We are off on safari in Ruaha National Park today! Our ride was long and bumpy but filled with songs and smiles. We checked off a bucket list item by singing “Africa” by Toto while literally in Africa. Shortly before entering the park, we were surprised to see a herd of elephants crossing the road. This got us even more excited to finally get inside. Upon arrival at the gates, we switched into three decked-out Land Cruisers.
We are off on safari in Ruaha National Park today! Our ride was long and bumpy but filled with songs and smiles. We checked off a bucket list item by singing “Africa” by Toto while literally in Africa. Shortly before entering the park, we were surprised to see a herd of elephants crossing the road. This got us even more excited to finally get inside. Upon arrival at the gates, we switched into three decked-out Land Cruisers.
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We made our way to our campsite, which we knew very little about. We soon found out why it had been kept a mystery. When we arrived, we were escorted to our bandas and were awestruck. As we entered, we realized this was no ordinary campsite—it was pure luxury.
For lunch, we enjoyed an incredible combination of avocado, mango, and chicken. It was so surreal that it nearly brought tears to Ali’s eyes.
After lunch, we got right to it, hopping into our vehicles and setting off for the afternoon game drive. We saw impalas, zebras, giraffes, dik-diks, baboons, hippos, crocodiles, and our favorite—elephants.
That evening, we gathered around a bonfire on the riverbank. We had planned to have dinner on the beach, but unfortunately, it began to rain. Instead, we headed back, ate dinner inside, and fell asleep to the sounds of the bush.
We were awakened with coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and a warm smile from the camp staff. We left early and saw many animals as the sun rose. Our favorite was a very adorable baby hippo. In addition to the large animals, the guides helped us spot smaller ones, such as the Ruaha hornbill and rock hyrax. We then headed to the river and had breakfast in the bush.
We continued our drive and saw zebras and giraffes together—it was surreal. After returning, we enjoyed yet another delicious lunch. Later, we frolicked to the river for some playtime, climbing on rocks, wading in the shallows, and wrestling.
For our afternoon drive, we quickly spotted some roan antelope in the distance. We soon realized how rare this sighting was as our guides went bananas.
We then entered the Small Serengeti and encountered a herd of ostriches. There was now a clear winner for the Most Mountable Animal (disclaimer: no ostriches were mounted).
Finally, we approached an enormous, hollow baobab tree. Everyone climbed in and got comfortable while we learned about baobab trees and took our annual group photo.
We drove back and made our way to the river for a bonfire and dinner. The clear skies allowed us to eat outside and enjoy the stars. It was truly unforgettable. We had dinner and celebrated the conclusion of an amazing two weeks. Eventually, the crowd headed to Banda Number 9, also known as Karaoke Central. We had a blast before heading to bed.
We were once again greeted by warm drinks and happy faces. We got in our cars for one last drive. We had hoped to see some big cats, but sadly, we did not. However, the other amazing animals more than made up for it. We eventually arrived at the gate and said goodbye to our fearless guides. On our way home, we took a different route along the “never-ending road,” hoping to avoid some of the bumps. Unfortunately, it was still bumpy. The hangry students demanded ice cream, and Matt had no choice but to allow it. We stopped for some and then arrived at the Lutheran Center, happy. The safari was a surreal experience we will never forget.
- Blog post by Ali, Austin, and Nick
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