“Anderson is a sweet and loving boy. He loves to talk to himself…in a cute way. He knows a lot of songs and sings them (Puff the Magic Dragon, Katy Perry). He also knows how to write his name. He has a lot of girlfriends (Dalida, Dakota, Siri, Betty, Malayka). I love him!”
We couldn’t resist the lure of the tree houses and went back to Chole Mjini. After spending just a couple of nights here over New Year’s, Matt and I knew that it would be on our return list. We even talked a few other families into joining us (which really wasn’t that hard). This time we stayed for 6 nights and it was well worth it.
Our home for the week: tree house #3 (Tatu). It had two stories: the first had a king bed and a great view through the mangroves of the ocean and the second/lower had two double beds…when it was high tide the water went right underneath that level. I think this is our new favorite. The fireflies that appeared every night were an added bonus.
We didn’t dare to hope and didn’t ask ahead of time, but as soon as we arrived we were told that the whale sharks were back (they migrate through the channel starting in about October every year). Since we didn’t get to see them over New Year’s we decided to try on our first day, so that if we didn’t find them we might 
be able to arrange a second trip. We had the same guide as last time and he remembered us and how rocky the seas were there day. Luck was with us this time and it didn’t take long for Hamisi to spot them. These massive creatures swam right underneath the boat. Knowing they are ”gentle giants” (20-30 feet) and mainly plankton filter feeders does little to slow your heart when the swim right underneath you. We were ready with snorkels and masks on and we all just jumped in as soon as we were near them. Kids were a little hesitant at first, but curiosity eventually got the better of them and they got in, too. For such huge animals they were surprisingly elusive and tended to dive down deep rather quickly. It made it that much more exciting when one suddenly swam underneath you especially since Hamisi had warned us to be a little careful of their tails which could be 3 meters high. The water was very murky with little visibility, so they just tended to appear and disappear. Very exciting. I have two very blurry pictures, so I’m also posting another photo, so you can see what they really look like.
While that was definitely a highlight of the trip we had a great rest of the week as well. We went snorkeling every morning and out for sundowner cruises almost every night. Amazing family time when we are almost forced to unplug (no electricity, no running water, etc).
One morning we went for a walk through Chole village, stopped at a school, and to the boat making yard where all the boats are made by hand. We also got to see some of the trees where all the bats hang out.
Another day we went on a fun excursion to swim with stingless upside-down jelly fish. They are on another island (Juani), inland just a little, in a tidal pool. We passed many uninhabited islands to get there. Really beautiful. It reminded me of Maji Moto.
There are monitor lizards all over Chole. It was exciting to come across one, but it was more fun to watch the stand-off between the monitor lizards and the thick-knee bird that (not very intelligently) laid her eggs right on the ground.
Lots of time on boats and swimming in the ocean made for easy bedtimes.
Lunch on sand island. This is where we saw the baby clown fish living in their sea anemone (just like Nemo).
Dinner was served somewhere different every night…seaside, in the ruins…beautiful setting every time.
Kids’ long jump competition: Dana, Tony, Makayla, Anderson, Tierney, and Ashlyn (I don’t know where Ryland was). So much fun to have so many friends there with us.
Time at the beach: Anderson made a boat and the girls made an entire village complete with trees, flowers and a cemetery. The kids were on their morning break from school and came to see what we were up to.
And, of course, sundowners. I think our favorite was on Chole’s new boat the Inshallah.
Snorkeling
And the best part…family time!
On the way back to Arusha, we spent one night in Dar Es Salaam (the capital) because we needed to go to the US Embassy to renew the kids’ passports. This meant a night in a ‘real hotel’ (i.e. has cable tv and a pool) and a nice dinner out. We went to Osaka which is a Japanese hibachi restaurant (where the grill is on your table). The kids LOVED it.
We got back to Arusha just in time for Matt to leave for the US the next day. Big travel month for him with less than 48 hours at home the entire month. We’re so glad we were able to sneak in the week of vacation. Kids are still off school for one more week and right now they are so happy to just stay home and color.
[I updated this post to include a few pictures from our friend, Hagai…because what this post needs is more pictures 
He’s an amazing photographer…see the upside down jellyfish photo?]
