Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Serengeti is a Maasai word that means “endless plains”. So true. Serengeti National Park is 15,000 sq kilometers- the size of Northern Ireland. This is big cat country: lions galore, cheetahs everywhere and leopards are abundant-- and there’s lots of food for them - antelopes of all sizes roam the endless plains. I cannot begin to describe the vastness of this beautiful place. I was pretty much in awe the entire time. The weather was spectacular! Initially, I didn't consider Tanzania because I assumed it's close proximity to the Equator would make it stiflingly hot. Contrary to my belief, July is winter in Tanzania and the weather is dry and cool, with 70 degree temps during the day and in the 50's at night. This made very pleasant to spend eight hours per day in the open-topped vehicle searching for wild animals.
I stayed at the Matawi Serengeti Camp, a boutique camp with 8 tents and a pride of lions living in close proximity. Like all camps in Tanzania, there are no fences, so the animals can roam freely. Guests are not allowed to walk unescorted at night, and once I heard the animals eating or calling outside the tent at night, I had no desire to venture outside after returning from dinner. Although there's electricity, there are no TVs or other electronics in the tents, so its the perfect time to read. Most nights I was too tired to stay up so after a nice hot shower, I crawled into bed.
My last day in the Serengeti, I woke up at 4:45 am. Who does that on vacation? I did because the truck was coming at 5:15 am to take me to the hot air balloon launch site. With encouragement from David, I decided to do a sunrise hot air balloon ride. I’m afraid of heights, but I figured if I can hike down a !$&@! volcano, I can go up in the sky. I was really scared, though.
Hot air balloons launch at sunrise, but wind speed determines if a launch happens or not. The balloon basket lays on its side and you climb in and lay on your back while holding on to rope handles. Basically you are in the position astronauts take in the spaceship. The balloon holds about twelve peopled as it launches it bumps along the ground and then, you are airborne! It's an incredible feeling to be weightless and the sense of PEACE I felt as I watched the sun rise and the animals below was unlike anything I had experienced before. We were in the air for about one hour. The pilot maneuvers the balloon over tree tops, sometimes dropping down close to the ground, other times soaring up high.
After landing in an open field, we walked several hundred yards to an area where a champagne breakfast awaited us. Yes, breakfast in the middle of the Serengeti. Pinch me. So much bliss and gratitude for this most magical experience.
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