Picture this; a lodge built on a ridge with a sweeping panoramic view where a ribbon of river splits the valley below. There are ‘tented lodges’ that are really half and half, half tent with zippers to enter and a tiled back part for a bathroom. There are bungalows that are rounded one room structures with a thatched dome roof which makes for a high ceiling inside. A partial wall separates the beds from the bathroom. The ridge is dotted for several hundred meters with these tented lodges and bungalows. A beautiful swimming pool is ready for all those who put in a hard day of safari in the hot, intense African sun. Cool and refreshing, a swim just like those European explorers took every afternoon after their safaris (not!). In the middle is a great lodge with a grand patio. This has a thatched roof and a vaulted ceiling and oversized chairs to sit in. There is a dining hall which is open, looking out over the valley. 
And the valley is a place of action during the day as the animals come to the river to drink. Elephants, zebra, all manner of deer (from tiny dik diks to large impala) and the occasional giraffe. The landscape has been well-grazed and is left with dry grasses as well as dotted with trees from the baobab to the acacia and tamarind. The lodge is not fenced off so by day one can spot dik dik between the tents. Monkeys roam the grounds. Not far off zebra and water buck move. By night lodge guests are escorted by a man armed with a flashlight. No one should walk unescorted from the main lodge to one’s lodging, there could be lions or leopards about. 
The first afternoon we went on safari. Now I know what a safari is. Basically one goes out in the morning and afternoon in a Land Rover or Land Cruiser or similar SUV-type vehicle. Most of the vehicles have roof hatches than one can open and stand up and observe the game while either driving or stopping. The vehicle also has three rows of seats, the last row slightly raised for that ‘riding shotgun’ feel. Our girls couldn’t see out in the middle and front seat so they ended up standing on the seats or the armrests or even on the headrest for the best view! So we would drive on the beaten paths through the game parks, never straying from the road (it’s against the law although, ironically, we saw game park workers flagrantly violating the law). No one is allowed to leave their vehicles in the game park so it was one long ‘Sunday afternoon drive’. It ended up being pretty relaxing overall, especially since I left the driving to someone else. But the sun beating down on us soon zapped us of our energy. We did lather up with sunscreen but the intensity was strong. So we drank our bottled water (no other options available, apparently). On long safaris we would have a packed lunch from the lodge we were staying in and stop at an official picnicking spot in the reserve.
Our driver Urio Amos was very laid back, in fact his demeanor and smile reminded me of the father of a boyhood friend. He tended not to speak unless spoken to or if there was something worth viewing. We did talk about some things, especially when we said we resided in Ethiopia; a little politics, religion, game parks, economies, etc. But for the most part he let us do the talking and basically said nothing as occasionally family dynamics played out (children that went from silly and happy to whining and complaining). The safari was for 5 days but we realized after 2 days at Taranguire that a 3rd day was not only unnecessary for our family but that we needed a break. So we cancelled the safari that day and stayed at the lodge swimming and relaxing. Urio was expressed mild surprise and suggested even a short drive. It seemed that he was disappointed which surprised me a bit, after 30 years of driving in these game parks I would welcome a paid day off. But then what could he do at the lodge? At any rate, he said no more and the next day inquired only once how our ‘day off’ was (it was great!).
Tarangire National Park is in Tanzania just south of Arusha town and Mt. Kilimanjaro. The park has both savanna and marshes which are mostly dried up during this time of year. In two days of safari we have seen a huge variety of animals. This park is full of giraffes, elephants, zebras, lions, ostriches, gazelle, impalas, water buck, water buffalo, warthogs, mongoose, a variety of birds and more. We haven’t seen rhinos or hippos but may in the other two locations we plan to visit. Here is a blurb from the internet about Taranguire:
Day after day of cloudless skies. The fierce sun sucks the moisture from the landscape, baking the earth a dusty red, the withered grass as brittle as straw. The Tarangire River has shriveled to a shadow of its wet season self. But it is choked with wildlife. Thirsty nomads have wandered hundreds of parched kilometers knowing that here, always, there is water. Herds of up to 300 elephants scratch the dry river bed for underground streams, while migratory wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and eland crowd the shrinking lagoons.
It's the greatest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti ecosystem - a smorgasbord for predators – and the one place in Tanzania where dry-country antelope such as the stately fringe-eared oryx and peculiar long-necked gerenuk are regularly observed. During the rainy season, the seasonal visitors scatter over a 20,000 sq km (12,500 sq miles) range until they exhaust the green plains and the river calls once more. But Tarangire's mobs of elephant are easily encountered, wet or dry. The swamps, tinged green year round, are the focus for 550 bird varieties, the most breeding species in one habitat anywhere in the world. On drier ground you find the Kori bustard, the heaviest flying bird; the stocking-thighed ostrich, the world's largest bird; and small parties of ground hornbills blustering like turkeys. More ardent bird-lovers might keep an eye open for screeching flocks of the dazzlingly colourful yellow-collared lovebird, and the somewhat drabber rufous-tailed weaver and ashy starling – all endemic to the dry savannah of north-central Tanzania.
Disused termite mounds are often frequented by colonies of the endearing dwarf mongoose, and pairs of red-and-yellow barbet, which draw attention to themselves by their loud, clockwork-like dueting. Tarangire's pythons climb trees, as do its lions and leopards, lounging in the branches where the fruit of the sausage tree disguises the twitch of a tail. [Size 2850 sq km (1,096 sq miles)].
Manyara National Park is a mostly a ground water ‘rainforest’ which includes a large lake/ wetlands as well. It is abundant with wildlife and birds of all varieties, including those who fly south from Europe for the winter (they were just starting to arrive as we left). We saw hippos, but alas no rhinos. We drove under the canopy most of the morning and eventually over to the lake in the afternoon. Here is a description of the park:
Stretching for 50km along the base of the rusty-gold 600-metre high Rift Valley escarpment, Lake Manyara is a scenic gem, with a setting extolled by Ernest Hemingway as “the loveliest I had seen in Africa”. The compact game-viewing circuit through Manyara offers a virtual microcosm of the Tanzanian safari experience.
From the entrance gate, the road winds through an expanse of lush jungle-like groundwater forest where hundred-strong baboon troops lounge nonchalantly along the roadside, blue monkeys scamper nimbly between the ancient mahogany trees, dainty bushbuck tread warily through the shadows, and outsized forest hornbills honk cacophonously in the high canopy. Contrasting with the intimacy of the forest is the grassy floodplain and its expansive views eastward, across the alkaline lake, to the jagged blue volcanic peaks that rise from the endless Maasai Steppes. Large buffalo, wildebeest and zebra herds congregate on these grassy plains, as do giraffes – some so dark in coloration that they appear to be black from a distance.
Inland of the floodplain, a narrow belt of acacia woodland is the favoured haunt of Manyara’s legendary tree-climbing lions and impressively tusked elephants. Squadrons of banded mongoose dart between the acacias, while the diminutive Kirk’s dik-dik forages in their shade. Pairs of klipspringer are often seen silhouetted on the rocks above a field of searing hot springs that steams and bubbles adjacent to the lakeshore in the far south of the park.
Manyara provides the perfect introduction to Tanzania’s birdlife. More than 400 species have been recorded, and even a first-time visitor to Africa might reasonably expect to observe 100 of these in one day. Highlights include thousands of pink-hued flamingos on their perpetual migration, as well as other large waterbirds such as pelicans, cormorants and storks. Size: 330 sq km (127 sq miles), of which up to 200 sq km (77 sq miles) is lake when water levels are high.
On our final day we visited Ngorongoro Crater Park. This is an amazing park. A former volcano at the beginning of the long chain of ancient volcanoes that now make up the Rift Valley which stretches through Kenya, Ethiopia and into the Middle East, Ngorongoro was active about 3 million years ago. Then it became extinct and collapsed within itself, leaving a large plain that is guarded 360° by the ancient volcanic walls of Ngorongoro.
The Ngorongoro Crater is the world's largest intact caldera in an exceptional geographical position, forming a spectacular bowl of about 265 square kilometres with sides up to 600m deep, the stalking ground of around 20,000 to 30,000 wild animals at any one time. The crater floor consists of a number of ecological environments that include grassland, swamps, forests and Lake Makat, a central soda lake filled by the Munge river. All these various habitats attract various wildlife to drink, wallow, graze, hide or climb. Although animals are free to move in and out of this contained environment, the rich volcanic soil, lush forests and spring source lakes on the crater floor tend to incline both grazers and predators to remain here throughout the year.
The Crater rim, over 2,200 metres high, touches swathes of clouds for most days of the year, with cool high altitude vapours that seem to bring a clean lightness to the air, and also a chill. These highlands wake up to a misty fog in most months, other than the high dry season during December and January.
More information on this amazing place can be found at the Wikipedia website:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ngorongoro_Crater
I’m sorry to say that I cannot add photos momentarily due to technical difficulties. My hard drive crashed about a month ago and even though I have a new hard drive much was lost, including my Sony camera software. We’re working on it, so you may see photos later, when this is all resolved.
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