MY “OUT OF AFRICA” TRIP – PART TWO
MAGIC IN THE TANZANIAN HIGHLANDS

With a heavy heart, we left the sanctuary of ChemChem heading towards Karatu and the Tanzanian Highlands.  As we wound our way through villages we noticed a monthly Maasai market - a hive of colour and activity as they bartered their goods and enjoyed the monthly get-together.  It then started to get colder as we climbed up over the Great Rift Escarpment, and it was raining when we found ourselves in the Highlands – a lush emerald green farming area dotted with banana trees and towering acacias.   We eventually arrived at Gibbs Farm – a working coffee farm at the foot of the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area.  

I was captivated.   

How does one even begin to describe this place? It was so different to anything I had visited before. If we were to continue on the movie theme – I had definitely left the open plains of 'Out of Africa' and entered the dream-like world of Pandora’s Planet in the movie 'Avatar'.  (I loved that movie)

The first thing I noticed were the enormous trees that seemed to form a canopy over it all and the lush wet jungle-like gardens below with moss dripping off trees and “Lobster Claw” plants in abundance.  I had entered a botanical garden with sweeping views over dark green coffee plantations.

 Well known for its organic fresh “farm to table” cuisine, the centre of it all is its extensive “kitchen garden” which spreads out into the forest. Gibbs boasts acres of coffee, fruit, vegetables and various other gardens including a herb garden and a medicine garden, as well as a working dairy and pig farm.  The earth is fertile and dark reddish brown – you could smell the earth mingling with the many herbs and vegetables growing and the smell of roasting coffee together with the sweet pungence of a rain forest.  

The beautiful kitchen garden 

Birds called, pesty baboons chattered, the Maasai men bantered as they worked the coffee beans and the old women filled the baskets on their backs with vegetables and herbs for the kitchen.  Some young children could be heard playing a soccer match beyond the rhubarb hedge.  I believe the odd elephant has come to test out the various veggies – thankfully they do not make an appearance whilst we were there.

The 1929 farmhouse has hardly changed and has history that gives it a settled ‘soul’. A lodge can try as much as it likes but it cannot have ‘soul’ unless it has the quiet confidence of a rich history - a place settled into time nestled into the coffee plantations for generations.   

Ray hard at work

The atmosphere is relaxed, slow and peaceful and very much in rhythm to the farm.  When we caught our breath after catching up with our dear friend, Rachel, who is the Executive Chef here, it felt easy to settle into the inviting big old leather armchairs in front of the fire-place and surrounded by old rock clad walls (which I’m sure tell a story or two). Adorning the walls throughout the farmhouse are black and white prints of the farm many years gone by, photos of favourite characters that have worked here and been loved (many being grandparents of those working at the farm today) as well as local art of Maasai warriors and African wildlife.  It is not trying to be “African Chic” – it is not trying to be sophisticated at all - but then that’s its appeal. 

The kitchen team with Blev

The food here lived up to every expectation – fresh, full of flavor and absolutely delicious.  Our meals were fun and jovial affairs.  Apart from the happy friendly staff and our noisy banter, we also enjoyed chatting with a big sociable group of American doctors and nurses.  They had come over for a few weeks to assist in the local Karatu clinics providing further basic medical care to the local villagers. Gibbs is also closely associated with a school in the area and guests have the option of buying a desk and can sign it with a message and deliver it personally to the school.  This farm, like ChemChem, is very much part of the community.  As I travel in East Africa, I am getting a recurring theme.  There is a great deal of work being done together with the communities  – something quite special is going on here. 

A Maasai Warrior emerging from the mist

Gibbs Farm is also close to Ngorongoro Crater and we managed to do this as a day trip. Together with Hashim (our very enthusiastic and attentive guide with his Bill Clinton “don’t you worry about a thing” take on life) we headed into the misty dense forested mountains of the crater rim.  We could barely see in front of our vehicle as we edged along the ‘jungle’ roads.  At various points in the ghost-grey mist we noticed brightly clothed Maasai with their cattle and some beehive huts but other than that, I felt an eerie quietness.  I believe this is only because it was “quiet” season – during peak season the park apparently explodes with safari vehicles.  I don’t think hundreds of tourist vehicles jostling about like swarming African Army Ants could be any fun.

Crater View - with our great guide Hashim  

Our forest escapade then opened up to an incredible view of the crater – the world’s largest inactive unbroken caldera.  The steep sides of the crater have made it a natural enclosure for an extensive variety of wildlife.   Game viewing was spectacular – just like visiting London Zoo!  

In my sense of utter amazement, I took at least a thousand photos (my trusty camera battery even died on me).  Never had I seen such a concentration of African animals like this.  

Apart from every ungulate you can imagine, it also includes the rare black rhino and the densest known population of lion.  The flamingoes in the crater lake were a sight to behold.

What I found really interesting was that the crater provides multiple land use, with wildlife happily coexisting with semi-nomadicMaasai pastoralists practicing traditional livestock grazing.  We saw some of the Maasai bringing their cattle down from their homesteads on to the crater floor to graze, which they have done every day for many years.  We watched as they wandered past prides of lion without a care in the world – just like they were heading down Main Street for a spot of shopping.  The VERY true meaning of co-existence!

The following morning we said good-bye to 'Pandora’s Planet'.  The past few days in the Tanzanian Highlands had been fabulously magical and rather mythical actually.  Back to 'Out of Africa' we go, as our next stop is the Serengeti – I am beyond excited to see it at last.  To the local Maasai, it is known as Siringitu - "the place where the land moves on forever." 

See you there in the final stage of my East African adventure.

MY “OUT OF AFRICA” TRIP – PART 1

And so Ratty’s Rambles is back - off on African adventures and dying to tell you all about them.  In fact so excited to do this that I am rambling too long in my blogs – much to the horror of my social media guru who tells me emphatically to “keep it short” – some things are just too exciting to tell in a few loose paragraphs. 

I have just returned from Tanzania.   A first-time trip for me – a real look-see!  Travelling with a great school friend - Blev - and visiting another dear school friend en-route - Ray, who works in Tanzania - we planned to visit as many lodges as we could, to get a good feel of what the Tanzanian “Northern Circuit” was all about.  This trip therefore included Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. 

I can confirm that I am now fully “hooked” on this rather special part of the world.  Realistically, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.  To me, East Africa had always been the classic movie “Out of Africa” even if that was based in Kenya.  Apart from a dashing Robert Redford, I hoped it would live up to my romantic expectations of a vast African savannah, endless plains of game, densely forested mountains flecked with coffee plantations and rather quaint colonial plantation lodges and tented camps.   I can, after my trip, confidently confirm it is exactly what I imagined- and more!  However, only after my visit, I realized that my pre-trip impression hadn’t quite done enough to impart the strong soul East Africa has.  This is made up of firmly entrenched traditions, an eternal sense of history, a community of generations of families and Tanzanians’ overwhelmingly warm hospitality.  Everywhere you go you hear Jambo (hallo) and Karibu (welcome).  This felt like a genuinely happily settled nation – everyone so keen to make you feel welcome and to love their country.  So began my “Out of Africa” trip.   

We had been advised to take Rwandair – Rwanda’s national airline-  and so we embarked on a rather “around Africa” trip – stopping at Lusaka in Zambia, Kigali in Rwanda and then eventually onto Kilimanjaro.  I highly recommend this airline- the flights were very pleasant. 

Beautiful Plantation Home - Legendary Lodge

Upon arrival in Kilimanjaro we were whisked off to Legendary Lodge at the foot of Mt Meru in Arusha - and this is where the magic began.  Everyone who goes past Arusha MUST stay at Legendary Lodge.  There is just no “two ways” about it!  We were met by Gregory and his team and felt immediately at home.  How can you not, when you have your heavy bags whisked away from you and in their place handed an icy cold ‘gin & tonic’ to settle your weary ‘travel’ bones.  My goodness, I loved them all immediately.    Here we met Rupert Finch-Hatton from Hoopoe Safaris who was providing a vehicle and guide for our weeklong sojourn.  He is apparently the great nephew of Denys Finch-Hatton (yes – the one in “Out of Africa”) although when I mentioned it to him, he looked weary of this constant link that every tourist must bring up – sorry Rupert!  However, it certainly provided roots for my “Out of Africa” frame of mind and positioned me firmly into yesteryear.    This lovingly maintained colonial plantation home could have been Karen Blixen’s and is full of history – you could feel it seeping out of every corner.   I woke up in the morning listening to the birds and a far away train whistling.  Whilst wondering what delicious feast Max the chef was preparing in the kitchen, I heard the clinking of a tray being delivered to our room…and in came the smell of freshly ground coffee and lavender cookies. 

Waving good-bye to our newly made friends at Legendary Lodge, we were off on safari with our guide -Hashim – who regaled us with his new American accent and had us in stiches from the start (Hoopoe Safaris had just recently hosted an American group and the accent certainly had had an effect on Hash – from then on I felt I was travelling along the dusty African roads with Bill Clinton).

Although aware that most visitors to the Tanzanian “Northern Circuit” use the short charter flights, I was thrilled to do this bit of the trip from Arusha through to Tarangire and Lake Manyara by road.  You really get to know a country this way.  After witnessing the majesty of the 19,341 ft. Mt Kilimanjaro with its snowy cap, I found the area around Arusha so densely forested and fertile -coffee plantations abound. Everything was so colourful – especially the people and the vibrant “Maasai” colours they wear.  I loved watching everyone going about their daily routines, colourful buses, motorbike taxi’s weaving in and out of the traffic being stopped by very official policemen in their all-white uniforms, small informal plant street sales, cafés with old men bantering over pipes and young children playing with wire cars.  

After the busy streets of the Kilimanjaro and Arusha area, we ventured out towards Tarangire.  It started to get more sparse and every now and again, we would see the colourful figure of a Maasai tending to his cows and the small villages dotted here and there. You could see that the fierce sun sucks the moisture out of this landscape.  

Tarangire National Park is but a brief stop off and unfortunately I do not get to experience the magnificent bird life, the tree climbing pythons and great elephant herds that it is well known for.  However, I did experience my first tsetse fly bit (wow, they sting!!) Onwards to ChemChem Lodge we went. 

ChemChem Lodge, described as “an authentic haven that awakens the senses”, is situated in a private wildlife concession assisting the migration corridor between Lake Manyara and Tarangire.  Quite magical the work that the owners – Fabia Bausch and Nicolas Negre- have done here assisting the surrounding communities by protecting their wildlife and supporting their education system.  This small tented lodge is a true oasis where the key words are SLOW SAFARI – a place that demands you to wind down and enjoy nature at its soothing best. (complete with a yoga mat in your tent). Surrounded by palms, exquisitely decorated with natural fibres such as canvas, lava-stones and wood and giving you spectacular lake views, the lodge and its attentive staff, led by manager Kelly, ensure you have no choice but to relax and enjoy this tranquil holistic haven.  

You can do a number of activities from here – a trip into Tarangire should be on the cards (or staying over in Little ChemChem Tented Lodge in Tarangire).  However a must is a holistic spa treatment, bush walk (the bird life is incredible) and sundowners on the lake.   After being thoroughly spoilt with a spa treatment, we were taken on a walk with a Maasai warrior and a field guide whilst being watched by inquisitive giraffe and zebra.  It was fascinating learning how the Maasai have survived for generations in harmony with nature.  The perfect end was a surprise sundowner on Lake Manyara.  Nothing could be more incredible than sitting on the tranquil shores of Lake Manyara with a view of the Great Rift escarpment – you could not be further from frenetic city life if you tried. 

And so with ‘sundowner’ in hand, I leave you with my memories and photos….until Part 2 of my “Out of Africa” adventure which sees us onwards to Ngorongoro Crater and the lush valley of Gibbs Farm.  Kwaheri (good-bye) until next time.....