And the pool was wonderful.
       It was a good stay.
       The flight was spectacular. We took off and flew over the Great Rift Valley escarpment, Lake Manyaro and Ngorongoro Crater. It was beautiful. Then we flew over the southern portion of the Serengeti, which looked flat and dry and dusty. We landed at an airstrip to refuel then took off again over the northern part of the Serengeti, which is near Kenya. It is much greener.
       What we didn't expect when we got on the ground was the hilly landscape with large boulders and more trees than we expected. It took about 45 minutes to get to our camp.
       The camp is a mobile camp; it's a bush camp. We have a large tent but it has electricity (read: lights), a toilet and a bucket shower.
       We got settled, then we took off for an evening safari. Alfred had told us to ask to see Mama Julie, which is a mother rhino who has a baby, and apparently she's very calm and vehicles can approach her.
       Our guide, Severin, told us he had heard a rumor that Papa Julie had been spotted so off we took on a mission. And we saw him! He wasn't very close to the road but you could see him in the binoculars.
       Speaking of binoculars, we were accompanied by two sisters from Australia who did not have binoculars. A safari trip without binoculars? Go figure. But we shared ours with them.
Not only did we see the rhino, we also saw some other animals we haven't seen yet including mongoose and klipspringers (a small antelope).
       But even more exciting, we saw our first leopard! He was lying on a large rock and apparently had been injured, as we saw a flesh wound on his thigh. I got a couple good photos - one in which he is yawning.
       We headed back to camp, and the sunset was beautiful. I didn't get a photo because I didn't ask      
       Severin to stop because it was late, and we needed to get back to camp.
       A herd of wildebeest greeted us when we turned into camp. Apparently, they move through the camp area at night so we have a couple of guys with bows and arrows patrolling the perimeter of the camp at night.
       We took a shower - a brief shower. One of the guys filled the outside barrel with hot water so you turn it on to get wet, close it, soap and then you can rinse.
       Went up to the bar (yes, there is a bar in the bush), got a beer and sat down at the nice campfire to meet the other guests. Tonight, there are six women: the sisters from Australia, us and a mother/mom duo from New Zealand.
       We ate a sumptuous pumpkin soup and rosemary bread before proceeding to a delicious lamb stew, potatoes, vegetables and a salad. Yep, an awesome meal in the bush.
       It happened to be mom's birthday (from New Zealand), and the guys (yes, there's probably about 15 guys working here) sang and danced as they brought out a birthday cake. It was totally awesome!
We shared a bottle of champagne on the house and the birthday cake then bid adieu to our fellow travelers.
       The Kiwi women are leaving tomorrow, and we're going on an all-day safari with the Aussies. Odd thing about the Aussies: they pretty much just watched the road as we were on safari this afternoon instead of searching for animals (which we definitely did).
       We'll see how it goes tomorrow. We were supposed to have our own private guide so we can stop whenever and, well, regardless of whether we have the Aussie women or not - I'll make sure Severie stops when we want him to do so! Ha!
     

We saw this leopard on our first safari drive in the Serengeti. He/she has a would on her thigh, and she yawned - she was probably tired!

.

Sept. 30

       Today was an easy day.
        We got up this morning at 6 a.m., a far cry from 5 a.m. yesterday then we ate a hearty breakfast before going with Alfred at 7 a.m. to a Masai village on the eastern side of the crater rim.
       We were slowed by a lorrie driver who hogged the road, driving in the middle of it so the jeeps couldn't pass until finally one of the drivers - at an opportune time when the lorrie had to stop because there was an oncoming jeep - ran ahead and spoke to the driver, and it wasn't much longer that the driver FINALLY pulled over to let us pass.
        We got to the village about 9:30 a.m. The bouncing and bumping were a little too much today, probably because we've had so much of it that it seems so fatiguing but we knew it wasn't going to be all day.
       Mauru met us, greeted us and welcomed us to his family's compound then we walked through a gulley back up to where he and his brothers lived. Each of the wives have their own manyattas (homes) where the husband stays, rotating among his wives.
        Anywho, the first place we went was into the cattle pen to meet Mauru's some 175 Braham cattle that were enclosed in a traditional wood pen. He explained how they use the cattle, how they brand them so everyone knows the owner and who herds/shepherds them (Mauru herds his cattle except he sent his older son - probably about 12 years old - to herd because he wanted to stay with us.
        Then we headed to the goat pen! I was so excited because I love goats, and there were probably about 50 goats in the pen including many baby goats. As he was explaining the goats, some of them escaped but the children quickly herded them back into the pen.
        Mauru's children greeted us before we visited the cattle and goats. Albert advised us about the culturally appropriate way to greet them. The children approached us with their heads down to show respect, and we were to place our hand on their heads to show respect and sort of bless them. The words we used to greet the men and women were different, and they would respond differently (we're talking Masai now, not Swahili).
        The children followed us around, and after we visited the cattle and goats, they were very curious. I felt someone touching my camera, which was over my shoulder, so I took it and photographed the children. They were interested in seeing their photos. I have to say that it wasn't until I was preparing the photos for posting that I realized that one of the children had put a finger on the lens so that's what you see on the left side of the photo is the smear he left.
       Some of the other children were interested in Beth's glasses and her glass case with a large orange clip.
       Mauru then took us inside his manyatta, Masai for home. It took a while for our eyes to adjust because there are no windows and no light. The structure is made from wooden sticks, cow dung and mud. The roof is thatched with reeds, and he described how they do it so it is rainproof. There are two compartments for sleeping (one for the husband, the other for the wife and her children). There is a large area onto which the compartments open and where the fire is located. There are some small food storage compartments but then there is a compartment to the left of the entrance in which the baby cows are secured at night and to the right, there is a similar compartment where the baby goats are secured. That way, they are protected from any predators.
       They sleep on cow hides, on the dirt floor.
        I've got to say, it's very comfortable. It's warm in winter and cool in summer. I could probably stay there for a while except for sleeping on the ground.
       We stayed in the manyatta for quite a bit while Mauru explained a lot of things to us: the procedure for men becoming heroes (the circumcision I explained previously), what tasks women are responsible for completing (finding and hauling firewood, hauling water, hauling grass, taking care of the children, cooking, wash - yep, the "traditional" division of labor - I digress).
       He also explained the procedure for getting married. The first wife is an arranged marriage by the parents but the second wife is of your choosing or perhaps your first wife might choose a friend. Of course, more wives mean more children, which means labor for the many tasks. He said the marriage ceremony was a day-long party, 24 hours.
       We then went to view a manyatta that was being built for his brother's wife. While there, Mauru and Baracka (his brother) and a friend showed us how they make fire. It's simple - a hardwood stick, generating friction in a softwood. It didn't take them long to achieve a fire.
       When we emerged, two women (one of whom was Mauru's mother) were sitting and making jewelry so we joined them and watched them bead. Beth got to bend the wire around the beads, and then she bought an awesome pair of earrings.
        After her purchase, the women got up and lead us around to the side of the cattle pen where the entire compound - or so we thought - were there. The women had laid out everything they had to sell but there was no hard sell like in the other places we've visited (the touristy spots) but they and the children all hung back and watched, I guess to see whose stuff we would buy. I got some photos but we also purchased a set of salad servers with zebra handles and a little blue beaded basket. Then Mauru's mother gifted each of us. I got a blue beaded necklace, Beth got a beaded bracelet, and Alfred got a beaded collar.
       It was one of the highlights of the trip - meeting Masai people, being welcomed into their homes and informed about their culture.
       The remainder of the day was ours. We shared lunch with Alfred, then he helped me identify the birds I've photographed, I uploaded the three blogs I had prepared, and we sat by the pool for the remainder of the day until happy hour and supper.
       We fly for an hour tomorrow to the Serengeti mobile camp. We should arrive there before lunch. We suspect another safari might be in the offing for tomorrow afternoon.

In the manyatta learning about Masai culture. From left is Mauru's brother, his mother, Mauru and Alfred, our guide (who also is Masai).

A Masai woman making jewelry. I didn't get her relationship to Mauru.

The men showing us how they. make fire.

Mauru explaining all things goats. He's pointing to a goat condom (it's a shield to keep the goat from breeding. :)

Mauru telling us how a manyatta is constructed. This particular manyatt is for his brother's wife.

Success in getting a fire started.

Some of Mauru's children, who were very curious about my camera.

This is just a portion of the merchandise the Masai women laid out for us to consider purchasing.

This is just a portion of the many people in the compound who watched us as we perused what the women had to offer.

Sept. 29

       Alfred wanted to be at the gate for Ngorongoro Conservation Area when it opened this morning, which is 6 a.m. Which meant we had to get up around 5 a.m. to leave at 5:30 a.m. for the half-hour drive to the gate.
He said all the animals are more active in the morning, and he sensed that we might see a lion kill.
And, indeed, we were the first in line to do the paperwork at the gate and drive into the conservation area!
       The Ngorongoro Crater is the caldera of a volcano that erupted about 2 million years ago. By the way, it is about 160 square kilometers or about 20 kilometers by 18 kilometers. It's huge, which means it most likely was bigger than Kilimanjaro. Kilimanjaro is about 16,000 feet.
       As soon as we started ascending to the rim, we ran into some pretty thick fog so we essentially drove in really thick fog for at least an hour and a half. The fog started lifting as we started our descent. We arrived on the floor of the crater around 7:45 a.m. We were there until about 2 p.m.
It was a banner day! Before we ate breakfast around 9:30 a.m., we already had spotted a herd of zebra then a herd of cape buffalo (a huge herd), a few wildebeests and a few hippos.
       Then we encountered a zebra kill.
       There were three lionesses with the carcass of a zebra, which had been recently eaten. The lionesses in the pride make the kill, then the male eats first before the females. The females had just eaten, as all of them were lying down asleep. The photo I took is the lioness who was guarding the carcass. There was a silver-backed jackal that was hanging out but it kept its distance.
        While we were there, a hyena attempted to get close; the hyena hunts but it prefers to scavenge. The lioness became alert, stood up and started toward our vehicle but pulled back and marked by scratching up the grass with her hind legs, but then she wheeled around, crouched and came right to the  front bumper of our vehicle, bounding out from under the bumper and chased the hyena. She didn't get close to the hyena, but the hyena got the message. The lioness then marked and sat for a while before we left. It was pretty exciting - Beth has a video of it. Sort of….
       We then climbed a rather small hill where we ate breakfast. Before breakfast, however, we watched two elephants traipse the floor of the crater in the green portion below.
       Then I spotted some ostriches not too far away doing something strange. It was a courtship dance, so we went over and watched them for a while. You'll see in the photo that the male's neck and hind quarters are bright pink - that is attractive to the female and is one way to convince her to mate. The male spreads his wings and ducks his head, preparing a nest into which he will invite the female. In the photo, the female is reciprocating by spreading her wings. It was fascinating to watch.
We ate breakfast on the hilltop, then descended again to the floor where we saw huge herds of wildebeest.
       We also saw flamingos, not a lot but more than we saw at Lake Manyara, which is famous for its flocks of flamingos this time of year. Alfred told us there were no flamingos because it had rained too much and the water's alkalinity was low and was not a happy place for the birds. It was somewhat of a disappointment (like Kilimanjaro) but we saw a small flock in the crater.
       We stopped at the "hippo pool," a beautiful stream-fed area in which there were several happy hippos in the water.
       Speaking of hippos, we also saw a hyena approach a hippo that was out of the water but it was merely curious. A sole hyena could never take down a full-grown hippo.
       At one of our "comfort" spots (i.e. bathrooms), we spotted a small watering area where a lot of rufous-tailed weavers were watering. I got a photo of one of them hovering. It was interesting to watch them hover over the water before landing to take a drink of water.
       I also photographed a superb starling. I posted one earlier that was taken looking up to the bird. This is one looking down on the bird, and you can understand why it's called a superb starling.
       We also saw Thompson's and Grant's gazelles. They are not impalas but they are as beautiful and graceful as impalas.
       About 2 p.m., we headed to the Olduvai Gorge dig site that was about an hour from the crater.
       Mind you that all of this travel, except from the crater gate to Karatu is the roughest roads we've ever traveled (they call it an African massage - maybe I've previously mentioned it?). You bounce around - a lot!
       The Olduvai Gorge is "the cradle of humankind." It is the dig site that Drs. Louise and Mary Leaky (and others) discovered hominid remains, including Lucy (perhaps the most famous) and the Tauga child. They also discovered footprints that indicated that our ancestors walked upright much sooner than we previously believed. In fact, they were walking about 2 million years ago.
       The footprints initially were made in volcanic ash then they were preserved because it rained, then it dried and more ash fell.
       Pretty amazing stuff. We listened to a lecture while gazing out over the site, a portion of which was preserved so we could see the layers of sediment. A lot of it had been excavated. There also was another site that the Leakys excavated.
       Albert also told us that there is a sand dune within 20 kilometers of the gorge where Masai women who could not get pregnant would go and lie down, belly on sand, then her husband would come get her and take her back to the village. And whallah, the woman would announce within two months that she was pregnant.
       We barreled and bumped our way back to the lodge, arriving around 6 p.m. We were exhausted so we ate supper when it became available at 7 p.m. then went back to our cottage and were in bed by 9:30 p.m.
       We missed seeing Alfred, who is such a kind and caring soul, during dinner. He was going to bring me the memory card I bought in Arusha that wouldn't format. After having his uncle visit the store, he found someone here that was returning to Arusha (about a three-hour drive but on paved roads) so he sent the card with them, his uncle went to the store the next day to get the card working properly and sent it back to Karatu. Alfred picked it up yesterday and was going to give it to me at dinner.
       Alas, we had to wait until Sunday morning to get the card and test it. Hope it works, as I'm running out of space on the cards I brought (forgot to bring the extra I bought), and we're in the Serengeti for four days beginning Monday.
       Again, I'm just posting a few of the photos I got today because of the internet situation. Enjoy.

A hovering rufous-tailed weaver.

A better picture of the beautiful superb starling.

An acacia tree in the fog on the rim of the crater.

This is the black-crowned crane, the national bird of Uganda.

This is the east side of the rim of the crater.

A herd of Cape buffalo grazing on the floor of the crater.

A lioness guarding a zebra kill with a silver-backed jackal watching.

A herd of wildebeest on the floor of the crater.

A lioness guarding a zebra kill.

An ostrich courtship.

Sept. 28

       Got up this morning around 6:45 a.m. with breakfast at 7 a.m. before heading out to Lake Manyara.
First thing, I go to the bathroom and ask Beth if she left the shower on because I heard what I thought was the shower. She replied, "it's raining, and it's been raining since 3 a.m.!
It's really only the first day we've had pretty steady rain since we left Cape Town, and it was pretty steady but Alfred, our guide, assured us the sun would come out as we got close to the lake and the national park there. He said he emailed to confirm the weather. Alfred has been great - he is very personable, is funny and knowledgeable.
Before beginning our day's journey, we went to the Arusha CBD to get some cash. Our American money is disappearing because there have been some expenses we weren't expecting, like renting walking sticks for $10 at Mount Kilimanjaro and paying for our alcohol consumption because the credit card machine wasn't working this morning at our hotel. Guess we'll tip Alfred in Tanzania shillings since we have very little US dollars.
Then Alfred stopped at a store in which I purchased another memory card for my camera. I bought an extra one but I think I forgot to pack it because I couldn't find it. I got the disk and off we went… however, two hours later when we were going into the Lake Manyara reserve, I loaded the disk and the damn thing would not format. Alfred called his uncle, a taxi driver, whom he directed to the store, and we talked with the store manager on his uncle's cell phone. The only way to get it replaced was to return it to Arusha with the receipt. So Alfred is going to find a colleague tonight or tomorrow who is returning to Arusha and ask them to return it and get another one. I regret having not inserted the card at the store. I trust Alfred will get me another disk before we leave Monday for the Serengeti.
We drove in the rain for about two hours, passing through an entirely different landscape. This landscape was a little flat; lots of dry grass on which the Masai grazed their cattle and goats. We saw several large herds of Braham cattle, which they have chosen because the cattle are resistant to drought and can walk long distances.
At one point, we happened upon five camels - yes, five camels - close to the road who were feeding. Alfred yelled "camels!" and sure enough, there were camels. He said they were imported for the milk, and it was totally surprising to see camels since they don't belong here.
The Masai wear colorful red shawls. However, we passed a trio of young Masai men dressed in black shawls with their faces painted white. Alfred was talking so he didn't stop for me to get a photo (he said he would stop and visit with them next time we saw some but … ). Anywho, he told us yesterday about the Masai rite of passage, and the young men dressed in black with white faces had passed the first stage of their manhood ritual - which is circumcision. They use no anesthetic during the circumcision, and the young man does not blink or certainly cry because he must exhibit manliness. It takes them about one to two months to heal and during that time, the elder men care for them. The second stage used to be killing a lion but for obvious reasons, that's no longer required. He didn't tell us what was required in the second stage but the black shawls and white faces indicated they had passed the first stage and were in the second stage to becoming men.
As we drove across the flat landscape toward the lake, you could see the Great Rift Valley escarpment. It was awesome. The Great Rift Valley wall runs from Mozambique to south of where we're located. Along the way we saw many big safari buses with dozens of people in each.  We are so glad we are not in one of those.
We arrived at the lake around 10:30 a.m., Alfred did all the proper paperwork and raised the roof on the truck. We took off our shoes so we could move freely through the vehicle to photograph, and stand of the seats to photograph out the top of it.
We saw blue monkeys, a Cape buffalo with an egret on it waiting for insects (he was three feet from the car), an elephant eating trees, zebras who were not shy like the ones in Selous, wildebeest (didn't get close but I suspect we will get closer in the Serengeti). We saw sleeping giraffes, hippos in mud up to their chins with 0000000000 birds. We saw another kind of eagle flying and these incredible crowned cranes doing a mating dance but they were too far to photograph. They looked to be at least four feet tall with glorious gold colored crowns and multi-colored feathers.
We also saw vultures feeding on what Alfred thought was a wildebeest carcass that he thought was killed the previous night by a lion. Again, too far away to get a photograph.
We ate lunch at a viewpoint that was quite pleasant. Alfred has provided quite the lunch, and he insists we drink a bottle of white wine at every sitting. We do as he says.
After lunch we briefly visited the Tanzanite Experience which was, basically, a jewelry shop with Tanzanite. Tanzanite is a gemstone that is found only in Tanzania, and its color is from deep blue to blue-violet. It's a beautiful stone - and beautiful prices for beautiful people. We were a little stunned because the lowest price we could see was $350 for a pair of earrings (lower-quality stones) to around $17,000. There probably were more expensive ones but we didn't spend a lot of time browsing. We think Albert had an inflated idea of our income.
Next stop was African Galleria that featured hundreds and hundreds of items for sale by local artists. Alfred, knowing everybody, went and found the boss, who came over to visit with us and provide us with a free cup of cappuccino. He is Indian, and his grandfather started the business in 1921. His father expanded it in the 1970s.
We were told the gallery shipped stuff, and it did but the merchandise we chose was going to cost $200, and it was going to be $270 to ship it to the United States so we discarded a beautiful carved bowl with an elephant and kept the table cloth and a few items we can stash in one of our bags.
Then we headed to Tloma Mountain Lodge, where we're staying the next three nights. We drove along the escarpment for about an hour, then turned down another impossible road that was so dusty. We did see a couple of men with Braham cattle pulling a cart, and we saw the water station where people come to get their water, for which Alfred stopped and let us get a photo.
The lodge is absolutely beautiful. We have our own cabin with sitting area, fireplace, bed and bathroom. We were told the electricity stays on all the time, which is good. It's very spacious. Just outside our cabin are coffee trees, a manicured garden and two big vegetable patches.
There's also a swimming pool, to which Beth headed immediately upon arrival.
I think we'll like it here.
Tomorrow - well, up early again and leaving at 5:30 a.m. so we're at the gate of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area at 6 a.m. when it opens. Alfred told us we're more likely to see animals early in the morning, and see more people than animals in the afternoon so we'll probably eat breakfast in the vehicle waiting for the gate to open, explore the rim and the floor, have lunch and come back to the lodge.
But who knows?
       PS: I'm just going to post a few photos, as the bandwidth where we're currently staying can't handle all 25 I chose! Ha!

A blue monkey.

A Cape buffalo with an egret atop it.

A silver-cheeked hornbill.

Zebras in unison.

A Masai tending his herd of cattle and goats.

Approaching the Great Rift Valley escarpment.

A portion of the Great Rift Valley escarpment.

A villager tending to her rice fields.

Surprise! One of the camels we encountered on our way to Lake Manyaro.

Sept. 27

       We woke to a cloudy, dreary day but we were optimistic that we would see Mt. Kilimanjaro. It was a three-hour drive to the mountain.
       The drive was interesting, as all of them are interesting, as we passed through several towns and villages as we climbed higher and higher into a mountain terrain.
       It's difficult to get photos from a moving vehicle so I didn't get any really good ones - always hoping to get some, though!
       The most familiar sight is the women sitting alongside the road with their wares while all the guys hang out with their motorcycles, visiting and not getting much done. A lot of the women are selling produce - tomatoes, potatoes, some corn, yams and yarrow.
       There also are stores that sell everything from furniture (which remains outside, even in the rain), hardware, lumber. We passed a location at which there were bags and bags of carrots getting ready to be loaded for transport.
       There are quite a few hair salons as well.
       There are also other similarities: everything is dirt except the paved highway, most all of the buildings are either concrete blocks or kind of ramshackle. It was raining as we passed through the towns/villages, so everything was mud.
       A lot of people have motorcycles because it's cheap transportation but they don't wear helmets and, well, they drive dangerously. The photo I got was of a young man riding the bumper of a large truck - I mean he was no further than a foot from the bumper, and if the truck had slammed on its brakes - well, you know it wouldn't be good for the young man. We saw an accident in which a car overturned. We suspect he was going too fast, hit the guardrail (which was bowed), lost control and there ya go.
       We saw a funeral procession. Well, it was a hearse with two vehicles doing really fast to the village in the foothills of the mountain. There was a band waiting in the back of a truck, all of them dressed in white but we didn't stop. Dangit. There were tons of folks there when we descended the mountain, and it looked like quite a gathering.
       We got to the mountain, and we still couldn't see it but we went for a three-hour hike along the foothills of it with Rogath. He has eight children, one of whom is in university studying geology and wants to get a Ph.D. in Europe or possibly the United States. When Rogath heard we were retired university professors, he promptly called his son so he could talk with me. So, I'm on the phone with his son for about 15 minutes as we strolled through the forest. For some reason, I guess he thought we could be helpful. I left my email address but I also left him with Beth's phone number because we only have her phone and she downloaded WhatsApp, which app everyone uses in Africa.
       As I write this Friday afternoon, Beth just told me she got a message on WhatsApp from his son.
Rogath is Chaga, a tribe located on Mount Kilimanjaro, and he knows a lot about the forest flora and fauna when it comes to how to use it medicinally. He learned it from his mother. So he was pointing out different plants and explaining how to use them. We came upon one plant that he said you can high from chewing the bark. It's legal in Kenya, but illegal in Tanzania.
       We saw some blooms, lots of ferns and moss as well as some animals such as an African slug. There are wild mango trees but only the monkeys eat the fruit, and we spotted one fruit that had been split open. As you can see, we also saw a pretty waterfall that was about 40 meters in height.
When we stopped in an open spot from which you should be able to see the mountain if the sky was clear, this guy with a backpack shows up. We thought he was a hiker but turns out it was Rogath's friend who had something to sell. It was very odd - you're out hiking in the woods and someone shows up to sell you something. We figured Rogath was helping his friend, and he called him to tell us where we would be at what time.
       Unfortunately, a lot of men (yes, it's all men) make money by hawking stuff. There were several in the parking lot, and we've encountered them elsewhere. They are very persistent. We don't want to be rude but… Alfred, our guide, told us to say no, and if that didn't work, tell them "maybe tomorrow."
       We did not see Mount Kilimanjaro - which is the first disappointment of the trip. Maybe we'll see it Friday before we leave Arusha or perhaps when we fly to the Serengeti.
       The rain was spotting on the trip back to our boutique hotel, which used to be a plantation farmhouse that now has lots of rooms and cottages. It is tucked away down an impossible road, a road on which only four-wheel drives or very sturdy vehicles can drive.
       But we've got an "exclusive" safari guide who drives a honking Toyota Land Cruiser that can go anywhere. It also has charging stations for our phones or camera.
       Did I tell you our room here has a television? We ate supper and tried to watch some television but we were pooped, and we were asleep before we knew it.

This woman was sweeping the dirt path at Kilimanjaro National Park.

Begonias that are on trees.

A wild mango split open by a monkey. Only. monkeys eat the fruit.

An African slug. It's about six times larger than the slugs we have in Wisconsin.

Hiking the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Rogath, our safari guide at Kilimanjaro.

A water fall to which we hiked.

A fern growing on a tree.

Beth is pointing to where we should be able to see Mount Kilimanjaro, if not for the clouds and rain.

A village scene in Arusha.

A family in Arusha.

A family waiting and resting in Arusha. Sorry, it's not sharp - shooting from moving vehicle!

Vendors alongside the highway.