Masai Mara

The last stop of the safari was the Masai Mara. We spent two nights at the Mara Simba Lodge.
Here we saw families of elephants casually walking across the plains.



There were some unique looking trees.
This is a sausage tree (Kigelia africana).

It gets its name because the fruits look like sausages hanging in a butcher shop.
We were told that this is a favorite fruit of the elephants.
The third type of giraffe we saw was the masai giraffe.
The spots are similar to the Rothschild giraffe, but it doesn't have the white knee socks.
There were lots of grazing animals, including antelopes, gazelles, and this hartebeest.
We saw lots of hawks, eagles, and vultures, but none were as beautifully colored as this lilac breasted roller.

The stars of the Masai Mara were the lions.

It was incredible how close we were able to get to them.
Watching the cubs snuggle and play with each other was a treat.


Once the lions decided they were tired with being watched, we went back to the lodge.

I had the chance to go on a walking safari with two maasai guides and a ranger.
We walked right up to the bank of a river filled with hippos.
One didn't seem thrilled about posing for my camera, so it was time to move on.

I didn't need to worry about the ranger firing his gun. Other than the hippos, we didn't see any large animals. The most exciting find was this dung beetle.

and this lizard
and the huge galls on this acacia tree filled with ants.

Back at the lodge, we were entertained by vervet monkeys who liked the tree next to our patio.

Is he making a pass at me?
or trying to impress his girlfriend?
The tree next to our patio was also popular with bats.
These banded mongooses were very entertaining to watch. They were part of a group of about 12.

They chased this eagle from tree to tree to bush to rock. I was surprised the eagle didn't pick one off for dinner (and to teach the rest a lesson).

Just as it was starting to rain, we spotted this male ostrich

along with the female.

As the rain picked up, I got a quick look at this hyena. Then we had to hurry back as roads were starting to turn to rivers.

We were there at the height of the wildebeest migration. I was disappointed that we were staying too far from the Mara River to watch them cross. But there were lots of wildebeests in the park, which made the lions and vultures very content (and full!)


Why did the wildebeest cross the road?

To get a gnu name!

Our guide didn't have much of a sense of humor when I told him that joke.

The zebras frequently stayed with the wildebeest herds. I think because they can outrun the wildebeests if a lion tries to eat them.
This was the favorite pose of the zebra. Every time I had a nice shot lined up, they would turn and moon me as I clicked the shutter.

It was time for the safari to end and for us to head to Zanzibar for some beach time.

Crystal City Planes

Entering Crystal City (a section of Arlington VA), I noticed an artistically decorated airplane. Then another. Then another. Suddenly they were everywhere!

It turns out, that I arrived during one of the last days of Crystal Flight, a celebration of art and air. The planes were set to be on display from April through July 2008. While I only saw a few of them, there are a total of 50 decorated planes located throughout a 4.5 mile path in Crystal City. Below are a few that I saw.

Barnstorming - outside of the metro stop

Ecoplane

This shiny jewelry encrusted one was found outside the Crystal City shopping mall.
Look at all this great costume jewelry!

Grasshopper

Kong Returns

Pug pilot

ShamFLEW

Wild Ride

Fuzzy Dice

I don't remember the name of this one...
it might be Fruit Flies
Or this one might be Fruit Flies.

Sticky and icky!

I just returned from a business trip to Arlington VA. I spent two nights at the Doubletree Crystal City hotel. In general, the hotel was ok, as long as you didn't eat in their restaurants (bad service and mediocre food).

My room was functional, but left a lot to be desired. When I walked into my room, I nearly gagged. There was a smell that was a combination of stale smoke (this was a non-smoking room), mildew, and sewage. Yummy! When I asked to change rooms, I was told that the hotel was completely full and no other rooms were available. I sprayed the room with Febreze and cranked up the a/c hoping to get rid of the smell. It was only about 10% effective.

The a/c worked great, but sounded like a jet was taking off. It was so loud I couldn't hear the tv or talk on the phone while it was on. I ended up turning it off while I slept.

Though not a problem, I was a bit baffled as to why many of the outlets were crooked. Below is a picture of the bathroom wall, with very crooked light switches. Just to the left of the outlets, you can see lovely brown spackle on the wall. There were also various stains on some of the towels and the bathroom counter. Other than that, it looked like the bathroom had at least been cleaned, and all the plumbing worked well (other than the shower head placed way too low).

The light switch and outlet on the wall next to my bed were also installed at odd angles. In addition, there was a large area that looked as though a picture used to hang there. The hardware was still on the wall.
But the real pièce de résistance of the room was the sticky wall! Yes, sticky! In order to not be too grossed out, I decided that a spray adhesive was applied to the wall behind the (missing) picture to keep it from moving if bumped. Since there was no longer a picture, I was left with a big sticky spot.
After getting over the initial gross out factor, I invented a fun game to see what would stick to the wall and for how long.

The wall was sticky enough to hold a Kleenex forever (or at least until I got bored and removed it).

A piece of note paper only stuck for about 30 seconds.
A washcloth only stuck for about 15 seconds.
A hand towel was too heavy and wouldn't stick at all.
A pen didn't have enough surface area to stick.

Gila Bend is out of this world!

About 70 miles southwest of Phoenix is the small town of Gila Bend. If you are traveling from Phoenix to Yuma or San Diego, or heading down to Rocky Point Mexico, you will probably find yourself driving through this town. I have to admit, I rarely stop for more than a quick bathroom break, fill the gas tank, or to grab something cold to drink.
Outside one of the gas stations on the east side of town are a couple of metal sculptures. Being that it is the desert southwest, I understand the rattlesnake.

Watch out for the fangs on this guy!
I'm still not quite sure how the brontosaurus fits in. At least make it a T-Rex.
If you decide that you must own your very own sculpture (unpainted) just drive a few blocks west and one can be yours.

I can't tell you how disappointed I was that one of these giant beauties wouldn't fit in my car. I so wanted one for my front yard!

Giant metal animals aside, when I think of Gila Bend, I think of one thing. The Space Age Lodge!
Although I've never stayed here, I can't help but think of how hip you would have been to stay here in the early 60s when it was brand new!
There is amazing detail in the exterior design of the building and the signs.

I love how the rooms have little space ships on their doors. It also looked like glitter or something was embedded in the exterior paint. When the sun caught it just right, the building glistened.
Even the detail around the pool is amazing. All the pool hardware is stored in the geodesic dome on the left side of the picture.

Globe trotting

If you're craving a bit of western and Americana kitch, a quick day trip to Globe, AZ should cure that craving.

Globe is full of historic buildings.


From central Phoenix, it is about an hour and a half drive (east on Hwy 60) to Globe. As you approach Superior and continue to Miami and Globe, the scenery is beautiful - with interesting rock formations.