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Lake Manyara
En route from Tarangire to Lake Manyara, a rough road flattens even these well-treaded tires.
An inland lake in the Great Rift Valley, Manyara has no outlet, so the water turns brackish as dissolved salts accumulate -- a "Dead Sea" in the making.
Nonetheless, a variety of game inhabits the turf around Lake Manyara.
Mahogany trees flourish there, as well.
Where there's wood, there's bound to be -- what else -- something that eats it! Termite castles 4 ft high had their own Manyara style -- these relatives of the cockroach (not the ant, as commonly believed) host microorganisms in their gut which help digest cellulose. The mounds take their color and style from the soil of the area (Tarangire's mounds were red from the color of that region's volcanic ash).
A lunch break in the shade is laid out with tablecloth on the hood, laden with fried chicken, quiche, salad, bananas, and soft drinks. Then it's off to Gibbs Farm for a "layover" on the way to Ngorongoro Crater.
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