Peggy, Gennifer, Lawrence, Carol, Philip, Semele, Emmy and Sandy
So let me introduce you to everyone who was on the trip. Gennifer, of course, is the owner of GenSafaris and there was Peggy from Minneapolis, Semele from Florida, Emmy from Virginia, Sandy from California, Lawrence from UK, and myself and Philip our driver/guide.
DAY ONE – 17 October (free day)
We started our trip by staying at a beautiful place called Kiboko Lodge, which was set at the edge of a marsh and surrounded by Mount Meru and Mount Kiliminjaro on either side. It was the perfect way to start our trip
The pictures show all….as well as, the beautiful setting we had for all of our meals and our beautiful stone huts.
Peggy, Lawrence and I set out for a village tour in the morning and got to see how the locals lived…village after village of friendly faces, hard working women growing crops for their families, playful children taking a break from one of the many schools in the area and men chatting about wiling away the day at leisure.
In the morning around 6:00, hundreds of birds swooped above the marsh and it was a great wake-up call even if we weren’t ready to get up that early. Apparently this was a haven for the bright yellow weaver birds to play and frolic throughout each day as well.
After a most wonderful breakfast we headed out to Arusha to meet a seamstress friend of Gennifer’s to see whether the group was interested in having things made for them such as dresses, skirts, pants, tablecloths, etc. So we shopped for fabric and everyone made their decisions. I chose not to have anything made since there was absolutely no room in the suitcase. FACT: We discovered that the Center of Arusha is the half-way point between Cairo and Capetown.
Shanga Shop
We stopped at Shanga, a beautiful shop that was founded to hire special needs adults. They made necklaces with hand-blown glasses from recycled glass and scarves. You will see the picture that shows all. Just a beautiful way to support special needs village people. We stayed for lunch at the Blue Heron restaurant and then moved on to shop at a local Tanzanite and Malachite shop an hour’s drive away. FACT: Tanzanite is only found here in Africa.
Blue Heron Restaurant
So the beginning of our trip was to relax and enjoy some shopping before heading out on Safari.