Serengeti - Day 1

May 16^th

A wake up call from India – someone I don’t remember. Just mumbled I was in Africa and hung up. It was 5:00 am. Looked out and the sky was filled with stars. Stepped out to see the milky way and a whole lot of constellations. Waited up for the sunrise. The room balcony overlooked the crater and we were facing east. The sun slowly came up over the crater. Some sunrise! The sky looked painted in oil colors. I had to tear myself away to go to Serengeti!

Visited a Masaai village on the way. We pay 50 USD to visit – a standard rate. They put on a song and dance show! Seemed like a routine display. The village head says 3-4 jeeps stop by a day. Kids until 7 are in the village and others are shepherds. Wealth in measured in how much cattle you own. I told them I have 3 cows and they weren’t impressed. (Didn’t I mention this before? Our cow at the farm had another calf – girl, they day we left. A good sign! )The headman had 200!

I can’t find words to describe Serengeti – it means the land of endless space in Masaai and that is he closest description I will ever find. The plains stretch from horizon to horizon and are a huge sea of grass. Sometimes you see rocks rise up – like islands in a sea of grass – these are called kopjes. This place needs some description to let you know why it is so.

Millions of years ago, when the rift valley was formed, the Ngorongoro craters erupted. Even before that, the rift valley was formed when the land masses separated. Africa broke away and there was a lot of activity. The volcanic lava and ash fell over the Serengeti plains. As they hardened, a tough, cement like layer formed which no tree roots can penetrate. That explains why there is only grass. Trees are found only near the kopjes, where there are come cracks for the roots to penetrate.

Grass brings all the herbivores and the carnivores can’t be far behind. We are entering lion, cheetah and leopard country! Ecezk knows the water holes in the grass – which we lay men can’t spot. The first water hole we stop we see two spectacular lions. The safari guides are connected to each other over radio and they inform each other of the ‘sightings’. Soon there were 3-4 jeeps seeing our lions! One got up and came close – I could reach out and touch it.

Elephants, hippos, zebras and wildebeests – they are all around. All kinds of antelopes. They are feeding all the time. Can this place sustain so many? Stopped by the road to let a herd of elephants cross. Excited at the first sight of giraffes!

Picnic lunch somewhere in the forest and off to see a leopard sleeping in a tree. They are nocturnal and they don’t do anything much but sleep during the day.

Spotted some vultures and then more and then the stench of decay. It’s a kill we said and chased the vultures. Found them by tree loads! There were thousands as we got closer! So many of them for an abandoned kill? Didn’t seem right. Then we see the Seronera River. A fully fed large crocodile was snoozing with his mouth open. Suddenly we see dead wildebeests in the river bed. There were 8-10 of them – all drowned! It had rained heavily a few days ago and the river must have been full then, Ecezk wisely puts. Can’t help feeling sad for them. Disha had a lot of questions on death and why did these have to die! The vultures had barely managed to get past the skin.

Reached Serena in the middle of Serengeti. Tired and ecstatic! What will see tomorrow?