On
Monday, July 12, about half of M squad set off to safari in the Serengeti. A
motley crew of 24, we piled in two matatus (dolla-dollas/shared ride vans) and
one Land Rover and drove off into the sunset.
arrived awhile later at a community, where we watched traditional Tanzanian
dancing for an hour. There were loud drums, lots of shaking, fun costumes and
eventually, a PYTHON. It was kind of crazy, but very cool to see.
Then we
drove to our guest house for the night, very close to the Serengeti’s western
gate. It was great to catch up with some of the squad, and we went to bed super
early (by African standards-around 10pm) so we could be ready at 5:30 the next
day for our safari.
the next morning, before the sun was up, we piled back into the two matatus and
the Land Rover.
We drove to the gate, and were excited to see adorable monkeysjust chilling in front of the park. We were really excited for the day to begin
and to start seeing the animals.
drove along, we saw gazelle, wildebeest (the creature God created with the
leftover parts), giraffes, zebras, Maribu stork (their poop can burn a hole in
your skin!), and guinea fowl.
And as we drove along, we got a puncture in ourtire. (This was the second one-we got one the day before driving to the park).
But
attitudes were still chipper and it made for a good photo op.
Soon we were on our
way again, searching for hippos and crocs. We found some!
awhile, it was time for lunch. We pulled over, too far away from our planned
destination of the center of the park to wait. Some of us went to the bathroom
(i.e. a bush…where we later discovered a lioness hanging…oops!) Some people
switched cars so that more people could experience the safari from the far
superior Land Rover as opposed to the matatus.
And as we pulled out, our vangot yet another puncture. This was the third one in less than 24 hours, and
there were no more spare tires.
because of this, I got the opportunity to ride in the Land Rover. We drove to
the auto repair shop in the middle of the park to fix the tires and on the way
there, saw elephants. This was awesome, because I had just been thinking, “Wow,
I came on this safari mainly for the elephants, and everyone keeps saying
they’ve already migrated, and now I am sad…But there they were. I had prayed
to see them, and I did! PTL.
riding in the Land Rover, we also saw some lions and more elephants. It was
amazing to feel the wind blow in my face as we drove around the park.
If we
hadn’t had that third puncture, I would never have gotten the opportunity to
ride in the Land Rover, which totally made the safari that much better! So in
that sense, a third popped tire was definitely a blessing.
Hope you
enjoyed the photos and the story! Blessings!
