During our drive to the river boat we passed Sea Salt Mine. Very interesting process. Ocean water is collected and separated into large fields. The water evaporates leaving a field of sea salt. (From the distance the field of sea salt looks like an ice rink) The sea salt is then collected, bagged in 25kg bags and they sell for $5 per bag.
The river boat cruise was a great experience. The breeze was wonderful and gave us some reprieve from the 40 degree temperature. As soon as we pulled away from the dock, we could see hippos cooling themselves in the water. As we got very close to them, they would submerge themselves completely under water. They kept popping up their eyes to keep an eye on us. We also saw to crocodiles, one was a baby and the other was about 9 feet long.
We saw lots an enormous variety of birds: Kingfisher bird, Grey Heron, Green Heron, Sacred Ibis, Secret, Mango Kingfisher and Woolly-neck storks.
After our river boat tour we drove to a village called Saadani and enjoyed lunch at the beach. We had some monkey friends who were waiting patiently for us to finish lunch in the cabana so they could find some left overs for themselves. There appeared to be a new washroom facility and as I walked closer to it I noticed the tile floor. Walked up the couple of steps and saw a wall mounted sink and had to try the tap to see if there was running water and there was! I opened the door to the toilet and I was so excited to see a flush toilet. This was the first running water tap and first flush toilet since landing in Africa 7 days ago!! Boy do we take running water and being able to flush toilets for granted in North America!
We decided to refresh ourselves by having a little swim in the Indian Ocean. The sand on the beach was very fine and the view was beautiful. The ocean was incredibly warm due to the lower tide level. The water was at least 90 degrees and seemed warmer than the air. We had to swim out deeper to get cooler water at our feet.
We then proceeded to travel through the Saadani National Park. The park covers 1100 km2. It is the only wild life sanctuary in Tanzania bordering the sea. About 30 species of larger mammals are present as well as numerous reptiles and birds. Saadani National Park is also known for its numerous giraffes which is the national symbol of Tanzania.
We first came across a group of 5 giraffes standing in the stand of a tree. They are very curious animals as they ducked their necks around the tree to look at us. During the drive we saw many Hartebeest, Read buck,White-bearded Wildebeast, Baboons, Bush bucks and Bush pigs. Many scattering away as we got closer. They are very shy as they are not used to too much vehicle traffic.
We all had an amazing day and our bodies appreciated the break!
Marianne
DWC Participant
Tanzania 2010
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