Unlike the National Parks where one is seldom allowed to walk around and is banished to the dusty confines of a Land Rover, my area is pretty safe to explore anywhere anytime. Although Tanzania is known as the heart of African wildlife, many people opt to spend a day or two around Lake Eyasi for a unique cultural experience with the nearby tribes: the Hadzabe and the Datoga. The former is the more well-known of the two being a group of nomadic hunter-gatherer bushmen who have a language that utilizes intriguing click sounds. They are truly a fascinating group of people, and frequently Nani and Chris open their home to researchers from around the world who have come to study them.
Although I would love to wake up in the middle of the night to hear a lion or an elephant or see a Giraffe munching away on Acacias as I take an afternoon walk, it’s nice knowing I can roam about free from the eyes of a Tanzanian guide. Nonetheless, there are some pesky little fellows to be weary of.
First of all there are a plethora of poisonous snakes. Thankfully the birds and monkeys usually do a good job of raising an alarm, although I did have a minor encounter with an Egyptian Cobra the other day… Long story short I wasn’t paying attention as to where I was walking, almost stepped on it, looked down to see a 4 ft snake with it’s hood spread, but luckily it slithered off instead of striking. Dylan is extremely jealous and constantly reminds me how he’s lived here for 9 years and has never gotten to see a cobra spread its hood.
The next thing to fear are scorpions. I’ve heard numerous horror stories about these tiny devils. I’m pretty much terrified of them. The problem is that they’re so tiny and almost transparent and when it’s cold out they sneak inside nooks and crannies for warmth. I compulsively check my pillows and entire before I go to sleep, afraid that I’ll be stung in the middle of the night by a small thing that is known to make grown men whimper with pain. I’ve only actually seen two and I’m proud to say that I managed to kill the first on my own. The second was trapped by one of my watchmen and he sawed off its stinger. Since most Tanzanians (or at least the ones around here) won’t kill anything if they don’t have to, he then just picked it up and tossed it in the bush to live without its tail.
Kian always obsesses over rabid dogs and rabid hyenas (they had a problem a few years back) but my true fear is an insect known as the Assassin Bug. Just the name itself is enough to give you shivers. But what is even more terrifying to me is the description that I found in a book. Regarding scorpions it said something to the effect of extremely painful sting, but under Assassin Bug it warned excruciating pain. After hearing the accounts of scorpion survivors I can’t even fathom what a sting from one of these buggers (pun somewhat intended) would be like. I’ve spotted about three in my house, but luckily we’ve taken care of them- killing them in various ways.
Thank goodness my bed is surrounded by a mosquito net, which at least makes me feel like I’m protected.
As far as the animal game goes, I think the score has about evened up. And it’s halftime. I’ll spare all the unexciting stories and details, but between finding a dead donkey that we managed to set up near a tree to fix our cameras and record numerous spotted hyenas devour it during the night, avoiding an attack by that cobra, and daily sightings of the baby striped hyena, I’ve certainly made a comeback. Nonetheless I think a gecko climbing on the ceiling pooped on me the other day. Can’t win ’em all.
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