Day 7: LAKE VICTORIA - SERENGETI
Friday, November 05, 2010
Last night we decided to set the alarm to see sunrise in Lake Victoria in Tanzania.
And so it is, at 5 in the morning the alarm sounds and we go out to the terrace to see the sunrise on the banks of the LAug Victoria.
We have the company of countless mosquitoes and the guardian of the enclosure, which when it sees the light from the terrace is approaching.
It must be said that in one of the books in the room, they already warn you that you can see crocodiles and hippos in the garden. Come on that gives incredible security to sleep peacefully.
Before going to breakfast, we take a shower and go for a walk along the shore of the lake, which looks like a beach.
We take some photos and enjoy the tranquility, especially at this time of the morning.
Today we have breakfast served at the table and we take advantage of breakfast a little quieter, forgetting to wash the dishes, pick up the table ... etc
All this is not mandatory while we are traveling in the truck, but most of us do it. You have to have a minimum of education and companionship, because if you do not, the staff that comes with us will have to do it.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
At 9 we have a boat trip, to go to visit a school in a fishing village of LAug Victoria.
After breakfast, we sit on the terrace for a drink while we wait for the time to leave again.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
Today the guide will not accompany us, because he has to go to town to fix the breakdown of the other day of the truck.
The pace changes completely in Africa and we are getting used quickly. Hopefully it will last forever.
At 9 we all met in front of the hotel and went out with canoes.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
In each one we go 4 people and 3 rowers.
It takes us half an hour to reach the fishing village and approach one of the most human experiences we will have in this trip to Kenya and Tanzania.
We travel along Lake Victoria in Tanzania and see people on the banks, washing, fishing ...
The views, as expected, are incredible.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
Once we reach the town, a local guide is waiting for us, who will show us the town and take us to school. He asks us not to take pictures in town, only when we arrive at school. It is a way of maintaining privacy.
The first vision is of women selling fish on the shore.
They explain to us that most men drink a lot and smoke marijuana, so they fish, women sell fish and children take care of each other.
As soon as we start walking through the town, the children are holding our hands and without saying anything, they accompany us to school.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
They don't do it to ask for anything, simply, because foreigners, play with them and lift them up.
Once we arrive at the school, after crossing the whole town, one of the teachers awaits us, to explain the history of this school of Tanzania.
The children who accompanied us during the visit to the town, sit at the door of the school to wait for us to leave.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
They let us into one of the classes and there, the students sing a couple of songs, performing.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
They keep explaining things to us and I think that at that moment few of us are listening, we really find ourselves in a state of “shock”, it is difficult to hear what they say and know that after 5 minutes, you will be leaving, you are on vacation , but that they stay there.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
It is a very rewarding experience, but at the same time it leaves a bitter taste.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
Before we leave, those of us who have taken school supplies leave it in one of the offices and some of us leave some contributions to the school.
When we leave the guide tells us that it is already late (even the truck repair guide has arrived) and that he will tell the children not to accompany us, since when we go playing with them, we will take much longer.
Lake Victoria in Tanzania
So we go back to the canoes in 15 minutes, before it had taken us more than an hour to cross this town of Tanzania.
We take the canoes again and before the boys who take us arrive, they give us local songs to the rhythm of the oars,
Upon arrival at the Hotel in the lake victoria, we still have a while before leaving and we go again to one of the terraces to have a drink.
There we are until we are notified that it is time to leave for the Serengeti National Park.
They have decided by the hour, that we will eat before leaving and thus we will gain a little more time. Once we arrive at Serengeti National Park, we will go to the Seronera area, which is where we have our Tented Camp, We will camp in the Serengeti.
About 12 and after lunch, we loaded our things in the truck and we went to the Great Serengeti in Tanzania.
It took us a while to get to the entrance door and there we have to wait a while, because they had a problem with the entrance certificates.
Serengeti in Tanzania
It starts to rain, so the guide decides to do “rally safari”, arrive at the camp as soon as possible, to see if it stops raining and gives us time to do an afternoon safari, before nightfall.
In the end, although we stopped when we saw an elephant, we arrived at sunset at the agency's Tented Camp. When we see the shops and the landscape, we are left with our mouths open. It is much better than in the photos.
Double tents, with beds, with own showers ...
Serengeti in Tanzania
Showers discovered, you are showering and you see around you Serengeti ANDIt's amazing. Every afternoon, when we arrive, we fill the tank with hot water. There are no words to describe it. It is spectacular.
Next to the camping tents we have a porch for dinner if it rains. Everything is ready to the millimeter.
Serengeti in Tanzania
If not, we will have dinner outdoors, with the sky as a roof. The best heaven we have ever seen.
Serengeti in Tanzania
After walking around the shops, enjoying the shower, we sit on the porch that we have in the store, relaxing more, if that is possible, after everything we are seeing.
A very complete dinner awaits us, with rice, vegetables, soup, fish, potatoes ...
Heaven in Tanzania and in the Serengeti It is more crashed than ever and after dinner we spend the time we have left until bedtime next to the bonfire.
Time flies by, listening to the anecdotes of the guide, those of the companions, in some moments, the laughter chokes the noises of the African sheet, but in the end we always end up shutting up all at once, to hear the sound of the animals.
At the end of these silences, there are always laughs, most are nervous ... it is amazing to know that you are less than 10 meters from wild animals and no protection.
At 11 o'clock in the evening, we are retiring to the stores and once inside we hear the guide shout “All to the stores !! Running !! I told you all to the stores !! "
We peered through the mosquito nets, to see if we saw anything and only saw movement and after a few minutes silence.
In the end we fell asleep, not knowing very well what had happened ...
The next day they explain to us that less than 20 meters away, the guide had seen 4 lions passing through the tents, to go to drink.
So you can imagine the face that left us all.
Every night we heard zebras, hyenas, but we didn't think that that night, we would have the company of lions.
Day 8SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK
