Tanzanian Summer!: Second Non-Program Day: Biking and Shopping

First off, a very Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there, but especially to you, Pops! Love you so much! Can't wait to share all these stories and pictures with you in two weeks!

Today was a non-program day and a group of us went on a biking trip through town and ended at Lake Manyara where we stopped and took some photos of the lake and the mountains. We biked back to town and stopped at a nearby woodcarving shop, where the workers showed us some of their process. The carvings were beautiful and the craftsman ship in progress was very cool to watch. After biking, we headed into the Maasai Market in Mto Wa Mbu, a town next to camp, and shopped around for a bit – bargaining, of course.

Later on, we went to a small restaurant for lunch, where we drank banana milkshakes and had a few snacks. I’m not a huge fan of bananas other than in their regular form, but these milkshakes were unbelievably good! Not too sweet and just enough milk. So good!

We finally returned to camp and after a few hours of exhaustive bargaining and a lot of biking, I’m sore and tired. But the day was a great break from lectures and projects. Tomorrow we’re heading the Manyara Ranch, which is part of the Manyara conservation area. We've been split up into groups and my group is dealing with the issue of management of the ranch and how it can become more sustainable while also dealing with the problems of wildlife in the area. It should be fun and interesting to talk to people and interview them on these issues that so many people are having in Manyara.