The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust

Daphne Sheldrick (as part of the David Sheldrick Conservation Foundation) rehabilitates orphaned baby elephants and other wildlife here at her home just outside of Nairobi National Park. These babies have lost their mothers to poaching, death, injuries, on getting lost in the wild or other tragedies. Daphne and her dedicated staff raise them to be released back into the wild when they are ready. This orphanage takes them in and each elephant is assigned a trainer who tries to bring the elephant out of its trauma so it can socialize back into the herd. If the elephant is not sociable, a new herd will not accept it. The trainer is with the elephant 24/7 and even sleeps with it. Once the staff feels it is ready to be released back into the wild, the trainer and the elephant go back into the wild and try to find the elephant a herd who will accept it.

Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya

Karen, Lydia and Ken on the shores of Lake Nakuru, Kenya. The pink haze in the background is 3 million pink flamingoes that live at Lake Nakuru.

The Smiles of Africa

Have you ever seen such beautiful smiles on children? These are some of the children that we met on our walk through the Chagga village of Marangu on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro. This walk that we took was a highlight for many people in our group. Nobody could believe our guide, Carrie, chose to sit this one out and sleep. These smiling faces and the children shouting out "jambo!" contributed to the feeling that we had just stepped into paradise.

More Faces of Africa - 4x4 Broke Down

These are some of the faces of the Masai at the Ngorongoro Crater as photographed by Lydia Mangiardi. Great entertainment for all while we waited for one of the 4x4's to get its brakes fixed up. Lydia bought beaded bracelets. The Euro Van bought Shukas to keep warm on the Crater rim that night in Camp.

NGORONGORO CRATER

We can all hear James Earl Jones from his narration of Africa: The Serengeti saying "The Ngorongoro Crater, one of the great Wonders of the World....." We stayed in Simba Camp on the Rim. We were on a nice sloping campsite that was supposed to have a panoramic unobstructed view. You can see from the fog in the photo above that we were up in the clouds. We had to drive down a little to be able to get below the cloud cover to see the floor of the caldera. Below is the what the crater looks like from the rim on a picture perfect day (we did not get to see the crater in this light). Ahh!!! Next time we will have perfect weather when we visit.

People

By Lydia Mangiardi
Namanga, Tanzania
"This woman was at the Namanga border crossing from Kenya to Tanzania. This was some experience that the photo didn’t capture. About 20 women descended on our truck trying to sell their wares. Even though we were on the truck and tried not to look interested, they surrounded the truck and pounded on the windows trying to get our attention. We tried not to look their way, but it was no use – they persisted and finally we had to get off the truck to cross the border since you had to do this on foot. I barely got out of this alive, even though I knew I would be fresh meat since they could sense my weakness for shopping. They descended upon me, surrounding me. I could handle it though (I am an experienced shopper) and I managed to take the heat for the rest of the group – sort of like the human sacrifice. I broke my sandal trying to get away and I crossed the border bare-footed in true African style."

The Indian Ocean

By Karen Vorn Kahl
Mapenzi Beach Club, Zanzibar
Lydia and I are amazed at the water level at Mapenzi Beach. During low tide the Indian Ocean virtually disappears leaving only small pools and plenty of sea shells to collect.

Map of our Safari by Overland Truck from Nairobi to Zanzibar

Good Morning Serengeti!!

Giraffes in the Seronera region of the Serengeti. These are some of the first animals we see on our morning game drive in the Serengeti. This is our second day in the Serengeti and we are all still flabbergasted at how close we can get to view these awesome creatures. Absolutely awe-inspiring!! We are loving Africa!!!

Hell's Gate N.P., Bikes & Hitchiking

What on Earth were we thinking? Lydia and Ken opt to go on a 26km bike instead of going to Elsamere on Lake Naivasha with the rest of the group to spot hippos & have tea and cake. "Did you say CAKE???" The park was stunning. Right away we saw Zebras, Thompson's Gazelles, Waterbucks, Cape Water Buffalos and Rock Hyrax. We just biked right up along side. The dust was out of this world. Like biking on a sand dune. The only thing I noticed was that it was all downhill and we had to come out the way we came and it was late in the afternoon......Quick thinking on Lydia's part and we dumped the bikes with our guide and crammed into this family's car. What a sweet family and what fun!!! Our guide and the American girls we passed along the way from Carnelly's Camp didn't get back until 8:00pm in pitch black darkness.

White Sands of Zanzibar

This is the beautiful white sand beach at the Mapenzi Beach Club in Zanzibar. I will let these pictures speak for themselves. "Wanna go on a dhow ride?"

Going Tribal in Marangu with Chagga Banana Wine & Beer

Going Tribal....We had just finished a walk through paradise in the Chagga village of Marangu on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro. We can still hear "Jambo!" ringing in our ears from all the children saying hello. Above, the group sits waiting at a roadside bar. You can see by the looks on our faces that we have no idea what's coming next. Well, we had quite a bit of fun as you can see below. That is Malin & Oeystein Gylvik taking a picture of Karen chugging Banana Beer out of a traditional Calabash. Why is Karen squatting?? Then, there is Kelly Hathway smiling as pretty as can be because she is drinking the banana wine and she "LIKES" it. She took some home with her to England.

Jambo! Jambo Bwana!

By Lydia Mangiardi
Stone Town, Zanzibar "Gee, I wished I got her when she was smiling. She had the most beautiful smile but she kept turning away whenever I pointed the camera at her. Finally her dad saw me trying to take her picture and came over to tell her that it was OK that I take a photo of her, but she was still uncomfortable about it and wouldn't smile. If I had a few moments to spare, I could have gotten that smile, but the group was way ahead of me and I was afraid to risk getting separated in those winding streets. Oh well, it was still a nice photo, but you should have seen that smile -- ha, this is turning into one of those fish stories. . . you should have seen the one that got away!!!"



Jambo Hello

Jambo, Jambo Bwana, Hello, Hello Sir,
Habari gani, How are you,
Mzuri sana. Very fine.
Wageni, mwakaribishwa, Foreigners, you're welcome,
Zanzibar yetu Hakuna Matata. In our Zanzibar there is no problem.
Zanzibar nchi nzuri, Zanzibar is a beautiful country,
Hakuna Matata. There is no problem.
Nchi ya maajabu A wonderful country
Hakuna Matata. There is no problem.
Hakuna Matata, There is no problem,

Serengeti Sunset

This is the perfect dream of Africa. We have not yet made it to Dik-Dik camp. Maybe we spent too much time gawking at Ostrich, Elephant's, Lion's, Giraffe's, Zebra's, Gazelle's. "Awwww!!!! Look at the Zebra's in the sunset, aren't they cute?" We will be pitching tents with the head lamps on because of these once-in-a-lifetime diversions. Karen was shocked and horrified that contrary to what she was promised in Nairobi by Johan that we were not in a fenced-in camp. "Carrie, what does a hyena sound like?" Lydia and I chose to be right on the edge of camp with our full moon view of the "Serengeti Plains". I woke up with the full moon shining in my face as it was setting and the sun was rising. I said "Wake Lydia!!!", Karen said, "I'm not gonna wake anyone up this early, you wake her" Well, I woke her up and we all got up and looked out at the Serengeti and never felt farther from home nor happier to be anywhere else. AFRICA!!!!

Lilac Breasted Roller

What a beautiful bird! Adorable! Look at that cute face. We were amazed at the beautiful coloring of this bird. Who said parrots have the most beautiful coloring? A little while later there was this bird in flight next to our 4x4 with shimmering blues, purples, and all the colors in between. We screamed "Moshi, STOP!!" (poor guy prolly wished he had never told us his name) What is that? "A Lilac Breasted Roller". It looked more beautiful in flight than perched so adorably for us here in this photo.

Simba in the Serengeti

Isn't she majestic? She is pregnant and we are only just feet away from her and she is non-plused that we are there watching her. Unconcerned, not interested, don't care!! She just sat there looking out into the Serengeti at what? We don't know. Moshi, our guide in the Serengeti did an awesome job putting our 4x4 in gear and driving around these great animals so we could get our shots with the camera. Moshi had an eagle eye for spotting animals. We found this out when we asked the Euro's truck if they saw this or that and they had not. I bet they saw less birds though.

Isn't it CUTE!!!

Katie and Becky bought Karen a postcard and this is just some fun we were having with the digital camera on the truck. Is that face sick or what? Hyena's have the strongest bite in the animal kingdom, but this yawning "killing machine" looks kind of cute even with those big teeth. It's just a postcard picture, but it is a great memory for all of us with childish minds. Much fun and laughs on the bus....uh, I mean truck. Karibu! Thank You!!!

Kilimanjaro!!!!

There it is!!! Mt. Kilimanjaro! We were on Stevie (the overland truck) headed toward Marangu and Johan said to look at Mt. Kilimanjaro. We all looked out the window and our eyes scanning the horizon. Nothing. Scan again and this time look way up in the clouds and there it was. The word to describe the moment is "GASP". It just took your breath away. I have seen much bigger mountains before, but nothing so stirring to your soul. The word "Kilimanjaro" now sounds like pure magic after having seen its magnificence in person.

Rachel playing with starfish Nungwi, Zanzibar

Beautiful red starfish that we found in the water at Nungwi, Zanzibar.

Masai on a Zanzibari Beach??

This picture sums up the affinity that Lydia had with the Masai. These people were some of the poorest we had seen in 3rd world countries, but in other ways the richest. These guys were guards for the 5 star hotels along the beach. They sold their beads, shukas, and Masai wares so they could buy more cattle for their families in the area of Arusha and beyond. These guys were so enamored with Lydia's friendly demeanor and her shopping technique that they said they were going to write a song about Lydia.

The Euros, North Americans & South Africans on a GAP Adventure gone Awry

The GAP Adventures Group. Kenya, Tanzania Adventure tour "DKT". Standing: Lydia Mangiardi, Richard Copsey, Jane Copsey, Ken Bruner, Jim Tenford, Jen Tenford, Johan(our truck driver), Carrie(our guide), Malin Gylvik, Oeystein Gylvik. Sitting: Kelly Hathway, Rachel Copsey, Karen Vorn Kahl. Check out the outfitter for this trip - http://www.gapadventures.com/tour/dkt

Real Coffee? Espresso Machine???

Spice Island Coffee!!! What a fantastic suprise at the Mapenzi Beach Club in Zanzibar. Wow! An espresso machine and all the exotic spices to sprinkle in your coffee! Oh yeah! That is a bed that Lydia and Karen are sitting on with a mozzy net if you feel the urge to nap after your coffee. It sure beats Carrie's camp coffee. Sorry Carrie!! You would understand if you were a coffee drinker.

Welcome to the Serengeti!!

This was our magnificent Serengeti welcoming committee. We got the hell beat out of us going hours and hours over dirt, rocky, bumpy roads that were hot and dusty. By the time we got to this point we had all realized that we had arrived at one of Earth's great treasures by the animals and the the GIANT landscapes that we saw. This beauty then came walking up out of "nowhere" to let us know who was in charge of this great space. We were all in awe. We were in the Serengeti!!!

Namanga-Arusha Road

This is Stevie our overland truck that drove us from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam. This is a view of the great Namanga-Arusha Road. We are pulled over because of a Giraffe spotting. Masai shepherd boys ran up to greet us. The Masai boys quickly stole the show from the Giraffes and made out good with pens and power bars.

Serengeti at Sunrise

If this isn't one of the most fantastic campsites in the world, I don't know what is. This is Dik-Dik Camp in the Seronera region of the Serengeti in Tanzania. We got to experience this camp with the amenity of a full moon. It was one of the only amenities we had. No running water. The long drop outhouse was our only first world comfort and they were "unusable" if you know what I mean. We had to do "bush jobs" even though we could hear the hyenas howling!!! Yikes!! Some people I know just held it all night.

Dar es Salaam, Indian Ocean Sunrise

The view from our Dar es Salaam campsite at Mikadi Beach. We could not have been happier with our campsite on the Indian Ocean waterfront.

Lydia Mangiardi participating in Banana Beer ritual in Marangu, Tanzania

Lydia drinks banana beer out of a calabash and presents it to local villagers in Marangu, Tanzania.

Starfish on the beach in Nungwi, Zanzibar

Beautiful red starfish in the water in Nungwi, Zanzibar. Oh yeah!! Don't get distracted and step on any sea urchins. If you do, head straight for the nearest tiki-hut bar on the beach. The bartender is a "doctor", he has Kerosene, green papaya and South African Brandy shots to cure you with. Trust Ken, it works!!! This was the same "doctor bar-keep" that Karen was playing bongos on the beach around the bon-fire with the night before.

Karen Vorn Kahl feeding Buttercup at the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya

Karen freaks out petting, hugging and feeding Buttercup the Giraffe at at the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya

Wildebeest on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania

Panoramic shot of wildebeest grazing on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater.

Feeding Giraffes at the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya

Feeding Giraffes at the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya

The A-List & B-List of Animals

Lydia "We started making this list a few days into our trip just to help us remember what we saw. We didn’t think that it would end up to be pages and pages of animals. Pretty soon everyone joined in adding to the list. At first it seemed silly to make a list, and we got a lot of ribbing from everyone, but it was a good thing we did, because who would have thought the list would turn out to be as long as it did. We never would have remembered all these animals!! We jokingly started with an A-List and B-List of animals, but pretty soon it was too difficult to make the distinction? Does it matter??? It’s all good – it’s all wonderful!!!!" We will always have a picture of Lyd on this safari with the pen and the notepad in her hand. Lydia gathered almost all the pictures of these animals and transcribed the notepads. Here is the link to pictures of the animals on our lists.

A-List and B-List

A-List:
African Fish Eagle, African Wild Dog, Agama Lizard, Baboon, Black and White Colubus Monkey, Black Heron, Black Winged Stilt, Black-backed Jackal, Black-headed Heron, Blacksmith Lapwing, Brahma Bull, Caiman, Camels, Cape Buffalo, Cape Weaver, Cattle Egret, Cheetah, Coke's Hartebeest(Kongoni), Crocodile, Crowned Cranes, Dik-dik Antelopes, Egyptian Geese, Elephant, Fire Finch, Giant Kingfisher, Golden Jackal, Grant's Gazelle, Greater flamingo, Grey headed Gulls, Guinea Fowl, Hawk, Helmeted Guinea Fowl, Hippopotamus, Hyena, Impala, Kittlitz's sand Plover, Klipspringer Antelope, Kori Bustard, Leopard, Lesser flamingo, Lilac-breasted Roller, Lion, Long Crested Eagle, Magpie Shrike, Malachite Kingfisher, Marabou Stork, Masai Giraffe, Masai Lion, Mongoose, Morapusta, Ostrich, Pelican, Red billed Oxpecker, Red-billed duck, Reedbuck, Rock Hyrax, Rothschild Giraffe, Sacred Ibis, Saddle-billed Stork, Sand Grouse, Secretary Bird, Semipalmated Plover, Side-striped Jackal, Snowy Egret, SpittingViper, Spotted hyena's, Superb Starling,Termite Mound, Thompson's Gazelle, Topi Antelope, Tortoise, Vervet Monkey, Village Weaver, Warthog, Water Buffalo, Waterbuck, White Bellied Bustard, White breasted Cormorant, White Heron, White Rhinoceros, Wildebeest, Yellow Billed Stork, Yellow Canary, Zebras.

B-List:
Bees, Buzzard, Cat, Chicken, Cockroach, Dog (dead & alive), Donkey, Goats, Guinea pig, Horse, Mouse, Owl, Pied Crow, Sheep, Spider, Turkey.

If you would like to see what any of these animals look like we have another blog for you to look at. click here to see what any of these animals look like