The Great Migration and Ngorongoro Crater

On our way out of the Serengeti, we saw hundreds of thousands wildebeest and zebras.  They had just begun congregating, moving north toward Kenya.  We were very fortunate to have seen this--an awesome sight with herds of animals stretched across the plains all the way to the horizon.

Garrett was captivated with this male agama lizard.  According to our guide, it was mating season, so the males were out on the rocks in plain sight, bobbing their heads up and down to attract the attention of the females.  Who could resist the vibrant red, blue, and yellow colors?

Along the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, Grant and Garrett stopped to pose with the skull of a Cape buffalo.  We needed to have an armed guide with us, not to protect us from lions, but to protect us from live buffalo.  We learned that humans are more vulnerable to attacks from buffalo and elephants than from lions and other predators.

This is one of our favorites--what looks like a mutant giraffe towering over the trees.  The giraffe was actually eating from small bushes that look like trees.

Kim and Charlie at the top of the crater as the sun was setting.  An unforgettable moment.

Day of the Serengeti Predators

A monitor lizard waiting for a meal of insects or small fish.  As we were watching, a huge catfish plopped out of the water right in front of the lizard.  It took us all by surprise, including the lizard.  The lizard went after the huge catfish, but it was no match as the catfish wiggled its way back into the water.

As we were driving by this tree, our guide suddenly stopped and pointed out this leopard in the tree above.  There was a dead impala wedged in the branches.  Our guide seemed to think this leopard was taking advantage of an unattended kill by another leopard.

A group of three lionesses (out of six total) starting their way towards a herd of impala and waterbuck at sunset.

The lionesses began to spread out and slowly make their way towards the prey.

An amazing sunset on the Serengeti plains after an incredible day of seeing many different predators in their natural habitat.

Another Day in the Serengeti

This was one of our favorite trees as we were on safari.  It was by itself in the middle of the Serengeti plains.

Here is a bat-eared fox.  Garrett says it only eats plants and insects.  We enjoyed watching him scurry about.

Mug shots of Grant and Garrett with a huge African elephant right behind them.  This was one of several days that we saw large herds of elephants.

A family of elephants drinking from a small watering hole just a few meters away from our jeep.

We saw a few different types of jackals on our trip, but they moved around quickly.  We were lucky to get a picture of this one.

Exploring the Serengeti

Some more of our favorites during our time in the Serengeti.

Grant and Garrett outside of our tent in the middle of the Serengeti.

A beautiful lioness laying in the tall grass, posing for us.

A pond full of pink flamingos with a lone umbrella acacia tree in the background.  The colors were so vibrant against the plains of the Serengeti.

A crowned crane - weird but majestic.  We were happy that we stumbled across it.

Drive Into the Serengeti

We started our safari adventure in the Serengeti after our brief stay along the shores of Lake Victoria.  Within in minutes of entering the park, we were bombarded with wildlife.  We selected our favorites below to share, but this was just a taste of the huge variety of the game that we saw.  And this was just our drive into the park on the way to our campsite.  The safari hadn't even officially begun.

One of several shots with layers of wildlife.  The gabbing ostriches are of course the focal point, but make sure to look through the trees as well.

The Grumeti River with crocs basking in the sun, looking tough.  This is one of the major crossings for the wildebeest migration headed toward Kenya, normally occurring in June.  Just upriver, we had seen a crocodile take an amazing dive off of an 8-foot drop in the river bed.

A male lion escaping from the heat.  This was the only male lion with a noticeable mane that we had seen on our entire trip.

Lion cubs eating a chunk of zebra with the mom lioness laying next to them, paws up.  We were so fortunate to have seen this.  Zoos just won't be the same.

An enormous hippo yawning in the local watering hole.  We were mesmerized by their size.

A "Yellow Fever" tree full of storks along the edge of the watering hole.  One of our absolute favorite spots on the safari.

Tanzania, Lake Victoria

We arrived in Mwanza, Tanzania and was greeted by our safari guide, Bonny, (pronounced bone-ee) with a big smile.  Although our drive to Lake Victoria was rainy, we enjoyed the cool air, bustling villagers and beautiful scenery.  We stayed in a bungalow along Speke Bay.  We spent a very peaceful night playing along the shore, chasing birds, skipping stones, and soaking in the sunset.

Our visit to the nearby fishing village was a highlight of our trip.  We were unable to take pictures of the villagers but found ourselves very welcome as we walked through the village.  The children grabbed for our hands, hummed songs as we strolled along the muddy walkways.

Local villagers doing laundry along Speke Bay.

Market day for the fishermen.

Kenya

We started our adventure through Africa in Kenya.  A reasonable plane ride from Mumbai landed us in Nairobi.  This is where our adventure begins...

Nairobi gave us so many memories.  We had one day to fit as much in as possible and here is what we saw.

We met some of the artisans at a local gift shop.

They allowed us to take a picture for

 the price of one Coca-Cola.  We were happy to oblige. 

The whole family feeding the giraffes at the Nairobi Giraffe
rehabilitation center.  This one looks like she's licking
 Charlie's ear!  Fortunately not.  We found out their
tongues are very long, very purple and very rough.  Yuck.

Garrett and Grant taking a moment during our tour of the
 Karen Blixen home (author of "Out of Africa" and her life story).
Our tour guide was one of the children actors in the movie.  

Garrett reaching just high enough to feed the giraffe carrots.

Kazuri bead factory was an amazing visit.  Kazuri in Swahili
 means, "small and beautiful".  We found the whole tour and story
behind the Karzuri bead factory very beautiful. The factory
employs only single mothers while teaching them
a trade and offering health and medical benefits.  

The Sheldrick elephant orphanage was quite a sight.
Some may recognize these stars in the Disney
movie, "Born To Be Wild".