Dear Safari, Ready or Not, Here We Come

 About a month ago, I discovered that the US had changed the Tanzania travel advisory to a Level 3 (of 4): Reconsider Travel - due to unrest and violent crime (and targeting of gay and lesbian individuals). When your own government says, “Have a plan to leave in an emergency that does not depend on U.S. government help,” it is a bit unnerving. This announcement, along with spreading Ebola on the African continent, could be a solid reason to cancel the trip. But travel comes with risks, and these were not enough to stop us. A safari has been on our bucket list for years!

 After many years of losing out to active vacations and countries with incredible nature or man-made sights, a safari has finally risen to the top of our bucket list.

Leading up to the trip, I kept wondering how exciting can a safari be? What if it is not any different than a zoo or the Disney Magic Kingdom Lodge? What if all we see are a bunch of birds and some wildebeest? Or what if it’s just over-exploiting animals? What if it’s just like I’ve seen in videos - herds of safari jeeps racing each other to the nearby game?

 

Here we go!

Then today, after Greg has boarded his flight from SFO and I prepare to catch mine from Rome, I receive notification from our tour company: Edward will be our safari guide. I quickly google his name to discover review after review of how great he is. Amazing reviews! It sounds like he knows how to find the exciting animals and we are in very good hands. “Yes he is a good guide, you will like him for sure,” our contact assures us. Ok ... maybe we will see more than birds!

 So here we go—still not entirely sure what we’re walking into, but ready to find out.

 

Finding a safari tour company

I had already done a bit of research and found the country, safari, and company I wanted to use back in May 2017. (Instead we took a family trip to Japan.) I didn’t end up using that company this time. Although still in business, they haven’t received any new reviews in the past 9 years and that’s not a gamble I want to take.

 While watching YouTube videos at the gym, “Safaris by Ella” kept hitting my feed. She currently travels there extensively and recommends safari companies. I went with the one with the most and the best reviews: Serengeti Wakanda Tours and Safaris. You tell them where you want to go and for how many days. They do the rest! I’ll let you know how it works out for us!

 

Logistics:

• Americans need a multi-entry visa to enter Tanzania, currently $100. The answers to the questions aren’t exactly straight forward and if you mess up, you have to pay all over again. Make sure you allow 10 business days for processing. They emailed Greg his visa but never responded at all to me; I had to check my status online to find out mine was issued. You can also get a visa upon arrival.
  
  
• We made sure our vaccines were up to date and also got a prescription for malaria pills, just in case.