3 out of the Big Five and 53 different species of birds

Yellows, greens, hazy vast landscapes, a full round sun, acacia trees, zebras, elephants, giraffes, wildebeests, gazelles, impalas (Lucy’s favourite), hyenas, tsetse flies (ugh), hippos and after a long search a resting pride of lions and birds, birds and more birds.   We are in the Serengeti, ‘the endless plain’!  The gate opens and immediately as if on order there was a huge beautiful, grassy savannah full of playing zebras and their cohorts the wildebeests.  They always hang together, we learned, as the zebras help with detecting predators and the wildebeests know where the rain is, the wildebeests eat the long grass and the zebras eat the short grass, but sadly for the wildebeests they don’t run as fast so are the main meal when all of them are under attack.  (The wildebeest also has a memory like a fish.)  We were amused that zebras kept crossing our path and after every time they did they would let out a hyperventilating groan of a laugh as if they have a really bad sore throat.  Even zebras laugh at their own jokes!  Next up was the giraffe (again as if on cue) and we learned that with one kick they can kill a lion.  I love their graceful silhouetted lollop across the horizon.   Our guide is Joel, who has much experience and knows each small path and it seems every tree and path like the back of his hand.  He suddenly stops the jeep, looks keenly into the distance and then amazingly points out a small black dot which turns out to be a hyena or an owl or a mongoose. He is also very noticeably on his phone a lot so phone addiction even happens in the most unspoilt places of pure beauty.  Shame.   Kelty said that guides here are treated like royalty and are paid a western wage.  They are much in demand but talking to Joel there now seems to be a lot of competition.  Our other guide is Amos who comes from the local village but works at our camp.  An inspirational guy who has come from an extremely poor background, from a family of 17 kids, an alcoholic father and has got himself an education, a great job and a great attitude to daily life.  Very smiley and very bright.  Most of his villagers (some we met) are still fishing and live from day to day just trying to find enough to feed themselves and their families.  Joel is from the Masai tribe and has also benefited from parents who gave up everything for their kids to be educated.  Both are extremely knowledgeable and good people.  We are lucky to be learning so much from them. 

Our highlights:

Kelty loved seeing the elephants at the watering hole.  When we got close the bull looked him straight in the eye as if about to charge.  Joel calmly told us to keep quiet and don’t move. 

Taran’s favourite was the Secretary bird with its suit-like feathers of black and white and its pencil like crested head.

My favourite was looking out at the huge African landscape with all the different herds of animals all grazing together, safe at that point in time from a plotting lion.