Tuesday, September 5 going to Ngorongoro crater

  Tuesday, September 5 going to Ngorongoro crater with a Masai a visit along the way and then will go to the bottom of the crater for a game. Drive should be great. Really looking forward to it.

After breakfast, we jumped in the land rovers and drove towards the Crater. Along the route we stopped at a tented camp where we met with a Masai Chief. The Chief explained to us about their culture, their society, and how the old ways are kept alive.

We were then shown a typical male hunting camp. Here the group of men had barbecue of goat, and then made a soup that consists of boiled pieces parts of the goat mixed with a tree bark tea. It  looked different.

We return back to the tented area where we were greeted by several of the men and ladies from the tribe who danced and sang for us. The men were jumping as the ladies sang and the children chanted, very entertaining. The Masai are a beautiful people,  Lynn had a chance to buy some souvenirs from the ladies of the tribe.

https://soggymoosephoto.smugmug.com/Masai-Portraits/

Next, we made a beeline to the crater to get down onto the crater floor for a few hours before closing time.

On the crater floor, we were very lucky. We actually saw three black rhino, that’s better than we’ve had on our previous trips. I can’t even begin to name all the animals we saw, buffalo, Thompson’s gazelle, grants gazelles, crowned cranes, several ibis, owl, wildebeest, zebras, elephants, and a ton of birds, photos later on the website.

From the bottom of the crater, we made another beeline to the exit as you have to be out of the crater by 6 o’clock in the evening as that’s when the gates are closed. There are fines and other penalties imposed if you’re not out of the crater by that time.  

We then drove to directly to the Serena Crater Lodge.  We have stayed here twice before. I just can’t describe this place and will post some pictures here to show you the rooms and common areas.  One very nice feature is that each room has a view of the Crater.

It was here years ago that we were awake before the sunrise, having coffee while watching the sun rise over the Crater.  This got me into the habit of getting up and watching sunrises. This is where it all started.

We got into our room, did the laundry, took showers, and then headed to dinner.  Early day tomorrow starting at  0530 with coffee and tea and then back down to the crater floor for more exploration and game drive. 

So much was experienced, so to see more images follow this link. 

https://soggymoosephoto.smugmug.com/browse