This is a huge geographic feature formed by the
tearing apart of two tectonic plates.
This one is particularly remarkable because it is the only major rift
on Earth
which is not completely submerged in an ocean.
The African-Arabian rift runs from the Dead Sea in
the Middle East
south through the Red Sea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and on down
to
Mozambique forming East Africa's long, deep (5,000 feet!) lakes
and creating strings of volcanoes along the way.
Of course, to get a perspective on such a planetary
feature you'd
need to go into orbit... or take a really long walk.
In these views, you can see the tremendous dust clouds blowing off part of Lake Manyara.
We took a game drive through the Lake Manyara
National Park and managed to avoid
getting hijacked by any of the many troops of babboons.
We also encountered more giraffe, zebra, gazelle, hippos, and uh....
...right.
We frequently encountered kids along the road who had
learned to expect treats from
the occasional passing vehicles full of camera-toting tourists.
Not suprisingly, candy and money were equally popular forms of payment.
What we didn't expect everywhere we went were the very frequent requests for simple ball-point pens.
These kids were playing in a waterhole until they
spied our minivan
and came running as fast as they could.
Unfortunately, our driver was in a hurry to make it
to our destination on time (it was a long drive that day),
and we ended up throwing candy out the window as he took off just
before all the kids made it over.
Many of the younger folk would wave as we passed,
but others would try to flag us down.
These three however, had their act down.
They had created a little band with homemade
instruments and masks
and put on quite a performance.
I suspect few tourist cars passed them by! We sure didn't!
Imagine Alfred Hitchcock's birds as vultures....
There's quite a contrast between the villages and the
towns.
(Note the ant hills in the foreground above. The closest one is
probably six feet tall.)
I had taken a lot more images on the trip back to Nairobi.
Unfortunately, I lost a roll of film during my airport transfer in London.
On the other hand, of any roll to lose, this one was
probably of the least concern.
I don't want to think about how it would have felt to have lost the
shots from summit day on Kilimanjaro!
Cecilia's popular and uncanny rendition of the water buffalo.
On our last night in Africa, we ate at the
"Carnivore" in Nairobi.
We got to sample a variety of unusual meats (for North Americans
anyway) including
crocodile, impala, zebra, and wildebeast.
The lions and hyenas had had their feasts and now it was our turn!
In case it's not completely obvious, I had a
wonderful time in Eastern Africa.
And I whole-heartedly recommend a visit to anyone who enjoys
exploring the natural sides of this planet.
I imagine I'll be back.