4 things we wished we'd done differently

Impala Showdown! In the Serengeti

1.  Started our days earlier.  Taken a siesta.  A lot of activity happens in the early morning, or early evening.  In the middle of the day, when it's hotter out, the animals tend to be a bit more quiet...so we hear.  We were fortunate, I think, because in November, it's not as hot as at other times of the year.  We didn't realize the importance of starting out early (as early as you can), until later in the trip.  

On one of early evening game drives, we saw these impalas fighting.  Another time, we heard (and saw) elephants trumpeting at jackals who nearby playing.

2.  Not changed as much money

When we arrived, we each changed $100USD, thinking it would be helpful for buying drinks, buying souvenirs, etc.  It turns out the only place where it came (semi) in handy, was when we stopped at a Tanzanian supermarket towards the end of our trip and bought some drinks.  At most of the lodges we stayed at, they gave us the prices in USD.  The souvenir shops all quoted us in USD as well.  Our guides also seemed perfectly happy to receive USD as the gratuity.

I've seen a lot of different comments on TripAdvisor saying that it's helpful to change money.  But maybe it's because we just were not that far off the beaten path, it just didn't seem that useful.  One caveat -- none of went overboard on souvenir shopping.  We did buy some paintings and carvings at a few places, but all of them were more than happy to receive USD.  It's possible the prices might have been slightly lower if we'd paid in Tanzanian shillings, but for the amount we exchanged, it probably still wasn't worth it.

3.  Saved more food from our boxed lunches earlier

On most days, we had boxed lunches that we brought with us on our game drives.  That way, we didn't have to go all the way back to the lodge for a hot meal.  There were bananas, eggs, sandwiches, chips, nuts, more snacks, drinks...and much more.  Two of us could have shared a box, and there still would have been plenty of food!  So, every day, we were tossing a lot of food.

On Day 3, we started collecting all the food that nobody had eaten, and put it all in one box.  Our guide then looked for someone to give the box of food too.  Often, he gave it to the person who was working at the rest stop.  One time, he gave it to a group of construction workers on the side of the road.  It was heartbreaking, because they fought over it.

If we were to go again, we would have saved the food from our boxed lunches sooner so that we could give it away -- not just waste what we didn't eat. 

4.  Brought more t-shirts...

Yup, you read that correctly.  But not clothes for us.  We all have extra t-shirts lying around, and I brought 40 of mine to donate.  Another friend brought 10.  We stopped by a couple orphanages and left the t-shirts there for donation.  Those of us who brought clothes to donate wish we'd brought more; those who didn't bring anything wished they had thought of it.  The need is just so great.

Oh, one thing to be aware of - I brought a shirt which had some fake "camouflage" design on it  I didn't even think about it, but don't bring those... =P