Monday 9 December 2013

Tanzania

In terms of unforgettable experiences you can't pass up Tanzania and as we were spending a majority of our tour here, we got to experience a majority of what this amazing country has to offer. After crossing the boarder and a few long days of driving we arrived at the major port town of Dar es Salaam, our gateway to Zanzibar. As it so happened the day we arrived into Dar was also our 1st year anniversary, so being the true romantic that I am I shouted my beautiful wife a cocktail in celebration.
After nearly 2 weeks on the road everyone was really looking forward to Zanzibar, as it not only meant 3 days of relaxing but also 3 nights in a real bed. Our first day in Stone Town was jam packed full of history and cultural experiences. Our morning was spent wandering through the Arabic style alleyways trying not to get lost, before being shown around a spice farm and the original slave market where people were sold up until 1876. Next we travelled up to the northern beaches of the island for some sun, sand and fun. The crystal clear water made for some great snorkeling and the sun beds on the beach were great for catching some rays. However, I thought the best part of the stay was the boat cruise, after been told that the boat had never been drunk out of alcohol before the challenge was instantly initiated. So as the 15 of us, the husbands leaving their wives behind, boarded the very piratey looking vessel, we all took to the task of setting a new record and after 2 hours of cruising the Zanzibar coast we returned triumphantly, yet a little sea legged.
Having climbed a few mountains already this trip we thought we would skip this one and save it for a return visit. But since we were in the area I'd thought it best to get a pre climb photo of Africa's largest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro.
Possibly one of the highlights of the Africa trip so far, the Serengeti was just one of those awe inspiring places that had my camera working overtime. Our first day was spent game driving through the vast plains, spotting animals left and right - Lions, hippos, zebras, cheetahs, buffalo and many more. When we thought it couldn't get any better we arrived at our camp site which literally was in the heart of the Serengeti completely open for everything to roam around our tents as we slept. The next day had us busy again with more animal spotting, but we did manage to find time to sneak in a cheeky beer along the way, because hey you have to have a Serengeti in the Serengeti. That night was again spent out in the wilderness, this time upon the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, and whilst we did manage some sleep, the elephant strolling through the camp site did try its best to trample through our tents. For our last day we toured through the crater floor, famous for been described as 'one of the world's most unchanged wildlife sanctuaries.' Within minutes of hitting the crater floor we were treated to lions stalking their pray and a little further down the track a family of elephants wandering through the bushes. The whole three days turned out to be an incredibly unforgettable experience, problem being we now want to go back for migration...
- Ryan -

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