Safari..

I looked at so many different safari's when I was browsing.. Ranging from a weekend to three weeks.. All going on different routes to different national parks. Whatever one I chose I was intent on going to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater! When I found this one with STA travel it sounded perfect and means that I can travel around to a few parks and have a nice relaxing few days to finish it all off..

I finish my placement on the 28th of June, so on the 29th I'm meeting my boyfriend and then we're flying upto Nairobi, Kenya early in the morning where our safari starts the following day. When there for the day, we intend to do a bit of exploring and there's a giraffe centre, run by a charity, that I would love to visit where you can feed the giraffes.

On Sunday morning we have a pretty early start at 8am where we head off through the Great Rift Valley to the Masai Mara, where we camp on the reserve edge for two nights and explore the park during the day looking for the big five and other wildlife! With the possibility of encountering some of the great migration of wildebeest, zebras and other grazing animals. Also, we are likely to encounter the red robed Masai warriers (who can be very scary on there approach)!

Great Rift Valley

On our third evening we head back to Nairobi to stay, before heading out on Wednesday to cross the border back into Tanzania. We go to Arusha - known as the safari capital - and explore here for the afternoon, with the possibility to visit the Meserani Snake Park and maybe Mt. Meru.

We will then have a two night/three day excersion to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater. On the first night we camp on the Serengeti planes after having game driven all day; the name Serengeti is derived from the Masai word siringitu meaning 'the land moves on forever' as the planes are endless! After our second day we will camp around the rim of the crater at 2400m above sea level, where we will be surrounded by wildlife for a second night, before descending down into the 326 square metre World heritage site on our last day here; where the only animals that can't get down here are giraffes due to the steep descent. After this we will drive back to Arusha to stay the evening.

Ngorongoro Crater









On day eight, we visit a local Masai village to get an insight into everyday life and the culture there. Then heading south via Moshi, we will pass Kilimanjaro and camp on the banks of the Pangani river, below the Usambara and Pare mountains in the Eastern Arc Range of mountains.

Day nine involves the journey back down to Dar es Salaam, where we camp on the beach before our trip to Zanzibar!

From day 10 we spend our time on Zanzibar, where we have no specific plans, but lots that you can do! It's known as the spice islands so you can tour around to see the exotic spices being grown, in Stone town the markets are bustling where you can explore and see what's on offer, white sand beaches encase the island for a relaxing day, there are snorkelling and scuba diving opportunities, along with the chance to swim alongside dolphins! So with all that choice, I'm sure there will be something that we can agree on to do!

It's an overland safari, in two-man domed tents, which means that everyone has to pitch in when it comes to setting up camp, cooking (although we have a cook who comes along with us) and shopping, so it can be a great experience if you have a good bunch of people!

It's all very exciting and I can't wait to get over there and see all the beautiful landscapes and wildlife! It really will be an amazing experience, with an amazing man!