6/19 (Kirurumu Lodge)

I slept like a log last night and did not wake up once from the Zebra. We left the Tangangika Wilderness camp around 8:30 and headed up the mountain to Kirurumu Lodge. On our way there we stopped at the local hospital. This hospital is meant for curable and preventative medicine. Patients with HIV, malaria, really any illness can come to the hospital. It was very humbling to see all of the people who were there with some kind of sickness and not have the money to pay for it. We then toured a village where a few families live. These families mostly grew banana trees. One tree will produce one season worth of bananas and then its cut down half way. The people use every part of the banana tree. They use the leaves for roofing and art. We saw how the people live and what they do on an everyday basis. The children are so use to American and other foreigners giving them money and candy that they hold out their hands waiting for something to eat. If you take a picture of someone, they will expect something in return. We visited a hut where six men make wood sculpture and sell them to tourist and local vendors. Another thing I have learned is how to barter. It’s amazing that you can get almost half price of anything you buy. We then drove up the mountain to Kirurumu Lodge. Getting there was rough. We drove up the mountain on a rode where every inch of the ground had a bump, rock or hole. Christina and I almost lost our lunches towards the end of the drive. Kirurumu greeted us with orange juice and carried every ones’ bags to their room. I will say that every place we have stayed has had excellent service. They go to great lengths to make us feel comfortable. Thanks to Brooke’s critique of my pictures, I have a plan of what to do for my portfolio. Dinner was good except it was cut short because we had planned to go on a night drive. There is only on place in Tanzania that offers “Night Game Drives.” We all piled into a huge open Land Rover which had a driver, a spotter and a man with a gun. We saw Hippos, Bush Babies, Horned Billed Birds, two Lions, Impala and we chased a Hyena. The spotter in the front vehicle had amazing vision and could spot an animal about 60 yards away on the dot. I didn’t get any really good photos of the Hippos, but sometimes it’s just about the experience. I think that Babs (my grandmother) would rather me have a great experience than have difficulty trying to capture it in a photo. We got back at the lodge around 11:30 and I for the first night went right to sleep.