Back in the USA

Well, I made it back safely. Adam and I are staying at his parents' house in Palmyra, Pennsylvania. It feels strange to be finished traveling but not be working. I am waiting to hear back from MIT about my re-acceptance into the LFM program, probably in February. I don't have any firm plans until then. I want to start looking for jobs in Boston, so I have a backup plan or perhaps an internship until I start school. My stuff is there already so I plan to move there in the next few months. Adam is applying to business schools (Harvard, MIT, Dartmouth and UNC), so he's also waiting to hear back and searching the job market.

It is nice to have unlimited internet and cell phone access again. I have been busy sorting through pictures, catching up on all my paperwork and baking Christmas cookies. I have managed to sneak in a few Grey's Anatomy episodes too. I'm slowly putting pictures on the blog, so check out the earlier posts.

I wish you all the best for the holiday season and a happy new year.

Tahiti

Wow...this is what a tropical paradise is supposed to look and feel like. It reminded me of Hawaii, but quieter, less people and they speak French (which I love). We landed late at night so we stayed in a small hotel next to the airport. In the morning, we took the truck (a small bus you flag down) to Papeete. We caught the ferry to Moorea, a separate island to the Northwest. Just a note, the ATMs are tricky because they only recognize the software from certain banks. Mine did not work, so I couldn't get any cash. Luckily Adam could. It is easy to use credit cards however there is usually a $20 minimum.

Moorea is small, 62 km circumference, with a few towns and a lot of hotels. We found a cheaper hostel, Mark's Place. We had the dorm bungalow with a private bathroom. It was nice although quite damp, but far from the beach and the towns. We had a kitchen and there was a small store down the road so we cooked most of our meals. We rented bikes the first day to explore and bike to the beach. In front of the Tipaniers hotel is a nice little beach. A large reef surrounds the island about one km from shore. The waves break there (also where the surfers go), so the inner lagoon is calm and great for swimming and sitting in the shallow parts. There is a current though. There are classic palm trees and some white sand. There are better beaches near the Sheraton and the airport. The second day I hung out at the beach again while Adam and Conor went diving. The third day we rented a car and drove around the island. There is a great lookout at the Belvedere. The juice factory is not so great unless you want to taste strong fruit liqueurs or buy souvenirs. We splurged on a dinner out and watched the sun set over the ocean. It was quite romantic.



The last day we went to Pinapo (yes like pineapple) Beach for one last swim before packing up. We took the morning ferry back to Papeete, but our flight didn't leave until late at night. We stored our bags at the airport (easy but rather expensive) until we could check in (3 hours prior to departure). We found a great cafe to relax in. I love having fresh tuna on salads. There wasn't much to do since we didn't want to shop or walk around much in the heat. They do have a large central market and 2 nice parks. It was hard to believe that this was our last day of traveling.

New Zealand - North Island

The North Island isn't quite as spectacular as the South Island, but there are some interesting places.

Wellington
This is a great, smaller city that is supposedly one of the top cities in the world to live in. We really lucked out with a sunny day. The Te Papa National Museum (free admission) has interesting and well-planned exhibits. My favorite were the one about earthquakes and the one about immigrants. We ate lunch at the Mac's Brewery on the waterfront. All of their beers are great but my favorites are the Spring Tide and the Great White. I finally ate some green-lipped mussels. They were enormous and delicious. Adam and I wandered around town, through the parks and botanical garden. New Zealand did a great job with green spaces in the cities. Cuba Street is popular for restaurants.


Tongoriro Crossing
We got up early to drive to National Park. We met Andrew and Nicole again to do a big day hike. Nicole hurt her knee, so she didn't hike but she was nice enough to drop us off and pick us up at the end of the trail. It's a 17km hike through the most varied terrain I have ever seen. We lucked out again with a sunny day. The winds on the pass were fierce. Andrew, Adam and Conor decided to be macho and climb Mt Doom. Since I'm a bit wiser, I opted to keep going on the main trail and enjoy the hike. They made it, of course, but they had a rough time and we all hurting the next few days. There were craters, rocks, geothermal vents and turquoise colored lakes.



Rotorura
This is geothermal central. We stopped to view the Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland. The colored pools and the boiling mud pots were pretty spectacular, but not as impressive as Yellowstone. We found a great hostel, Treks Backpackers, that is new and clean. We went to the Polynesian Spa to soak in the natural hot springs. They have a nice setup. You can look out at the lake while soaking. It rained pretty hard that night so we found a good pub to hang out in. The Pig and Whistle has a good atmosphere and great food. I recommend the Moroccan lamb stew.


Waitomo
The caves are the only reason to go to this small town. Adam and Conor did the Black Rafting Company adventure tour which includes abseiling, jumping and floating around underground for a few hours. I opted for the calmer, warmer and lighter version. I walked into a cave to view the stalagmites and stalactites followed by a short boat ride to view the glowworms. Glowworms hang from the cave roofs and emit enough light to resemble stars in a night sky. I think they are impressive. There wasn't a whole lot happening in this town for a Saturday night. The only decent food is the pizza restaurant at the YHA hostel. Who knew pumpkin could taste good on a pizza?


Whangarei
This is the major town in the far northern part of the island. We stayed at the holiday park a ways out of town. There is a great trail and park along the river which we walked to reach town. We stumbled upon a laid back family brewery, Bauhaus Frings. The beer was good and the food was ok. Nothing really spectacular in the town.

Bay of Islands
This is a beautiful, tropical paradise. Adam and Conor went scubadiving again so I had the day to relax and explore. I drove, first time driving on the left side of the road, to Pihia. From there I rode a ferry to Russell. This is a quaint small town. I walked around and spent some time at the beach. It looks like a great place to sail and kayak.


Auckland
This is a great city. Adam and I walked all over, exploring several neighborhoods. We started with Devonport, which is a short ferry ride across the harbor. I recommend the walking tour up Mt Victoria and along the beach. The shops on the main street are fun to look at too and there are plenty of cafes. Next we hit up Queen Street and Albert Park , near the university. Again nice green spaces for a city. We walked through the Domain, a huge park with a nice conservatory and big museum, to Newmarket. This is the fashion district. We returned through Parnell which is more of the hip restaurant district. It reminded me of Georgetown in Washington DC. We had a delicious mussel dinner at The Occidental downtown. If you like mussels and a Belgian influence, I highly recommend this restaurant.

New Zealand - South Island

New Zealand is the most amazing country I have ever been to. If you have the means to visit here, you must. The scenery is unbelievable, the people are friendly and helpful and you can do any outdoor thrill activity you can imagine.

Marlbourough wine country
We stayed in a great hostel in Renwick, Watson's Backpackers. We rented bikes and rode around to several wineries in a 10km circuit. Most of the wine tasting are free and there are many cafes for lunch. The wines are delicious, especially the sauvingnon blanc. There are a probably 100 wineries in the valley and it's surrounded by mountains, which makes for a beautiful setting. It was a great day to spend an afternoon.
Abel Tasman National Park
This wilderness on the top of the South Island looks tropical compared to wine country. We hiked out along the coast on a very well kept path. Then we kayaked back with a guide. It was so gorgeous.
Nelson
This is a great small town. Green Monkey hostel has a homey feel to it and the owners are friendly. We watch the All Blacks game on TV with breakfast. They beat Wales. We didn't get a chance to visit the Mac's Brewery, but that is my favorite NZ beer so you should go there.


Christchurch
This is a fairly nice city with a British feel. There is a huge park with a great running trail and a beautiful botanical garden. Adam took the GMAT and did amazing. Foley Towers hostel is a great find near the city centre.
Franz Joseph
From Christchurch we drove over Arthur's Pass to the West Coast. It was a blizzard on the top. I loved seeing snow and broke out the Christmas music CD. We stopped here in hopes of taking a hike on to the glaciers, but the tours were full. It poured the next day anyways (typical for a place that gets 7+ meters per year). We did run in to Andrew and Nicole Jackson, friends from Seattle. It was great to catch up and hear about their trip. They are also going around the world, the opposite direction. (Check it out at www.jacksonstraveling.blogspot.com) We did hike up to the viewpoints for Franz Joseph and Fox Glaciers. They were similar to Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, but no lake in front. We continued down the coast to beat the rain.
Queenstown
Lots of rain. It was kind of nice to sit inside for a day and read. We did stop on the way in to town to watch people bungy of a bridge. I was nervous just watching other people, so there is no way I will ever pay to jump off anything. On the other hand, Conor loves it and jumped off the tower downtown and the Nevis. Queenstown feels like a Colorado ski resort town. It is on a lake overlooking the Remarkables. These mountains live up to their name, especially since all the rain brought snow to the mountain tops. We stayed at the YHA on the lake, nice place. We went out with Andrew and Nicole one night and ventured into Minus 5, an ice bar. You dress up in warm clothes to hang out in the ice bar for 20 minutes. We had vodka drinks in glasses made of ice.


Milford Sound
We really lucked out with the weather here. We booked an overnight cruise on the Real Journeys Milford Wanderer. It was still raining/snowing on the drive South, but the blue skies appeared as we boarded the boat. The sun even came out later in the evening. We cruised down the fjord, astounded by the waterfalls off the vertical rock walls. It was beautiful. We kayaked a bit late in the evening. It was nice to get out on the water. They had a delicious dinner and breakfast for us. We toured the fjord again in the morning. On the way back to Queenstown, we stopped to hike at Lake Marion. The trail was too muddy for us to reach the lake, but the part along the stream is great.


Queenstown
We stayed another 3 nights here, but at Deco Backpackers. I liked this place better because it is smaller and has a rose garden. Check out Fergburger for huge and creative burgers. Buffalo Club is a good bar too. The Speights Alehouse has kumara fries, which I think are better than potatoes. We discovered a great running path along the lake. You can go either direction from town. We had beautiful sunshine this time so we spent a lot of time outdoors. I went paragliding. It was really fun. I loved floating over the treetops. I could have done without the tricks, but I think that is what the guides like. I'll post the in-flight photos later. Adam and I did some hikes, Creighton loop and up to the gondola. They were both steep but scenic. We all went canyoning (abseiling and jumping down waterfalls in a canyon) one day. Our guide was fantastic and I highly recommend the company, Deep Canyon. Adam and Conor jumped off a lot of cliffs, but I was happy with the abseils and slides. Wanaka, just North of Queenstown, is a great town. The ski area there, Treble Cone, is supposedly the best in NZ. I almost recommend staying there over Queenstown.
Mt Cook
We drove North again on the middle to East coast. We lucked out with the weather again and got a perfect view of Mt Cook. We drove up to the visitor's center and hiked in to Hooker Valley. It was a good trail with a great view of the glaciers and mountain.

Picton
We stayed here one night to catch the Interislander Ferry early the next morning. The town is pretty dead. The Indian restaurant was good and the supermarket did have some free samples. The Ferry was great. There is a big lounge deck with great windows to watch pulling out of the sound. It was a bit rough in the channel, but I survived. I guess I lost my sea legs already!

Australia

It was so great to be in an English speaking country again. I love the challenge of foreign countries, but traveling is so much easier when you speak the local language. Of course everything is more expensive in Australia as well. We were shocked to pay US prices for food and lodging. The weather was great...it's the beginning of summer in the Southern Hemisphere.
The aussies are friendly and we met some interesting ones. I discovered a fabulous treat in this country...Starburst gummies and Natural gummies. There is a wider variety than I have ever seen and they are great for road trips and plane rides. My favorite is the Natural forbidden fruits.

Cairns
This is a small, resort town in the Northeast, near the Great Barrier Reef. They have a great downtown setup, with a swimming pool and coastal boardwalk. I went snorkeling and actually had a good time. I rode a catamaran to Green Island where I swam out from the beach to look at the reef and colorful fish. We also rented a mini car and drove around the inland forests a couple days. Cape Tribulation is beautiful. The beaches are nice on the coast but you can't swim because of the jelly fish. Mossman Gorge is also a great side trip. You can swim in the river there. We went west to Atherton Tableland to hike and see the waterfalls. They were pretty too. If you drive the waterfall loop, you have to stop at the dairy for a delicious lunch.

Sydney
Bondi Beach is the place to be in this city. The downtown is nice, the Opera House and Harbor Bridge are must sees, but it is much more fun by the beaches. We stayed in a cheap hostel right on the beach. There is a fantastic beach path called the Costal Walk that we ran on every morning. We did some sunbathing and Adam went surfing. We also took a harbor ferry to Manley Beach one afternoon. That seems like a great beach town too. It would be the life to live there and commute to downtown on the 15 min ferry.

Thailand - South

The beaches in Southern Thailand are amazing, truely paradise. I understand why so many people vacation there. We were there before the high season so it wasn't too crowded. We flew to Krabi and then stayed 2 nights on the mainland and 3 nights on an island. I definately recommend the islands. The beaches are a lot nicer. At the end, we rode a nice bus through Malaysia to Singapore. It was easy and Malaysia looked like a beautiful too.

Ao Nang
This is a small town on the coast near Krabi. The town is really touristy but we did manage to find a few good restaurants and an Irish pub. We took a day kayaking tour. The scenery is amazing here. Limestone cliffs rise up out of the jungle and the ocean. We kayaked through mangrove forests and into lagoons. The water is warm and clear blue. We saw a lot of monkeys and pineapple pieces from the guide coaxed them into the kayaks. It was madness but kind of cute. Who knew that monkeys could swim? We also swam in a fresh water spring at a local park. I made one good purchase here too, Season One and Two of Gray's Anatomy for $18. I can't wait to watch them and catch up with Season Three.


Koh Phi Phi
We took the ferry out to this island. There are many other breathtaking islands near here. Phi Phi Don is all tourists, so more expensive than the mainland, but still cheap for the beach. The beaches are beautiful. The sun is very intense though so be sure to wear sunscreen. The best restaurant in town is Papaya. The food is great, local and cheaper than the resort restaurants. I recommend going to the beach on the far side of the island from the ferry dock. I also recommend renting a longtail boat ride to Phi Phi Lay, the National Park island just south where "The Beach" was filmed. In case you missed that movie, it plays in almost every bar nightly. Try to go early in the morning (6 am) to miss the crowds and the fees. There is still a lot of construction due to the tsunami damage, but there are a lot of bungalows. PP Casita was nice and will be great once the pool is finished.


Singapore
It was nice to be in a familiar city. This was my third time there. I did some shopping, got a haircut and drank a lot of Starbucks. All the Christmas decorations were out since they don't have to wait until after Thanksgiving. I love the Christmas season, the lights, the flavors and the music. We also splurged on dinner and drinks...Asia Bar, Raffles Long Bar and seafood at East Coast Seafood Centre. The black pepper prawns and chili crab are scrumptious.

Overall SE Asia was a good time. I wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving.

Laos

Laos is an amazing country. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys Asian culture but wants to get away from the touristy parts of SE Asia. It is much less built-up and Westernized than Thailand and less expensive. A meal costs about 1 dollar on the street or 3 dollars in a restaurant. The food is really fragrant. The noodle dishes are similar to Thai food, but they eat sticky rice with their hands instead of steamed rice. They also have fresh spring rolls which are my favorite.
We crossed the Mekong River from Thailand to Houxai. After clearing customs, we boarded a slow boat to travel down the river for 2 days. It was crowded (about 100 people) and not too comfortable (definately buy a seat cushion), but the scenery was spectacular. There are a few small villages along the river, but it is mostly jungle and rainforest. The mix of trees is surprising. We stopped to spend the night in Prakeng, a village that exists solely for people on the slow boats to sleep. We paid a whopping $6 for a decent room with beds and a toilet and a cold shower. We even had electricty most of the night. The next evening we arrived in Luang Prabang, a larger town that was once the royal capital. The French influence is apparent in the colonial architecture. The downtown is a UNESCO site so it is well preserved. The royal palace is quite simple and modern compared to palaces in Europe, but it is ornate in the wall decorations. The temples are lovely here and are quite popular for monks. There are 500 monks in town. Each morning they walk several blocks through town collecting offerings of sticky rice and food from the locals. They wear bright orange robes with yellow sashes. It is a unique sight. The monks are friendly. We saw them shopping at the night markets and using the internet. The town does cater to tourists a little so we took some time to relax. I got 3 hours of spa treatment for $14, including a full-body massage, facial and reflexology foot massage. It is tempting to go every day, but I am constraining myself. Adam and I also took a Lao cooking class. We learned to make spring rolls, chicken salad, beef stew, chicken curry, ginger fish and steamed vegetables. It was delicious and really interesting. We also got a tour of the local food market. That was quite a sight. I wish we could travel to some smaller towns further south, but we are flying back to the southern beaches of Thailand tomorrow. I am so glad that I got the chance to discover this culture.

Thailand - North

Thailand is refreshing after Africa. It is not perfect, but the good experiences are truely great. It is very inexpensive for lodging and food. The temples are really ornate.

Bangkok
The city seems so clean and quiet compared to Cairo. There is great street food everywhere for a whopping 50 cents. I love the noodle dishes and banana shakes. We had suits made, toured the Grand Palace and several temples, watched Thai boxing (kickboxing) and took a ferry along the river. We stayed in Khoasan Road, which is very touristy and mostly Westerners. It is safe though. I recommend getting out into other neighborhoods to eat though.

Chaing Mai
We took a night train north to this smaller city. The train was very nice and we slept well in the sleeper bunks. We stayed in an adequate guesthouse outside of the center square. The temples here are nice as well, especially the one on the hill overlooking the city. The food in the North is a bit spicier and closer to Lao food. It was nice to taste the difference. We took a two day hill trekking tour from here. The first day we rode elephants in the jungle and then hiked for about 3 hours. The elephant ride was fun but I felt bad for the elephants because they are chained up at night. The hiking was hot and sweaty due to the humidity, but the waterfalls were neat. We spent the night in a hill tribe village. The house are elevated so the animals are below and the people sleep above. It was a neat experience. The hill tribes are having a tough time assimilating into modern Thailand. They speak a slightly different language and I think there are some prejudices against them. We ate delicious food...green chicken curry and steamed vegetables with rice. The second day we hiked back to the road and then took a bamboo raft ride down a river. It was interesting. The raft is just 10 pieces of long bamboo stalks tied together. It is steered by a guy with another bamboo pole at the front. Unfortunately the river was a bit dirty. That night we rode to Chaing Kiang, which is on the border with Laos. There was a mix-up with our package tour so the guest house manager drove us there in his truck. It was a bit dodgy but we made it safely. It looked like a small touristy town but we didn't explore much because we left for Laos the next morning.

Egypt

Egypt is a busy and hot place. The driving and traffic is unbelievably crazy. You have to see it to believe it. The cabs are cheap and get you places, but you have to haggle and excuse their driving. The cars don't really follow the lanes and the drivers love to honk. The food here was surprisingly good. It was mostly grilled meats and vegetable casseroles (like Moroccan tangines).

Cairo
We arrived late at night after a full day layover in Dubai. We found a nice hotel in the embassy district of Zamelek. The next day we toured the Egyptian Antiquities Museum and saw the Pyramids at Giza. They were both good to see, but crowded with busloads of tourists. I don't know where they all came from. The best part about the museum was the objects from King Tut's tomb. The pyramids were impressive but overcommercialized. We hung out in Zamelek in the evening. Cilantro and Cafe Tabasco are nice cafes. Then we took the night train south along the Nile River.


Luxor
The night train wasn't too bad. We got some sleep and woke up to the sun shining on the green strip along the Nile River. Luxor is the starting place to see temples and tombs and to board Nile cruises. We walked around town and along the nice riverfront. It is super hot there. In the evening we toured Karnak Temple with a guide. It is huge with many pillars and obelisks and statues. It is not restored at all, but the ruins are neat. We also saw Luxor Temple lit up at night. It is in the center of town. The next day we took a guided tour of the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens and Hatchepsut Temple. It was so hot. The valleys were not very interesting since the tombs were all hidden. We walked down into several tombs. They were empty but the paintings on the walls remain vibrant with color. The temple was impressive because it has been partially restored by a Polish Missionary. That evening we took a mini-bus to the Red Sea. We were in a police-escorted train of over 100 tour buses and mini-buses. It was pretty crazy. They drive really fast too.


Hurghada
This is a newly-built Red Sea resort. We stayed in a hotel across the road from the beach and the Red Sea. I relaxed and sunbathed at the fancy resort next door while Adam and Conor went scuba-diving. It was great. We went out to a local restaurant for lamb kebab and to a pub for Stella and Luxor beers.

The last day we rode the bus back to Cairo and hung out in Zamelek before catching our flight to Bangkok, Thailand. Overall, I'm glad I went, but I don't feel the need to return. I recommend the Red Sea resort towns and the Nile cruises. My boyfriend, Adam, has a much more detailed blog if you want to check it out. www.adambuckfelder.blogspot.com I have been traveling with him since October 3rd.

Tanzania

Wow it was so neat to be in Africa again. It is so different there...the culture, the weather, the food, the language, the driving and a lot of things that we take for granted in the US. I had a tough time getting an entry visa at the airport. There was a line but people in Africa don't really follow lines, so it was all the Americans and Europians waiting in line while other people cut to the front. Then I didn't hae any US cash so I had to exit the airport, through the passport control and the baggage claim, get Tanzanian money, change it into dollars and then go back in. Oh, by the way, most ATMs in Africa do not take Mastercard. Luckily Adam was there to loan me money. I didn't really understand the point of the visa if I could just walk out of the airport, but I was reminded that this was Africa and that's the way it works...slightly inefficient but ok in the end. You just have to wait. Also people really do carry everything on their heads and their kids on their backs.

Adam, Conor and I spent one night in a really nice hotel in Dar Es Saleem, the Movenpick Royal Palms. It wasn't expensive by American standards but it was super nice by African standards. We ate some good food and slept comfortably before heading off on an 8 hour bus ride to Arusha where we started our climb and safari.

Mt Kilimanjaro

Our tour company, Good Earth Tours www.goodearthtours.com, met us at the bus station and drove us to our hotel, Le Jocaranda. They were a very good company and they really took care of us. They also hire Tanzanians who seem to enjoy working for the company. We spent one night in Arusha and gathered up all the equipment we needed to rent, which included walking poles, sleeping bags, headlamps and warm clothes. The next days we piled into a mini-van and headed to the trailhead. We had to go to the main gate to register and then to the other side to actually climb since we chose the Rongi route. We ended up driving most of the day on a very bumpy road jungle road near the border with Kenya. We finally started hiking in the late afternoon. It was still hot and very dusty since we were on the dry side. We hiked through the forest the first day and then it was mostly barren rocks. We had a staff of 10 for the 3 of us...1 guide, 1 assistant guide, 1 cook and the rest were porters. They set up camp and cooked for us. All we had to do was hike and carry our own water. We hiked for 4 days prior to the summit climb. I started feeling headaches after day 3. I took some Advil and drank a lot of water and that made it bearable. We only hiked about 4 hours a day, so it wasn't too taxing besides the heat and the altitude. Our base camp was at 14,000 feet. It was neat to look out over the clouds. We started our summit hike at midnight, after a short nap. We basically woke up, put on all our warm clother, ate a little bit and started climbing. It was a full moon that night so we didn't really need the headlamps. We saw strings of other hikers already on their way. We hiked for about 3 hours before it got really steep. I had to go slower so I stayed with one guide while Adam and Conor went ahead with the assistant guide. I didn't want to stay behind, but I also knew that I needed to go at a slower pace if I was going to make it to the top. It was tough. I was cold and tired, but determined to make it. I finally reached the false summit, Gilman's Peak at about 5 am. You can see into the crater and the glaciers from there. I rested a few minutes, but then kept on going. The trail to the summit flattens out there and I wanted to get higher up before the sun rose. It was beautiful to watch the sun rising over the glaciers. I caught up with Adam and Conor and we all reached Uhuru's Peak at 19,340 ft at 6:20 am. It was unbelievable. We took some pictures and enjoyed the view before heading down to escape the cold. Although going down was much easier and shorter, I felt a lot sicker. With Adam's help I made it was to the tent. I have never felt so sick from physical exerction. I couldn't eat and my head hurt until we descended below 12,000 ft. Luckily we hiked further on the way down, so it was only 2 days. Walking through the rainforent on the Morengu route was really neat. It was green and lush due to the rains. We finally reached the main gate and got our official certificates. The sense of accomplishment was much greater after taking the last steps. I slept on the van ride back to the hotel in Arusha. That shower was the best feeling. We celebrated in the hotel bar with Kilimanjaro beers that night.
Safari

The next morning, we packed into another mini-van for a 5 day safari. Our guides name was Good Luck (no joke) and he certainly was good at spotting cats. We drove through the Maasai country on the way to the parks. Our first stop was Tarangire National Park. It was incredible. We saw hundreds of elephants, zebras, giraffes, antelopes of all types and 3 lions and a leopard. They were mostly gathered around the central river. It was neat to see the different species interact. We camped in a nice private campground with a nightly drum show. The next day we headed to Serengeti National Park. It was a long, hot, dusty, bumpy drive but well worth it. We saw so many lions there. We saw them hunting and eating and walking and sleeping. We also saw 2 more leopards and 3 cheetahs. We camped in the park and stared at the stars at night. Our final stop was Ngorongoro crater. We camped on the crater rim with a spetacular view before heading into the crater in the morning. It was a little crowded and hard to see much because of the dust. We really wanted to see a rhino, but they eluded us. I enjoyed the Serengeti much more. Then we headed back to Arusha for one more night. We decided to branch out of the hotel restaurant and ate some yummy Ethiopian food. The food on the climb and safari was ok, but not the greatest. We ate bread and tea for breakfast, then pasta or rice with meat for lunch and dinner. We did have good vegetable soups with dinner and popcorn sometimes. The safari was a bit better with meat pies and steaks.

Zanzibar

After a wet morning in Arusha, we flew from Kilimanjaro airport to Zanzibar, an island off the coast of Tanzania that used to be Arab. It was like a tropical paradise. We spent 2 days in Stone Town and 2 days at the beach. It was relaxing after the rest of our trip. My favorite parts were eating at the fish market, watching the sunset from Africa House and the spice tour of the locally grown spices. On the last day we took a 2 hours ferry ride back to Dar Es Saleem to catch a flight to Cairo, Egypt. It was nice to fly Emirates again. We even had a long enough layover in Dubai to check out the mall and the sail hotel.