Safari to the Serengeti

Safari is Swahili for a trip or journey. Our trip to the Serengeti was a journey into another world, a world that, I fear, may not last much longer. In one sense the wild animals we saw are a cliché that obscures other, harsher realities of Africa. On the other hand, it was undeniably fascinating and deeply thrilling to see lions, giraffes, and all the other animals in their natural habitat.
We arrived in Arusha, in northern Tanzania, on February 22 to meet our safari group. This was a camping trip, albeit somewhat genteel camping. We slept in tents, and the 15 people on our tour were expected to assist our two driver/guides with cooking meals, washing-up and other chores. There were a Norwegian couple, two Swiss, a Scot, 4 English women, an Italian woman and a Polish guy living in England, and four Canadians. We all got along very well, and everyone pitched in when needed.
Barb had a few misgivings about the camping part, but was a good sport about it, although I doubt that we’ll be camping much when we get back to Canada.
The tour bus was built on a truck chassis, with a truck suspension, so the ride was pretty rough. The roads are all very basic and unpaved in the Serengeti, hence the need for a robust vehicle. It made for some bone-rattling rides, and also some scary moments labouring up the steep and narrow road from the Rift Valley in the rain, sliding in the mud as we negotiated the switchback turns.

Safari - Day 1
We packed up our tents and left the campground in Arusha in high spirits. We arrived at the gates of Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the entrance to the parks, a couple of hours later. While we were stopped there, waiting while our guide paid our entrance fees, a troop of baboons walked through the parking lot. One of them climbed on top of our bus, to the amusement of all of us. It was a good omen for the sights to come. The road then went into the highlands and followed the crest of the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater (elevation 2200 meters), providing a breathtaking view of the plains below on one side, and the floor of the crater on the other. We continued out of the highlands toward the Serengeti plains.
We passed many herds of cattle tended by Maasai people. They are the only people allowed to live in the national park, as it is part of their traditional homeland. Their small extended family compounds, consisting of a grouping of round thatched huts surrounded by a fence, are seen occasionally dotting the rolling grassy landscape. When we passed one of these villages, about 100 meters from the road, we saw a spirited game of soccer being played by about 16 men and boys in their traditional robes.
Many Maasai have been forced to give up their traditional way of life because land outside the national parks has been bought or taken for farming, and is not available for grazing. The Maasai traditionally had no concept of the private ownership of land, and now the land base that supported their way of life is being converted to other uses. Some have adapted to city ways, like our cab driver Sylvester, who speaks great English though he never went to high school, and works partly as a cab driver and also as a guide taking climbers up Mount Kilimanjaro, which he has climbed hundreds of times. Other Maasai live pretty marginal lives in the city, selling tourist trinkets on the street to try to get by.
The Maasai are a pastoral people, keeping herds of cattle primarily, but also goats and some donkeys. These herds graze on the rolling grasslands side by side with herds of wild game, wildebeest and zebras, and also various antelopes, but the cattle never mixes with the game herds, always keeping to their own kind.
As we drove through the grassy lands towards the Serengeti plains, we began to see wild game. The first animals we saw were six Cape buffaloes, massive and tremendously strong looking animals. They look like water buffalo from the far east. Then we saw several giraffes in the distance, browsing on the tops of thorn trees. We were immediately elated by this sight, but it was only the beginning.
The land became flatter as we entered the Serengeti plans proper. Serengeti comes from the Maasai word “siringet” meaning land of endless space. It certainly felt like the plains went on forever. They look like southern Saskatchewan, completely flat and featureless. Barb and Sharon felt right at home.
We began passing herds of wildebeest and zebras. They tend to be found together because they are naturally mutually supportive. Zebras have keen eyesight but a very poor sense of smell. Wildebeest have a great sense of smell but poor eyesight. Together they are much better able to detect predators. Zebras prefer to eat tall coarse grasses, and wildebeest eat the shorter grass underneath. Wildebeest look like scrawny buffaloes with full beards.
The animals were far between at first but became more and more numerous the further we went. We saw a herd of Thompson’s gazelles, which, we later found out are quite commonplace, as are impalas. Next we saw two ostriches roaming the plain. A herd of about 40 wildebeest crossed the road, escorted by several zebras. This forced us to stop the bus, and take plenty of pictures.
We crossed a river bed that was mostly dry, with a pool of water near the road. In the pool were half a dozen hippos, trying to keep their tough but sun-sensitive skins wet and out of the sun. A few kilometers late we saw a single fully grown male warthog in the ditch right beside the road, placidly grazing. His fearsome tusks were stained green from the grass he was eating. He took little notice of us when we stopped to take his picture.
We made a pit stop at a lodge before heading to our campsite for the night. While we pitched our tents Wilson, one of our guides, made us a fine meal of pumpkin soup and beef stew with rice, all cooked up on two gas burners. He was a cook in a five star hotel before becoming a tour guide.
The camp site facilities were quite primitive, with stand-up toilets which Wilson called “long-drops”. These were comprised of two footpads with a hole in the floor between them. We were warned not to leave our tents at night, as the campground is unfenced and animals can and do roam freely. This turned out to be very good advice, as we were to learn later.