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Central Africa Sept 2025
  • Paulina Anderson

Central Africa Sept 2025

Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Migration in Kenya and Tanzania then Zanzibar. Overnight in Dubai on way to Cyprus Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 11, 2025
    Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Uganda, Rwanda & Burundi

    Sep 13–17 in Rwanda ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Arrived in Entebbe,Uganda after an overnight flight from Dallas to London then 5hrs wait for another overnight flight from LHR to Nairobi and connected to Entebbe. Kenya airways business class had excellent service.
    Stayed at the Imperial Botanical Beach hotel. A dump. Leftover by the British when they left in 1964, and probably never renovated. The botanical garden next door was overgrown. No beach, just view of lake Victoria from the bluff.
    Flew to Kigali, capital of Rwanda on the 15th. City of 1000 hills. And 1 million motorcycles. Stayed at The Court Boutique hotel. Wonderful breakfast and Italian food restaurant.
    Rwanda airways was good but Kigali airport had no A/C. People were wearing long sleeves and I was sweating.
    Flew to Bujumbura, capital of Burundi on the 16th. Stayed at the Hotel Club Lac de Tanganyika on lake Tanganyika. It was very windy and stormy that night with thunder and lightning. Waves on the lake and I could not see the mountains on the other side of the lake. Had grilled lake fish with avocado salad. Wonderful hotel. The best of the 3. Burundi looked to be the poorest of the 3 countries.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Nairobi and Masai Village

    Sep 18–20 in Kenya ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Elevation 5800ft and very pleasant climate. Stayed at the Hotel Serena where I met Barbara Ahlers my trip buddy the next 13 days. Our guide Martin took us to the Karen Blixen house museum, that wrote the book Out of Africa about her life in Africa. Karen Blixen is very respected in Nairobi and the area around her house is called Karen and it very hilly and has wonderful estates. Then we went to a Giraffe center and fed the giraffes. Also we visited Kazuri beads where they have single mothers make beads. They also had a restaurant where we had lunch. All our meals at the hotel and restaurants we had outside. All around Nairobi there are open stall markets where you can shop for your daily meal and everything else.
    The 18th we drove to Masai Mara to start our Safari the next day. Safari means travel/trip in African languages. 5 hour drive but very interesting.
    The Masai people share wifes between the guys that had their manhood ceremony together (circumcision). Even if they are from different villages and they can come over, put their spire in front of a woman's house and spend the night with her. Once a spire is outside another male can not come in, and she is obligated to serve the visitor. We stayed at Neptune Mara lodge on the bend of river Mara. Wonderful tents.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Hot air Ballon ride

    September 20 in Kenya ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Had to get up at 430am to leave at 5. My butler brought me coffee at my tent. We had an hour of bumpy driving on dirt roads to get to the Balloon place. They had 16 people in one balloon. Each group of 4 in a side of a basket, very tide together. In the middle the pilot with the balloon fires. The basket siding was patted. We could not see out unless we got up and then I had to step on the seat. That way, when landing, if the basket tipped sideways we would not get hurt.
    The pilot, Ali from Egypt was wonderful. We could not feel the take off and he stuck the landing. This after he warned us that it could bounce 2-3 times and tip sideways.
    We went over the Mara river first and saw the hippos from the top. Even when only their noses stick up, you can see their whole bodies from the balloon as you ride. There were 5-6 other balloons. It was very smooth and southing. It was wonderful to ride around and see everything from a different view. After we landed we had a champagne breakfast in the bush.
    Martin our guide in Kenya picked us up for a safari. We saw lots of animals with babies. We saw a warhock with a 2-3 day old baby the size of a fat rat. Tobys were standing guard on mounds with their "blue jeans and yellow socks". Then we found 3 lions lounging around after their meal. Further down we found a half eaten cape buffalo. We decided to go back for lunch. Lunch was outside by the river watching the rinos in the water, and zebras across.
    The dik diks were waiting behind my tent, watching me with their huge eyes. They mate for life and when one dies the other dies within 7 days from loneliness.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Masai Mara NP Kenya

    Sep 20–23 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    The next day we went out on safari at 6am and had breakfast with us to have in the bush. We found the carcass of the cape buffalo and a pride of 7 male and 3 female lions feasting. After watching them for an hour we wanted off and found a cheetah that poses for us on a mound. Then she walked off and we had our breakfast under an umbrella acacia tree. Then down by the river to see more hippos and crocodiles. The in the woods for elephants. Then back at the lodge for lunch and more hippos with 4 babies cross the river.Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Serengeti and Kubu kubu Lodge TZ

    Sep 23–25 in Tanzania ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    After an exhausting 8 hour drive on pumping dirt roads and heat, and 40 min boarder crossing we arrived at this wonderful lodge. Purged on a hillside overlooking the Serengeti and wild life. It had an amazing outdoor shower with views. See attached video. The food was a buffet but amazing. There were cape buffalo and Impalas down the hill
    The next day on safari we saw the migration of a hole bunch of wildebeast and zebras. For as far as the eye could see. Then we found, tree lions Very rare. Our guide Enoch said he has not seen any since 2023. It was a 3 generation pride of a grandma, mother and 5 cubs. The grandma was purged on the top part and hardly moved. The mother kept watching the cubs and relaxing and the back up. 2 cubs were on the tree. The other 3 below. One kept trying to climb but there wasn't much space on the tree. Watching this was the most amazing thing from all safaris.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Olduvai Gorge and Ngorogoro Crater

    Sep 24–26 in Tanzania ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    On the way to the next lodge we stopped at the Olduvai Gorge where the first humans were found. Very informative museum.
    We continued out of the Serengeti to the crater on a very dusty road. We stopped for 2 diff views of the Ngorogoro crater and drove over the rim at 7000 plus feet elevation. The road was a long the rim for a long while and you could see the devil's backbone with over 2k drops at each side.
    Arrived at the Retreat at Ngorogoro lodge which has an amazing garden.
    The road was so dusty and pumpy I decided to skip the safari the next day and stay to have a retreat and a massage. What a paradise!
    At night they would come and light the fireplace if you wanted.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Zanzibar

    Sep 27–30 in Tanzania ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Had a wonderful lunch outside at the Coffee Plantation hotel next to the Arusha airport. Then our guide dropped us off for our flight to Zanzibar. The 330pm flight was cancelled, they put us all on a bus to Kilimazaro airport 1.5 hrs drive for a 730pm flight which was over an hour late taking off. When we finally arrived at the Park Hyatt in Stone Town, Zanzibar, after 1030pm, we were exhausted.
    The next day Barbara did not feel very good so I walked around in town by myself. All white old Arab style buildings with carved wooden old doors Amazing! Lots of alleys and shops to get lost in. I visited the old fort, build by the Portuguese originally. Then I did get lost trying to find the old slave market. But it was getting hot so I went back for a nap. I met Barbara for an early dinner at a seafood restaurant on the water where we watched the sunset. We had cocktails, and shared ceviche and a whole grilled red snapper. It was a very relaxing day.    Read more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Women of Zanzibar

    Sep 27–30 in Tanzania ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Most people in Zanzibar are Muslims and the women cover up. On Sunday morning Barb and I were having early breakfast and were watching a group of women with their children at the beach. The women were in the water with all their long dresses and head scarves. One lady was trying to get out but it was not easy going with all that dressing. If one of the children had trouble I don't think the mothers could swim to him in time to save himRead more

  • Paulina AndersonCentral Africa Sept 2025Traveler

    Zanzibar Cooking Class

    September 28 in Tanzania ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    On the flight over they had an article about the Mama's of Zanzibar cooking class. It tried to book us but it was not available the 2 days we were there. Then I found another one on viator but also full. Finally I found one available and booked it without reading the particulars
    Barbara and I had a quiet breakfast outside. The hotel had a Sunday brunch later so at 8am we were the only ones sitting out. We watched some people in the water and a group of women bathing, with all covered up in long dresses and head scarves. One was trying to get out and her clothes were clinking to her hindering her walking in the water. The women here are all covered up in Arab dresses and head scarves.
    We had a pickup for our class at 930am. I thought he was going to take us to the market but after driving thru the old town we got out to the woods and a communal spice farm. Zanzibar is known for its spices and all their cloves are sent to the US for dental use in toothpaste. The farm was very primitive but interesting to see the various spices and where they come from.
    Then we walked to an open air, cement flooring, thatched roof building where they had us sit on a plastic mat. Barbara could not, so they brought her a rustic bench. The lady was cooking with a charcoal fire sitting on the ground. She dressed us with a scarf around the waist and matching head piece. All was so primitive. Water came from a yellow bucket. All utensils were on the floor but in buckets.
    First she fried chicken wings and then tuna. Then she made a sauce with tomatoes I graded, half an onion and 1 carrot. Then she had Barb using her hands, add water to the coconut she graded and squeezed it out to make coconut milk. Barb was a bit discussed but I explained that it was gonna get cooked. The cook added the coco milk to the tomato sauce along with tomato paste and potatoes. She put the sauce aside and cooked a big plantain in coconut milk along with cardamon. Their cardamon was green and mild. The next dish was the rice. She started by flying a lot of sliced onions 2-3. Then she added a spiced mixture she had me pound with cardamon, whole garlic cloves with leaves and salt. Then the rice, water and a cinnamon stick. When the water boiled she put the cover on, took it off the charcoal, put all the charcoal on top of the cover and put it back on the empty stove. She said to wait 15 min for the rice. She made salad of sliced tomatoes, cucumber and onions with lime juice.
    The plantains, stew potatoes in sauce and rice were wonderful    Read more

    Trip end
    October 9, 2025
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