Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Monday, March 5, 2012
Amaan Bungalows, Zanzibar - Jacoline Malan
One of our clients, Jacoline Malan, went to Zanzibar from the 21st of February to the 28th of February 2012 and took the below pictures. She stayed at Amaan Bungalows a smallish resort situated on the Northern Tip of Zanzibar. For a virtual tour of Amaan Bungalows click here.
The Masai Mara, Serengeti & Ngorngoro, by Aaron Von Hagen
by Aaron Von Hagen
I landed in Richards Bay, South Africa, on the 13th of December, 2011. As the saying goes, “there is no rest for the wicked” because the very next day, my family and I were headed out on our latest and greatest adventure. Until this point, we had no idea where our journey would take us, my mother likes surprises so she doesn’t tell my sister and I what’s up and she tries to make us guess or play games as to find out what’s up.
This year was no different. Within 20 minutes of me landing and being in their house, I found myself parked in front of a TV watching the intro to “Out of Africa”. I’ll cut to the chase and let you know that we discovered that Kenya was our destination, to the land of the Masai Mara, home of the Maasai people. No, that isn’t a spelling mistake. When speaking of the land, one “a” is used, and you use two “a’s” when speaking of the people.
When we landed, we were greeted by our safari company “&beyond” with a table of drinks and snacks. Our bags were loaded up in another vehicle and we were taken on our first game drive. Within minutes, we came across our first Big 5 sighting, a spotted leopard!
Over the next couple days, we took in a sunrise safari in a hot air balloon, enjoyed amazing encounters with wildlife, ate some amazing food and were treated with the greatest hospitality. I had already fallen in love with Africa years ago, but being here on the Mara only reaffirmed my beliefs that Africa is a truly amazing place. And the best part was this: my vacation had only just begun…
Our time on the Mara had come to an end, and it was time for us to continue on the next leg of our adventure. We were now on our way to Tanzania, to Klein’s Camp in the Serengeti. We landed at a small airstrip close to the Kenyan/Tanzanian border, where a vehicle was waiting us for our road transfer to the next airstrip, which was in Tanzania.
The actual border crossing went without incident, and we were soon back on the road to the airstrip. We were driving on a paved road when all of a sudden, we turned a sharp left and ended up on some crappy dirt road that headed right into tall grass and thick vegetation. I don’t know about anyone else, but I was certain we were being taken hostage. The road was getting worse by the second, and I couldn’t imagine that there was an airstrip at the end of the road. We bumped and thumped along and came into a clearing, where sure enough, our plane was waiting. Since we had taken such a long time getting there, our pilot had to hurry and get “presentable” as she had been enjoying some time in the sun while she waited. Our flight went without incident, and we landed safely at the airstrip in Tanzania. We were once again greeted with food and drinks, and we loaded up in the land cruiser and began the 1.5 hour drive to the lodge at Klein’s Camp.
Klein’s Camp is like an old lookout post, sitting high in the hills with an amazing view of the valley below, allowing you to see for miles! After we got settled in, the clouds started rolling in much thicker than before. Regardless, we climbed back into the Land Cruiser for our first game drive, which, due to the weather, turned out to be a bust. We saw some lioness, but it was so dark and rainy that nothing really happened. By the time we got back, I was cold and my back was wicked-sore due to a hard bounce I took in the back seat. Nothing two Robax couldn’t take care of!
The next day, we came across a pride of eight male lions, who were trying to coax a buffalo away from the group so they could make a kill. While we didn’t actually see the kill happen, one took place as you can tell in the pictures. When we stopped for breakfast, there was a lion maybe 50 meters away from where we were eating breakfast. It was pretty trippy! The rest of the day was filled with more animal sightings and an amazing sunset.
On our last day, the heavy rains from the night before had completely washed out the bridge that crosses the river in order to get us to the airstrip, so we had to take the long way. The “long way” was a 3-hour detour, and unfortunately for us, the sickness that my mother got in Kenya had jumped to my sister, and she was comatose in the back of the jeep while it bounced around in the sweltering heat. We made it, a little worse for wear, but our plane hadn’t left yet despite our late arrival and then we were off again…
After our harrowing escape leaving the Serengeti, we found ourselves heading east, towards the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Our next destination was &beyond’s Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. There are very few accommodations inside the crater park, and we were lucky enough to be staying at one inside the main gates. Our drive from the airstrip to the lodge was uneventful. As we got closer to the crater, our elevation increased, which caused the temperature to cool and the rains to increase.
We arrived at the lodge and were greeted with drinks and a hot towel, and we assembled in the lodge’s Great Room. From there we were given the low-down on the lodge and the area. It was too late in the day for us to go on a drive, as they close the crater floor at 1800 (6pm). So we took the opportunity to explore our surroundings before dinner that evening.
Now I’ll skip the details, but this is where my health took a turn for the worse. I started feeling a little sick at dinner, left early and headed back to the room. Soon, the same illness that had plagued my mother and sister had stricken me. Let’s just say that I’ve felt awful before, and this was one of the worst feelings I’ve ever had. A few hours later, I woke to the sound of my father going through the same motions, no pun intended. I was really worried that I wasn’t going to be able to make it on the one-and-only crater drive we were going on the next day.
Waking up the next day, I still felt awful, but compared to a few hours before, I felt “great”. I had a shower and got ready. I was able to stand, although hunched over and in pain. I met my sister, mother and uncle (my dad was too sick to come) by the Land Cruiser and climbed in the back, where I slept until we reached the crater entrance, where we were greeted by a beautiful sunrise.
The crater was amazing, I can’t really use any words to describe it. It was like being in a gigantic terrarium. Driving down to the crater floor from the top, the crater it’s own eco-system. The water and soil full of nutrients and minerals, causing elephant’s tusks to grow bigger, the animals well protected from outside influences (minus us safari people) such as poaching. The crater floor provides most people with the opportunity to see the Big 5 in one drive, and the abundance of wildlife was amazing. Wildebeests, lions, zebra and elephants were spotted within minutes of us reaching the floor, and the sightings continued as we drove all over the lands until the afternoon when our time to leave had come…
Written by Aaron Von Hagen
Pictures by Aaron Von Hagen
Look at Aaron Von Hagens beautiful pictures on http://aaronvonhagen.com/
I landed in Richards Bay, South Africa, on the 13th of December, 2011. As the saying goes, “there is no rest for the wicked” because the very next day, my family and I were headed out on our latest and greatest adventure. Until this point, we had no idea where our journey would take us, my mother likes surprises so she doesn’t tell my sister and I what’s up and she tries to make us guess or play games as to find out what’s up.Over the next couple days, we took in a sunrise safari in a hot air balloon, enjoyed amazing encounters with wildlife, ate some amazing food and were treated with the greatest hospitality. I had already fallen in love with Africa years ago, but being here on the Mara only reaffirmed my beliefs that Africa is a truly amazing place. And the best part was this: my vacation had only just begun…
Our time on the Mara had come to an end, and it was time for us to continue on the next leg of our adventure. We were now on our way to Tanzania, to Klein’s Camp in the Serengeti. We landed at a small airstrip close to the Kenyan/Tanzanian border, where a vehicle was waiting us for our road transfer to the next airstrip, which was in Tanzania.
This is where the trip got a little interesting. As it turned out, the transit visa’s we were given to enter Kenya weren’t correct. We should have been given single entry visas, but the guy at customs in Nairobi thought he was doing us a favour by making things a little cheaper for us. The two guys at the border crossing were a buncha assholes, and that’s me being nice. It was so bloody hot in that little passport office, there were so many people waiting to have their turn, and these guys were just useless. They had a hard time believing that my mother actually was my mother, and that she was traveling with her husband and daughter. We were accused of lying to the first customs officer, and that because we spoke English, we should know the difference between a “single entry” and a “transit” visa. It was hard for me to stay silent and bite my tongue, which I didn’t really do anyways. After at least 30-45 minutes of waiting for them to “discuss” what they were going to do with us, our passports were stamped and we were through the border. What a joke!
The actual border crossing went without incident, and we were soon back on the road to the airstrip. We were driving on a paved road when all of a sudden, we turned a sharp left and ended up on some crappy dirt road that headed right into tall grass and thick vegetation. I don’t know about anyone else, but I was certain we were being taken hostage. The road was getting worse by the second, and I couldn’t imagine that there was an airstrip at the end of the road. We bumped and thumped along and came into a clearing, where sure enough, our plane was waiting. Since we had taken such a long time getting there, our pilot had to hurry and get “presentable” as she had been enjoying some time in the sun while she waited. Our flight went without incident, and we landed safely at the airstrip in Tanzania. We were once again greeted with food and drinks, and we loaded up in the land cruiser and began the 1.5 hour drive to the lodge at Klein’s Camp.
The next day, we came across a pride of eight male lions, who were trying to coax a buffalo away from the group so they could make a kill. While we didn’t actually see the kill happen, one took place as you can tell in the pictures. When we stopped for breakfast, there was a lion maybe 50 meters away from where we were eating breakfast. It was pretty trippy! The rest of the day was filled with more animal sightings and an amazing sunset.
On our last day, the heavy rains from the night before had completely washed out the bridge that crosses the river in order to get us to the airstrip, so we had to take the long way. The “long way” was a 3-hour detour, and unfortunately for us, the sickness that my mother got in Kenya had jumped to my sister, and she was comatose in the back of the jeep while it bounced around in the sweltering heat. We made it, a little worse for wear, but our plane hadn’t left yet despite our late arrival and then we were off again…
After our harrowing escape leaving the Serengeti, we found ourselves heading east, towards the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Our next destination was &beyond’s Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. There are very few accommodations inside the crater park, and we were lucky enough to be staying at one inside the main gates. Our drive from the airstrip to the lodge was uneventful. As we got closer to the crater, our elevation increased, which caused the temperature to cool and the rains to increase.
We arrived at the lodge and were greeted with drinks and a hot towel, and we assembled in the lodge’s Great Room. From there we were given the low-down on the lodge and the area. It was too late in the day for us to go on a drive, as they close the crater floor at 1800 (6pm). So we took the opportunity to explore our surroundings before dinner that evening.Now I’ll skip the details, but this is where my health took a turn for the worse. I started feeling a little sick at dinner, left early and headed back to the room. Soon, the same illness that had plagued my mother and sister had stricken me. Let’s just say that I’ve felt awful before, and this was one of the worst feelings I’ve ever had. A few hours later, I woke to the sound of my father going through the same motions, no pun intended. I was really worried that I wasn’t going to be able to make it on the one-and-only crater drive we were going on the next day.
Waking up the next day, I still felt awful, but compared to a few hours before, I felt “great”. I had a shower and got ready. I was able to stand, although hunched over and in pain. I met my sister, mother and uncle (my dad was too sick to come) by the Land Cruiser and climbed in the back, where I slept until we reached the crater entrance, where we were greeted by a beautiful sunrise.
The crater was amazing, I can’t really use any words to describe it. It was like being in a gigantic terrarium. Driving down to the crater floor from the top, the crater it’s own eco-system. The water and soil full of nutrients and minerals, causing elephant’s tusks to grow bigger, the animals well protected from outside influences (minus us safari people) such as poaching. The crater floor provides most people with the opportunity to see the Big 5 in one drive, and the abundance of wildlife was amazing. Wildebeests, lions, zebra and elephants were spotted within minutes of us reaching the floor, and the sightings continued as we drove all over the lands until the afternoon when our time to leave had come…
Written by Aaron Von Hagen
Pictures by Aaron Von Hagen
Look at Aaron Von Hagens beautiful pictures on http://aaronvonhagen.com/
Friday, March 2, 2012
Your place in the circle of life - Tanzania Migration
As the seconds trickle by, legs set to leap at any moment, waiting for the perfect opportunity. In a split second he leaps from he’s crouched position, concealed between grass.. Leaping into the air he capture’s he’s prey, tearing through the gazelle’s gullet he’s finally satisfied, he now drags his lunch to a secluded spot where he will be able to satiate he’s appetite… Hakuna matata. What a wonderful phrase. Hakuna matata. Ain't no passing craze. It's a problem free..philosophy. Hakuna matata!
Jumbo Tanzania.. ! Jumbo Kilimanjaro! During the 45min flight from Nairobi to Kilimanjaro I could not wait to get my first glimpse of the mighty Kilimanjaro.. and as luck was on our side we had a perfect clear view of Kili.
I must admit I am not a nature person and anything that crawls and slithers will make me run a mile, so for the first day I did not know what to expect and had horror visions of snakes and bugs.. But as the trip went on I forgot all about the city girl and truly started enjoying natures best! And so the adventure began
“You have forgotten who you are and so forgotten me. Look inside yourself. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the circle of life.”
-- Lion King, The
-- Lion King, The
The first night we spent at Kia Hotel at Kilimanjaro hotel. This hotel is only 3min drive from Kilimanjaro airport. You will get a fantastic view from their pool area of Mount Kilimanjaro and we were very lucky as we had a crystal clear view. The lodge and rooms are very clean but basic and offers you a very nice tranquil atmosphere set in the midst of their lush tropical gardens.
The next morning we started our journey to Lake Manyara. On our way we drove through Arusha town, which is about 1 hour from Kilimanjaro.
When we got to the gates of Lake Manyara National Park, I was so excited as this was my first official game drive ;-) So all decked out with my sunglasses, Hat and fully loaded camera, we took of in our 7-seater open roof land rover.
Lake Manyara, I think should definitely be a stop before heading off to Serengeti or the crater. You will pass Tarangire National Park and the snake park along the way.
Here you will find a very diverse sight where lush green foliage hides some of nature’s best predators in comparison with the endlessly dry land of the Serengeti. This is a painters dream as you get picture perfect views of Giraffes, Flamingos, Antelopes and Buffalo lounging along the shores of the lake, while in the distance you can visit hippos in the water pools.
You can be rest assured you will feel nature’s infinite beauty especially after a game drive, relaxing on the deck at your lodge; you are overcome with serenity as all you observe is nature at its finest.
On our game drive we spotted Elephants, buffalo, Giraffes, hippos, Antelope, Zebra and LOTS of monkeys. This was actually very entertaining.. Everywhere you go you would find the monkeys grooming themselves in very odd positions, which had me in giggles most of the time, and of course if you lucky, you will spot mountain lions which Juan heard calling him that night at Lake Manyara Wildlife Lodge.. ;-)
Lake Manyara Wildlife Lodge is strategically located on the very edge of the vertiginous western escarpment of the Rift Valley, affording magnificent views down across the whole Lake. This lodge was not what I expected and I was very much surprised by the excellent service and layout of the hotel. Just be warned, Mosquitoes are in abundance here so please make sure you are well protected. We also visited Serena Lake Manyara which has the most awesome infinity pool overlooking the lake.
The next day we set out for the Serengeti via the Ngorongoro Crater.
We visited Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge which has a lovely view of the crater. We then set out for Serengeti, stopping for a picnic lunch along the way at Olduvai Gorge.
Olduvai Gorge has a small museum which you will be able to visit after lunch which includes fossils of both human and animals that were dug up from the gorge.
The drive to Serengeti is very long, dry and dusty. When you finally enter the Serengeti National Park, you can’t wait to look out for animals; we spotted plenty of antelopes, Giraffes, birds, ostriches, LOTS of Zebra’s and Wildebeest.
Please be alert for the troublesome Tsetse fly, the government is trying to get this under control by putting up black and blue nets that attracts them. Try and wear light colors as the tsetse fly is attracted to dark colors mainly black and blue.
Serengeti is very different from Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro crater. Here you are surrounded by color and vegetation. In the Serengeti all you see is dry parched terrain. In the Serengeti we stayed at Seronera Wildlife Lodge and then we spent a night at Lobo Wildlife lodge. Both these lodges are outstanding and the staff makes your stay a memorable one. We got to see “Mufasa” and “Serabi” (Lion and Lioness), both of them lounging in the middle of the road right next to our vehicle.. Looking at them, all you want to do is cuddle them.. Fortunately I controlled myself otherwise I would have been the nibble of the morning ;-)
After this encounter we often spotted lions lounging on the branches of the sausage trees, looking sooo adorable!
Throughout the drive in Serengeti you keep on imagining where the artists for the lion king got all their backgrounds, as every second rocky outcrop could be the one Simba would be held over or where the stampede ran through..
On the last day in the Serengeti we got to see a Cheetah and her baby cubs having breakfast on a gazelle and we were very lucky to get very close to this.. What an experience.
On the drive back to Ngorongoro Crater you leave behind the hot dry weather to cooler conditions. The crater is very cold and this is no exaggeration..
From the top of the crater you wonder what could possibly be down there… doesn’t look like much but once in the crater you will be very amazed.
Here we saw a very lonely, injured hyena.. my sympathies really went out to him, watching him walk next to a lake, so depressed with his head bowed and all the troubles in the world on his head, whilst all the animals just took flight as he stepped in there direction.
On the other side of the lake were a few lion and lionesses huffing and puffing by the waters edge. A lioness looked wounded as she had a cut and blood on her body. Nearby were more zebras, Wildebeest, buffalo, Antelope and Flamingo’s just waiting for movement from the lion’s in order to flee for their lives. Here you will mostly find old elephants with huge tusks that are almost dragging to the ground as this is what we’d call the elephant graveyard or the old age home. We also saw 2 black Rhinos in the crater, which was the highlight of the crater experience for me.
My overall thoughts on the accommodation are as follows; we visited all the Serena and Sopa Lodges, Gibbs farm and 2 tented camp sites. I would recommend the Serena lodges as the quality is very good. The wildlife lodges were a huge surprise; I did not expect quality accommodation as the web sites do not have very updated pictures. The lodges have just been renovated and are now in excellent conditions. They were also one of the first lodges in the area so they have excellent views and are situated in prime spots. We received excellent service from the staff and we were made more than welcome at the lodge, it’s definitely a lodge I will try sell more of.
 |
| Me looking over the Ngorongoro crater |
The ground operator we use is based in Aruhsa and is only a radio call away from all the drivers that take you on safari; you are always in contact with the main office so you can be rest assured you in good hands.
All the safari vehicles have open roofs and small fridges for water and any other drinks you might want to keep chilled.
Our guide was very knowledgeable and always willing to go the extra mile to make sure we got the most out of our safari experience.
Along the way there are rest stops with public toilets so don’t worry people, you do not have to stop in the middle of the bush for a rest stop ;-)
Meals are generally buffet unless the hotel is running on low occupancy where they will then have a set menu with 2-3 different meal options.
Your lunches are generally packed picnic boxes which the lodges will give the driver when you leave in the morning. I did not particularly like these picnic box lunches and would rather suggest you take hot lunches at the lodges but this would mean extra driving.
I was very fortunate to be chosen to go on this awesome, once in a lifetime experience visiting Kilimanjaro, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater and this is something I will remember with great awe. Asante Sana .. Squash banana .. to African Encounters for adding a memorable tick to my bucket list!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Zanzibar – Tanzania by Aaron Von Hagen
by Aaron Von Hagen
After a long week of flights, safaris and sickness, we were headed to our final destination on this amazing vacation: the island of Zanzibar.
If there’s one thing my family knows how to do, it’s how to take a vacation. We landed in Zanzibar during a tropical rain storm, which, as some of you may know, is only a few minutes long but can drop what seems like buckets of water on the ground. The air was so muggy and humid I could barely breathe getting off the plane. We gathered our luggage and hopped in the waiting vehicles for the journey to Diamonds Star of the East, our resort on the north end of the island. When we arrived, well, I don’t really know what to tell you. We were living it up like royalty.
We had two villas, each with their huge floor plan, as well as indoor and outdoor showers and a private pool. Each villa also comes complete with it’s own butler for 24/7 availability. Since we were staying in the villas, we were all-inclusive, which gave us access to our own private restaurant, private beach and all the other amenities the resort had to offer. I can’t stress how awesome this was!
Our family made friends with most of the staff, particularly a young man named Martin, who went out of his way to make sure that we always had the best service, no matter what. The running joke became “Where’s Martin?” I can’t remember the one dudes name, but this guy made THE best cappuccinos. I went on a cappuccino-bender one day. I regretted it later, but damn was it delicious!
We went on a tour of Stone Town, which was a main site for slave trading back in the day. It was a pretty crazy place! The day we toured it was so goddamn hot we could barely keep it together. The problem with being a photographer is never knowing for sure what gear to bring, and I really regretted my decision to bring all my gear and tripod with me.
There was a day of snorkelling, and although the water was gorgeous, I’m not one for swimming in the ocean that much. I’m a little scared of sharks and the unknown. Whatever! We spent a week just chilling in the sun and spending Christmas with each other and the family of the hotel that took care of us. It was a perfect end to an already unbelievable vacation.
Taken from Aaron Von Hagen Photography
All pictures done by Aaron Von Hagen
http://aaronvonhagen.com/2012/02/27/zanzibar-tanzania/
After a long week of flights, safaris and sickness, we were headed to our final destination on this amazing vacation: the island of Zanzibar.
If there’s one thing my family knows how to do, it’s how to take a vacation. We landed in Zanzibar during a tropical rain storm, which, as some of you may know, is only a few minutes long but can drop what seems like buckets of water on the ground. The air was so muggy and humid I could barely breathe getting off the plane. We gathered our luggage and hopped in the waiting vehicles for the journey to Diamonds Star of the East, our resort on the north end of the island. When we arrived, well, I don’t really know what to tell you. We were living it up like royalty.
We had two villas, each with their huge floor plan, as well as indoor and outdoor showers and a private pool. Each villa also comes complete with it’s own butler for 24/7 availability. Since we were staying in the villas, we were all-inclusive, which gave us access to our own private restaurant, private beach and all the other amenities the resort had to offer. I can’t stress how awesome this was!We went on a tour of Stone Town, which was a main site for slave trading back in the day. It was a pretty crazy place! The day we toured it was so goddamn hot we could barely keep it together. The problem with being a photographer is never knowing for sure what gear to bring, and I really regretted my decision to bring all my gear and tripod with me.
Taken from Aaron Von Hagen Photography
All pictures done by Aaron Von Hagen
http://aaronvonhagen.com/2012/02/27/zanzibar-tanzania/
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