Africa in Focus: Days 1-3 in Arusha and Ngorongoro Crater

The first few days of our African trip have just zipped by us. I'll give a brief overview, but really I'll skip ahead to today, one of the most interesting days of my life. (edit: this was written several days ago, but due to internet, it's only making it online now!)

Day one saw us packing up our gigantic truck and driving, driving, driving. We arrived in Arusha at the snake park there. Of course, I didn't visit the snakes, but the campsite was nice enough and we were pretty exhausted enough to fall into a pile.

Day 2 we started with a tour of the Masai cultural museum and village, and saw a beautiful Masai dance. I learned quite a lot about their culture, and now that we are surrounded by them it is good to know a little something about them. We packed up and hauled out for another drive to another campsite and one more sleep before the fun started.

Day 3 started bright and early at 6:10 to head out to Ngorongoro Crater. I really didn't know what to expect, but we split into 3 trucks and entered the park. It was cold and wet, with the clouds hanging low over the forest. We climbed up, up, up and finally crested a hill to clear skies. Below us was a beautiful crater with a salt lake in the middle. We stood in the open top truck for the entire day, spotting animals that came so close you felt like you could touch them. But I won't bore you with words. Below are a few of my favorite pictures for the day. The next day we went to the Serengeti for the night, and now we are in Dar-es-salaam waiting to sail to Zanzibar tomorrow. Stay tuned for updates on the Serengeti next!