We spent four days on safari in Tanzania.  We hired Kessey Brother Tours on the recommendation of a friend that hired Kessey Brothers to climb Mt. Kiliminjaro. Our tour was focused on Lake Manyara, Ngongoro Crater and the Serengeti National Park, all in Tanzania. Our guide, Hillary (apparently in Africa, Hillary is a common man’s name, not a woman’s name…he made fun of our Secretary of State for having a man’s name…) drove us through all the parks and generally took care of us.  He was an excellent guide, and if you hire Kessey Brothers, ask for Hillary. 

One of the things I was most amazed about was the sheer number of animals.  We went into the safari with the impression that we would drive for an hour, see a few animals, drive for another hour, see some more animals.  Once we got into the conservation areas, there were more animals than we knew what to do with!!  The number of zebras was astounding, and at this point,  I wouldn’t fear for the extinction of the zebra.

Fun zebra fact of the day: gestation period for a zebra is between 12 and 13 months and the mother is the primary caretaker in the first year after birth.  After the first year, the males group together and do an all-male bachelor group until approximately four years when the zebra is old enough to start its own family. 

Canon Rebel XSi | Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L | 400mm | f/8.0 | 1/200th | ISO400

Last July, we took an amazing safari in Tanzania – mostly in the Serengeti.  The road between the Arusha Airport and the Serengeti was about half paved and half gravel.  The thing was, once you hit the gravel portion, it was just bumpy for the next two hours.  Anyone who has made that drive can tell you how bad it can be.  I was pretty thankful that we stopped just before the entrance to the park to have lunch and snap this photo.  As you can see, it’s a whole lot of nothing-ness in the background, but this is what central Africa looks like.  More to come of the safari!!

Canon Rebel XSi | Canon EF 35-135mm f/3.5-4.5 | 35mm | f/7.1 | 1/200th | ISO100