My first two days of my Tanzanian safari were spent in Tarangire, about 3 hrs away from Arusha. Tarangire is home to the largest and most numerous elephants in Africa. As many as 300 can be seen during the dry season.

I was fortunate to see a cheetah and a pride of 6 lions within the first 10 minutes after entering the park. And then, came the elephants-herds and herds of them, with the largest weighing as much as 6 tonnes. I also saw a number of giraffes, both young and old.

I was also struck by the prevalence of the boabab tree which looks like a giant broccoli.

I stayed at the Roika Tented Lodge. While resting at my verandah in the afternoon, I saw a dikdik and a warthog. They run as soon as they saw me. It was my first time to sleep in a zippered tent. At night you could hear all kinds of animal sounds.

The downside here was the pesky tse-tse fly. They sting you even through your socks and inside your shirt.