Mud Butt Strikes Again!

Mud Butt Strikes Again!
Saturday, February 12, 2005Today is the day that we have decided to go on a walking safari in Arusha National Park. Christy, Sonja, Jessica and I have arranged with our new friends John and Anton, to hire a Range Rover for the day. The truck is owned by Hans, a friend of John and Anton, and he picked us up at eight this morning. We rolled down the windows and took turns passing around our Ipods, sharing our different tastes in music and laughing as we danced in our seats. We sped through small villages, where people lined the road selling all manner of things. Saturday is market day in all of the small villages and everyone was out enjoying the day.
The sky was blue and a nice cool breeze was blowing as we pulled into Arusha National Park. The plan was to drive through the park til we got to the trail section, hire a guide, and see what we could see. We had not been in the park ten minutes, though, when all of the sudden, Hans slammed to a stop. We all looked up to see a herd of giraffes crossing the road in front of us. Oh My………….
There were probably ten or so of them, and they were right in front of our car! And were they beautiful?! They were graceful and elegant, and frankly, I had to pinch myself to make sure that I wasn’t dreaming! That was only the beginning, and before we even got to the parking area for our hike, we had seen monkeys, wart hogs, gazelles, water buffalo, and zebra. Yes, Christine….I saw a Zebra for you!! I hope that my pictures turn out!
I would have been very happy with that, but we still had a hike to do, so we drove on til we came to the ranger station. We were required to hire a ranger for 20.00, and when he walked up with a rifle longer than he was tall, I understood why. This was no zoo, nor was it Disneyland. We were visiting the animal’s home, and there was nothing to protect us from them without the ranger along . Our ranger’s name was Aulied, and his rifle has a crudely-carved stock, and looked about a thousand years old. As he talked to us, his gun swung around indiscriminantly, and after I ducked for the third time to avoid being in the line of fire, I asked him how many tourists he had shot by mistake! Luckily, he said none, so I decided to place my safety in his hands and off we went. We hiked over a small river and though a bog before finding ourselves right up against another herd of giraffes. We were so close to them, and they seemed very content. If one of us got too close, they just wandered away. After whispered exclamations and pictures all around, we continued on. We walked by a herd of water buffalo and Aulied explained to us that if there are only one or two water buffalo, it is very dangerous, but if there are more, then it is not.
Soon, we climbed up a ridgeline and over into a ravine. We walked along until the ravine came to a dead end. From 100 feet above, a waterfall fell from the rocks and we took turns dancing in the rainbows created by the falls. The water was cold and clear, and it was shady in the ravine. It turned out to be a beautiful place for a rest, so we all sat on rocks and talked. I teased the guys about having girlfriends, and watch Hans and Aulied try to climb the rocks.
It was beautiful and relaxing, and all of us hated to get going, but go we must. Aulied had to get back to another group and we had more animals to see! As we walked along the stream created by the falls, shadows and sun mixed with hundreds of tiny white butterflies. It was truly idyllic until Aulied held up his hand for silence. There he was…….. a water buffalo standing all by himself. We could tell that Aulied was taking this very seriously and we followed him off of the path, out of the way of the buffalo. Unfortunately, ‘out of the way’ led straight into a bog! Small clumps of grass were all that separated our dry feet from a knee-deep soaking in slimy mud, and Aulied explained that we needed to step exactly where he did. He pointed at me and said ,”You first!”. This is not fair!!! Didn’t he know about my reputation for grace and finesse when it came to hiking around mud?!?! But, he didn’t care. He pointed down at a tiny clump of grass, grabbed my hand, and motioned for me to go. Go, I did………into the knee-deep mud! You had to know it was going to happen! That would not have been so bad except I started laughing and fell in with my other foot! Now I was knee-deep in the mud with BOTH legs, and I could not stop laughing! John and Anton each grabbed a hand and started pulling, but this stuff was like cement! I was crying from laughter, they were pulling, I was getting deeper, and no progress was being made! Finally, I stopped laughing long enough to tell them to stop pulling me, and was able to step out of the mire. Now I was black from the knees down, but I didn’t mind! It’s not like I haven’t been this way before! But, Aulied would not stand for it. He grabbed a bottle, dipped it in the giardia-infested, water buffalo water and proceeded to pour it all over my legs and feet. While he was pouring the third bottle-full, I realized that he was using MY water bottle!!! Ugh!! Well, so much for that bottle!!! In any case, I was soon reasonably clean and we hiked the rest of the way back to the car. We were all tired and sun burned, but very happy.
When we got back to the car, we sat under some trees and ate lunch, each passing around what we had brought. Wilfred, our cook, had made us wonderful box lunches, so we passed around chicken, samosas, potatoes, and sandwiches. I held up a black round thing and asked what it was. Turns out it was a passion fruit! Anton showed me how to peel and eat it, and I have to say, it was really good! It tasted like all of those passion fruit-flavored candies you have ever eaten, only better!
After cleaning up the remnants of our lunch, we headed for Arusha to go to the market. We were about ten minutes from town when a very loud chuga-chuga sound started coming from the truck, and it started jerking back and forth.
Uh-oh…..this didn’t look good! I read a book that said that all of the cars in Tanzania are old and tend to break down a lot, and that breaking down was just part of the adventure, so I settled back to see what was in store for us. Not ten minutes had passed when another Range Rover pulled over and stopped. It turns out that the driver was one of Anton’s friends, and he had seen us at Arusha. He was taking a gentleman from Colorado to the Park the same time we were there, and he recognized our truck on the side of the road. Minutes later, we were all piled in his car headed for the market. Hans stayed with the truck with promises to pick us up when he had fixed it.
When we arrived at the market in Arusha, we said goodbye to our wonderful rescuer. As he took off, we turned to see about fifty Tanzanians staring at us from their respective booths and blankets. We walked two steps and the air filled with the sounds of Masai women shouting, “Sister….sister….come look here….I have children to feed……my favorite sister…….”. It was something else!!! As I started to peruse the booths, I decided that it was time to get my feet wet when it came to buying stuff Bongo-style. Bartering here is a very important way of life. If you try to buy without bartering, they really won’t let you. They prod you with sentences like, “I say 20,000, and now you come back with a lower price and we will meet in the middle”. It is hysterical! I have my own moral dilemma because arguing over the difference of two dollars with a person, knowing that that two dollars can make a serious difference in their day, takes all of the fun out of it for me. However, Anton pulled me aside and assured me that they weren’t going to sell me anything without making a profit that they were happy with, so off I went.
I must say, I was pretty darn good at it! Even Anton was impressed when he found out how much I paid for stuff!! My first day here, I heard a man from New York bragging on the Masai tribal cloth that he had purchased. He said that the Masai wanted 50 dollars for it and he got it for $35. I only paid $6 for mine, so I don’t know what HE was doing!  The best thing, though, was the last purchase of the day. I wanted some little beaded boxes from the Masai women to bring home for souveneirs. As soon as I started talking to one of the women, I was surrounded by five women saying, “My sister….my sister…” and pulling on me. I put my hands in the air and went, “Yi…yi…yi!” very loudly. They all burst out laughing and settled down. I explained to them that if we could all come up with a price that I liked, then I would buy one from each of them. They all scrambled for their blankets and began filling my hands with boxes. We all laughed as we traded boxes for money, and everyone was happy. Who says you need to speak the same language to communicate?!
Anton came over to say that Hans had the truck ready and was coming to get us, so with loud good-byes, we left the Arusha market and its wonderful vendors. I really hope to go back one day! The drive home was long and quiet. Everyone’s iPods had died and we all sat back soaking in the warmth from our sunburn as we watched the sun set on Mount Kiliminjaro. The sky was full of deep purples and the smell of hay and maize filled the air. My eyes burned with a mixture of dust and tears. I am in Africa.

Love, Anna
“When all is said and done here at the ending of the day, I look out on this world and it still takes my breath away…”
“Robin’s Song” Small Potatoes

Anna aka Mud Butt