Foodcation

The art of dining al fresco 

This trip to Africa was a true vacation for the taste buds, our chef at Sabora even packed us a delicious dinner for our long journey home (which saved us from having to eat the somewhat questionable food at Kilimanjaro airport, and risk Montezuma's revenge on a 9 hour flight). Thanks Singita! 

We were shocked to discover that food in the middle of the Serengeti could be some of the best cuisine we've ever tasted?!? In fact, we enjoyed the food so much that we made up a song entitled "Spices From Zanzibar" to give these exotic flavors the praise they so deserve.
 
They've even established The Singita School of Cooking, which encourages and helps develop the skills of local youth that have an interest in cooking.

Breakfast - Sasakwa Lodge - Abraham served us a healthy & delicious assortment of fruit, yogurt, juice, and muesli at our cottage. They made some killer scrambled eggs, and the pastries with jam were sublime. We had to be very aware of our toast though, because the monkeys would jump down from the roof and snatch it right out of our hands.

Lunch - It was a tie between Faru Faru & Sabora - At Faru Faru, they serve a different platter of Mediterranean inspired meze fare every afternoon. They made the best gaspatcho I've ever tasted. Then we moved on to Sabora, where they created  the most inventive cold soups, sandwiches and salads, that were out of this world. We had to ask the chef for the cold zucchini and mint soup recipe. Yum!! I also sipped on my very first Pimm's Cup in the Serengeti, both thirst quenching and delicious.

Faru Faru- Our friend Paul serving us the most delicious meze fare platter, ever!

Faru Faru Dessert

Cold Zucchini & Mint Soup

Apollo had a Pimm's Cup waiting for us after a long morning game drive.

Dinner - At Singita, every night they try to top themselves and make each meal even more spectacular than the last. At the end of the day I'll always prefer a casual, yet stunningly beautiful and romantic al fresco dinner, which happened to be our very last night of the trip. Our friend Apollo and his team set up the most beautiful scene right outside our tent, lanterns and candles, champagne, and Persian rugs with pillows to star gaze. They've perfected the art of dining al fresco. There was even a lion pride that strolled by as we were eating...luckily they were more interested in the zebra. Few things can compare to dining by an open fire and gazing up at the Serengeti ceiling, with all of its flicking glory, as you stare directly into the past. 

Hot Air Balloon Safari

We woke up at 4am, packed our bags, and bid farewell to Faru Faru and our very favorite server/friend Paul, he greeted us in the main lodge at 5:30am just to see us off and make sure that we had breakfast before we left. 

We both gave him a huge hug and thanked him for his unrelenting kindness and karibu sana. I'll never forget his smile, so blindingly white and genuinely full of joy. There is no smile in the world quite like a Tanzanian smile.

 We drove for 10 minutes in complete darkness, until the sky started to turn light blue and we could dimly make out the half moon shape of the striped hot air balloon on its side, slowly filling with air.

 We were greeted by our pilot who taught us how to sit/lay on our backs until the basket is pulled upright by the force of the balloon. So we laid there with the flames right above our heads until all of a sudden we were pulled upright, and then ever so gently lifted from the earth.

Just as we took off the sun started to peak over the horizon and it was so peaceful, so quiet. When the pilot wasn't blowing air into the balloon it was completely silent, and we glided over the tree tops and herds of gorgeous animals. 

The Animals from Above

Water buffalo grazing on some delicious Serengeti grass.

A family of seven lions roaming through the plains, we met up with them after the ride was over.

Come on this adventure with us! Your Hot Air Balloon Safari Awaits!

 I made my first imovie from the (iphone only) footage that I took during the ride. This video is entirely my creation including syncing it with the piece of music that kept playing in my head during the balloon ride, Mahler 1!

What to look for:

Notice the herds of animals running in the opening of the video w/the trumpet fanfare. The birds that you hear in the background are the original audio from the video, I felt like the real chirping birds fit in perfectly with the music!

Notice the giraffes and zebras having an early morning snack on the hill side.

Later in the video notice the 7 lions that are frolicking through the plains, the cubs were adorable!

During the part of the video with the balloon shadow, notice the lines in the earth, those are elephant tracks, elephants actually cause quite a bit of damage to their environment and they often knock over trees as well.

Last but not least did you see/hear that the hot air balloon flames at the end line up perfectly with the music?? That was not planned at all. Love it!

Thank you to our guide Joe Kibwe for taking these gorgeous photos from the ground as he followed the balloon in his Land Rover.

"A symphony must be like the world. It must contain everything."

- Gustav Mahler

Singita: Faru Faru

"Fill At Home"...You fill me?

We woke up on the third morning and started the day with a game drive that would lead us all the way to Faru Faru,  just in time for their famous meze fare lunch, and for a few hours we would have the entire lodge all to ourselves. Now that's privacy. As we dismounted from the Rover we were welcomed with the traditional Singita lavender scented hot moist towels and delicious herbal iced tea. After we had a tour of the main lodge and pool area we were whisked away to our own private room, bungalow 8. 

Coming from Sasakwa you feel a swift contrast with Faru Faru's youthful and somewhat playful tone. I'm not going to lie, the moment I walked in, I knew it was going to be difficult to leave. Faru Faru is in the style of a modern 1940's botanist retreat (in which case, I may have missed my calling as a 1940's botanist) , and each room has all of the tools you would need to knit, paint, and draw. I didn't need much encouragement to feel artistic in this beautiful setting, within an hour of arriving both of us were inspired and ready to paint.

PTO

S. Angelo

S. Angelo

This was our first vision the morning we woke at Faru Faru, it was painfully beautiful, to the point that I rolled out of bed at 6am just to paint a picture of it, so that I would NEVER forget it. 

S. Angelo

 I wanted to capture that pink sky and the one tall and bare tree that was black from the back-light, with its intricate branches, and the gorgeous pink reflection in the calm swirling river...mmmmm. I've never seen 6am look more beautiful, and I an NOT a morning person, but in the Serengeti we woke up every morning just before 5am and felt more alive than ever, no coffee necessary. (But how can you say no to a hot cup of Tanzanian Gold?)

 It's amazing how painting and drawing, more than anything else, helps you to burn an image into your mind. Simply taking a photo can never have the same effect. It's all about studying and analyzing the subject until your own mind begins to interpret it in a visually artistic way, then something changes, you begin to study the color more carefully and the angles and minute details with intent. Then and only then do you look at a landscape that is mostly green and brown and obsess over the minor variations in color and texture, you quickly realize that no tree, leaf, or blade of grass is exactly alike. 

I should probably continue this conversation with master landscape artist and mother of Lily Shapiro, Ilse Gordon. I could also use a serious lesson in depth and 3-dimensional space!

Bungalow 8 - 

Not to be confused with the early 2000's NYC hot spot. If Amy Sacco's creation was anything like this...it would have never closed!

     This tented bungalow took my breath away, the design was impeccable and modern, equipped with an outdoor shower and patio, and a tub that sits right up against the glass so that you can gaze at the babbling brook (stole that one from Annie) or raging river, depending on whether it's rained.  There was something about it's simplicity and clean lines that was soothing to the eye and made you feel immediately relaxed. The front of the bungalow one huge window over looking the Grumeti river, which opens with the press of a button, allowing the room to become part of nature, immediately you're engulfed by the sound of the river, the birds, and of course the baboons. On the other side of the Grumeti you see zebra, gazelle, and impala grazing.

 Main Lodge & Pool -

The main lodge is built with all natural materials and is completely open.

  Life along the Grumeti River -

 

The elusive colobus monkey, we were very lucky to spot these cuties with their white puffy tails.

This tree was spellbinding.

Baby terrapin.

Nice choppers.

Bye, bye birdie...

Baboon Bubble Bath - 

What better way to spend our afternoon than taking a nice hot bubble bath with our good friends Mr. & Mrs. Baboon?

The first encounter I had with a baboon at the bungalow was while I was looking in the mirror, applying my mascara. I caught a glimpse of something in the corner of my eye and as I turned my head to the right I locked eyes with the baboon, who had been watching me apply my makeup. I was a little startled and let out a shrill gasp, which caused Mr. Baboon to get upset, in fact he was pissed, he jumped on the outer ledge of the window and stomped his way to the back door. Peter and I literally thought he was going to open the door, as he stopped and looked back at us through the glass.

They're actually quite adorable, as they have the face of a dog with their long snouts. I watched them for at least and hour sitting in the tree and picking berries, eating them, then sometimes taking one bite and tossing it if it wasn't ripe enough. After witnessing this I no longer feel guilty about my fastidious nature when it comes to selecting produce.

 

Singita Surprise -

There's no surprise quite like a Singita surprise: we were told to be up and atum at 9am the morning after we arrived, for a surprise, so we jumped in the Land Rover and Joe drove until we reached a clearing next to the Grumeti River. Right there beside the river they had set up the most beautiful breakfast smorgasbord, complete with a full grill of sausages, eggs, potato pancakes, and crepes with chocolate and raspberry jam. It was absolutely lovely.

Later that night we came back to our bungalow to find rose pedals delicately placed on the floor spelling out, "FILL AT HOME", and a trail leading all the way to the bathtub that was drawn with bubbles, flowers, champagne, and candles scattered throughout the room. Thank you to our friend William at Faru Faru, for lovingly setting up that romantic scene. Authentic hospitality.

Our final and favorite surprise at Faru Faru was when we walked out of our bungalow at 8am to find a family of elephants directly outside our door. Peter walked out first, as was trying to get me to follow because we had to meet Joe, and all of a sudden he exclaimed, "There's a herd of elephant out here!!" to which I replied, "Yeah, yeah..I'm almost finished getting ready, cutie!" After a bit more convincing I walked out to find 15 elephant!! It was exhilarating, no one else was around, and we just stood there in awe of these ginormous, beautiful creatures. They didn't even seem to be bothered or stressed by our presence. We tried to get as close as possible without getting trampled on, my heart was racing.

These elephants were on a mission, they were getting a quick snack and moving right along. It seemed they had a destination in mind, because after we met up with our guide Joe, we  found them a mile away on the other side of the river.

Interesting Fact: Both male and female African elephants have beautiful ivory tusks, which grow for most of their lifetime and are an indicator of age. They are known to have very long lives, if everything goes well for them. Life expectancy is anywhere between 60 - 80 years old, they live longer than any other mammal in the animal kingdom. Elephants are "right- or left-tusked," one tusk is always shorter than the other. The shorter tusk is the one that they use the most. They use the favored tusk more as a tool which is why over time it gets worn down and shorter. 

In the elephant kingdom females are top, they're in charge, and they call the shots.
Each family has a matriarch, who always leads them wherever they go. When she starts walking, every one of them stops what they're doing and follows her. For elephants there is a very defined social order and they're an extremely close knit society, these female elephants create a connection and community that spans a lifetime. They care for one another deeply.  Elephant families can only be separated by death or capture.

 This sort of system helps to ensure successful survival and continuance of the species. So ladies, let this be a lesson to us all. Let's not forget, elephants are one of the most highly intelligent species in the animal kingdom. If women could get along as well as female elephants do we would be running the world...I for one am not going to hold my breath. Elephant power! Forgive me, Sheryl Sandberg, maybe its more than just leaning in, we should probably start by being nice to one another and helping each other. I know you addressed this at the end of the book, but I feel as though it should have been one of the most important and significant topics.

Crazy Fact: Elephants eat about 1,100 and 1,200 pounds of grass and branches every day. That must be exhausting! Every few feet they would stop for 30 seconds to a minute and grab some vegetation.

Nom nom.

The perfect bum scratching device.

Sweet little dumbo, trying to keep up.




"Being in close harmony with animals is important because through them, we learn so much."