Thursday 1 July - Ruaha National Park

The camp we stayed at overnight is actually outside the park. We had another 30 km to travel to the gate - some of it on very corrugated roads.

The Park is truly beautiful. The Ruaha River runs through it and along the river it is lush and green. The area is teeming with wildlife. We could easily see crocodiles, hippo, nyala, impala, giraffe and so many birds. It was like the Garden of Eden. Mark especially enjoyed seeing birds we don't see further south, like a touraco that he was delighted to spot. The hippos were especially amusing as they peeped at us from the water or lay around like great mounds of blubber. The zebra and giraffe have different markings to the ones we are used to. I couldn't resist this rear end shot of a zeb. Excuse my butt!

We had not seen any lion so we decided to take a road away from the river. It took us into very dry bushveld and the road began to deteriorate. We saw very little game in the area and as the road became worse we began to feel very isolated. There was no cell contact in the area, the road was in a shocking state and we realised that if we were to break down there it may be a couple of days before anyone found us. It was a very tense hour or so and we made our way back to the main river road. We think that every visitor entering Ruaha without a trained guide should be given a two way radio or a chip of some sort so that they can be tracked.

When we rejoined the main road with great relief we went to a view site where we had a lovely view of the animals below and then Mark said, "We have to see lions!" A few minutes later we were driving along a road and he shouted, "There's a lion! It was down at the river bank and we couldn't get any closer but we watched for a couple of minutes. Then Mark looked to his right and there was another lioness about 40m away watching him! We drove up to another point hoping to get a clearer view but it didn't work so we returned to where we had first seen them. Within a short while we saw eight lions making their way down to the river and crossing at a shallow ford. Then we realised they were sneaking up on a couple of warthog grazing on the opposite bank. The lions were very organised and spread themselves out so that the prey could be cut off if he decided to run in either direction. Suddenly they sprang into action. The two warthogs ran in different directions and the lions pursued just one of them. They disappeared behind some bushes but we heard the poor little warthog squealing like a stuck pig (!) as the lions closed in for the kill. How tragic, but what a thrill to have witnessed this. It was certainly worth the trip to Ruaha along some very rough roads.

Our Bradt guide had said the camping was very basic with one long drop loo and no water - bring your own - and that's why we had chosen to camp at the private camp outside the Park. However, when we saw the camp on the banks of the river we were quite sorry we hadn't decided to live dangerously. One doesn't have to move, just pull up a chair outside the tent and have an uninterrupted view of the game on the river. Well, maybe next time. We did see one couple from Gauteng in the campsite and they had one of those well-equipped off road trailers with all the necessities of life - even a solar panel! What luxury!

And so back to our campsite for one more night and then south west tomorrow as we make for the Zambian border.

We have been very impressed by the Tanzanian people. They are friendly, helpful and very welcoming. Most of the 40 million people are poor by our standards but they are extremely enterprising. The campsite we stayed in is a great example. The family have built up a well run facility with a couple of sites for tents but quite a number of clean, comfortable chalets/ dormitories and they can cater for big groups. They have a dining room and a pub. I admire their entrepreneurship. Generally people are getting on with making a living any way they can. The nation has a wonderful unity. Apparently President Nyerere did away with tribal leaders and concentrated on uniting all Tanzanians as a nation. Fifty years down the track it appears to have worked. Well done, Tanzanians. Oh and one other comment: There is no such thing as an obese Tanzanian (or Malawian). There are no big chain store supermarkets selling junk food or processed stuff. People eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables and of course meat. They are hard working, healthy and they mostly use bicycles for transport. There are mini bus taxis but they are much better drivers than ours in SA.

Yes, Tanzania has been a great experience. Well worth the visit.