Tanzania is situated on the eastern side of Africa, and is bordered by seven other African states and the Indian Ocean. Its capital, with its Parliament, is in the centre at Dodoma, but Dar es Salaam on the coast is the country’s principal commercial city. This port also serves Tanzania’s bordering land-locked countries as their main port.
Africa’s highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro, is in the north with the incomparable Ngorongoro game park nearby. This Reserve is situated in a long-extinct volcano and driving down the crater you will see tiny dots on the horizon. These will emerge from the shimmering haze as animals. It is home to an astonishing array of different breeds. For as far as the eye can see around and on the slopes of the crater, the land is covered with wildebeest, zebra, lion, cheetah and hippo, amongst many others.
Not too far away is the equally imposing Serengeti National Park where giraffe can be seen grazing on the thorny Acacia trees which bloom with a yellow mist of flowers in a sea of undulating greeny-yellow grass.
From the glacial heights of Kilimanjaro, through rainforest and grassland it is but a short hop to the spice island of Zanzibar on an internal flight.
Zanzibar is approximately 90sq miles in size with some forest areas. There is no big game on the island, but smaller animals such as antelope, bush-pig, civet and monkey and in some more rural areas there are large flutters of butterfly. This island is also well known for a variety of spices such as cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and pepper.
There is a sister island called Pemba which is lush and verdant in contrast to its neighbour, but only for a visit. It is hilly and covered with coconut, clove and mango plantations.
On all the islands in this region, there is wonderful diving in clear waters and game fishing for the most ardent enthusiast! Tanzania and Zanzibar have a wealth of game to view and some glorious beach hotels.