They say that travel in Africa requires a certain amount of flexibility. The roads are uneven at best, and throw in the occasional bout of civil disturbance or political unrest, and it's clear why all tour operators are quite clear in their literature:
“Itineraries in Africa are to be used as a guide ONLY.”
We encountered our first instance of this within the first hour of driving. Our driver slowed, then stopped behind a line of vehicles at the entrance to a village. Looking around, it was clear that people were, for the lack of a better word, were ticked off.
Turns out that in the early morning, a truck had hit a child crossing the busy 2 lane highway that also served as the town's high street, then kept going. The village had been asking for months for a series of speed bumps to slow things down, but had no luck. This time they took matters into their own hands, erecting a roadblock and demanding an immediate solution.
Even though it cost us a few hours waiting in a local shop/restaurant, we couldn't blame them – after an easily preventable tragedy, if this sort of disruption is the only way to get the gov't to move, then so be it.
Fortunately, the local police were able to calm things down with a firm promise of action – on the way back after the tour, we were able to see the speed bumps being made.
All of this disruption turned out to help us... the plan initially was to head straight to the Serengetti for three days. However, it turned out that we were going to move our final day's destination up a bit – and we headed instead to Lake Ngorogoro Crater.
The Crater is huge – an extinct volcano with huge steep walls all around. It protects its own ecosystem – with herds of animals, the odd lion or three, and a lake of pink flamingos.
Our campsite was stunning – stout tents under a massive tree overlooking the Crater. We had the late afternoon to ourselves. We brought out a disc at first...
...and then the soccer ball I picked up in Arusha. Wow – what an icebreaker... not everyone can throw a disc, but a soccer ball – that breaks every boundary.
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