During recent school holidays, we took the kids on surprise trips. The boys with Mr Mechanic, the girls with me. We didn’t tell them where we were going and we packed their bags for them, so they really had no clue about their adventures!
I took the girls to Tarangire National Park for a 3 day, 2 night safari.
I wish we could have gone for longer, but I had some serious ‘Mom Guilt’, about leaving the baby at home with Mr Mechanic (an experienced and capable father). Mom Guilt does not accept reason or logic, it just makes you feel bad.
The girls and I had an amazing time and made lasting memories (and the baby was fine) so Mom Guilt can just shut up.
day 1
Our driver met us around 10 am at our home in Karatu.
While most safaris leave early (anywhere from 5 am -7 am), I hate hectic mornings and asked for a late departure.
Also, our home in Karatu is closer to Tarangire than Arusha, so we didn’t have a long drive to reach the park.
After about thirty minutes on the road I told the girls where we were going:
There were squeals.
Cheers.
Jumping up and down in the seats.
Basically, all the noises elated 6-9 year olds make, times three.
We arrived at the park and had an early lunch at the picnic site and mostly avoided the annoying monkeys… but my 6 year old kept offering them her sandwich…then we washed up and headed on our first game drive.
Tarangire National Park is known for giant baobab trees and elephants. The constant water source from the Tarangire River means that during dry season, many animals move here for sufficient water.
On our first day we saw lots of waterbuck, gazelles, zebra, giraffe and of course, elephants. Also, smaller creatures like mongoose, warthogs, guinea fowl and a host of spectacular birds.
favorite animals of the day
I absolutely adore giraffe – they are majestic and elegant. And elephants? How can you not catch your breath and have respect in the presence of an elephant?
Sungura (my 10 yr old) loved the white-ringed waterbuck, with their long horns and distinctive ring around their backside. She pointed them out every time we saw one getting a drink or wandering through the trees.
My 7 yr old’s favorite animal was the giraffe, at first she got so excited every time she saw them she nearly scared them away, but towards the end of the day she was calm enough to take some photos (50 + blurry images !) of the long-necks with my camera.
My littlest appreciates the humble warthog: she went into giggles every time she saw one running through the grass, its tail erect.
There was never a dull moment and my girls were very focused with their binoculars. They asked lots of questions from our guide and were interested in learning about all the animals in the park.
We all enjoyed the drive, but my little one started dozing off around 4 pm and the 7 yr old wanted to get out of the vehicle already and stretch her legs.
We agreed our day was finished and headed to our lodge.
As we headed out, we passed an area with many tse tse flies, which were very annoying and kept biting us.
It is nature, after all and we have to accept the wild, even the insect aspects, along with the beauty.
**Not to worry! Flies in this location do not carry dengue fever.**
Our accommodations were a surprise, even for me. Mr Mechanic said he arranged for us to stay ‘in some tents’. He failed to specify it was a fabulous tented lodge!
We spent two nights at Sangaiwe Tented Lodge, just outside of Sangaiwe Gate, one of the entrances/exits to Tarangire National Park. Meaning that we didn’t have far to go to reach our lodging, or to get back to the park the next morning.
The lodge is beautiful and has an incredible view. We stayed in a family tent with 2 single beds and a queen size bed, a walk-in shower and wide front porch.
I had asked that we stay at a place with a swimming pool, and boy did Mr Mechanic deliver! It was a cute, very clean pool, and shallow – perfect for our girls who are still learning to swim.
After hours driving through Tarangire National Park, it was refreshing to splash in the pool before evening set in.
Dinner was served from 7 pm, which gave us time to shower and dress up, then catch a lovely sunset.
The meal was fabulous and we completely stuffed ourselves.
We were led back to our tent by lantern light (so romantic!) and settled into our comfortable beds laden with too many pillows for the night.
We were very cozy under our big duvets, in our poster-beds, draped with netting. I nearly forgot I was in a tent!
By all accounts, it was a wonderful first day of safari.