HILLS OF KILIMANJARO-OUR FIRST GAME DRIVE

Zebras, Giraffes, and Elephants, Oh My!

Having seen my first giraffe on the way to our tented camp, I was eager to see more animals in the wild on our first game drive which was scheduled for after lunch and after we had settled in our tents. As I came to understand, we'd typically leave camp about 3:30-4:00 and return anytime after 6-6:30 since being so close to the equator, the sun sets quickly and without the hour or so of afterglow common in more northern locations. 

We had already seen many of these trees with the hanging balls which I came to learn are the nests of the Social Weaver birds. 

According to Wikipedia, the black-capped social weaver (Pseudonigrita cabanisi) is a sparrow-like of bird that has been assigned to the weaverbird family. Adults have a large black cap, ivory-colored bill, red eyes, brown back and wings, blackish-brown tail, white throat and underparts with a black midline, and dark horn-colored legs. 

It breeds in colonies, and its roofed nests with an entrance at the bottom are constructed by the male from grass stems in thorny trees such as acacias.  It is found in parts of Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania. It is sometimes kept and bred in captivity. 

Since I am typically not a bird photographer, I offer this artist's rendering of the bird instead.

This picture of an Acacia tree is one of my iconic Africa shots. 

An interesting feature of our games drives in the savanna area near Mt. Kilimanjaro was the walks we had with our local guide, Ronjo. Unlike in the Serengeti where unrestricted travel was prohibited, in this part of Tanzania, our vehicles were allowed to drive off road, and we were allowed to get out of the vehicles to walk. That said, we always had Ronjo with us and were required to stay relatively close as a group. Also, the Land Cruisers followed us, albeit at a distance, so our walks were always in one direction.

Imagine yourself out here. What lurks behind yonder trees and brush?

Let's find out.
(As you can see, we are all dressed in our khaki clothes, or what I dubbed, Safari Drab.)

You meet the nicest people out here in the bush.

How many giraffes do you see? HINT: Look closely and count the legs.

How many elephants in this picture?

Antelope or Not?

What is the difference between an antelope, a gazelle and an impala? At first, it was very difficult for me to see the difference, especially when the criteria was simply size. Without seeing them side-by-side, it was hard for me to know which was smaller or bigger.

And then there were the two different kinds of gazelles--Thomson's and Grant's. But what about impalas? Little wonder I was confused when later, doing research for this blog, I learned this simple fact:  all gazelles are antelopes, but not all antelopes are gazelles…

According to this website (https://www.tanzania-experience.com/blog/gazelles-vs-antilopes/)  gazelles are a genus of the antelope group and antelopes belong to the bovidae family. Together they make up quite a miscellaneous group which include impala, gazelle, oryx, waterbuck, eland, wildebeest and many more.

All antelopes are ungulates meaning they have even-toed hooves. Gazelles like other antelopes also have a four-chambered stomach. But the main differences lay in their size and horns.

While gazelles are usually much smaller than other antelopes, a more obvious difference is that in most species of gazelles, both male and female animals have horns; however, with impalas, only males have horns. That’s why an impala is an antelope, but not a gazelle.

Easy, right? Well, not for me, but I found an even easier way to tell the difference, at least between gazelles and impalas, regardless of the horns. Impalas have three black stripes on their behinds--one down the tail and another one on either side of the tail. That's three, right?  Gazelles don't. 

This is easy. There are only two antelope in this picture.
But are you sure they are impalas? 

Another visual difference is gazelles have a stripe running along each side. But then there are two kinds of gazelles--Thomson's and Grant's. So how's a person to tell the difference between them?

The Thomson’s Gazelle has a bold black side stripe separating the brown coat from its white underparts. 

The Grant’s Gazelle has no side stripe or a faint black side stripe.

There are several other less obvious physical differences, so I relied on the side black stripe to tell me it was a gazelle, Thomson's or otherwise. 

So these are Thomson's gazelles, right?

As for zebras, I had no trouble identifying them. Zebras are single-hoofed animals that are native to Africa. 

They are very closely related to horses and donkeys being in the same genus, Equus. 

Giraffes are also easy to identify, although there are several types of giraffes including four species and numerous subspecies. 

The giraffe and its closest relative the okapi are the last survivors of the once plentiful Giraffidae family. 

Today the giraffe is the tallest animal on Earth, with males topping out at about 18 feet at the top of the horns and 11 feet at the shoulder. Although no fossil trail exists, it is assumed the giraffe developed its remarkable physique and out-survived its relatives by reaching for the treetops.

Both males and females have horns known as occicones, which are formed from cartilage and covered with skin. 

Females have thinner occicones that are tufted with longer hair on top. 

Males' occicones are larger, have knobs on the ends, and become bald on top as they mature.

So this is a young female giraffe with its tufts of black hair atop her occiones.

Remember earlier I said there are other less obvious physical differences between Thomson's and Grant's gazelles? 

Well, here they are:

1. The Thomson’s Gazelle (Gazella thomsonii) is cinnamon-colored and the Grant’s Gazelle (Gazella granti) is sand-colored.

2. The Thomson’s Gazelle lacks white on its body above the tail. The Grant’s Gazelle has white above the tail.

3. The Thomson’s Gazelle has a black tail. The Grant’s Gazelle has a white tail with a black tuft.

These are features that are difficult to see when you are at a distance and/or the animal is moving away from you, 

hence making a positive ID for me was hard. 

But looking at the photo below and the criteria above, is this a gazelle or an impala? And if it is a gazelle, which kind?

Based on the criteria, I think this is a Grant's gazelle. Do you agree?

Baboons were always fun to see. 

They were usually in a large group even though these next two photos show them as being alone. 

In reality, there were many more relatives just out of the picture.

Footprints and Poop: Reading the Signs

These are elephant footprints. By learning about the footprints in the ground,
we can tell who has been here and where they were headed.

An old elephant footprint made when the ground was wet is huge
compared to my size 11 feet (which some may also consider big).

Ronjo's footprint. Notice the design of his tire sandals.
Both ends are shaped the same which, we were told, is so you can't tell
by looking at a footprint whether the person is coming or going. 

My size 11s again, this time with a more recent elephant footprint in dry ground.

Old elephant droppings

Antelope droppings (Impala, gazelle or other antelope?)

Giraffe droppings

Ronjo is photobombed by two curious giraffes.

THE HILLS OF KILIMANJARO-Kambi Ya Tembo Sinya Camp & First Animal Sighting

Leaving Arusha and Lawate behind us, we began our journey to West Kilimanjaro. It was early on that we got our first view of Mount Kilimanjaro as we headed to a remote, lesser visited safari area most famous for its views of the mountain. That said, this view turned out to be the best view we'd have for the next two days. But I wasn't disappointed because what we did see and experience made up for it.

Mt. Kilimanjaro can be seen in the distance, with the not-so-snow-covered top being shrouded in clouds. 

The drive was primarily on dirt roads as a new paved highway was currently under construction. However, we saw little heavy machinery and instead many men working with shovels to clear or move dirt or rocks from here to there. The completion of the highway was not imminent, but when finished it would improve the drive to West Kilimanjaro and neighboring Kenya. 

The people seen in the background are gleaning the field of leftover corn.

As it was, we bumped along rocky, dirt roads and side detours which because it was the dry season, were also very, very dusty. But as we experienced later, this was just an introduction to bumpy and dusty. In this respect, the warning in the handbook was spot on.

Donkeys, cattle, goats and sheep were also frequent sightings along the road.

Two bumpy hours later, we passed through the gates of the the Enduimet Wildlife Management Area on our way to our tented camp, and that's when I spied my first giraffe. STOP!

Seeing my first giraffe was an emotional experience for me.
I found myself weeping quietly at the realization that I was really here in Africa,
seeing this magnificent creature in its own habitat.

While we would end up seeing many more giraffes as well as zebras, elephants, wart hogs, gazelles and baboons in the game drives during the next two days, the sighting of my first giraffe remains my most memorable moment of the trip.

Arriving at Camp

Kambi ya Tembo Sinya Camp is located in the West Kilimanjaro area of Northeast Tanzania. It is a rustic but very comfortable permanent tented lodge in a hilltop setting in a remote and less-visited safari area most famous for its views of Mount Kilimanjaro. 

The huge thatched roof on this see-through structure drew our attention right away.
This is the common area where we would meet everyday to relax and enjoy our meals.

The rafter and rib structure of the roof creates an interesting pattern and texture.

 This view from the outdoor seating area extends westward across the savanna to Mt. Meru located just north of the city of Arusha which is where our journey began two days earlier.

The camp consists of 14 tents like ours below, each with en suite facilities including flush toilets, hot and cold running water, and a spacious shower. Each tent is also situated to have a view of Mount Kilimanjaro from the front porch; however, because of frequent cloud cover, we never got a perfect view worthy of photographing.

My first impression is that this is not your typical tent camping. Each heavy canvas tent is permanently erected under a larger timber and thatched roof cover which wraps around three sides making a covered porch. Window screens have both roll-up shades on the outside as well as decorative curtains on the inside. The entry is a double-wide screened flap with heavy duty zippers. Two leather director chairs beg you to sit and enjoy the view, but with a busy daily itinerary, we never had a chance to just sit.

Inside, the tent is bright and airy with room for a queen bed, dressing table, clothes tree and two luggage racks. Bedside lights are electrified kerosene lamps to keep the authentic camping look. 

The ensuite bathroom is three times as big as ours at home with a separate room for the toilet, the vanity and the shower.

And with its eco-friendly electric power supplied by solar panels, that means hot showers are available any time of day.

 A quick power-nap was in order before setting out on our first late afternoon game drive.

THE HILLS of KILIMANJARO: Learning and Discovery-Part 2

TUK-TUKS AND BANANA BEER

The first logical question may be what is a tuk-tuk? Next, what is banana beer? And third, what do they have in common, if anything?

I'll begin by answering the third question first. Both were opportunities for Learning and Discovery during our first morning of the Hills of Kilimanjaro pre-trip excursion. And both were not included in the printed itinerary. 

Despite this being only the first morning of the first full day in Tanzania, I was quickly coming to realize that this trip was going to be like none other I had been on. We were already ankle-deep in the local culture, and it was only 10:00 in the morning. What next?

A ride to town in a tuk-tuk! 

A tuk-tuk is a small, three-wheeled auto rickshaw that holds 1-3 passengers in the rear seat, or a fourth passenger if he/she squeezes next to the driver in the front. According to an online source, "Tuk-tuks have a reputation for being dangerous," which did cross my mind as we tootled down the highway, but I quickly let that thought go because with the loud, upbeat music blaring from the rear speaker, I was having way too much fun.

Apparently, while we were visiting the family across the street, arrangements had been made for a mini-fleet of tuk-tuks to assemble at the hotel to take us to the nearby village of Lawate. Two-by-two we crawled in the back seats of the waiting vehicles, and then we were off. 

The driver's seat and interior as seen from the back seat.

Once there, we stopped behind a row of single story brick buildings. Houses or shops? I wasn't sure which. 

But this open-air kitchen (below) resembled the open kitchen we had seen earlier, so I presumed this was a community/residential kitchen. We saw two pots cooking on the simple wood fires.

This woman greeted us and then followed us around during our 45-minute visit. Our guide greeted her by name, so I assumed she was part of the "unofficial" greeting committee.

In an adjacent open-air room a woman was busy making chapati, an unleavened flat bread.

It seems that all cultures have their own version of unleavened bread. It is the most basic staple made from flour, water and salt.

Of course, we were given a taste. 

And then Abraham taught us about banana beer. I have to be honest. I can't remember the exact process. It involved piles of grain, soaking, drying in the sun, then fermenting, but I don't recall him talking about bananas. Maybe I missed something?

But I do remember going to the pub next door where there was a big yellow bucket filled with a foamy, murky looking liquid and a woman who ladled the liquid into a large yellow cup.

Abraham took a big sip, much to the delight of everyone in the room,

and then he explained how it is customary to pass the cup around the room so that everyone could share in the drink.

One look on Kate's face reveals what her taste buds told her.

Nevertheless, smaller cups of the banana beer were passed around as is the custom,

and then the dancing began.

Even Doug danced a bit.

And then it was time to go. 

Back at the lodge, Lenny was loading the last duffel in the Land Cruisers,

and we hit the road to our next stop with the promise of seeing our first African animals.

I can't wait!