Steppes In Africa; A Disney-inspired Safari-N is for: Next Stop- The SERENGETI!! (7/28)

[Steppesister]

Now I’m all caught up here, too! At the risk of sounding like a broken record, your pictures and videos are stunning!
The Plantation looks like a 5 star luxury resort!
What a cool experience when you got to dance with them AND got it on video.

Why thank you!

And yes, that resort was so perfect in every way.

It was certainly a special way to begin my birthday. I loved every minute!

 

[buzzrelly]

A beautiful, bounteous spread was all laid out and I helped myself to some meats, cheeses, yogurt and granola and an ample serving of fresh fruit. Of course, bacon and eggs followed. YUM!

Looks delish!

but this group came in carrying a cake! They were there to help me celebrate my BIRTHDAY!!!

Oh my gosh, so sweet! You'll never forget that birthday!!

Enjoy my birthday song!

Super cute!

It started to sprinkle as we bounced along and the driver was quick to ask me how I was liking my African massage.

(Okay, see that splashing at the tail end of the the hippo. What they don't tell you at Disney is that hippos actually have a quite disgusting habit of marking their territory and dominance by flinging their poop with their tails as they doo-doo. This along with the "yawning" are actually signals of aggression and a warning shot to others getting too close.)

Ew! I guess it's effective though!

The 2 species of acacia trees made an exquisite backdrop for these magnificent creatures and taking time to watch them paid off huge. They ambled their way towards the jeep deciding to cross the road in front and in fact all around us;

Gorgeous! Love those giraffes!!

 

[Wood Nymph]

They were there to help me celebrate my BIRTHDAY!!! It was such a total, wonderful shock and I won’t lie, I was simply giddy with joy.

That was very nice of them. It looked like everyone enjoyed the celebration.

Okay, here’s a mystery antique for you to guess at: Let’s see how you do…

It looks like some sort of grinder or butter churn.

I was going from green and lush to the drier grasslands further East- the Serengeti National Park.

The rain was pretty heavy. Was this the rainy period for the Serengeti?

(Okay, see that splashing at the tail end of the the hippo.

I will never view the hippos in the same way again.

We crossed the river then parked at the water’s edge as the rain turned into a steady downpour.

The rain must have been a little disappointing.

We drove on and were within 10 or so minutes from camp when a large tower of giraffe came into view.

They are scary when they get close.

I can't wait to hear more about this part of your trip.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I also grabbed a photo of the 3 most popular beers in East Africa. I think at least one, according to @missjackiemcg , is available at the Dawa Bar (Dawa means “Medicine” in case you were wondering.)

Oooh, I'd love to be able to try those!! I know AK has Safari Ale--wonder if that's a US brew of the Lager shown there? Rob's other AK fav that I spotted in one of your previous posts is Tusker Ale--yummy!

hat they don't tell you at Disney is that hippos actually have a quite disgusting habit of marking their territory and dominance by flinging their poop with their tails as they doo-doo.

We do an animal project in Kindergarten, and one of my students proudly shared this fact with my class during his presentation! It was quite a hit with his classmates!

All of those rainy animal pictures are just so incredible! The wet giraffe fur was something I've never seen before. Such an OOH and AAH experience for me reading each update!

 

[pkondz]

I slept well after the very long day in The Crater

While visions of antelope danced in your head.

A beautiful, bounteous spread was all laid out and I helped myself to some meats, cheeses, yogurt and granola and an ample serving of fresh fruit.

Whoa that looks good.

this group came in carrying a cake! They were there to help me celebrate my BIRTHDAY!!!

No way!!

I won’t lie, I was simply giddy with joy. WOW, just wow!

I believe you!

Enjoy my birthday song!

Look at that smile.

And… I note the surprised look when they sang “How old are you?” That’s a common birthday song in French Canadian culture. I assume brought from France. Given the colonization of Africa, I’m not surprised to hear it.

And a sweet message from the Wilderness Guest Team:

Nice.

I was not even close to fluent, but learned a few phrases that made the locals smile when I pulled them out.

I find that people are always pleased when you make an effort to speak in their language.

Pied Wagtail

Like that one.

The flora was also quite intriguing around the Lodge- flowers I’d never seen or heard of before.

Me neither. Pretty!

Okay, here’s a mystery antique for you to guess at: Let’s see how you do…

Butter churn?

Dawa means “Medicine” in case you were wondering

Huh! I wasn’t, but… cool to know now.

Even the Main House's Restroom was gorgeous!

Very posh

Serengeti National Park

Heard of that! But never really knew where it was.

Most drives are not “drives from Point A to Point B"; they are exhilarating game drives with frequent stops to watch the animals that you will surely come across.

Even outside the parks?

I’m certain that is why the trip curators had me take a flight instead from Lake Manyara Airport to the Seronera Airstrip

“No animals for you!”

I had received an invoice for his services about an hour before he called me, but never heard anything since and figured since his services were too late, I wasn't expected to pay.

Breaking news from Tanzania:
“American tourist seeks aid from local doctor and skips out of town without paying.”

Whee!!!

Didn’t drop your phone this time.

wonder where the National Park starts...?

Totally not obvious.

Ready, Set, GO!

Apparently in Africa, one can just wander around and take any plane you want.

opportunities to see animals is always going to trump food

Silverbird

Silverbird…
It’s safari time in Tanzania.

we bounced along and the driver was quick to ask me how I was liking my African massage

What they don't tell you at Disney is that hippos actually have a quite disgusting habit of marking their territory and dominance by flinging their poop with their tails as they doo-doo

Meh. I do the same.

The unidentifiable hawk

Gosh. Looks like a Hawk.*

*How it got its name.

Coke’s Hartebeest

Mmmm… Coke

Wow!!!

Yes, it really was that close. I totally could have touched it should I'd been stupid enough to

breaking into light laugh, the driver said, “Oh no, that’s an A.L.T., an Animal Like Thing.

the staff of Lemala Tent Camp met us with umbrellas and warm menthol/eucalyptus facecloths to freshen up.

Very nice.

 

[disneyAndi14]

The lion lounging on the Savannah, you captured it!
Your trip sounds awesome so far and I’m glad as a single traveler it was nice having the concierge service.
The dinner looks lovely!