| | | | | on the river is a must. Being a huge seafood lover, I |
| I was last in Tanzania and Zanzibar some fourteen | | | | was delighted to be served some great calamari and |
| years ago and it is where I first fell under Africa's | | | | red snapper whilst staying at Kiba Point - they are |
| powerful spell - I simply could not get over the vast | | | | only a short distance from the coast here, so it was |
| open plains of the Serengeti with the odd acacia tree | | | | a fantastic novelty to be having seafood in the bush! |
| on the landscape and the mountains in the distance, | | | | |
| sporadically dotted with the red shukkas of the Masai | | | | On to Pemba Island and Fundu Lagoon - the only |
| and their cattle. Literally breathtaking and "classic | | | | lodge on the island so you know you are going |
| Africa". I was looking forward to revisiting and seeing | | | | somewhere special! A short twenty minute flight |
| what had changed in that time and also to seeing | | | | from Zanzibar you are then met by the Fundu |
| some new areas such as the Selous Game Reserve, | | | | Lagoon car, driven 30 minutes across the island to |
| Pemba Island off Zanzibar and also Tarangire National | | | | catch your boat to Fundu itself. It was built by two |
| Park and Loliondo in north. As I covered a lot of | | | | twin brothers Alex and Marcus and it really is a great |
| ground in this trip, I will just mention some of the | | | | place with a very good feeling of space - you can be |
| highlights. | | | | as social or private as you want and they seem to |
| | | | | combine the two effortlessly. There is so much to do |
| The Selous Game Reserve is my new favourite | | | | here as well if you are not one for lying around on a |
| safari destination! It is one of the largest game | | | | beach! You can go snorkelling and diving at Misali |
| reserves in Africa with relatively few camps in it so | | | | Island where the water is the most beautiful I think I |
| there is that wonderful feeling of remoteness. To | | | | have seen, crystal clear and visibility over the coral |
| arrive and go straight to Kiba Point, was a very | | | | reef was just perfect. You can also go for a walk |
| spoiling start to the trip. It is part of the Sand Rivers | | | | into the village where the lodge owners invest in |
| set-up, but it is a private camp that is taken | | | | community projects, or you can go fishing for your |
| exclusively by groups of up to 8 people - it has four | | | | lunch, take a picnic out....you would certainly not get |
| extremely spacious and open-sided thatched rooms | | | | bored here and the friendly and professional staff |
| (more like houses!) looking down over the Rufiji | | | | always seem to be around for advice on what to do |
| River, the largest river in East Africa. | | | | next or help you with deciding which cocktail to try |
| Complete luxury and brilliantly run, this camp has a | | | | for your sundowner! There are so many different |
| great home away from home feeling and it offers a | | | | places to eat here whether it's on the beach, at the |
| variety of activities.....my favourite being our boat trip | | | | jetty bar, or the pool bar up the hill - or simply in the |
| upstream into Stiegler's Gorge where we stopped | | | | cool and breezy thatched dining room. |
| after an hour of game viewing (we saw buffalo, | | | | |
| hippos, elephant, giraffe and plenty of birds from the | | | | So all in all, Tanzania now provides a huge mix of |
| water) to get out onto a beautiful white sandy | | | | areas and camps to visit and there are still so many |
| beach surrounded by rocks and the steep sides of | | | | relatively untouched parks to explore. The Selous is |
| the gorge bursting with life and trees. Here we tried | | | | definitely one of my new favourite places and Pemba |
| our hand at fly fishing and between us we caught | | | | is also a winner location for some great beach time. |
| three catfish! What a stunning spot to just stop and | | | | There is something for everyone here and still so |
| be surrounded by nature. Drives take you through | | | | much more to see.......you would not be disappointed |
| beautiful scenery, lush from some recent and much | | | | with safari or beach here, but you need to |
| needed rain, and some of us went for a lovely walk | | | | remember that Tanzania is a huge country to cover |
| through the bush only to find ourselves at the top of | | | | and there is much travel involved! Its vastness and |
| a hill with a fantastic 360 degree view and a full bar | | | | raw beauty is what makes it stick out in my mind as |
| set up for our sundowners. Fly camping for a night | | | | so special. |