The Serengeti- Safari day 3

The Serengeti means “Endless Plains” in the Maasai language. And, indeed the plains do seem vast and endless in some places. The Park is over 12,000 square miles.

For many centuries the Maasai called the Serengeti their home. They are often tall, very dark skinned, proud and beautiful. Maasai are pastoral and raise cattle. Their diet is mostly meat and milk with blood !They wear bright colors, especially red, felt to scare predators away and lots of jewelry, even the men. Because they often walk long distances, these days, they often make their sandals from old tires, then adorn them. They often carry spears and knives for protection in the wild.

In 1951, the area became Tanganyika’s ( the name of the country prior to annexation with Zanzibar) first national park and included the Ngorongoro Crater ( see my previous post on this area).In 1959 ,the Crater area was split off from the main park. This was because the Maasai realized they were being forced off their land and not allowed to graze their cattle in the park. After protests, the Maasai were allowed to live and graze their cattle in the Ngorongoro Crater area.

The 3rd day of our safari we did not see too many new animals. Lots of ones we had seen before, beautiful and majestic. We did see some “Mamas” and their babies.

Also, we saw, again, the beautiful lilac breasted roller bird. I never could get a good picture of them as they were quick . ( these are from other sources)