More blossoms. And a sweet spring bunny appreciating the flowers as much as I do. My new garden elephant: I wanted so much to bring back a metal garden sculpture from Tanzania, but there was no way to get it home. I found this, made by a family business in Indonesia, in a thrift store…

They were late this year, but I made sure my walks passed some of the most impressive. Today starts the time when you walk through drifts of petals: I did a quick little painting using the paper and paints Elina gave me for my birthday:

I finished the self striping cardigan: Pattern: Double Crochet All The Way by CroJennifer https://crochetjennifer.com/collections/cardigans/products/double-crochet-all-the-way-cardigan-crochet-pattern Yarn: Sirdar Jewelspun – I really liked this yarn despite it being acrylic and I’m a yarn snob. Colourway: Glacier Yardage: bought three balls and used an over two and a half, a total of 513 grams/1282 meters. It took…

I’m delayed in posting this. Two days after our return I was hit with what was probably the flu. I’m reminded yearly flu shots don’t last forever. It’s been a slog that spanned a couple of weeks. The happy side of the delay was having our elder grandson here for a week during spring break:…

(March 5/6, 2026) Leaving Tarangire the bus ride to Arusha was two hours in the pelting rain. We eventually turned off the highway and wound our way through questionable areas until we arrived at our gated compound far from downtown. It was called the Summit Lodge, but resembled a budget close-to-the highway hotel on the…

(March 5, 2026) Our lunch destination was the Tarangire Sopa Lodge. Our previous experience with the Sopa chain meant it will be a step up from our recent box lunches. On our way we saw another new-to-us creature, a Rock Hyrax. They live in rock crevices in order to escape predators. The wildlife became more…

(March 5, 2026) We checked out of the Country Lodge early enough to fit in another visit to the Tanzanite Experience gallery. Again, I didn’t buy anything, but our group did the stop justice with their purchases of tanzanite earrings, t-shirts, carved wooden animals and table runners. I was taken with the metal garden sculptures,…

(March 4, 2026) We continued our crater game drive. Before our lunch break we spotted an elephant: On the smaller end of the scale, a Rosy-throated Longclaw:  And we did it! Steve spotted rhinos in the distance, but they are so large there was no mistaking them. Yes, those are birds on his back. The Red-billed…

(March 4, 2026) Our departure from the camp was at a 7:00am. We encountered a scene reminiscent of the Lion King, Pride Rock. We saw evidence of a not-so-lucky buffalo. One of the detriments of living in the land of the lion. The day was full of interesting birds starting with the Secretary Bird, named…

(March 3, 2026) We continued on our drive through Serengeti.  Steve caught a glimpse of a leopard sleeping in a tree. That completed the big five for the three of us who went to Nairobi National Park on our first day. The rest haven’t seen a rhino yet, so with the leopard, they have four…