Safari

I had such a great weekend on safari in the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater. These parks in Tanzania are unbelievable; it is almost like taking a step back into prehistoric times. I really enjoyed hanging my head out of the top of the landcruiser while snapping photos and enjoying the wind and dust blow through my hair. My camera became my best friend; I took over 800 photos in 3 days. I have picked about 50 that give a good sampling of the whole trip. Katie asked that I comment more on my pictures, so I will try better this time. Enjoy . . .

This little rock hyrax sat next to me while I ate lunch at the park information center, he was hoping for some table scraps. I actually gave him a pat on the head and he didn't even bite my hand off. If you have ever seen "Princess Bride", he may remind you of an R.O.U.S.

Water Buck.
These two were bobbing their heads up and down as we drove by, as if to say "Jambo!" (hello)

There are so many baboons here. I like this picture because there is a cute little baby baboon clinging to the front side of the tree.

This guy got so close I thought he was going to jump up in the truck with us!

A family of lions catching shade under the tree. They don't really notice the safari jeeps drive by, they just continue napping.

This is a common scene in the Serengeti. The clear blue skies, a small cluster of trees, and huge herds of elephants and water buffalo trying to catch the least bit of shade.

Mama kissing her cub. Dad is just under the tree.

Female lion on the hunt.

It is good to be king. These are awesome creatures, you appreciate that so much more when seeing them in their element in the Serengeti. We must have spotted more than 50 lions in three days!

The picture doesn't really show it, but these giraffes are enormous. I really enjoyed snapping these photos; it is hard to explain, but you could compare it to the thrill of hunting, without having to kill the animals.

I couldn't have arranged a better setting!

The Ngorongoro Post Office, with some Masai strolling by.

Our safari land cruiser

So many zebras to see, but I never got tired of looking at them. These animals have so much personality in the wild. They gallop around and hoot and holler at each other. It is really amusing to watch a herd as they interact.

This was a strange sight. A male ostrich doing a mating dance for another male ostrich. Perhaps an identity crisis or something. The dance is quite something to watch. We saw this earlier with a male and female, which actually resulted in some mating behavior, which is not appropriate to describe on this public blog. In this case, the male in the foreground was not at all interested and ran off.

A magnificent female ostrich with feathers blowing in the wind.

A lonely zebra lost from the herd.

Wildebeast. They have a striking resemblance with Osama Bin Laden.

A common Serengeti scene from the landcruiser. This herd of Wildebeasts hanging out by the road, to allow for some nice close-up pictures (as above).

A very pretty scene in the Ngorongoro Crater while eating lunch.

This picture is just to prove that I was actually there.

Ngorongoro Crater.

Masai tribesman taking their donkeys and gear up out of the Ngorongoro crater.

The entrance to the Ngorongoro crater with armed guard.

A Masai tribesman displaying some authentic crafts that I purchased for Katie and the kids.

At the school in the Masai Village.

A teacher and her students. The school was by far the nicest structure in the village.

I just can't get enough of the cute little goats here. Goats are the oldest domesticated animal. They are very affectionate to humans. I am even more inspired to have a herd of my own in Tennessee in the near future.

Masai women. They are leaning against their huts made of cow dung, no kidding. There were flies everywhere as a result of this. If anyone is considering making a house out of any sort of dung, I would recommend considering the difficulties in pest control when using this method of construction. There were roaches, flies, and spiders all over the walls. On the other hand, the bugs have plenty to eat, so perhaps no reason to bite into a human.

They are very fascinating people.

A village elder trying to convince me to buy a carved tribal shaft.

As you may know, I am a sucker for these kinds of things. I bought it for Tristan.

A Masai women standing next to her crafts.

Masai woman.

Flies.

Flies^3

Masai women and baby.

Relaxing in a Masai dung hut with a newfound friend.

I really enjoyed the time I spent at the Masai village, and it was one of my favorite aspects of the safari. Here I am doing a jumping dance with the tribal elders. Tristan would have been very good at this, but as we all know, "White men can't jump!"

A Masai boy chasing the landcruiser.

Another beautiful Serengeti scene.

Rugged roads in the Ngorongoro Crater.

A Serengeti Sunrise.

A magnificent herd of elephants. We were able to get so close that this fella looked like he might charge.

A dirty, grubby, evil hyaena. I think Disney has ruined the hyaena's image for me.

Or maybe they are just really ugly and gross anyway.

A sausage tree in the Serengeti. The fruit really looks like large sausages. Quite fascinating.

A herd of Impalas with a small family of elephants in the background

A marvelous scene in the Serengeti. Notice the elephants on the horizon.

A family on the move. It is really unbelievable how many elephants are in this park. You see herd after herd as you drive around, they are really thriving here. It is a great credit to the government of Tanzania that they have been successful in protecting these awesome animals from poachers.

Giraffes on the horizon eating some supper.

Another lion family napping.

Wow!

A spooked Impala.

At the entrance to the Serengeti National Park. This was an awesome trip. Don't I have the most wonderful wife and family for supporting me in this adventure?!!?!!!