Lena's dream trip to Tanzania

Traveling to Tanzania with my adult children is one of the best things I have ever done. We left wintery Sweden behind and landed in Arusha, where our safari adventure began.
Throughout the trip, we stayed at various glamping lodges—a perfect combination of adventure, comfort, and closeness to nature.

On our first morning in Tarangire, we knew it was going to be an amazing trip. One of my strongest memories is sitting on the lodge terrace eating breakfast, looking out over the savannah as it slowly came to life. Suddenly, we heard a crackling sound and a whole family of elephants appeared just a stone's throw away. We sat completely silent, coffee cups in hand, and watched them slowly move past. It was an almost surreal moment that we still talk about at home.

Another memory is when a curious little monkey suddenly stole my son's toast right off his plate and then sat down on a fence and ate it in front of us, as if he wanted to see our reaction.
Or when a very stubborn baboon decided that our jeep was the perfect place to rest and lay down on the roof of the jeep. 

In Serengeti, we stayed at a glamping lodge where the tent walls made us feel like we were truly part of nature. We fell asleep to the sound of hyenas and woke up to birdsong. The daily game drives offered everything from playful cheetahs to elephants and countless zebras and wildebeests. Standing in the jeep at sunrise and seeing the savannah bathed in golden light was pure magic.

The day in the Ngorongoro Crater felt like stepping into another world. In just a few hours, we saw more animals than we could ever have imagined: large herds of buffalo, lions resting in the grass and, to our great delight, even the rare black rhino. It was far away, but through our binoculars we could see a horn sticking up.
The dramatic landscape, together with the incredible wildlife, made this one of the absolute highlights of the trip.

One animal I hadn't thought much about before the trip was ostriches, but they were really fun to watch. We got a great video of them running in the grass, which my daughter likes to watch when she goes to bed and laughs at.
She also laughs when I try to pronounce "Ngorongoro," and our guide laughed and said I got ten out of ten for effort, but two out of ten for pronunciation.
It was a little sad to say goodbye to him. We thought he was absolutely fantastic!

After the safari, we ended our trip with a week of relaxation in Paje, Zanzibar. There, the dust of the savannah was replaced by beaches, turquoise water, and lazy days by the sea. Paje was just what we needed—relaxed, warm, and beautiful. We ate fresh fish at beach restaurants, went on little excursions, and enjoyed just being together and talking about our memories.
A fond memory from there is an evening when we were playing cards on the beach and suddenly a local guy stood next to us and wanted to "join in and learn the rules." Fifteen minutes later, he beat us.

This was a trip that gave us memories for life. A perfect balance between adventure and relaxation – and a reminder of how precious time together really is. Tanzania will always have a special place in our hearts, and we are already longing to return.