Day 205 - Forty Springs Forest
Thursday, January 24th, 2019.
We have to wake up early every morning because breakfast is served at 7:30am. For me, it hasn’t been a problem because the Greek Orthodox Church prayers start very early and go on for hours. Sometimes it starts at 3:00 or 4:00am. At first, I thought it was nice and thought about how great it would be to have that much faith and devotion. But after a few early morning wake up calls, my opinion had changed. I just wanted to sleep more, but the singing went on for hours! We had yummy pancakes for breakfast with the Spanish girls and the priest. After that, we got ready to go to the Forty Springs National Park. We had to pay for a private car. Of course, I wanted to arrange it the night before, but Gregory wanted to wait and negotiate with the guide. It would have been cheaper if we took the car from the Mission, but Gregory didn’t want to after having to drive on the bumpy roads yesterday.
Our guide and the driver arrived at the front gate of the mission at 9:00am. He rented one of the minivans that are basically public taxis around here. He even had a sheet with the fares on the window and when we were driving to the park, people kept trying to hail the van! I’m glad Gregory didn’t drive because the road was super bumpy and the streets were very busy. When we arrived at the park, there was a closed gate and guards in uniform. We picked up the park ranger with a rifle who had to come with us named Tom.
We drove some more to get closer to the forest. It was impressive to see so much green around us. We stopped the car and then we started our walk. Our guide wasn’t very talkative and didn’t make an effort to give us information, but none of us were asking questions either. We saw many springs and he explained that their ancestors started to count the spings and because there were so many, they stopped at forty and that’s why they named the forest “Forty Springs.” He then took us to a bigger spring where there were some local men swimming and relaxing. He told us that we could go in, and Sunshine wanted to, but not alone with all those men. Plus we were warned not to swim in any springs or lakes in Africa, so I’m glad she didn’t.
During the walk, we saw many many monkeys and I was thrilled because that’s what the kiddos really wanted to see. We stopped and watched them for a while and they were watching us as well. We also found some hanging branches that the kids (and the monkeys) had fun swinging and playing on. We were having a great time when the park ranger and the guide said it was time to head back. "What?" I said, "that’s it? Can’t we stay longer?" Both the park ranger and the guide said no. It was only 11:00am. We had spent about an hour and there was still much more area in the forest we hadn't seen.
The guide explained that the driver had to work and that we couldn’t go any further. We were disappointed because we wanted to hang around longer.
On our way to the mission, we stopped by the bus station office to get the bus tickets for our return. We decided to stay here two more days more just to relax and enjoy ourselves. The Mission doesn’t have the fanciest rooms but we are enjoying the dining hall area and the food. Plus, we are planning to spend the next two days in nice resorts swimming in their pools.
The guide dropped us off at the mission around 11:30am. I can’t believe we were done so early and fast. That was expensive for such a short visit to the park. It is so sad that such a beautiful place has to be guarded, plus the first day we arrived, they told us that there was a conflict going between tribes in the forest and that tourists were advised not to go at all. So I guess I’m happy that at least we got to see it.
We had lunch at 12:30 again with the Spanish girls and the priest. As much as I love that I’m not cooking, I wish I was in a way because all we are eating is carbs and starch. I’m very grateful that they are feeding us and I understand that they feed us what they have but I have a feeling that I will gain a few pounds after a few days here.
After lunch, I read and took a nap. I finally had time to catch up on my blog. Again, I’m up to date but I haven’t posted what I wrote because someone needs to proofread each day and finally, I need to select and upload the pictures but with poor internet, it takes forever!
I took a cold shower and washed my socks and underwear since we are staying longer. We had dinner by ourselves because the Spanish girls invited the priest out for dinner. Today is their last day here. And yes, we had more carbs for dinner, delicious! Daniel is loving it!
We have to wake up early every morning because breakfast is served at 7:30am. For me, it hasn’t been a problem because the Greek Orthodox Church prayers start very early and go on for hours. Sometimes it starts at 3:00 or 4:00am. At first, I thought it was nice and thought about how great it would be to have that much faith and devotion. But after a few early morning wake up calls, my opinion had changed. I just wanted to sleep more, but the singing went on for hours! We had yummy pancakes for breakfast with the Spanish girls and the priest. After that, we got ready to go to the Forty Springs National Park. We had to pay for a private car. Of course, I wanted to arrange it the night before, but Gregory wanted to wait and negotiate with the guide. It would have been cheaper if we took the car from the Mission, but Gregory didn’t want to after having to drive on the bumpy roads yesterday.
Our guide and the driver arrived at the front gate of the mission at 9:00am. He rented one of the minivans that are basically public taxis around here. He even had a sheet with the fares on the window and when we were driving to the park, people kept trying to hail the van! I’m glad Gregory didn’t drive because the road was super bumpy and the streets were very busy. When we arrived at the park, there was a closed gate and guards in uniform. We picked up the park ranger with a rifle who had to come with us named Tom.
We drove some more to get closer to the forest. It was impressive to see so much green around us. We stopped the car and then we started our walk. Our guide wasn’t very talkative and didn’t make an effort to give us information, but none of us were asking questions either. We saw many springs and he explained that their ancestors started to count the spings and because there were so many, they stopped at forty and that’s why they named the forest “Forty Springs.” He then took us to a bigger spring where there were some local men swimming and relaxing. He told us that we could go in, and Sunshine wanted to, but not alone with all those men. Plus we were warned not to swim in any springs or lakes in Africa, so I’m glad she didn’t.
During the walk, we saw many many monkeys and I was thrilled because that’s what the kiddos really wanted to see. We stopped and watched them for a while and they were watching us as well. We also found some hanging branches that the kids (and the monkeys) had fun swinging and playing on. We were having a great time when the park ranger and the guide said it was time to head back. "What?" I said, "that’s it? Can’t we stay longer?" Both the park ranger and the guide said no. It was only 11:00am. We had spent about an hour and there was still much more area in the forest we hadn't seen.
The guide explained that the driver had to work and that we couldn’t go any further. We were disappointed because we wanted to hang around longer.
On our way to the mission, we stopped by the bus station office to get the bus tickets for our return. We decided to stay here two more days more just to relax and enjoy ourselves. The Mission doesn’t have the fanciest rooms but we are enjoying the dining hall area and the food. Plus, we are planning to spend the next two days in nice resorts swimming in their pools.
The guide dropped us off at the mission around 11:30am. I can’t believe we were done so early and fast. That was expensive for such a short visit to the park. It is so sad that such a beautiful place has to be guarded, plus the first day we arrived, they told us that there was a conflict going between tribes in the forest and that tourists were advised not to go at all. So I guess I’m happy that at least we got to see it.
We had lunch at 12:30 again with the Spanish girls and the priest. As much as I love that I’m not cooking, I wish I was in a way because all we are eating is carbs and starch. I’m very grateful that they are feeding us and I understand that they feed us what they have but I have a feeling that I will gain a few pounds after a few days here.
After lunch, I read and took a nap. I finally had time to catch up on my blog. Again, I’m up to date but I haven’t posted what I wrote because someone needs to proofread each day and finally, I need to select and upload the pictures but with poor internet, it takes forever!
I took a cold shower and washed my socks and underwear since we are staying longer. We had dinner by ourselves because the Spanish girls invited the priest out for dinner. Today is their last day here. And yes, we had more carbs for dinner, delicious! Daniel is loving it!
It was nice to have the whole dining hall to ourselves, we hung around on the couches reading, playing games and poor Gregorio was looking for places to stay in Tanzania and checking for our expensive visas.
Please click here for pictures
https://photos.app.goo.gl/yhymhzKtM5ohWzbSA
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