Jambo! (Hello in Kiswahili or Swahili) I’mmmmm baaacckkkk!
First of all let me apologize for not posting for the past few weeks. It was my intention to post along the way, but with so much to do and such limited internet I had to adjust the plans. But I’m back now and so excited to share with all of you my latest experiences. It will take me some time to get through everything though so updates on the trip may take a little time but don’t fear I will consistently post regardless of what progress I have made.
This one is a long one so buckle in as I take you down some overall things about the prep work for the trip.
The weeks/days leading into this trip have seemed like a whirlwind. I was feverishly trying to finalize my edits from Dubai, I started my new job, transitioned out of old job, had to deal (and still dealing with) the damage to my house from the storm that blew through a few weeks ago and finalize details for the trip.
I was so stinking excited for this trip. I love, love, love animals, no offense but at times I feel like I care more for animals than I do humans. They are so interesting to watch and to learn about. Ever since I can remember I have had a fondness for Africa, I wrote a short story as kid about an elephant families. We had this game my sister and I had this game we played that was about African safaris and learned about all sorts of animals, I felt a special pull when I was about 8 or 10 when I watched Gorillas in the Mist. Diane Fossey held a special interest for me as well. Now I am speaking primarily right now of game areas, don’t get me started on Egypt.
So I am headed off to visit Angel, one of my dearest friends. We have known each other since our freshman year at college where we lived on the same floor and subsequently became roommates. Well Angel, who is a fantastically interesting person, grew up as a UN (United Nations) kid and was born in Thailand then moved to Nairobi and lived there for a number of years before she moved to the states. She is my very, very good friend, my bonded self-elected sister, and most importantly my number 1 travel buddy.
Well our travels have always included that we would do Safari one day as she wanted to go back and see Kenya/Africa and we thought it pertinent to see it together. Well Angel herself now works for the UN, where she met her lovely husband Gregory. There they are working for the UN (initially in NY then in Switzerland) and Gregory had an offer for a temporary 1 year post in Tanzania so they took it. Angel has 2 wonderful children and is currently on maternity leave so it made the transition easy so she didn’t have to give up her role as they moved across continents.
Now that Angel lives in Tanzania, I couldn’t possibly pass up the opportunity to go and visit her all the while do my (hopefully) 1st safari. She is only there for about 10 months, Gregory moved down in October I believe but Angel and the little ones didn’t move until end of December as they wanted to let the oldest finish his school semester. Between my schedule and theirs we figured July was going to be the best time for our visit, I couldn’t go before May and early July is when her eldest would be done with school for the year. So July it is!
So many things to do but so little time. #1 priority is to see Angel. #2 priority is I need to do safari. Hiking Kilimanjaro is on the list as well but as I started to look at the time commitments for all the activities not everything was going to be able to make the list.
My itinerary:
I was gone for about 2.5 weeks. With travel days and everything I was officially in country 17 days (not counting day I arrived as I got in at 8 PM and after visa and drive time got into Arusha at 10 PM).
Now I chose to do safari at the end of my trip and the visit with my friend/beach time first. A lot of people I talked to on Safari who were also going to Zanzibar were doing that portion afterwards. I could have easily done it the other way as well. If you do safari first I would recommend that you have a day or two in country to get over jet lag so you aren’t sleepy while on safari. This was the highlight of my trip and I would’ve been sad if I was struggling through jet lag while needing to be alert. I could see the benefit to being on beach second though. On safari you will have a lot of early morning game drives (if you want, which I would recommend to see the animals most active) and then have a long day out so you will be tired by the end of the safari.
- Days 1-3 Arusha (3 days)
- Days 4-9 Zanzibar (6 days)
- Day 10 Arusha (1 day)
- Day 11 – 17 Safari (7 days)
What safari company to use:
Do your research!!!! I cannot stress this enough, the right company and also guide can make or break your experience! I saw so many people who were just ushered along, the guide just looked bored and apathetic to their guests experience that I don’t think they truly got out of it what they could. That and do a small group/private safari. I saw some huge tourbus type groups out there and you can’t really see as you are in a bus vs safari vehicle and those vehicles cannot travel into all locations so they also miss out.
There are tons and tons of companies out there so I can’t tell you which ones are better than the others, I only have my personal experience. My company was great, very responsive throughout the entire process starting from talking about what options were right for me, how to select the right budget, any questions I had pre-trip, etc. My guide felt like he was handpicked just for me as well. I will get into more details in upcoming posts but it made the world of difference having a company who was quick to respond (usually within a business day), provided all sorts of tips, suggestions, and an amazing guide who made sure I had the best viewings I could possibly get.
I will post more on the company and my guide experience in later posts but I would highly recommend my company. Do not be put-off by their website (which I feel could use a little updating). They are wonderful and had great reviews on TripAdvisor. Roy Safaris
Things to Consider:
So for an American to visit Tanzania you will need a visa (Check your countries travel site to see what you will need. You can send off for a visa prior to arriving or get one when you land. As I was traveling around the world just recently prior to my travels (and have an instinct to never part with my passport) I opted to get one at the airport. Angel also recommended this option as said it would be easiest. I was flying directly to Kilimanjaro airport from Amsterdam, which is smaller than the capital airport Dar Es Salaam.
If you are going to get your visa at the airport just know this. It will take time. You are not in a first world country. Just enjoy the chaos around you. There were only 2 windows open and our plane was a large plane so the crowds for visa was large. I recommend you immediately depart the plane, don’t dawdle and head straight for the counter. Expect that you will be waiting for an hour or two. So many people were getting upset and getting frustrated that there wasn’t more windows open and that they weren’t any ropes or lines to speak of. Remember this is a developing country. So you are standing in a crowd just slowly inching your way up to a counter. It takes a while because as you guess it there are a lot of groups so many people processed in a single transaction. Some groups jump ahead of the line due to their association/affiliates, but most just sit and wait.
You do need to pay for your visa in cash, with American dollars, so be sure to have this on hand. They are particular on what types of legal tender they accept so ensure the bills are crisp, clean, no tears and are 5 years old or newer. I forgot about this myself but thankfully had what I needed on hand to get through the process. Once you get the initial paperwork you go to the customs desk to get processed/stamped in and officially obtain your visa, another line but this is setup as more an actual line than a mob of people. There you will be electronically fingerprinted and go through the standard entry questions.
Speaking of money. Yes, American currency is accepted, but bring smaller demoninations and it is not accepted everywhere so you will want to have a debit/credit card to take out local currency. Their currency is the Tanzanian Shilling or affectionately called Tish. The currency is in the thousands. Smallest bill being 1,000 Shillings. At the time of my travels to do quick conversion in your head just drop the last 3 zeros and divide by 2. $10,000 TSH, would be $5 USD.
Bartering is a big part of the process in most markets so its helpful to have that quick conversion in your head. One time I was bargaining over something and haggling over 5000TSH and thought what am I really driving for, $2.50? Really. 5000 TSH goes a long way for them. Speaking of that just know that if they see you that won’t be offering the best price, at times they tried to say a conga (fabric) was 20-25000 TSH. When we know to get it straight from manufacturers it is 8000 TSH. Now you need to account for their time and their need for profit so we would be okay with 10-15000TSH.
Language: Kiswahili or Swahili is the primary language of Tanzania but English is the secondary language so you will be fine. I find it helpful to always know a few key phrases and try to learn local language so here are a few items (just think Lion King), this is spelled more phonetically rather than accurately:
- Jambo (Hello)
- Karibu (Welcome, you’re welcome)
- Asante (Thank you), Asante Sana (Thank you very much)
- Pole A (Sorry)
- Pole A Pole A (Slowly)
- Hapana (No), Di yo (Yes)
- Maji (Water)
- Lala Salama (Have a good sleep)
- Hakuna Matata (No Worries) or more accurately Hakuna Shida (No Problem)
Immunizations/Medications
I want to state I am not a doctor nor do I work in the medical industry. This is my experience and thoughts only, always make an appointment with a travel speciliast before you travel to determine what is right for you.
I visited my travel specialist back in April, well in advance of what I would need to for my trip. Usually most people go 4-6 weeks prior but in case of any vaccinations needed to be done ahead of time I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time. My appointment we went over what would be recommended for me and I ended up doing the following:
- I finished my Hep A vaccination (I did 1 shot before going to Thailand years ago) and didn’t get around to the 2nd one to finish the course
- I did a shot for typhoid (man my arm hurt like a bugger later that day after that I could barely raise it).
- I didn’t have to get the yellow fever vaccination as I was flying directly to Tanzania vs stopping in other countries first, but depending on your flights and if you plan to hit up Kenya you may need this.
- She gave me a prescription for Malaria daily pills (take one daily starting one day before your trip and continuing throughout until 7 days after you returned home). There were other options for malaria but some come with side effects I didn’t want to deal with (sensitivity to the sun/easy to burn, um hello I already have that so I don’t need more of it). I personally was wary about the malaria pills she did prescribe as I’e heard a lot of people don’t like them but I figured I’d give it a go and if I had any side effects I didn’t like I would stop taking them. I did take them for a week into the trip but stopped as I was getting wicked headaches. Also in reviewing what the malaria pills do (just mask the symptoms rather than make you immune, which delays your identification of having it and treating it), didn’t seem like it would be wise to keep taking it.
- She also gave me some pills to combat any traveler’s diarrhea just in case, you don’t want to be down and out and dealing with that while there.
She also recommended to pre-treat clothing with permethrin spray (a bottle will treat 4 outfits and last through 6 washings and or 40 days). I opted to not do that as in reading the bottle while spraying the clothes and while wet it is very bad for cats and their health (once dry its okay), but I didn’t want to risk it and have to spray things in the garage, wait a few days for it to dry and be worried about things when I did the wash again. Also checking with Angel she said they don’t use it and I’ll be fine. True she lives in the city and I will be on safari but I figured I would risk it.
So along with those pills I brought sunscreen and insect repellent wipes versus bringing mosquito spray to avoid extra liquids. You can always go to a local market and pick up things there. Angel had this roll on No Bite stuff that worked wonders.
Main things you will need to avoid is mosquitos (most places you’ll sleep with mosquito netting or be in a room that can close off, but they will spray the room/inside netting area down before you go to sleep to kill off the bugs) and while on safari the Teste fly, mostly in wooded areas. Those suckers will bite you and it hurts, they do carry diseases, and they aren’t monster kinda fly’s they are similar in size to a standard housefly.
What to Pack:
Tanzania does wet/dry season vs the 4 seasons. In July its Dry season, that starts in June. Arusha is higher in elevation so it will be greener but cooler. As far as clothes go its more fall like temps so its not super warm and a sleeve or sweater will come in handy. Zanzibar is more Caribbean like temps so lighter clothing will do, we were in the NE side of the island and I will say when the tide was going back out it was quite windy and cool. Please note that Zanzibar is predominately Muslim so be respectful of the religion and when out and about you may want to as a woman keep a little more modest, but they are tolerant.
As safari goes, there is a reason the color scheme for safari clothes are drab, khaki/olive green, etc. Remember those teste flies? Well they are attracted to black and blue (you will see some of these colors hanging in the permiter of camps to draw them out there but best to avoid bringing any blue/black colors, that doesn’t mean you will avoid the flies but at least you aren’t screaming come to me, my friends. As far as other colors go, you don’t want to have colors that scream out to the animals, so avoid any loud colors.
This does not mean you need to go to your local LL Bean store and ask for the safari starter pack and double up on that. My guide and I would chuckle when we saw some of the people all decked out. Hiking boots, khaki pants tucked into their wool socks, khaki tops, with the khaki vest and the safari hat. Just wear clothes. You will be getting dirty though, make no mistake! I was filthy. I just brought some slip on converse (you don’t need hiking boots unless you’re hiking the mountain or perhaps doing long bush walks), you’ll be in the car for the most time.
On safari I brought:
- Slip on converse, sandals
- 4 shirts
- 3 pairs of pants (khaki crops, olive green crops and a pair of jeans to end)
- 2 lightweight pullovers/zipup sweatshirts
- Pajamas
- Swimsuit (had the opportunity to swim at a few locations but didn’t do it)
Did I mention it is dry season? On safari that makes for easy animal viewing (they are concentrated around watering holes and not hiding in the tall grasses). Dry season means dusty to the nth degree and with windows open and the top up by the end of the day you would need to wash your hands 3 times to get off all the dust. It will be in every crack and crevice possible. Anticipate that you will sneeze out dust for days.
So I recommend brining lots of Kleenex and eye drops.
What I wished I had brought: warmer clothes for early game drives, I did have my zipup sweatshirt but it was more lightweight than I would have preferred and actually pulled the heavier weight one out of my bag right before I left thinking it wouldn’t be that bad. Mornings are cool and damp and animals are most active straight away in the morning before the heat of the day would set in and by noon they would be snoozing in the shade. So mornings would be in the 50’s and 60’s and since you are not actively moving yourself its helpful to have on another layer to keep warm. During the peak of day it would be in the mid-80’s so not unbearable.
What’s in my bag:
So I was not about to go on this trip and not bring all of the gear needed for photos!
I brought:
- 2 DSLR camera bodies (D7100, D500)
- 2 lenses (28-300, 150-600), I do recommend you bring a long lens. As some animals will stay just out of reach for even the 300mm. Trust me I was the envy of a few vehicles around me who had just a phone or a point and shoot. A comment was even made that made my guide chuckle, “I bet you can see Kenya from here with that thing”. I could tell my guide was a proud man having a “photographer” he boasted at times and was adequately prepared to get the shot.
- Panasonic Point and Shoot (to capture video and to not fuss adjusting settings between photo/video)
- GoPro
- Joby Tripod
- All of the batteries (I didn’t know how much access I would have to power and didn’t want to miss a shot due to that).
- 4 batteries for Panasonic, 3 for GoPro, 4 for the DSLR bodies
- 2 Powerpacks (to charge items)
- Camera Memory (I asked a mentor how much to account for on safari and they said depending on your camera memory you need to calculate out what you think you would need but depending on how trigger happy you are account for 500-1000 pictures a day while on safari).
- Tight Woven Pillow Case (to cover the cameras and for easy access to protect from dusts
- Lens and camera cleaning items
I was there for 2.5 weeks doing multiple things so I ended up with over 11K pictures and 500 video clips. I don’t delete items until I am home and do all backups).
I also packed away my laptop thinking I would edit some while I was there, but after long busy days and little sleep I didn’t quite muster up the energy to edit while there.
I packed this all away in my carry on camera bag the Mindshift Backlight 26L.
I had such a fabulous time on this trip. Definitely one of the top trips of my life if not the #1 trip. It is something you should try to do in your lifetime, a definite bucket list trip. I felt in awe almost every day on safari and could’ve stayed in the Serengeti forever. If you want to enjoy a little bit of safari life while still at home for the next 4 weeks or so on Nat Geo Wild they are doing safari live for 2 hours every Friday night they are in Kenya in the Masai Mara to catch the Great Migration of the herds. I am recoding it and reliving a little of my experience and its nice to hear the animal noises I have come to enjoy again live.
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