Within our tour group, everyone had a different "favorite African moment."
For me, the #1 Africa moment wasn't hearing the roar of the lion, or the thundering herds of wildebeest, or even the elusive leopard. It was the spectacular sight of two million (or so) pink flamingos at Kenya's Lake Nakuru. The raucous army (or pat, as a flock of flamingos is called) of graceful pink and white birds, stretching for miles as far as the eye could see, was an absolutely spectacular sight.
This was the African moment that made me smile the most, and the one that I found hardest to leave behind.
Marching back and forth amidst the crowd were clumps of courting flamingos (above and below) performing an elaborate, synchronized courtship dance. According to our guide, the groups are usually composed of one male and 2-10 females. They were like a drill team, performing in perfect synchrony. When one animal turned left, they all turned left. When one stopped, they all stopped. It was a hilarious performance to watch.
Zebras (above) and buffalo (below) mingled with the flamingos.
If I had to choose to see only one thing in Africa, the pink flamingos of Lake Nakuru would be it.
TOP FIVE AFRICAN MOMENTS
Awesome! Where do I sign up for a trip?
Posted by: Joanne F | Tuesday, September 18, 2007 at 01:31 PM
That truly is a georgeous scene, with the pink against the shades of blue. And I thought flamingos were only in Florida...
It looks like you had wonderful weather, too. I came upon a headline describing torrential rains in Uganda and so feared the neighboring countries were also hit. But it looks like you had a perfect day, at least at Lake Nakuru.
In regards to your comment -- "Dale: Is counting wrong???" -- I was just teasin'. I could picture you coming up with your numbers by adding up those millions of beasts one by one: thirty-eight, thrity-nine...
I would love to go to Africa and see the animals peacefully strolling about. It's the Darwinian scenes that I fear (as made quite vivid in a recent and famous UTube video of an African Safari--the one with the baby water buffalo being pulled from one end by lions and the other by a croc, although there was a happy ending!). I bet you have a few tales like that coming down the line. Please warn me so I can prepare myself for reality.
Looking forward to #s 2-5. BTW, there were two deer outside my window late last night. The sight gave me a thrill. I can only imagine what you experienced in comparison.
Posted by: Dale B. | Tuesday, September 18, 2007 at 01:35 PM
Joanne: You can sign up here http://www.intoafrica.co.uk/ ;o)
Dale: OK, consider this a heads up - #3 on the list will be "Darwinian." Regarding the weather, it was perfect. We had a couple nights with very light rain, but other than that it was great. It was colder than I expected though.
Posted by: Basia | Thursday, September 20, 2007 at 09:06 AM
They look fantastic. Did they make a lot of noise?
Posted by: Genilimaa | Sunday, October 28, 2007 at 01:35 PM
Genilimaa: Yes, they were pretty noisy. But it was music to my ears (unlike your brass band ;o) ) They were also kind of stinky, with so many of them pooping at once. But nevertheless sensational...
Posted by: Basia | Monday, October 29, 2007 at 10:40 AM
Your comment "This was the sight that I found hardest to leave behind" brings back very fond memories of lake Nakuru. I was born in Nakuru hospital and when old enough, went to Nakuru school. Every day at school we looked out over the pink lake as there were more flamingoes there than of late. I had a wonderfull childhood but did not appriciate it at the time.
Posted by: Peter Ace | Wednesday, January 09, 2008 at 11:02 PM
Peter Ace: Lucky you! How fantastic that would be, to see that gorgeous sight every day.
Posted by: Basia | Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 08:57 AM