"You're in Africa Now, Baby!" #1

**You're in Africa Now, Baby!

 Installment #1 - First Impressions

**(a quote, and favorite expression of Tanzanian guide, Mosses Meleya)

Me - on Safari - with Guides Mosses and Suddiy

Toto's timeless song, "I bless the rains down in Africa" was singing in my head as my plane, a super gigantic KLM aircraft, disgorged its 300+ passengers, via steps, onto a dark, night-time tarmac near Arusha, Tanzania. It was not raining in Africa that night. Instead, I felt a lovely warm breeze touching my face.

My perspective must have been skewed as I was coming down the steps. I turned to look back and saw what appeared to me as a monster, the largest aircraft I had ever seen! It was a KLM Airbus A330-300, and not only was it huge, it was the only plane I saw at the airport that night. Most of the travelers disembarking looked a lot like me, exhausted from travel and seeking an African adventure. The majority, I thought, were heading out to safari. In addition, there were groups of younger, outdoorsy-types packing lots of gear for the 8 day, oxygen-sucking trek to the top of nearby Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak.  But, all faces radiated an excitement at the anticipated adventures that lay ahead of us!

The clean, fresh African air immediately morphed into hot, stuffy and barely breathable as 250+ souls, happy to be finished with the 9 hour flight from Amsterdam were crammed into a smallish Passport/Visa office. Looking for rest rooms, tour guides etc., everyone eventually queued up into semi-organized long lines --- emerging some 90 minutes later, photographed, fingerprinted, stamped, signed and $100 dollars poorer (the charge for a Tanzanian visa).  We all were now legally documented and ready to go!
All I could think was, "Julie! Julie! A dream come true: You're finally in Africa!" 

KLM Royal Dutch Airline Flight 567, Amsterdam to Arusha

Following Mosses

Now that I had my necessary documents, I emerged, dazed and a bit panicked. I was very much hoping someone, anyone, was there to meet me. It seems like I scanned the waiting crowd forever before I spotted a man, carrying a sign with the name of my tour.  He was looking for me just as I was looking for him. He introduced himself as Mosses Meleya. His beautiful Tanzanian smile and genuine greeting was all I needed for reassurance and welcome. How lucky was I, I thought, that a man named Mosses (Moses) was going to lead my journey into the African wilderness!

Tanzanian Guide, Mosses Meleya

My first stop with this 21st century Mosses, was not the wilderness, but a luxury hotel in the surprisingly big city of Arusha. I must admit I'd never heard of this large city before the trip. The hotel room in Arusha was a complete surprise, with music playing on the TV, rain shower, guest bar, and air conditioning; downstairs was a restaurant serving gourmet meals, a pool, a gift shop, money exchange, plus other amenities. What an unexpected beginning.

After a night of jet-lagged semi-sleep in my extraordinary clean room, and while enjoying a sumptuous breakfast, several of my fellow safari-mates noticed I was one of them (due to my noticeable name tag), and invited me to join them. They gave me a warm welcome. And I looked them over carefully, realizing that by the end of 12 days together, we were going to be very good friends, or possibly (if my luck did not hold) never wanting to see each other again. It seems I was to be very lucky indeed!

This group included a young professional guide from Costa Rica, a professor from Boston College, a specialist from the US Department of Education and her husband, the mother of a group member who loved travel, two scientists from Los Alamos Lab, and me, a retired arts educator/gallery owner/US Senate staffer, now Grannie. We made a grand total of 8 wanderers, and two guides.

It shocked me to learn that at age 69, I was the second oldest in this group! All of us had signed up for a "scholarly tour" which included lectures on wildlife and eco-management of animals and birds in the Tanzanian national parks. We also were to visit the place where the oldest known human fossils were found, and we anticipated learning about the culture and lives of the local Maasai people. As it turned out, my experiences as well as the teaching surpassed any preconceived expectations of a learning safari.

The Special Ed Connection

Unexpectedly, "special education" connected three of us. For 13 years I worked in the Special Education office at Oregon Department of Ed, directing the statewide VSA Arts programs. I was joined on this journey by a PhD from US Department of Ed., Office of Special Ed, as well as a Professor of Special Ed. from Boston College.  

With three Special Ed people, it seemed ironic (and possibly fated) that on our first morning the  place we visited was a lovely enclave that I would call the Tanzanian version of a sheltered crafts workshop for the disabled. Shamba Crafts, was a place where workers were producing high quality art and craft products for sale. We watched many individuals with mental and physical challenges weave African style fabrics and beautiful blown glass. I was most impressed at the way these disabled people of Tanzania were provided with work opportunities and the potential for productive and successful lives. I've always been told that you can tell a lot about a nation by the way it treats the disabled and the elderly; we learned a lot about Tanzania at that first stop.

Shamba Crafts, Arusha

Glass Blowing at Shamba Crafts, Arusha

"The Tourist Migration"

(another favorite expression of guide, Mosses Meleya)

On this Safari, we traveled hundreds of miles in vans which seemed to be Land Rover/Jeep combinations. We were told these vans are rebuilt, restructured and reconfigured in Tanzania specifically for the safari industry. From my experience riding in them for 12 days, I can say these vans were terrific. Although they are not built for comfort and luxury they are definitely built for reliability, sturdiness and for some of the roughest terrain I have ever experienced! They allowed for food and water storage, luggage, as well as for the scenic views in all directions. They also allowed  for passengers to stand up for observations and photographing wildlife and the natural surroundings. For traveling on the dusty, rocky, muddy roads which we traversed in northern Tanzania, these vans were the only way to go!

Our 21st century Mosses called all the multitude of converging "vans and people" in the Serengeti "the Great Tourist Migration!" This was his tongue-in-cheek reference to tourists who come to witness the Great Migration of animals in northern Tanzania. I thought the local people must think of us as a "migration of travelers" descending into Tanzania to witness the thousands and thousands of zebras and wildebeest in this ongoing phenomenon. We all laughed, but we knew that underlying the thought was a serious reference to the importance of tourism to Tanzania....bringing with it thousands of needed jobs and infrastructure which bolsters their economy. 

*Our Safari Van on the "Tourist Migration"

New Friends Observing Serengeti Wildebeest and Zebra Migration from our modified pop-up *van

Don't miss Installment #2, (to be announced) where I describe more of my interesting African adventures, including:

• The African Massage, or "Holy Hemorroids"
• Serengeti Showers
• Sleeping Among Animals
• Animals in Love
• The White Maasai Momma
• The Coke Fix
• and possibly more!