Lake Manyara with the Browns

(a bit delayed with this one since Webb and Jeff have been solidly back in the cold for a couple of weeks now)

Thanks to the generosity of a a friend who runs a camp in Lake Manyara National Park, we decided to do one last safari with Webb and Jeff. 

It was a tad warm out

We had relaxing sundowners and dinner watching the baboons while we waited for elephant to come to the water to drink.  We were too tired to wait up for them, so we all went to sleep right after dinner.  The next morning we awoke to hippo, elephant, and leopard prints in the riverbed in front of our tents.  Looks like we missed an exciting night.  

Because of the heat the next day, the kids decided it would be much more fun to hang around camp, play on the rocks, and play card games instead of driving around in the car. With the help of one of the camp guides we climbed on the rocks (a waterfall in the rainy season).  Even that got to be too hot after about 9:30, so we headed down only to be diverted by a spitting cobra in our path – luckily it was on a slippery rock and was having trouble getting some traction, but we held back until it had safely slithered away.     

 

We spent the next couple of hours being lazy in the shade. 

We had a lovely drive out the southern entrance of the park.

 This look and ear flap from the elephant made the girls in the back of the car scream.  I think they were a bit skittish after being chased by a buffalo the week earlier.

 

 

 

Anderson turns 6

Where does the time go?  We had (almost) all the boys from his class over after school to celebrate with Anderson. Fun times for all!

Trampoline, Hammock, Cars, and Soccer….that’s all you need to keep six year old boys entertained.

      

Anderson’s fan club:  Petro, Mama Jackie and Elizabeth with his own tea pot that they gave him for his birthday.

The best cake decorators around

 

Skies opened up just as we served cake and ice cream.  It’s a much needed rain, so no complaints. 

Anderson picked snow globes to put in the party bags.

Last week we got a few chickens and one noisy rooster with a broken internal clock (3:00 am – ouch!…we got them the day Matt left for the US…coincidence??).  We’ve been waiting for eggs and Anderson told me last week that the first egg was coming on his birthday, so he wasn’t going to check anymore until then.  Wouldn’t you know it, he was right.  And during the party!  Fun for the boys. 

We missed Matt but had a fun time at the party.  Then the girls and I took Anderson out to dinner.  The sweet boy received 20,000 Tanzanian Shillings from one friend (~$15), so he added that to his wallet and brought it out to dinner with us, so that he could pay.  He was adamant about it.  He’s so generous.

(shhhhh! – I might have made a mistake in my calculation in how much dinner cost when I told him it was 500 TSh)

We had one low/funny point just before leaving for dinner.  Anderson wanted a quick drink of water before we left, so I opened the refrigerator only to have a door shelf break completely in half leaving me standing in a puddle of broken glass and spilled water, milk, and juice.  Luckily I have some great helpers to help me see the humor and also to help me clean it up. 

Happy 6th Birthday, Anderson. 

You are a joy!

(And, as my dad pointed out, he has now officially spent more than 2/3 of his life in Tanzania – crazy!). 

Lake Eyasi with Webb and Jeff

We just got back from a couple of nights camping at Kisima Ngeda on the shores of Lake Eyasi.  The campsites are some of the best around and we were able to get out to visit the Hadza.  Matt and TNC have done a lot of work protecting land for the Hadza, so Webb and Jeff were keen to see them and we’ll take any excuse to head to one of our favorite camping spots.

Lake Eyasi

Bow and arrow practice before heading out with the Hadza.  The kids were doing their best to get rid of the monkeys, but they weren’t around when one finally got the rest of a loaf of bread. 

 

Fishing is always fun and each kid caught several.  We even made some into a mid-afternoon snack.

Geckos warming up on a light at the lodge

 

Three generations of Brown men (ages five to seventy-five) went out for an early morning hunt with the Hadza and the rest of us went out in the late afternoon for some tuber digging.  Webb tried to start a fire with two sticks and we were entertained by a Hadzabe dance.

 

  

   

(notice the squirrel below?)

 

      

Hot days, cool nights, fishing, campfires, a bit of rain, marshmallows, and Hadza:  a great combination.

Arusha National Park

We all went to Arusha National Park yesterday for a day trip.  We were incredibly lucky because there were the most stunning views of Mt. Meru and Kilimanjaro all morning long.  I’ve really never seen it like that and it’s embarrassing how many pictures I took of those two mountains.

Kilimanjaro

Mt. Meru:  from our house we see the exact opposite side of the mountain.  From Arusha National Park you can see where most of the mountain was blown off in a volcano and also see the ash cone in the center. 

More Kili

 

We went on a walking safari.  A two hour walk past buffalo, giraffe, and warthogs to a waterfall.  In my last post I said the number one rule of walking wildlife safaris was to stick close to the man with the gun….I wasn’t fully correct on that one….you need to stick close to the man or WOMAN with the gun (love the female ranger!)

Herd of about 100 buffalo

Baby Warthogs

 

Up close and personal with some giraffe

To the waterfall

A great way to spend the morning

Fig Tree Arch

 

Colobus Monkeys 

Picnic Lunch by a different waterfall

Blue Monkey

Flamingos in Momela Lakes to end the day