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Snowy Colorado, USA

We’re safely back in the United States, after a marathon journey from Nairobi to London to Washington DC/Baltimore to Colorado. The part of Colorado where we live has more snow than they’ve seen in 30 years. We can vouch for the quantity of snow---drifts easily surpass the height of our roof, and absolutely everything outside is pure white. There’s no horizon, since the sky is the same color of white as the ground. The snow has been continuously falling. It’s incredible.

If you’re ever planning a trip to Africa and choose to go on an overland truck, we’d recommend going south to north, as we did. It just kept getting better and better, more wildlife, more cultural interactions, all the way up to the crowning experience of Masai Mara in Kenya.

Now that our trip to Africa is complete, we’re left with memories of beautiful landscapes, amazing wildlife, and friendly people. Africa is an exceptional continent!

Valley of Elephants

Our game drive brought us deep into the heart of Masai Mara Natl. Reserve, Kenya. Once again, there was wildlife around every bend of the dusty 2-track road. We crested a small hill and descended into a valley of tall grasses and thorny acacia trees. Before our eyes, large gray bodies materialized out of the brush. Sixteen elephants in the first herd calmly ate big bunches of grass with their long, curling trunks. As we scanned the area with binocs, we counted over 100 elephants in the valley, a few lone bulls, but mainly large matriarchs and smaller calves. We watched, mesmerized by the proximity and immensity of the elephants in one of the herds. The smallest of the elephants, not more than 4 months old, stole the show. It took a few steps toward the truck, lifted its trunk straight out in front of its head, and started spinning it in circles, like a windmill. We couldn't tell if it was mad, trying to be threatening, or was just showing off, but it sure was cute!

We had the opportunity to visit a Masai village, where each woman is responsible for building her family's home, using just sticks and cow dung. The men and young boys are responsible for guarding the village and herds of cattle from wild animals, using just handmade bows and arrows, a spear, or a wooden club.

We spent 5 days at Masai Mara, an incredible way to cap off this amazing 2 month adventure. We couldn't leave Africa without at least one experience on public transportation, so we hopped on board a series of packed trucks and mini vans, for the 6 hour journey back to Nairobi.

Tomorrow morning we'll wave goodbye to Africa as we fly to London, and then back to American soil.

Stalked by a Lion

We spent three days in the wilds of Serengetti NP and Ngorongoro Crater NR, in Tanzania. The wildlife was tremendous, from vast herds of wildebeast and zebra to close encounters with water buffalo. Prides of lions lounged in the sunshine on rocky outcroppings called "kopjes," elevated slightly above the grassy plain. We even had a rare opportunity to see a leopard atop a huge boulder at sunset. But it was in our bush campground in Serengetti where we had an experience that we'll never forget.

At 10 p.m. we left the dying embers of the campfire to turn in for the night. An intestinal bug had been making its way through S's digestive system, so we made a run through the darkness to the pit toilet. As we neared it, our headlamps reflected back at us in the form of two yellow eyes, staring at us from about 30 feet away. Since there were no fences to keep the animals out, our minds reeled with the possibilities; was this a jackal, a hyena, or a lion watching us? We decided to return to the fire to ask one of our safari guides if it was safe to continue to the toilet. He accompanied us with a bright flashlight and identified the eyes as belonging to a lion.

Shortly after returning to the tent, vowing to remain in its relative safety until daylight, a massive thunder and lightning storm released an angry downpour over the Serengetti. At midnight, we realized our goal was unattainable, as S's sickness worsened. We made a mad dash to the outhouse, slipping in the mud and blinded by the pouring rain. Our weak flashlights did little to penetrate the darkness; nevertheless, they reflected the same set of yellow eyes, watching and waiting. Being in such a vulnerable position was truly terrifying. We prayed for safety each of the three times we had to make the trek, and fortunately, the lion kept its distance.

We spent the next night camping at 7,300 feet on the rim of Ngorongoro Crater. Far below, within the crater, a vast grassy plain is home to zebra, wildebeest, and water buffalo, as well as the occasional elephant and black rhino. We fell asleep to the sounds of hyenas laughing in the darkness. Africa really is as wild as the stories make it sound!

Beyond the Roof of Africa

Low clouds hung around what looked to be a massive peak. The clouds cleared for just a moment, allowing us a glimpse of the snow-capped summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. At over 19,000 feet, Kili is the roof of Africa. We found a pleasant campsite near several Masai villages on the outskirts of Arusha.

For the past three days, we have been in the heart of African grasslands of Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro National Conservation Area. To say that is was amazing would be an understatement. Once we are in Nairobi, we will provide more details.

We are currently back in Arusha and we'll cross over into Kenya later today. After one night camping near the town of Namanga, we will arrive in Nairobi.

Spice Island

We stepped off the ferry into the hustle and bustle of a town steeped in history and legend. Stone Town, on the island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania, is a world heritage site, known for its narrow streets, spice trade, and rich Muslim influence. Within a couple of hours, we found ourselves lost in the labyrinth of winding streets and walkways. Later, we sat back on the balcony of The Africa House to watch the hot sun dip beneath the horizon of the Indian Ocean, traditional wooden dhows sailing by in front of us. The nighttime food markets were an experience not to be missed. We walked from one lantern-lit table to the next, as the fishermen told us about their catch of the day. They grilled fish, beef, or chicken kabobs, octopus, crab, and thin coconut bread called chapati. We ended our meal with a freshly grilled Zanzibar specialty-a chocolate and banana pizza.

Our second day on the island, we escaped the hectic pace of Stone Town and visited two natural areas. The first was a collection of coral reefs in a shallow sea on the southern tip of the island. We waded out to an old wooden boat, then motored to an area known for its high concentration of dolphins. For the next hour, we swam with a pod of 13 dolphins. Sometimes they were just a silouette below us, moving gracefully along the sandy bottom, and other times they came up for air and their bodies were illuminated by the sunlight. They would disappear at times into the deep blue, only to reappear minutes later alongside us. At one point we found ourselves alone with the dolphins surfacing just in front of us and on both sides. It was a magical, surreal experience.

After lunch in a beachside bungalow, we drove to the second natural area, Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park, which is known for its population of friendly red colobus monkeys. As we walked, tiny frogs (the size of a pinky fingernail) jumped across the forest floor. It didn't take long to discover a red colobus monkey with red hair and long white eyebrows up in a tree. Suddenly, the tree seemed to come to life. The red colobus monkey was surrounded by 50 others. The ranger informed us that this was one of the smaller troops in the forest.

By sunset, we had moved to a hotel on the northern tip of the island, a place called Nungwi. Today, our 3rd day in Zanzibar, is a day for relaxing on the beach and snorkling in the turquoise water.

We'll return to Dar es Salaam and then make our way to Arusha, gateway to the Serengetti.