NGOROGORO CRATER!!!!!!

OK, WELL, HAD A GOOD TIME YESTERDAY!!! It really feels like it was a dream, looking through all my pictures this morning i was just in awe of it all! Friday we were picked up from shoprite after a yummy lunch to be taken to the campsite juist outside of the crater. About a 2-3 hour car journey in a big jeep. We all found this slightly wierd, becuase now we were proper mzungus. For the past 2 months we've all been living in africa, desperately not being mzungus, not being tourists and trying to show people this. We walk like everyone else and feel so far away from the white people whizzing around in their jeeps on safari. Now we were one of them! odd times. Anyway, got tyo the campsite with no voice whatsoever, compeltely gone, could only croak. So after a nap and a bowl of soup, strait to bed for me! It was really nice to camp though, and use my sleeping bag (though it was bloomin hot). Then a nice early start of 5:30, to eat at 6 and be off at 6:30. At we started driving the sun had just =came up, beautiful and cool and lightly orange! Started the day with a chorus of 'circle of life' (me croaking along). took about 45 mins to reach the crater, (the day before we went over the rift valley, b.e.a.utiful) and as we came to the rim, well... absolutely stunning. I cant upload my photos now, becuase there so big, so youll have to wait till i get home, but i just stood there drinking it in. It was amazing. Just so amazing. As we continued driving about n6 baboons passed our jeeps path, so camreas out! they peeted away and put the camrea back again, just as our guide slows down, points and says 'look, leopard'. there was a leopard, by the side of the road. Smaller than i imagined, wiith a long tail and beautiful markings. Unfortunately i didnt have enough time to get my carea before it slinked away. Our guide was ecstatic. Leopards are very solitary and very shy creatures, it was the first time he'd ever seen one in the crater! A GOOD START TO THE MORNING! One of the big five (Leopard, Lion, Elephant, Buffalo, Rhino) crossed off our list.

Went down polepole into the crater drinking the veiw. Saw my first Zebra (and certainly not my last) along with a family of PUMBA's! (warthog).
Talking about it really dosnt do it justice, becuase you just need to go there or see the photos (sorry to be such a cop out) It was just so nice to have the lid of the jeep up and just be zooming around the feresh african air and seeing all these animals in their natural habitat. As we were leaving (we had not seen all the big five at this point) our guide steve said, 'so now we see big five!?", que us looking abit perplexed, 'nono, we have yet to see Rhinos' he points to our left and over in the distance sit two black rhinos. Absolutly amazing to look at. We stayed for a while and whilst i was looking through Rach's binoculars i saw two more blots coming towards us. Two more rhinos running! Black rhinos, 4 IN ONE DAY! another first for our guides! they ran across the other jeeps path, it turns out it was a mating ritual. Kim got quite angry about this, an we all started cheering for the lady rhino as she ran away! 'dont give up! Rights for female rhinos... :S

so, the list of the day included;
Leopard,
Cheetah,
Hyena (eating a baby wilderbeast, who was still alive),
Wilderbeast,
Zebra,
Pumba,
Lion,
Mzungus (the lesser spotted Canadian, longer legged and red tinted),
Rhino,
Elephant,
Ostrich,
antelope,
Vulture,
Corobuster
and other things!

All i can say is the if you ever go to Tanzania, or Africa infact, Make a beeline for this place. It not just the anamals, just the location and sheer beauty of it all!

Left at 2, got back in Arusha at ^ feeling very rough due to severe cold/no voice/ epically sore throat. But i am one happy mzungu.

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