A Final Sighting

Day 16 - True Date 6/21/13

Another early day and this one was structured differently than many of our others. We got up at 5:30 for packing and a warm cup of coffee. The warmth from the coffee was refreshing as this was the coldest morning we'd had in a very long time and it was also a cloudy mist. We then loaded up into the jeep at 6:00 where we said goodbye to Ari and our cooks. From our campsite we drove along the high ridge to the entrance of the Ngorongoro Crater. The crater is a protected wildlife area and seems to behave much like its own self-contained-mini-savanna.

The weather today had some firsts for the group for the trip. As briefly described before, the morning was quite cold and very wet as we found ourselves navigating thick fog banks. As we spent time in the crater the it remained cloudy and cold but otherwise fine. When we left the crater the skies opened a bit into our first rain of the trip. Luckily, it cleared by the afternoon and we were able to end the day in the warmth of the sun.

Returning to the Ngorongoro Crater we saw much the usual collection of animals after the long drive to the base. The wildebeest and zebras continued to be abundant and apparently have a self-contained migration inside the crater itself. We saw no giraffe during our time there, which is not to say there are none, and only the occasional elephant in the distance. There were lots of birds, including ostrich, and many scavengers. Among the scavengers we saw a couple pairs of jackals and at least two packs of hyenas.

Omitted from the list above was the last of the African "big five"; the black rhino. When we finally found him (yes, it was a him), he remained about 70 (ish) yards away and kept low to the ground in the tall grass. He began by facing us and it was difficult to get a good view of him. Fortunately, he turned and rose his head to give us a full profile view. There are apparently only a handful of them left in the crater, but it remains one of the places in the world most likely to see one of them. It was very exciting to finish off our list of animals we wished to see.

A little before 10 we began the long drive back to Arusha. The drive is normally expected to be about 3 and a half hours but weather pushed it to be over 4. When we first returned to Arusha we did not go to our hotel but rather a local school (unfortunately I do not recall the name). This visit began a bit awkwardly but became very fun. First, we introduced ourselves to the students and faculty and then they did the same for us. This took a while as every student said their name, their favorite subjects and what they hoped to become. While there were only about 60 students this process was still lengthy. After introductions the students did a bit of singing and the donations we brought were brought out. We were asked to give a few words and show some of what we brought, which was the most awkward part of the visit. Afterwards we signed the guest book, and upon Archer's request, were invited to play sports with the students. Their coach picked their 11 best and made a team against us as a group. The field was dusty with many tiny thorn things (yay bare feet!), as well as uneven but we had a lot of fun. We ended up winning 3-2 but still had a penalty kick shootout, just for fun. After the game we loaded back up and headed to the hotel but it was sad to leave.

We left the school at 4 and I think were all surprised at how much we had enjoyed ourselves. We returned to the usual Ilboro Safari Lodge for the night. We all had another nice shower, once again, must appreciated after the week on the plain and met for dinner at 5:45. From there we called it an early night so that we could get up and leave the hotel at 3am (eww...)

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There is technically one more day to the trip but I do not feel like treating it as its own entry. On the 22nd we loaded a jeep and left the hotel at 3am a to return to Kilimanjaro Airport. From there we flew to Kenya, boarded another flight to Amsterdam and then a final plane back to JFK. We had no trouble in the airports, had no delays and no lost baggage. We were through U.S. customs by about 8:00 pm and said our good-byes to each other after 2 great weeks.