Last days of vacation - Ngorongoro Crater, Ngorongoro half marathon & Lake Manyara

gate to one of the 7 wonders of the world 

stunning views - TONS of animals and birds when you take a look through binoculars

this crater is just massive - such a privilege to see this in my lifetime!

anything but a smooth ride - my trusty 4x4 did famously

a quick visit to a Massai Boma before the afternoon rains started 

Decided to run another half marathon Ngorongoro to Karatu (250+ runners, only 2 of us wazungu = white)! Fellow runners were all super encouraging and looked out for me (quite a few TZ olympic team runners). note: I did stay in the rear yet somehow I was not last!  

My last 2 nights spent at Lake Manyara - zebras, maribou storks, with flamingoes in the distance

One of 3 river crossings on the way to & from the tented lodge - the water was up above my knees so one of the safari guides in this land rover helped drive my car over so i could get the hang of it - 4 wheel drive + 2nd gear + SLOWLY

A pair of Grey Crowned Cranes to send me on my way

March vacation trip to Indian Ocean

Low tide on a stormy morning with Sand Island in the distance

'front yard' at the beach house where I stayed

the starfish really started clinging when this picture was being taken - I was definitely ready to let it go!

just a few more seconds...

Crimson Bee-eaters

this is what I saw each morning on my sunrise walk to the Mangroves

another sunrise at low tide

Day trip to Ngare Sero mountain lodge

Malachite King Fisher

Colobus Monkeys - found them!

Drove for lunch and coffee today to a lodge in the foothills of the mountains - only about 40 minutes from home. I've made two day trips on other occasions to see Colobus monkeys (Arusha National Park) with no luck. Today was the day! What extraordinary looking creatures. Also, visited a TZ trout farm there, and near the water saw this oh so beautiful King Fisher. Not easy to photograph with my little pocket digital camera, yet happy that a few pics worked well enough that you can get an idea of the coloring. Once again...another day I feel blessed and privileged for the time I have in this outstanding part of the world! 

Tarangire in March

Lilac-breasted Roller

Bishop

elephant family

a BIG bull elephant who kept following me as I reversed down the track

European Roller

Buffalo Weaver

Weaver

on the drive home...rain storm & Mt Meru

Kilimanjaro half marathon

taking care of a six month training goal!

What a cool experience! Very privileged to see the Kenyan and Tanzanian professional marathoners shoot by.

crowd craziness at the finish line

Introducing the violin to the Tanzanian school children

 after all the children 'saw' a vibrating string, I invited them to feel the vibration through the scroll - you'll see their reactions

Lake Manyara

tented camp Maramboi where I stayed (SE side of Lake Manyara)

HOT late afternoon walking safari 

driving on the dry lake next to Impala

trusty chariot with my Massai guide Lengai in the passenger seat

Maribu Stork - these babies are tall!

Flamingos in the distance - a line of pink as far north and south as I could see. Ngorongoro Crater is just over the mountains

Early morning drive along the edge of the lake, watching out for dark patches - thats where it turns into goopy mud that our feet sunk into!

Bishops