(To make sure we're trackin', this was actually the 4th of January.)
After waking up at
Ikoma Wildcamp on the far side of the Serengeti, we did an express trip through the park on our way to Ngorongoro Crater. The official schedule had us doing another half day on the Serengeti and the crater on the following day. This schedule, however, only allowed a half day in the crater and we wanted to be there for longer, having heard how wonderful it is. We were pretty satisfied with our Serengeti experience and were willing to forgo a brief morning trip if it meant quality time elsewhere.
Andy, our Swiss safari partner (sigh. long story -- nice guy, but not really happy about the tour company pressuring us to take an extra passenger) had rejoined us the previous day. He had put in a special request for "real African" food the night before. Sean and I were pretty full on snacks by the time dinner arrived, so we only ate a little. Dario and Andy, however, tucked in and ended up cleaning their plates. Silly us! We thought a bunch of wazungu would be able to handle African food. D'oh!
Half way through our crater excursion Andy politely but urgently requested a trip to a restroom. Aww, poor Andy, we thought, part of his lunch disagreed with him. It wasn't until later that night -- say 3 a.m. or so -- that Dario found out he was likewise afflicted. (I would call it Montezuma's Revenge if we were in Mexico; not sure whose revenge it would be in Tanzania.) Sean and I got milder cases that didn't show up until later. But more on the drama, if not the gorey details, later. For now, enjoy the pics of the crater!
Btw, now when I play World of Warcraft and visit Un'goro Crater I can laugh with scorn. "Ha, I say, HA! The real crater looks nothing like this!"
More pics from today now showing on the next page! -->
