Our savannah summer in Tanzania: Lion King, live!
August 13, 2006 | 12:00am
They call it a once-in-a-lifetime experience. For me (the youngest of five children of Tong and Daisy Payumo), it certainly was. The family vacation we had last May in Africa, seven months ahead of our usual Christmas reunion, was the most enjoyable 10 days of my summer.
As soon as we saw each other at the Kilimanjaro Airport in Tanzania, we started running, jumping, laughing, hugging and teasing each other like lunatics who just got out of jail.
Serengeti in Kiswahili means "endless plains," which rightfully describes the flat, pastel-colored land that goes on endlessly. The grass – in soft shades of green, yellow, orange and pinks – glowed against the indigo sky. It was just like a magnificent scene from the Disney movie The Lion King. It made my sister sing the theme song, "Kongweehedengerengdaa! Doomparara doomparara…"
Serengeti is famous for wildebeest and zebra migrations, which happen from November to May. Hundreds of thousands of these animals travel in packs between Tanzania and Kenya following the rain, and we were lucky to witness it.
Edward, our guide with 35 years of experience and the regal presence of Mufasa, announced, "We are now approaching the zebras." As we got near, we realized that what seemed like white rocks were indeed zebras. Their foals, have light-brown stripes, but as they mature, the fur becomes vivid with black stripes that look painted on. It was such a spectacular sight – the stark black and white against the greens of the plains. I was mesmerized.
The zebras crossed each other in pairs, such that each zebra’s head rested on another’s shoulder. Edward said that’s how they groom each other while staying alert for predators. It was like they were saying, "I’ll watch your back, you watch mine."
The wildebeests came in what seemed like millions, all stampeding toward the horizon. As the lions’ favorite meal, they have learned to be strong and resilient. They literally spend their entire lives on the move, traveling – in single or double file – like a militia on all fours with little tusks as their weapons. During the migration, they lose thousands in stampedes, as well as to lions and crocodiles.
Edward said that when a baby wildebeest is born, it takes 10 minutes for him to stand on his feet, and one hour to run as fast as the pack. Unbelievable!
It was heartwarming to see how the zebras and wildebeests look out for each other. We witnessed a baby wildebeest crying, an easy prey for any hungry lion. He ran to join the zebras and was immediately adopted by them until he found his mother.
Serengeti is also home to the lions, the kings of the plains. They are territorial animals. If one lion crosses another’s territory, they would fight until only one prevailed. Of course, this is all hearsay. The lions didn’t seem like kings to me – more like house-trained cats! Whenever we saw lions, cheetahs and leopards, they were either sleeping or lounging around! It made me think about their diet and how vegetarians might actually be right – carnivores seemed to suffer from the same kind of lethargy.
It prompted my sister to say that if she were a wild animal, she’d be a leopard on a tree…with a book. Meantime, cheetahs can do a mean sprint, but if they have to run long distances, forget it! They lay around waiting for their favorite prey. It seems to me that if the Tommy gazelles don’t get close enough to the cheetahs, they will starve!
The herbivores are just as fun, if not more so. The regal giraffes, hiding out by the woodlands, had something very prehistoric about them, maybe the way they moved their long necks. They liked to pose for pictures, batting their ultra-long lashes at the camera and positioning their necks elegantly.
The baboons, on the other hand, move like humans. They eat their food just like us, I almost expected them to start using a knife and fork. There was a pair of monkeys picking each other’s lice more thoroughly than a hairdresser in a salon, starting with the head, then moving down to the back, and flipping him over so she could do the stomach. It was hilarious!
The river of hippos was quite fun to look at because all we could see were hundreds of pairs of eyes looking at us. The rest of their bodies were submerged in water. Once in a while, a fight would start and we would hear a loud grunt-like roar, and they would come out of the water attacking each other.
Meantime, tons of elephants (or heffalumps, as I like to call them) travel in groups, always with a baby elephant or two in tow. They move so slowly and gracefully that it’s hard to imagine them overturning cars or bringing down trees as Edward described they often do.
Our lodge was situated on the slopes of a hill, perfect for viewing the Serengeti at daybreak while having breakfast. In the lodge, we were treated to wonderful African dishes, lively African songs and great African hospitality. Everyone we met had a ready smile and a "Jambo!" (which means anything from "welcome" to "you’re welcome" to "good morning").
Leaving the Serengeti, we passed by a Maasai village (one village is one family). The Maasai are a nomadic tribe with lifestyles that are compatible with the African wildlife. They are allowed to live among the animals since their diet consists of cow’s blood and milk.
From there, we drove to the Ngorongoro Crater where we stayed at a lodge situated on the eastern rim of the crater. It has the most spectacular views at sunset and can be described as God’s porch where He viewed His own creation!
The Ngorongoro crater is a basket of animals. Since the crater is much smaller than the endless plains, there is so much interaction between the animals here, the same animals as in Serengeti, but with rhinos and flamingos added. Although the wildebeests and zebras are residents, they don’t migrate. The rhinos, an endangered species, are not as abundant because they are hunted for their tusks. In national parks like the Ngorongoro, the government protects them.
The crater is the elephants’ retirement home. When they are young, they live around the rim where leaves and trees are more abundant. But when they are nearly 90 years old (the end of their average life span), the younger, stronger males boot them out, forcing them to go down to the crater. The elephants in the crater are all huge and wrinkly with lengthy tusks. We even saw an elephant that had died just two days before being eaten by hyenas and vultures.
As soon as we saw each other at the Kilimanjaro Airport in Tanzania, we started running, jumping, laughing, hugging and teasing each other like lunatics who just got out of jail.
Serengeti is famous for wildebeest and zebra migrations, which happen from November to May. Hundreds of thousands of these animals travel in packs between Tanzania and Kenya following the rain, and we were lucky to witness it.
Edward, our guide with 35 years of experience and the regal presence of Mufasa, announced, "We are now approaching the zebras." As we got near, we realized that what seemed like white rocks were indeed zebras. Their foals, have light-brown stripes, but as they mature, the fur becomes vivid with black stripes that look painted on. It was such a spectacular sight – the stark black and white against the greens of the plains. I was mesmerized.
The zebras crossed each other in pairs, such that each zebra’s head rested on another’s shoulder. Edward said that’s how they groom each other while staying alert for predators. It was like they were saying, "I’ll watch your back, you watch mine."
Edward said that when a baby wildebeest is born, it takes 10 minutes for him to stand on his feet, and one hour to run as fast as the pack. Unbelievable!
It was heartwarming to see how the zebras and wildebeests look out for each other. We witnessed a baby wildebeest crying, an easy prey for any hungry lion. He ran to join the zebras and was immediately adopted by them until he found his mother.
Serengeti is also home to the lions, the kings of the plains. They are territorial animals. If one lion crosses another’s territory, they would fight until only one prevailed. Of course, this is all hearsay. The lions didn’t seem like kings to me – more like house-trained cats! Whenever we saw lions, cheetahs and leopards, they were either sleeping or lounging around! It made me think about their diet and how vegetarians might actually be right – carnivores seemed to suffer from the same kind of lethargy.
It prompted my sister to say that if she were a wild animal, she’d be a leopard on a tree…with a book. Meantime, cheetahs can do a mean sprint, but if they have to run long distances, forget it! They lay around waiting for their favorite prey. It seems to me that if the Tommy gazelles don’t get close enough to the cheetahs, they will starve!
The baboons, on the other hand, move like humans. They eat their food just like us, I almost expected them to start using a knife and fork. There was a pair of monkeys picking each other’s lice more thoroughly than a hairdresser in a salon, starting with the head, then moving down to the back, and flipping him over so she could do the stomach. It was hilarious!
The river of hippos was quite fun to look at because all we could see were hundreds of pairs of eyes looking at us. The rest of their bodies were submerged in water. Once in a while, a fight would start and we would hear a loud grunt-like roar, and they would come out of the water attacking each other.
Meantime, tons of elephants (or heffalumps, as I like to call them) travel in groups, always with a baby elephant or two in tow. They move so slowly and gracefully that it’s hard to imagine them overturning cars or bringing down trees as Edward described they often do.
Leaving the Serengeti, we passed by a Maasai village (one village is one family). The Maasai are a nomadic tribe with lifestyles that are compatible with the African wildlife. They are allowed to live among the animals since their diet consists of cow’s blood and milk.
From there, we drove to the Ngorongoro Crater where we stayed at a lodge situated on the eastern rim of the crater. It has the most spectacular views at sunset and can be described as God’s porch where He viewed His own creation!
The Ngorongoro crater is a basket of animals. Since the crater is much smaller than the endless plains, there is so much interaction between the animals here, the same animals as in Serengeti, but with rhinos and flamingos added. Although the wildebeests and zebras are residents, they don’t migrate. The rhinos, an endangered species, are not as abundant because they are hunted for their tusks. In national parks like the Ngorongoro, the government protects them.
The crater is the elephants’ retirement home. When they are young, they live around the rim where leaves and trees are more abundant. But when they are nearly 90 years old (the end of their average life span), the younger, stronger males boot them out, forcing them to go down to the crater. The elephants in the crater are all huge and wrinkly with lengthy tusks. We even saw an elephant that had died just two days before being eaten by hyenas and vultures.
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