Onwards to Tanzania and elephants peeing.

Our first stop on safari in Tanzania was Lake Manyara National Park. This area is known for gathering animals together--everyone needs water. This is less pronounced in the rainy season, but there was still an abundance of animals that I hadn't really expected.  The below picture is looking out towards the lake . . . you could see (but not discernibly without the binoculars) little pink dots which were thousands and thousands of flamingos along the water's edge.

On our way there from Arusha, we went through many small villages and again I was struck by the colours and life we saw. I took fewer pictures than I'd wanted, as it always felt a little wrong (even though throughout India I was a walking photograph).

Our truck was outfitted with an awesome opening roof, allowing us to stand and look out across the jungle/plains with windblown hair, while still remaining shaded from the sun. Oh how colonial I felt.

We saw many different herds of elephants throughout the day--very lucky, really. The photographs that follow are just a selection of the elephant bonanza photoshoot that went on.

An elephant stand-off

A little elephant love going on in front of our jeep. Adorable.

Then some elephant tree-eating.

Then some peeing. Love the wide-legged stance, and the modest facing of the bushes.

This area is really well known for baboons, and it was so much fun watching them interact in their family groupings. Such personality. You could even see them in groups across the plains.

Here's an example of my photograph/binocular technique. . . makes it feel a little Hemingway-esque, like I'm hunting game. Incidentally, Hemingway's Green Hills of Africa is written based on his trip to Lake Manyara. However, you won't find anyone hunting a rhino here these days, thankfully.

More hippos for Sarah Galbraith!

There were interesting birds that were quite friendly, especially while we were eating our lunches :)

That night we drove back into a wee village to camp for the night, safely surrounded by a walled structure. The camp had a cat, which decided to sleep by my tent in the middle of the night. If I hadn't seen it when I got up to go to the bathroom, I would have been pretty scared by it scratching on the wall of the tent by my head--wanting to be petted at 6am. First cat sighting of the trip :)

 Yup, a little cross-eyed.

For those future travellers out there.

I spent a good year collecting and refining and sewing the gear that I've taken on this trip. But I went a little overboard, and I'm sure you could do it all in a week. When I started out, my pack weighed 10kg (22 pounds). With food and presents and toiletries, etc. it has fluctuated, but stayed pretty stable. This is on the light side for most tourists--especially ones travelling as long as I will be, but heavier than those who are interested in ultra light backpacking.

I'm posting this because I bothered everyone I knew (thank you especially to Kate!) who had travelled for long periods of time as to what was really necessary on a trip. Of course it all depends on the season/climate of the places you're going, and the activities you're going to undertake, but as I was going to cover such a large area and so many different seasons and climates, and hopefully do so many different things, my pack might be a good place to start for a general idea. Later, much of this will be transferred to panniers for the biking portion of this adventure, and a tent will be added into the mix.

Basically, I weighed everything I was thinking of taking individually, and tried to cut it down to as little as I could and still enjoy myself. The main items are backpack, tent (if you're camping--not shown here), sleeping bag, mat and sheet, a hammock (late addition thanks to my lovely workmates at National Geographic), a cooking pot, mug, knife/fork/spoon, plate, gas canister, first aid kit.

I can't be bothered going through the first aid kit--the items are fairly standard. I wrapped duct tape around a container, and that has been very useful at times. My sewing kit also lives in here. But the most helpful thing I did was sew it up into a foldable set, and put it into a dry bag.

Clothing consists of one pair of jeans, a belt, three singlets, one short sleeved t-shirt (I would take two if doing it again, and probably will acquire another somewhere), a long sleeved shirt, two light dresses, merino long winter underwear, one jersey, a warm but light puffy jacket, a rain jacket, rain pants, a rain skirt, a scarf, a warm hat, a sun hat, swimming suit, underwear, socks, light hiking shoes, sandals, and light slip ons (these are for formal occasions, and for religious sites that require closed-toe shoes). I also acquired and abandoned local clothes in India. Make sure that everything can be mixed and matched in all combinations, and hopefully can be used in many different levels of formality and weather. Layering is key. Also, you don't need all new things--they're going to get wrecked anyway--one of my favourite items is a merino jersey that has been sewed/fixed in at least 8 places over the last 10 years; it's comfortable and warm, and I don't have to worry about ruining it.

Random extras include all of my paper work--insurance info, flight print outs, mug shots for visas, an international driver's license, vaccination information, etc., toiletries for the evening--toothpaste etc., and two locks to secure my bag to racks on trains/close hostel lockers, a carabiner or two for those unexpected add-ons.

My day bag has a drink bottle, waterproof journal, pencil, pen, day toiletries (including hand sanitizer, wet wipes, sunscreen, bug repellent, deodorant, stain remover spray, chapstick, malaria pills and toilet paper). I also kept in a dry bag my ipod touch, camera, and all the fittings that go along with those--including plug adapters for all countries, a head torch, whistle/compass, a bag for groceries, and my sunglasses, and whatever book I'd acquired at the time. At all times I wore my money, debit card and passport in a money belt.

As for specific parts of my trip and the things I wished I'd had/tips for others:

• If you're on safari bring a good camera with a zoom and binoculars--mail the binoculars home if you don't want to carry them for the rest of the trip (or do what I did, and steal the binoculars from your safari buddy, and use them in conjunction with your camera to take pictures of the animals from far away). 
• Don't ever try to wash your hair with just soap for more than a day--there's a reason shampoo was invented--buy it, and use it. Otherwise your hair will end up looking like a ken doll.
• If you're an artist, take some art supplies. I've been hankering for water colours and paper--my journal and pencil just aren't cutting it (I should have listened to you, Danny!)
• Organizational bags (dry/compression/other) are amazing.
•  Don't bring a wallet if the clothes you brought don't have pockets (this one applies to women mainly, and makes me feel like railing on at the fashion industry)
• Bring clothing with pockets.
• If you do use dry bags, make sure you close them, otherwise they don't work :)

I think that's about it. I hope that's helpful for any of you planning trips in the near future.

Good luck!

Hey sister, you got a pen?

Well, Diana warned me. The Masai Market in Nairobi was quite something.

The vendors put on the hard sell as soon as you appear to think about walking in their direction. It was really difficult to look at what they were selling, because they were so busy pushing you to buy, that you couldn't actually look at what they had in their stalls.

The aim of the game was bargaining, and everyone wanted to know if you had a pen, so that you and the vendor could alternately write down your prices and haggle until you came to an agreement on the carving, necklace, knife, painting, bag, placemat of your choice. I actually would have loved to buy a few things--the Tingatinga paintings were beautiful, and very affordable . . . but I got so overwhelmed that I booked it out of there. I appreciate that they're making their living, but it was a little too much for me!

I think if I were a New Yorker, I could have managed it . . . Dunedin did not really prepare me to be a bargainer or deal with people pestering me nonstop. Plus, the knowledge that anything I buy then has to be carried or mailed has been great for curbing my already minimal purchasing impulses.

Yep. That's slobber on my hand.

Giraffes Galore.

In Nairobi I went to The Giraffe Center, the purpose of which is conservation, and education of Kenyan school children about their country's wildlife and environment. It also gives foreigners like me the chance to feed and touch giraffes.

Meet Helen and Kelly.

The staff of the Giraffe Center gave me a handful of pellets--dried vegetable matter bonded together with molasses. Giraffe candy.

I started out feeding them quite tentatively, and gradually grew to appreciate their blue tongues, antiseptic saliva, and cheeky expressions. The trick is to hold the pellets in one hand, while you steal a hug with the other. It's humbling to be so close to such a large, beautiful animal.

I believe they said that this subspecies/species (that is debated) is called the Rothschild Giraffe. It's very endangered, with only a few hundred species in the wild.

I wasn't brave/gross enough to get a giraffe kiss (by holding a pellet between my lips)--at the suggestion of the Giraffe Center's staff . . . but it was really nice to be able to touch their fur and feel the prickly softness of such an amazing animal. I'll leave the giraffe kissing to others :)

On Location: Out of Africa

The same day as we went to Hell's Canyon, we headed onwards to Lake Naivasha. Lake Naivasha is freshwater, and has hippos (you can just see the top of one and its ears in the third photo below)!!! This area is part of the Great Rift Valley in Africa, too.

 We drove to the lake, and took a boat across to Crescent Island. Crescent Island is where the film Out of Africa was shot. Originally, most of the animals you can see on the island did not live there. They were brought in for the filming, so that the film crew could be safe from the predatory/dangerous animals in the Great Rift Valley, yet still film shots of the gazelles, impala, water buck, water buffalo, antelopes, giraffes, zebra, warthog, and more.  As far as I understand it, the only cat that has been brought into this ecosystem is the spotted hyena. After filming, the animals were left there, and it has since become a flourishing reserve.

 As with the previous biking trip, this was walking--very rare in a safari experience, as it is usually too dangerous. It was amazing to wander around the island and be so close to the animals. One of my favourites were the giraffes. There was a baby giraffe that was just 10 days old (not that you'd know it), and I enjoyed watching the tower of giraffes (who knew a group of giraffes was called a "tower") amble around, eating from the beautiful yellow acacia trees.

A surprise find was a python. In fact, we saw three of them--baby Rock Pythons in a burrow. These snakes get to be 6 meters (20 feet) long. Our guide told us that they don't bother humans much, but wikipedia tells me that they are "opportunistic feeders, and will consume almost any animal that they come across and can overpower by constriction . . . adults are capable of taking very large prey, including young crocodiles, goats, gazelles, warthogs, and even humans, making them potentially very dangerous." I'm glad we didn't see the mother!

In addition to the animals, as the sun started to set, a beautiful combination of clouds, late afternoon sun and a view of rain that hadn't quite hit us, conspired to create a beautiful backdrop for the landscapes.

 The experience was just breathtaking, and my photographs don't do it justice. My camera is just a point and shoot, as I have been attempting to keep my pack weight down to less than 11 kg. If I were to go again to East Africa, or another wildlife-focused location, I think I might have to splurge on a camera with a decent zoom. However, the memories are more important, and it was a perfect day.