Serengeti. In the Maasai language it means “endless plains”. But it is a land of deception. Born from a volcanic eruption three and half million years ago, she has not forgotten her past. She harbors vast savannas, wetlands, and forests. From the heights of Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru to the river Mara. You cannot trust your own eyes. Beauty and violence side by side, one and the same. As the day begins over the river, you don’t see the hippos and crocodiles just below the surface. The shadows and reflections hide the danger.

In a few hours, a quarter of a million wildebeests will risk their lives crossing the river in search of better feeding grounds. The crocodiles will take a few in this endless life and death struggle.

From a distance, the savanna looks like a barren wasteland with nothing but grass and few trees. Your eyes deceive you. Mixed with the reds, tans and browns of the land are herds of zebras, gazelles and antelope. Warthogs dig in the dirt and birds peck at the ground.

The birds are hard to see with their brown or yellow feathers. But as they take flight, there is a burst of red, blue, white, yellow, green and orange as their true colors are on full display.

That dark speck over there? No, it’s not a rock. Rocks don’t move. An elephant or maybe a hippo, could it be a rhino?

As the sun continues to rise, the colors become more tan, brown and yellow. The breeze blows the tall grass ever so gently but there is an area that does not move. Suddenly a lion lifts his head as if to ask who is it that disturbs his rest. Your eyes didn’t see him until he revels himself to you. Finally, you notice the lioness with her cubs on a rock formation nearby.

That tree branch, did it just move? No, that is a leopard resting for tonight’s hunt.

Over there, did that tree just walk? No, the engine noise startled the giraffe. This barren wasteland is alive and teeming with activity if your eyes don’t deceive you.

At the Crater, a cloud hangs on the ridge as if tacked up there, unable to rise or blow away. But only on the eastern edge. It will slowly disappear as the day goes on. This is where the violence began but it hides it in the blue skies, white clouds and hundreds of animal species living in diverse ecosystems.

Flamingoes that look like they should be on a front lawn, to buffaloes with birds on their backs. Pelicans, gazelles and elephants. They are all here seemingly living in harmony. But your eyes deceive you again. A lioness drags a wildebeest back to the pride belying that tranquility.

As the day begins to come to an end and the sun slowly set, the sky explodes in reds, oranges and yellow. As you settle in for sleep, you hear the grunts of wildebeests, the growls of lions or the trumpet of an elephant. Are my ears now deceiving me? She never sleeps. Tomorrow will bring new struggles, new growth, and new birth. Serengeti has not forgotten her past. The violent struggle for life goes on. Did your eyes deceive you today? Or was it Serengeti? The Serengeti will never die.

We have traveled extensively, from Alaska, Sedona Arizona, Tampa Florida. Scenic Ireland and the cities of the northern Baltic, Copenhagen, Tallin, Helsinki, Stockholm, and St. Petersburg Russia. We have seen great works of art and beautiful landscapes. None match what we have experienced on this trip.

We had to remind ourselves to put down the cameras occasionally and live in the moment. Photos cannot capture the quiet breeze as it rustles the grass or the splashes of wildebeests as they jump into the river. To see the Milky way with your own eyes for the first time is an experience not recorded on a camera.

We did not see monuments to great past civilizations, but at Olduvai Gorge, we saw simple footprints in the sand that may have been the origins of mankind as we know it. These pictures, in our minds, are the images that can never be lost or replaced.

Our thanks to the people at ADS (Dawn and Michael) for putting this all together. Everyone at each facility went above and beyond to make us feel welcomed. It was obvious to us that the people of this country are very proud to be the caretakers of these animals and the land itself. And rightfully so.

Our guides, Joseph in Arusha, and Alex during our safari, showed us more than just pretty sites. They educated us in ways we did not expect. We went as clients and came home as friends.

Until we meet again.

Donald and Barbara O.
Northampton, Pennsylvania
Safari Dates: September 02, 2024 to September 10, 2024