Day 6, The Day From Hell!
March 16, 2009, Monday
The day from hell arrived in the chilled darkness. We got up in a foul mood, headache included. I was so mad that I did not even wear clean clothes or take a shower. I put on what I had worn the previous day. Since Steve had none of his bags, he had no shaving bag or even a toothbrush. (I guess an extra toothbrush should be in the bottom of my purse!) We all put back on yesterday’s clothes. Steve was also in a rotten mood. Thankfully, he had put all our travel documents in his shoulder bag, but he left his medications in his roll along. We should have all sat down and cried. Little did we know that this was just the beginning.
I was able to brush my teeth and wash my face. I never go without makeup, but this day was an all around exception. We were up so early that there was no one in the dining room. A breakfast buffet was already set up, so we picked out a few items to get started. Later, the front desk clerk came to talk to us about our bags. No bags ever arrived for us. No bags. No Abercrombie and Kent. We ordered breakfast, and waited and waited. Our transfer ride to the airport was coming soon. TIA Everything moves really slowly. When the same A&K man arrived, he told us that the bags never arrived last night. The real truth behind that smirkey smile and yellow tie was that A&K never went back to airport to get the bags that HAD ARRIVED AS PROMISED THE NIGHT BEFORE. It was easy to lie as we were leaving and they would be rid of us. If your bags are on another flight that will arrive later, stay there! Go have a beer, read a book, but do not leave the airport. No amount of arguing helped the situation. I was ready to leave Arusha. I had a real bad feeling about the fate of the bags.
We were driven to the Regional Air Shuttle terminal at Arusha Airport. This real small outpost was the departure point for charters going to and from the camps in the Serengeti and Grumeti Reserves. When we arrived at the desk, the people there were prepared to weigh our bags. When they checked and found out that we had bought an extra seat to accommodate our intended extra bags, plus lost four bags, they just went ahead and loaded my bags. They did say they were going to charge us to deliver the lost bags to our camp the next day. Grate! Not only did the extra seat do us no good, but they were going to charge us to deliver the lost bags!! I had it with TIA counter people and sat outside on the patio under a tree to read. This trip was really falling apart. Our flight was finally called, and we sat in the back as usual.
Our airstrip was the second stop. As per Singita standards, the place was very nice. Were met by Saboro camp manager, Bjorn. He said his camp was going through some extensive remodeling. He said that we had been booked into Sasakwa Lodge, their premier lodge. That was the first words of encouragement I heard in days.
Sitoti, a Masai, was our guide. More about Toti later. All Singita managed and owned camps use Range Rover vehicles. This truck had a nice canvas roof on it! Most safari trucks in the bush have a three tiered seat system. The best seat is right behind the front seats in the middle of the truck. The back seat is above the back wheels and can feel like a bucking horse! You almost need a six-point harness to keep you in the truck!
The road to the lodge was about 20 minutes away. This was Nicole’s first real view of Africa and the great Serengeti plains. I get chills everytime I see it again. This is Africa the right way. All the hoofed animals were peaceful grazing in the late morning sun. Steve and I had never been to the Grumeti Reserves, so this was a new experience for us too.
As made to turn for the lodge, we saw the most beautiful buildings perched on the crest of a huge rocky outcropping overlooking the vast Seregeti plain. Our arrival at the front entry made me gasp. This was the most beautiful lodge in the world! We were met by the general manager, Susan, and given delicious cold terry cloths to wipe the dust from our hands and face. We went up a few steps to the open entry foyer and offered chilled champagne from a elegantly tall round table set with a small bronze rhinocerous. After such a hard trip to get there, I could hardly believe the granduer I was seeing. Standing in the open area feeling the soothing cool breeze, I saw a 180 degree expanse of the huge plains and animals. I had arrived.
The bags were unloaded and porters took them to our cottage. Susan accompanied us on the short walk to show us around. Each cottage was named after a well known English who had lived in Africa during the colonial years. We were in Lord Delemer’s Cottage. When we entered I was in absolute disbelief. The place was beautufully decorated in English antiques, Venetian chandliers, sculptures, rugs, crystal glasswares, sterling silver, four-poster beds, free telephone to anywhere in the world 24 hours, free internet, the most wonderful down comforters and pillows, heated pool, and the view was awsome! As we walked through the cottage, I became overwhelmed with the difficilty of our trip and the beauty the lodge, and broke down.
We told Susan about our lost bags, so she got to the bottom of that problem quickly. The bags would arrive tomorrow late morning. That would mean Steve and Nicole would be without their bags for another 24 hours. Steve went to the lodge store and bought a new shirt. I gave Nicole my clothes to wear. We ordered cheesburgers under silver domes for lunch in our cottage with chilled champagne. Steve had a beer. We were exhausted, but did a litttle exploring and unpacking before taking a nap. Afternoon drives usually start around 4:oo pm, but actually all guests can request what time they want to leave. This is good, especially when there are many vehicles out. In this case, we go out before anyone else to get to the animal sightings first! As with traditional English tea time, there are small sandwiches, cookies, and tea. We skip the tea and have a glass of wine or a beer. This is a great time to meet the rest of the people staying in the lodge. All the guides answer questions about the animals from the day. Time to saddle up!
The three of us had the Rover to ourselves and Toti. The was Nicole’s first safari!! She was thrilled! Steve did not have his new camera, but I always bring my old Canon 5D and new Canon Mark III D and extra lenses. I let Steve have the 5D and 70-200 IS lens. The sparse animals were all spread out, because this area was originally a hunting block. Animals for generations remember that. We saw the eastern sky get darker and darker just as we got to the bottom of the hill. Toti asked if we wanted to go back to the lodge, but this was our first drive. We drove a little farther, when it started to rain. Toti dug out the rain ponchos just as the rain poured out of the skies!! We sat through the rain and visited with Toti. He loves his job, if that is a description. He loves being outside in the open savannas with the animals. We do too! It rained for quite a while, releasing the African smells of grasses and trees. That evening we were treated to dinner in the garden room. It was lovely and vintage. I felt like I was back one hundred years. We were so tired and welcomed that heavenly soft down bed. Contact me at info@outrageousred.com. Join my Fanpage, Outrageous Red, on Facebook!
Tags: Abercrombie and Kent, Africa, Arusha Coffee Lodge, Gorilla Forest Camp, Grumeti Reserve, Kenya Airways, lost bags, Masai, Nairobi, Precision Airways, Range Rover, Sasakwa Lodge, Serengeti, Singita
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