Where the path takes us!

Lake Manyara National Park - return to Arusha

Cover Image for Lake Manyara National Park - return to Arusha

Yesterday was the last day of our ‘migration safari’. We drove from Karatu, (where we stayed at Eileen’s Trees Inn) out to Lake Manyara National Park. It’s an ‘unspoilt paradise’ known for its abundance of birds and tree climbing lions. The lake itself is shallow and very alkaline covering a large area of the park, flooding and drying with the seasons. We saw many birds, elephants, antelope, baboons and a diversity of plants that Clause pointed out (with his usual enthusiasm!). The ‘safari’ was a great experience, the days passed by too quickly and there’s so much yet to see!
We arrived back in Arusha in the evening to spend two nights at the same hotel where we stayed on our first arrival to Arusha a week ago. Today we’re spending a very relaxing day regrouping, exploring the surrounding neighbourhood, having our laundry done and arranging for our travel tomorrow.
Our friend, Emmanuel, lives in a village ‘somewhere’ nearby and he’s arranged to have someone pick us up and take us there. We’ve tried to locate his village, but so far haven’t been able to identify it on our map! Regardless of where we end up, it will be fun to see him, get reacquainted, meet his family and spend the weekend witnessing and sharing in his Tanzanian lifestyle.


This afternoon the temperature was about 31 degrees Celsius.

Entrance to our room at the lodge in Karatu where we spent the night


Inside the dining area at Eileen’s Trees Inn


Eileen’s Trees Inn in Karatu - an oldLodge with beautiful gardens and grounds


We did see two lions too busy to notice us as they fed on a bone of something they’d scored, but we didn’t see any lounging in the trees…


A very nonchalant elephant strolling down the road



Catching a ride! We saw many baboons and had to be careful not to leave doors or windows open if we stopped the vehicle!


An ‘eland’ antelope - very large with a beautiful coat



So many elephants today! Clause was exceptionally good at reading their intent and made sure we were safe…




Perfectly posed!




With the roof popping up we could really get a great view of the forests and savannas. Looking down into the vehicle with Jim on the left and Clause driving on the right.


Clause made sure we ate well, prearranging with the lodges where we spent the night that our lunches were gluten free!




The vegetation in the park is very lush, these acacia trees are in full bloom



We stopped so Clause could buy three watermelons to take home to his family


Afternoon activity along the side of the highway driving back into Arusha
View from our 8th floor hotel room at the ‘Seven Skies’

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