Serengeti National Park

After hiking Kilimanjaro, I was hesitant to go on a 4-day safari because the thought of sitting in a land cruiser seemed sedentary and indolent. Unexpectedly, I absolutely loved camping in the middle of the wilderness for 3 nights listening to the cries of the hyenas and mischievous bamboos. Philbert, my safari guide and friend, is the most enthusiastic and passionate person. He made each game drive exciting and educational. At the entrance of the Serengeti, we spotted an injured lion and a baby zebra following a safari land cruiser for protection! The following day, I witnessed the hunting of a zebra by a male lion who tracked his prey from a sausage tree. I saw an elephant stuck in a fresh water hippo pond, a cheetah resting under a kopjes (large rock), herds of elephants and buffalo, baboons, reed bucks and water bucks, hyenas, hyrax (cousin of elephant), zebras, leopards. . . so many animals! It is hard to believe that in only 4 days I was able to be among many species in their natural habitat.

The Serengeti is the first an largest national park. It was established in 1951 and is 14,763 sq kilometers (larger than Connecticut!). It protects the wild beast migration and is considered a World Heritage site. There are 28 hoofed animal species and 530 bird, plant, and insect species. In Tanzania, 25 percent of its land is considered protected area. There are 11 National Parks within the nation.

During our safari experience, we briefly visited the stunningly beautiful Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater. The Crater is considered to be a conservation area in Tanzania. The Maasai have designated bomas to live in at Ngorongoro. The government is using a Community Based Conservation approach; they believe in the empowerment of rural Maasai communities to sustain, manage, and use natural resources. This approach seems to mirror the Western strategy of Indian reservations. Indigenous tribes are forced to live on a designated plot of land and are expected to succeed.

When we visited the shamba of a Maasai tribe, we entered a family's shamba (constructed out of cow dung), saw their primary school, and participated in a traditional Maasai dance. Although the experience was eye-opening, I could not help but question the effectiveness of the conservation approach. Maasai people 5 km outside of the boma, for example, were suffering from dehydration and malnutrition. The Maasai's herding lifestyle seems difficult to manage due to weather conditions like long droughts and globalization/the impact of tourists.