ArcaMax

With lion paw prints by day, dik-dik and gazelles by night, and a friendly staff to tie them all together, our nyumbas in the Serengeti provided unforgettable memories. The Swahili word means home, and that's how we felt every time we settled with a refreshment into a nyumba lounge's leather sofa before gourmet dinners in luxurious dining tents. Settling around the fires each night under sparkling stars before slipping away to our cozy tents felt magical.

Over our 10-day safari, my husband and I visited five such oases. Each morning, a merry voice woke us calling a "Jambo, jambo!" greeting when our coffee was delivered. Another cheerful call from the rear let us know that hot water had been delivered to an outdoor bucket that funneled into our private shower. We had two sinks and a toilet too; camping has never been so sweet.

Just outside our tent one afternoon, lion prints in the sand led us to learn that simba is the Swahili word for lion. Our vocabulary continued to expand. "Hakuna matata" really does mean "no problem," "safari" means journey, and a "serengeti" is an endless plain. Each day we set off on our journey across that endless plain in search of animals we had only seen before in zoos and pictures.

The lions, of course, were magnificent. We were fortunate enough to see babies playing in shrubs as well as a pride with mature cubs that yawned and stretched as they wandered up to rest by our Land Cruiser. One day we found three lions lolling on a river beach very near a family of cheetahs -- something our guides had never witnessed. And it was a rare treat when we found a pair of lions in a tender mating ritual.

Hippos, crocodiles, zebras and wildebeests were all exciting to see, and we were surprised to find them so close together. On the Mara River, great crocodiles sunned on sandy islands while hippos slowly rose and submerged in the water nearby, occasionally lumbering out to rest in the sun. The wildebeest, though, appeared there only as empty carcasses stretched across previously flooded branches and rocks.

In their tricky relationship with zebras, wildebeests often come up short. Zebras have excellent hearing and sight, but wildebeest can sense and follow rain. Working together they avoid predators as they follow ever-important water and are rarely seen apart. When it comes time to cross a river, though, the wily zebras hold back while their unsuspecting brethren splash right into the waiting jaws of hungry crocodiles. When the zebras see sated crocs crawling out of the river for a postprandial nap in the sun, they know it is safe for them to make their croc-free crossing. Such is the circle of life.

Mornings on safari can come early. One day we left our nyumba at 3 a.m. for a two-hour drive to join a hot-air balloon company for a sunrise soar. On our way we stopped to experience an elephant's predawn snack, and when we arrived at the launch site, there was fresh ginger tea and a three-sided canvas structure labeled, "A loo with a view" for our toilet needs. Once aloft, we spotted a cheetah family, a journey of giraffes, a confusion of wildebeests near their good zebra friends and several kinds of antelopes.

The tiniest member of the antelope family, the Kirk's dik-dik was new to me and quickly became my favorite. Standing only a foot high at their shoulder, dik-diks have an elongated snout and tiny nose that provides special cooling and creates a noise that leads to their funny name. They are known to mate for life. I was delighted every time we found them peeking out from the bush or darting across the road. When everyone in our Land Cruiser chose their spirit animal, they all agreed that the dik-dik was surely mine.

It was not lost on me, then, that my last night featured two dik-diks just outside our tent. I had awakened unexpectedly and heard the lowing of wildebeests in the distance. Despite having been warned never to leave our tents in the night without armed guards who could scare off any predators, I was drawn to just take a peek. I quietly unzipped our front flap and there, standing just outside our tent in the moonlight and starlight with Thompson gazelles grazing calmly behind them was a pair of dik-diks staring up at me with wide eyes. I held my breath in wonder and silently thanked them for being part of our incredible adventure.

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WHEN YOU GO

Thompson Safari company can help book and guide travelers through the entire process: thompsonsafaris.com

Wanderful Tanzania offers flexibility with a variety of nyumbas in their luxury safari experiences: wanderfultanzania.com.

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Lesley Frederikson is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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